- vcf-midatlantic - lists.vcfed.org

Festivus: big sale on old VCF/club shirts
by Evan Koblentz 13 Nov '15

13 Nov '15

All of the old shirts (VCF East, blue club polos) need to go. $5/each donations to the Federation per item. We'll have a big box at Festivus.

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Semi-OT: interviewing SSH inventor
by Evan Koblentz 13 Nov '15

13 Nov '15

I'm interviewing the guy who invented SSH. It will probably be tomorrow or Monday. This is for work so it's forward-looking, but I definitely will ask him some history questions. Feel free to make useful suggestions.

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RIP, Gene Amdahl
by Evan Koblentz 13 Nov '15

13 Nov '15

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/13/technology/gene-amdahl-pioneer-of-mainfra…

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OT: CS books for kids
by Evan Koblentz 13 Nov '15

13 Nov '15

Here is a good article about CS books for children. http://www.supercs.net/2015/11/13/computer-science-childrens-reading-list/

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Hoodie
by Bill Dromgoole 12 Nov '15

12 Nov '15

Just sent a paypal payment for VCF hoodie. BillDrom

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Hoodies again...
by Evan Koblentz 12 Nov '15

12 Nov '15

Only 12 people placed orders so far (I'll be 13). Doesn't anyone else want a new Federation hooded sweatshirt? I will keep posting until the deadline this Friday at 5pm, because I don’t want to get a bunch of guilt trips when people at Festivus ask, "Isn't there one for me?" :)

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PDP-8/E Simulator
by Al Hartman 12 Nov '15

12 Nov '15

Not my interest, but thought others on the list would like it: PDP-8/E Simulator, from Bernhard Baehr, emulates the classic Digital Equipment PDP-8/E minicomputer with software that runs on a Mac. Features include a "comfortable user interface" for running, writing and debugging PDP-8 software; viewing and editing memory; breakpoints, single step execution, and a trace mode; a plug-in API; a programmer's console; a virtual TSC8-75 board to run the ETOS time sharing OS; an ASR 33 Console Teletype, ASR 33 Auxiliary Teletype, PC8-E High Speed Paper Tape Reader and Punch, a RK8-E Disk Cartridge System and more. PDP-8/E Simulator is free, open-source software for PowerPC and Intel Macs running Mac OS X 10.4 and up. Benchmarks show that the PDP-8/E Simulator outperforms a hardware PDP-8/E in orders of magnitude when running on reasonable current Macs. There are options to slow down the CPU and the I/O devices to the speed of the real hardware. http://www.bernhard-baehr.de/pdp8e/pdp8e.html

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Altair Parts for 8800b On Ebay Will Deliver to Festivus
by Kyle Owen 11 Nov '15

11 Nov '15

On Wed, Nov 11, 2015 at 12:58 PM, Bill Sudbrink via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org> wrote: > > I need a lid if someone is planning to buy one of those > and part it out but I don't have the cash or time to > do it myself right now. I need a transformer, and I'm in the same boat...too little cash, too little time. Thanks, Kyle

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Altair Parts for 8800b On Ebay Will Deliver to Festivus
by william degnan 11 Nov '15

11 Nov '15

Avert your eyes if you can't handle buying things on Ebay, but here it comes...... I just put up two parts lots and already have one working CPU card, all from various MITS Altair 8800b systems that might be useful to someone looking to replace a rusty chassis etc MITS Altair 8800b CPU BD - Tested Working (Ebay 272036053088 ) MITS Altair 8800b Turnkey Parts Lot 1 - MITS branded (Ebay 272043253388 ) MITS Altair 8800b Turnkey Parts Lot 2 Pertec Serial Number #17... (Ebay 272043278392 ) I will deliver to Festivus!!!! Bill

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FS: IBM Simon
by Evan Koblentz 11 Nov '15

11 Nov '15

Selling my beloved IBM Simon because I'm strapped for funds. Found out my latest freelance work payment won't arrive in time to cover overdue bills. @&#%=!!! .... so this is urgent. For those not familiar with it, Simon is (apparently) the "first" smartphone. I hate the word "first" for computer history.... anyway this one is fully working, has a brand new battery (thanks to modern BatteriesPlus store -- they custom built it for me), two chargers, PC connection kit, original manual, and is generally in great condition. It needs a little bit of paint touch-up on the sealed battery case from where I had to open it and then epoxy it closed a couple of workshops ago (not meant to be user serviceable and the original batteries are no longer available.) Someday, this will be worth a LOT of money, when people realize how historic it is...... Please email me PRIVATELY with any offers. Not planning to eBay this because I don’t want to wait a week for payment and, honestly, I'd rather see it go to a good home. I was going to donate it to our museum one day. Reality intervened. :(

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new desktop/micro exhibit -- pick 32 now
by Al Hartman 11 Nov '15

11 Nov '15

The one computer I wish the museum had and could display is a BeBox. That was a very innovative computer. BeOS can be shown on a PPC Mac (7200 - 7600, or a Power Computing/Motorola Clone), but the BeBox hardware is pretty snazzy looking. If I ever spot one for sale at a price I can afford, I'm grabbing one. -[ Al ]-

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Timex/Sinclair 2068 Cartridge Boards
by Al Hartman 10 Nov '15

10 Nov '15

Mark Blair (NF6X) designed Cartridge boards for both the Tandy Color Computer, and the TS-2068 Computer. I ordered some of each. The bare PC boards from OSHPark arrived yesterday. I built one of the TS-2068 up today, and will be testing it with a Spectrum Emulator EPROM and an OS-64 EPROM (I have ten of these chips from Zebra Systems, and have permission to make more. OS-64 give a TS-2068 a 64 column screen.) I had to order a bunch of boards to get a decent price. You have to buy three at a time from OSHPark. In that quantity, they come out to a little under $19.00 each board. So, I have a few extras. If anyone on the list is interested in a TS-2068 Cartridge board, I can offer single bare boards for $20.00 including shipping in the Continental U.S. Only. Add $5.00 more for a kit of all the parts to build one up. I haven't determined the price for a board built-up with OS-64 or a Spectrum ROM yet. But it looks like it will be around $35.00 shipped. You might want to build your own, as my soldering skills are far from expert and I'm sure there are many on the list who do cleaner work. I can ship bare boards, and kits now. Built up boards will take me a little time to make and test. https://oshpark.com/shared_projects/6ihON5Uq CoCo Cartridge Board: https://oshpark.com/shared_projects/aMK1Ekos I'm using the Coco Cartridge board to make an HDBDOS cartridge to boot Drivewire (use a PC/Mac/Linux as a disk server over serial cable) without needing to CLOADM a wave file with the software. Eventually, I'll dig up my Coco Disk Controller that can switch between two ROMS, and have one be a standard Coco Disk Extended BASIC, and the other HDBDOS. Since there are separate versions for the Coco 2 and 3, Mark helped me make up a file with both versions so I can bank switch between them using a 27128 EPROM. -[ Al ]-

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Reminder: hoodie orders
by Evan Koblentz 10 Nov '15

10 Nov '15

Repeating the original message... ---------------------------- We are ready to take orders for the Federation hoodies. They'll be black with front pockets and (obviously) hoods. Design will be our new logo on the front. Only change is the keys won't have the gray shadow, because that would be a third color and too expensive. Speaking of prices: Small through XL = $20, 2XL = $25, 3XL = $30. All are men's sizes. Kids/womens/or anything bigger than 3XL not available at this time. ***** VERY IMPORTANT: ***** - All orders MUST be placed by next Friday (Nov. 13) at 5PM ET. At that point I'll email our order to the shirt company. Procrastinators will have to wait for another batch some other time. - You must prepay. Hoodies are too expensive for us to lay out the money and chase you down for it later. Acceptable methods of payment are through PayPal (hoodies(a)vintagecomputerfederation.org) or send a check to Vintage Computer Federation. Our address is P.O. Box 417, Eatontown, NJ, 07724. - Put the sizes and quantities you want into the PayPal comments box or the check memo field. - DO NOT say "I'll take size XYZ" in email (to me, the list, or wherever) and expect us to fill that order. Follow instructions above.

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our Youtube account
by Evan Koblentz 10 Nov '15

10 Nov '15

Everyone, I need to change the custom URL of our YouTube account. They're saying we need 100 account subscribers to do that. We have 41. So, please visit https://www.youtube.com/user/MidAtlanticRetroComp and subscribe to the account. :)

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FS: Interest Check: Tarbell Rebel S100 System
by Systems Glitch 10 Nov '15

10 Nov '15

I've got a late-to-the-game S100 system I'm going to part with. It's a Tarbell Rebel -- made by *that* Tarbell, the guys who made the well-known cassette and floppy interfaces for the S100 bus. This is a much later system sporting an IEEE-696 compatible multi-CPU processor board. The CPU board includes an Intel 80186 (one of those ceramic leadless packages in a Textool ZIF) and an 8 MHz Z80, as well as a few K of static RAM, a WD2793 floppy controller, 2681 UART, 8259 interrupt controller, and boot ROM. I've got the dual serial port breakout cable for the CPU board. Other boards include a Morrow HDC/DMA MFM hard disk controller and several static RAM boards. It's in a generic-looking S100 chassis with 8-slot terminated motherboard, linear power supply, and space for 2x full height 5.25 drive/ 4x half height. There are two half-height floppies installed. The case looks pretty generic, but does have "TARBELL REBEL" stickers on the front (not even silkscreened!). I have two full-height MFM hard drives for it, in an external disk box, which is also labeled as being Tarbell equipment. The thing is, there is *no* documentation on the CPU board. I can barely find mention of this system in old magazine ads. I feel that, in that sense, it's probably worth more parted out. The S100 chassis is generic, but the power supply is good and the motherboard is terminated. I've used it as a test system with a Vector Graphic ZCB. The CPU board does *something* -- it'll seek a floppy drive to track 0 on reset, but I don't get a monitor prompt on either serial port. So, is anyone interested in the whole system, with hard drives and all? Shipping will be a pain -- expensive, and has the potential to wreck the old MFM drives. I'll be at Festivus this year, so I could drop it off there. Thanks, Jonathan

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] CPUs was Re: new desktop/micro exhibit
by Evan Koblentz 09 Nov '15

09 Nov '15

> I think there should be a section for important processors. There are lots of exhibits that we should have, but we will weigh space vs resources. I agree with the wall-mount ideas.

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FS: National Instruments LAB-NB NuBus Analog/Digital IO Cards
by Systems Glitch 09 Nov '15

09 Nov '15

I've got two of these: www.ebay.com/itm/272041267556 I don't have any NuBus Macs, so I'm unable to test them. They're in good condition, a little bit dusty. These will work with LabVIEW 5, the last 68k version of LabVIEW, which is available through several popular Mac abandonware sites. Thanks, Jonathan

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] CPUs was Re: new desktop/micro exhibit
by Tony Bogan 09 Nov '15

09 Nov '15

Christian and Christopher's messages also came through with the body text as mime attachments. However, opening the mime attachments revealed their messages. Tony Sent from my iPhone > On Nov 9, 2015, at 10:49 AM, Christian Liendo via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org> wrote: > > <mime-attachment>

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] CPUs was Re: new desktop/micro exhibit
by Dean Notarnicola 09 Nov '15

09 Nov '15

Christian and Christopher's message Jodie's both blank. On Monday, November 9, 2015, Christopher Blackmon via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org> wrote: >

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10 PRINT "STOP POSTING TO THE OLD LIST"
by Evan Koblentz 09 Nov '15

09 Nov '15

20 GOTO 10 :)

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] CPUs was Re: new desktop/micro exhibit
by Christopher Blackmon 09 Nov '15

09 Nov '15

I don't think anyone is. But like I told Evan. I think there should be a section for important processors. The museum should have a section with important CPUs such as the Cosmac. ------ Perhaps a wall-mounted picture frame type display with various processors in it?Just a suggestion. Christopher.

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new desktop/micro exhibit -- pick 32 now
by Herb Johnson 09 Nov '15

09 Nov '15

New entry: RCA COSMAC Microtutor with 1801 COSMAC chipset (became 1802 microprocessor). It's small and rare. The museum has one. Dates to 1974 probably. Other reasons: First CMOS microprocessor, which matters because many subsequent microprocessor used CMOS to reduce power. RCA created the CMOS process for digital logic chips and then for the COSMAC. One of the first microprocessor development products from RCA. The COSMAC microprocessor was developed here in New Jersey. Likely the first microprocessor in space. May be the first microprocessor for emissions controls in cars (Chrysler). Direct predecessor of the "COSMAC ELF", a popular you-wire-it COSMAC design by the lead COSMAC developer Joseph Weisbecker; published in Popular Electronics. Many many versions of the ELF have been created and produced every decade since, to the present day. Used in RCA video game and video terminal products (not that popular but known to collectors of early video game computers). Those who argue the 1802 "was a loser so forgetit" might explain why a computing museum should show only "the winners", and set a dollar or production count for "winning". To make space: If space is needed, I suggest choosing between the Commodore 64 and the Commodore VIC-20. I'm sure they are very different but I'm not sure many people would know the difference. The Commodore brand is well-represented among the choices given. The VIC-20 and C-64 could take turns on display. Herb Johnson -- Herbert R. Johnson, New Jersey USA http://www.retrotechnology.com

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My test with a new e-mail address
by Jeffrey Brace 09 Nov '15

09 Nov '15

Apparently the new list doesn't work with MSN, so I have missed many posts. So I changed it to my gmail address. Let's hope that this is working.

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Museum report
by Evan Koblentz 08 Nov '15

08 Nov '15

Went to the museum yesterday. There were three large groups visiting -- NJIT alumni (including our own Jeff J.), Air Force Association, and I forget the name of the third group. Each group had about a dozen people who were interested in our exhibits. There were also a decent amount of regular museum visitors, so it was a good day. Was going to do a few things in the warehouse but I forgot to bring the key! Anyway, I stayed and helped with the Halloween event (final night). InfoAge bought pizza for everyone afterward.

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Place your hoodie orders
by VAXman＠tmesis.org 07 Nov '15

07 Nov '15

Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic writes: >>> Sending this message to the old list in addition to new list, so >nobody >> claims "I didn't get it" later.... >> >> We are ready to take >orders for the Federation hoodies. They'll be black >> with front >pockets and (obviously) hoods. Design will be our new logo on >> the >front. Only change is the keys won't have the gray shadow, because >> >that would be a third color and too expensive. > > Logo? > >Posted a while back: http://www.snarc.net/vcf-logo-preview.png > >Only change for the sweatshirts is the keycap shadow will be gone, in >favor of an altered version with line-drawn keycaps. How large will it be on the hoodie and where?

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our new museum -- micro exhibit -- pick 28!
by Evan Koblentz 07 Nov '15

07 Nov '15

Everyone, This is going to be a fun thread. PLEASE DON'T FORK IT. :) Tentatively, we'll have space for 28 microcomputers in that section of our new museum exhibit. This begs the question: which ones? I made a preliminary list. Some ground rules: - Do we have the system and does it work or can realistically be made to work? - What is *** MOST *** historically important? (Thus some of our personal favorites may be initially excluded... examples: Atari 800, Commodore VIC-20, DEC Rainbow, Epson QX-10, and many others) - Exhibits aren't permanent, so some could be rotated in/out. ---------------------- That being said, here's my list of 28. We will probably display them chronologically. Pardon anything obvious that I forgot. Very important: Don't just reply with lists of other notable microcomputers, or make a huge fuss that the CyberBlahBlah-25 was the first with the XYTTTGH 8081 chip, etc. .... I want to hear solid arguments for/against the historical importance of whatever systems you think we should include/exclude. 1. Our homebrewed "Dudley" PDP-8 clone 2. Apple 1 (Mimeo) 3. Apple 2 4. Apple Lisa (2/10) 5. Apple Mac 128K 6. Apple Mac Portable 7. AT&T (but which one? 6300, 7300, or 3B2?) 8. Commodore PET 2001 9. Commodore 64 10. Commodore Amiga (500?) 11. Compaq Portable 12. HP-85B 13. IBM 5100 14. IBM 5150 15. IBM PC Jr. 16. IBM (or generic) Windows 3.1 17. IMSAI 8080 18. Mark-8 19. MITS Altair 8800 20. MOS Tech KIM-1 21. Osborne 1 22. Processor Tech SOL-20 23. Scelbi-8H (repro) 24. Sinclair ZX-80 25. SWTPC 6800 26. TRS-80 Model 1 27. TRS-80 Model 100 28. Xerox 860 And ..... go!

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] DOS Floppy Disks
by tom.hornberger＠verizon.net 07 Nov '15

07 Nov '15

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Testing new address
by Tony Bogan 07 Nov '15

07 Nov '15

Seeing if this works any better than the yahoo address. Tony Sent from my iPhone

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MINI WORKSHOP - Pottstown PA - Saturday November 14th
by tom.hornberger＠verizon.net 07 Nov '15

07 Nov '15

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] our new museum -- micro exhibit -- pick 28!
by Evan Koblentz 07 Nov '15

07 Nov '15

Aaarrrgghhh -- Chris' message arrived here as an .eml attachment. WTF is causing that and how do we fix it!!?? Anyway, Chris said this: --------------------- Whats missing: Atari 400/800.. Why? I can argue that this computer is the one that pushed home users from game machines to computers. Atari designed these machines for non-hobbyist home users by putting in cartridge ports and having composite output. They sold these through SEARS. I think these are engineering marvels for the time and are very under appreciated. I know that the PET/Apple II came out earlier, but they were not targeted to home users. Yes some people purchased them for the home. They were not designed that way. The Apple II was a $1200 just for the machine and over $2000 complete. I would argue that is not targeting the Home Computer Market. The Ti99/4 came out before the Atari but at $1,150 it was not targeted at the home market.. The TI99/4a in 1981 was at $525. VIC-20 First million sold, ushered in a lot of adoption Next Workstation Ahead of it's time, HTTPd developed, Web Developed @ CERN So I think these can be removed KIM-1, Should be part of a CPU collection, which I think the museum should have. IBM PC Jr., I don't see the significance HP-85B, I don't see the significance Our homebrewed "Dudley" PDP-8 clone. N Apple Mac Portable, there were earlier laptops SWTPC 6800 --------------------- My comments: >> Atari 400/800 ... They sold these through SEARS. Good point. >> I know that the PET/Apple II came out earlier, but they were not targeted to home users. Yes some people purchased them for the home. They were not designed that way. So? Exhibit isn't just about home computers. Nothing will convince us to remove the PET and Apple II. :) >> The Apple II was a $1200 just for the machine and over $2000 complete. I would argue that is not targeting the Home Computer Market. Schools, my friend!!! Apple II dominated. >> Next Workstation Ahead of it's time We don't have one. >> So I think these can be removed KIM-1, Should be part of a CPU collection, which I think the museum should have. Eventually. There won't be room for that exhibit in stage one. >> IBM PC Jr., I don't see the significance Big Blue's entry into home computing. >> HP-85B, I don't see the significance HP was a big player in engineering micros, while the home users were building Altairs and playing with BASIC .... I think we should teach this. Too many history books teach people that homebrew and hobby systems were the ONLY small computers back then. Our homebrewed "Dudley" PDP-8 clone. N As previously explained -- this is our best example, albeit technically a mini, of a desktop-sized homemade system. Got to show at least one such thing. Apple Mac Portable, there were earlier laptops Of course, I wrote a book about that. :) Maybe show something that was more of a commodity, such as (any) run-of-the-mill mid/late-1980s laptop.

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] eml attachments
by Evan Koblentz 07 Nov '15

07 Nov '15

> Simple fix for me. Add me to the list with the address: thebogans(a)mac.com Done. You'll get a confirmation email.

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Halloween, still!
by Evan Koblentz 06 Nov '15

06 Nov '15

InfoAge is keeping the Halloween scarefest open tonight and tomorrow night. Go visit!

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OT - Dell Monitor on Newegg Shell Shocker Deal
by Chris Fala 06 Nov '15

06 Nov '15

Seems like a great price for a 24" monitor. http://www.newegg.com/Special/ShellShocker.aspx http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824260338

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Place your hoodie orders
by VAXman＠tmesis.org 06 Nov '15

06 Nov '15

Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic writes: >Sending this message to the old list in addition to new list, so nobody >claims "I didn't get it" later.... > >We are ready to take orders for the Federation hoodies. They'll be black >with front pockets and (obviously) hoods. Design will be our new logo on >the front. Only change is the keys won't have the gray shadow, because >that would be a third color and too expensive. Logo?

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] our new museum -- micro exhibit -- pick 28! (Evan Koblentz)
by Bob Shuster 06 Nov '15

06 Nov '15

> 1. Our homebrewed "Dudley" PDP-8 clone > 2. Apple 1 (Mimeo) > 3. Apple 2 > 4. Apple Lisa (2/10) > 5. Apple Mac 128K > 6. Apple Mac Portable > 7. AT&T (but which one? 6300, 7300, or 3B2?) > 8. Commodore PET 2001 > 9. Commodore 64 > 10. Commodore Amiga (500?) > 11. Compaq Portable > 12. HP-85B > 13. IBM 5100 > 14. IBM 5150 > 15. IBM PC Jr. > 16. IBM (or generic) Windows 3.1 > 17. IMSAI 8080 > 18. Mark-8 > 19. MITS Altair 8800 > 20. MOS Tech KIM-1 > 21. Osborne 1 > 22. Processor Tech SOL-20 > 23. Scelbi-8H (repro) > 24. Sinclair ZX-80 > 25. SWTPC 6800 > 26. TRS-80 Model 1 > 27. TRS-80 Model 100 > 28. Xerox 860 > > And ..... go! I believe an 8-bit Atari system needs to be part of any exhibit concerning early microcomputers, either an Atari 400 or Atari 800. The first one came out in 1979 and was a logical extension to the successful Atari 2600 gaming console and was a big part of the “home computer as gaming console” movement. Star Raiders was the best game and a big selling point! If nothing else, Atari remained an important computer manufacturer, pushing the leading edge (for example first computer to include a MIDI interface with the ST line) and should be represented. Also noticeably missing is the TI 99/4 or 4a. Among the first (if not *the* first) 16-bit home computers, and the TI 99/4a held about 35% of the home computer market at its peak before Jack Tramiel and Commodore buried them. I definitely believe Atari and Texas Instruments should be represented as important companies in early home computing. I would also make a half-hearted appeal for a Mattel Aquarius computer, the least-successful home computer ever. This came out in 1983 to compete with the VIC-20 and TI 99/4a, and was cancelled four months later. About 8,000 were sold. - Bob Shuster

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Place your hoodie orders
by Evan Koblentz 06 Nov '15

06 Nov '15

Sending this message to the old list in addition to new list, so nobody claims "I didn't get it" later.... We are ready to take orders for the Federation hoodies. They'll be black with front pockets and (obviously) hoods. Design will be our new logo on the front. Only change is the keys won't have the gray shadow, because that would be a third color and too expensive. Speaking of prices: Small through XL = $20, 2XL = $25, 3XL = $30. All are men's sizes. Kids/womens/or anything bigger than 3XL not available at this time. ***** VERY IMPORTANT: ***** - All orders MUST be placed by next Friday (Nov. 13) at 5PM ET. At that point I'll email our order to the shirt company. Procrastinators will have to wait for another batch some other time. - You must prepay. Hoodies are too expensive for us to lay out the money and chase you down for it later. Acceptable methods of payment are through PayPal (hoodies(a)vintagecomputerfederation.org) or send a check to Vintage Computer Federation. Our address is P.O. Box 417, Eatontown, NJ, 07724. - Put the sizes and quantities you want into the PayPal comments box or the check memo field. - DO NOT say "I'll take size XYZ" in email (to me, the list, or wherever) and expect us to fill that order. Follow instructions above.

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] DOS Floppy Disks
by tom.hornberger＠verizon.net 06 Nov '15

06 Nov '15

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FS: Vintage 24 Bit Pattern Generators
by Systems Glitch 06 Nov '15

06 Nov '15

I've got three of these for sale: http://www.ebay.com/itm/272038025877 Zero information on them, they're just a RC oscillator driving a bunch of CMOS counters. Copyright date of 1985. They're powered from a single 3V lithium cell, which is included. Verified operation with my oscilloscope. These were probably intended to produce stable patterns for students familiarizing themselves with logic analyzers and/or oscilloscopes. Thanks, Jonathan

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Wow! Impressive list support
by Evan Koblentz 06 Nov '15

06 Nov '15

At my request, Jason H. sent our group's list research to the provider support people. They said there is one IP per server, and there's one U.S. server, so that issue is moot. Jason also told them: ------------------------------ We were seeing inconsistent spam flagging from some providers, the biggest of which was Google. We noticed that in some cases, incoming mail from www.mailmanlists.us to Google's SMTP servers were failing SPF validation. Looking into the headers of said messages showed two different scenarios. One where SMTP communication occurred over ipv4, which was fine. And one where it occurred over ipv6 which resulted in the following header: Received-SPF: softfail (google.com: domain of transitioning vcf-midatlantic-bounces(a)lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org does not designate 2604:3400:dc1:43:216:3eff:fe36:d305 as permitted sender) client-ip=2604:3400:dc1:43:216:3eff:fe36:d305; Adding your ipv6 address (2604:3400:dc1:43:216:3eff:fe36:d305) to our SPF record has cleared up the random spam flagging issue, but does raise a couple of other issues. Many times reverse lookups are used to help identify spam, since you don't have an AAAA record defined for www.mailmanlists.us, nor a reverse ptr record, this may cause an issue for some clients. Though we've not witnessed any adverse behavior attributable to this, it is something to keep in mind. A few suggestions on how to fix the issue for all your customers who may unknowingly be experiencing issues: 1) Either kill ipv6 on your host (which is probably not the right way forward given the way things are moving). or 2) Get your ipv6 entries setup, and have your clients add analogous ipv6 entries for their lists DNS and SPF records. Honestly, don't feel bad about this, I think google made some change a couple weeks ago and I was caught flat-footed on this with my own mail server when everyone suddenly started talking ipv6 to each other. ------------------------------ List support guy wrote back: "We'll follow your suggestions and get them done this afternoon." ------------------------------ That is amazing. - Evan

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Possible spam fix: DNS change
by Evan Koblentz 05 Nov '15

05 Nov '15

Yesterday's messages about our headers + spam made me realize we were on to something. I called Jason H. and he determined that the txt record in our DNS settings -- the GoDaddy registrar side, not the mailing list side -- needed to have an IPv6 entry (vs only an IPv4) to properly synchronize. We made that change. Jason will explain it better than I could. If it seems to be fixed then we'll inform the list company.

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Please read: Donations / Federation update
by VAXman＠tmesis.org 05 Nov '15

05 Nov '15

Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic writes: >Everyone, > >Here are some very important updates. > >Vintage Computer Federation, a 501(c)3 federal non-profit, is documented >by the IRS at http://tinyurl.com/pmvrur7. > >We are working on expanding our presence in popular sites such as >GuideStar, Charity Navigator, and wherever it seems appropriate. Our >fiscal year ends June 30. At that time, we'll make a public financial >report as required by federal law. > >However, with the calendar year ending in less than two months, now is >an excellent time for everyone to consider donating to us! You'll >receive a form to complete. You keep a copy, give another to us, and the >third to your tax preparer. > >Where would your donation go? > >Lots of places. It costs money to (for example) build our new museum >exhibits, conduct 'rescues' of vintage computers, host the Vintage >Computer Festival East, bring our exhibits to other events, get supplies >for workshops and Festivus, keep the storage warehouse organized, >maintain our (coming soon!) new web site, pay various accountant/legal >fees, buy insurance, market ourselves, and grow a capital fund for >future projects. > >There are two ways to donate. Traditionalists can send a check to: >Vintage Computer Federation, P.O. Box 417, Eatontown, NJ, 07724. PayPal >fans should use the email address >donations(a)vintagecomputerfederation.org. (There will also be a button on >the new web site, but that probably won't be ready for a while.) Is the Festivus fund tax deductible?

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Please read: Donations / Federation update
by Evan Koblentz 05 Nov '15

05 Nov '15

Everyone, Here are some very important updates. Vintage Computer Federation, a 501(c)3 federal non-profit, is documented by the IRS at http://tinyurl.com/pmvrur7. We are working on expanding our presence in popular sites such as GuideStar, Charity Navigator, and wherever it seems appropriate. Our fiscal year ends June 30. At that time, we'll make a public financial report as required by federal law. However, with the calendar year ending in less than two months, now is an excellent time for everyone to consider donating to us! You'll receive a form to complete. You keep a copy, give another to us, and the third to your tax preparer. Where would your donation go? Lots of places. It costs money to (for example) build our new museum exhibits, conduct 'rescues' of vintage computers, host the Vintage Computer Festival East, bring our exhibits to other events, get supplies for workshops and Festivus, keep the storage warehouse organized, maintain our (coming soon!) new web site, pay various accountant/legal fees, buy insurance, market ourselves, and grow a capital fund for future projects. There are two ways to donate. Traditionalists can send a check to: Vintage Computer Federation, P.O. Box 417, Eatontown, NJ, 07724. PayPal fans should use the email address donations(a)vintagecomputerfederation.org. (There will also be a button on the new web site, but that probably won't be ready for a while.)

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Semi-OT: Old Test Equipment
by Systems Glitch 05 Nov '15

05 Nov '15

Fired up my GenRad 1217-B Pulse Generator, which is mostly tubes (I think there's transistors in there somewhere, haven't had it apart in a long time), and set the pulse width to 1 mS: http://imgur.com/X1KwZ8e Automeasure on the Tek 2432A says 1.04 mS, not bad! Especially since 1 mS is the range select, and the actual width is set with a vernier dial! Unfortunately it's probably worth more for the tubes than as a pulse generator, nowadays. Thanks, Jonathan

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] One month 'til Festivus!
by David Ryskalczyk 05 Nov '15

05 Nov '15

Got an empty MIME attachment from Tony... David Sent from my iPhone > On Nov 4, 2015, at 5:44 PM, Tony Bogan via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org> wrote: > > <mime-attachment>

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] test without link
by Evan Koblentz 05 Nov '15

05 Nov '15

The only one I could not see was Chris L.'s.

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Can you see this reply Dean?
by Jonathan Gevaryahu 05 Nov '15

05 Nov '15

On 11/5/2015 11:31 AM, Tony Bogan via vcf-midatlantic wrote: blank message body, but the .eml html attachment contains valid contents. -- Jonathan Gevaryahu jgevaryahu(a)gmail.com jgevaryahu(a)hotmail.com

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] test without link
by Dean Notarnicola 05 Nov '15

05 Nov '15

Blank On Thursday, November 5, 2015, Tony Bogan via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org> wrote: >

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] test without link
by Tony Bogan 05 Nov '15

05 Nov '15

blockquote, div.yahoo_quoted { margin-left: 0 !important; border-left:1px #715FFA solid !important; padding-left:1ex !important; background-color:white !important; } Both came through fine for me.Tony Sent from Yahoo Mail for iPhone On Thursday, November 5, 2015, 11:18 AM, Christian Liendo via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org> wrote: Ok.. I am testing text without a link per se.. I put it in quotes. "anewdayauctions.proxibid.com/asp/LotDetail.asp?ahid=3493&aid=101939&lid=273…" Lets see what this does

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Can you see this reply Dean?
by Dean Notarnicola 05 Nov '15

05 Nov '15

Blank message body :-( On Thursday, November 5, 2015, Tony Bogan via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org> wrote: >

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] test without link
by Dean Notarnicola 05 Nov '15

05 Nov '15

Blank message body On Thursday, November 5, 2015, Christian Liendo via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org> wrote: >

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