- vcf-midatlantic - lists.vcfed.org

Earth Day 50th
by Herb Johnson 22 Apr '20

22 Apr '20

http://www.retrotechnology.com headlines the 50th anniversary of Earth Day today, with my Flag of Earth from 40 years ago; for the reasons noted on my home page. Thought I'd share my thoughts of the day and of recent events. Details on the Flag itself are at the link given. http://www.retrotechnology.com/earthday2020.html regards, Herb -- Herbert R. Johnson, New Jersey in the USA http://www.retrotechnology.com OR .net preserve, recover, restore 1970's computing email: hjohnson AT retrotechnology DOT com or try later herbjohnson AT retrotechnology DOT info

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Retrofair 2020 - Virtual VCF PNW 2020
by Jeffrey Brace 22 Apr '20

22 Apr '20

I'm not sure how many knew this, but after VCF PNW 2020 was cancelled in March, an individual allowed exhibitors to post their own videos to this website http://www.retrofair2020.com/ As I see the original date of VCF East and VCF Italia approach I feel sad and hope that this can help others feel some joy in seeing some vintage computer goodness! -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President & Board Member, VCF East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation http://www.vcfed.org/ jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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Dan Laskowski's C64 Midi interface program
by Jeffrey Brace 22 Apr '20

22 Apr '20

Dan Laskowski was supposed to be one of our exhibitors at VCF 2020 and is still expected to exhibit in October. Here is a preview of what he has done: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xWQyMnFSINM -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President & Board Member, VCF East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation http://www.vcfed.org/ jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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Computer People for Peace
by Bill Degnan 22 Apr '20

22 Apr '20

I was reading through some People's Computer Company newspapers and came upon a reference to a group called the Computer People for Peace. I did some research and found that they were active from 1969-1973 and they put out their own newsletter, based out of Brooklyn, NY. So, for you who care about MidAtlantic history, here is a link to the archive and articles I compiled. http://www.vintagecomputer.net/browse_thread.cfm?id=761 Some of you may not know exactly how militant they were against IBM back then. Someone bombed one of their offices back during this time. I have a 1968 ComputerWorld article about it. The late 60's have a rich computer history if you care to explore beyond the 80's :-) I plan to make an exhibit of some of this at Kennett Classic some day, after the current exhibits are done. Bill

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Gallery talk about Univac 490
by rar 21 Apr '20

21 Apr '20

The System Source Computer Museum has been closed due to Covid 19, so we started making video gallery talks. The first one is about our Univac 490 real time computer from 1963. It is about 10 minutes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hq7aVCc2GP8 Bob Roswell https://museum.syssrc.com museum(a)syssrc.com<mailto:museum@syssrc.com>

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How's Everyone Doing
by svcatitc＠aol.com 21 Apr '20

21 Apr '20

Nowthat Mke Ruane has extended the closure of IA until June, I figured it would be a goodtime to continue the shout out that Jeff Brace started and see how everyone’sdoing. Stuffhere in Brick is moving like Ground Hog Day, although business paperwork seemsto keep me focused if not only for a little bit of time and I have to come backto it later. Waitingon shipments of PCMCIA stuff for the HP660LX so I can play further. Anybodyworking on interesting stuff? BillInderrieden

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OT: HP 660LX Color Palmtop PC available
by svcatitc＠aol.com 19 Apr '20

19 Apr '20

HP 660 is up and running. Amazingly, for the age, the NiCd packs charged up fine. Now I am looking for PCMCIA memory for the thing so as to bring over other files and programs, from the main PC's. Once you get used to the stylus operation, it is a neat little thing. Thanks again to Bob Shuster for all his assistance. Bill Inderrieden svcatitc at aol.com svcatitc at aol.com Tue Apr 7 09:23:07 EDT 2020 - Previous message (by thread): [vcf-midatlantic] ACM digital library is free thru 30-June - Next message (by thread): [vcf-midatlantic] Wanted: Disk Jockey 2D/B - Messages sorted by: [ date ] [ thread ] [ subject ] [ author ] So that the final disposition of the HP palmtop is not in question, it has been spoken for. Many thanks to Bob Shuster for his assistance. Bill Inderrieden ---------- Original Message ---------- Jim Scheef js at sdf.orgTue Mar 31 23:21:59 EDT 2020 The HP660 is eminently collectible along with the other four or five models in the HP palmtop product line based on WinCE. The DOS-based palmtops starting with the 95lx are even more interesting although not as 'rare'. Hopefully someone will take Bob's offer.Jim

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] ADM-3A display problem
by Garrett Nievin 19 Apr '20

19 Apr '20

This project finally got popped of the stack and finished, and I wanted to "close the loop" on it. The culprit turned out to be C112, a 47uF 50V in the monitor section. Ian nailed it. Thank you! Cheers, Garrett On Fri, 26 May 2017 15:22:48 -0400 Garrett Nievin via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org> wrote: > Hi, Ian! > > http://imgur.com/a/Z4s7V > > Here is the image on imgur. I turned the brightness way up, put a > loopback on the serial port, and typed all these characters. Everything > seems to work correctly except for this negative video drive. > > I'll definitely check those caps. I replaced the 2.2 uf tantalums just > because I had some on hand, but haven't replaced any other caps yet. > > Thank you! > > Cheers, > Garrett > > > > On Fri, 26 May 2017 08:36:31 -0400 > Ian Primus via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org> wrote: > > > I've been really busy lately - sorry I didn't see this earlier. The > > picture did not come through - the list doesn't support attachments, > > could you upload it to imgur or something? > > > > IIRC, there isn't a way to invert the video on the ADM3A with a > > switch, it sounds like you have a failure in the monitor section. It > > is very possible for a component failure to drive the video negative > > like that. Check C119 and C112. > > > > -Ian > > > > On Sun, May 21, 2017 at 4:07 PM, Garrett Nievin via vcf-midatlantic > > <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org> wrote: > > > I'm restoring a Lear Siegler ADM-3A, and I'm not the most CRT-savvy guy > > > around (but I did really enjoy Ian's excellent class at the most recent > > > VCF-E). > > > > > > Attached is a photo of the issue. If I crank the brightness to clearly > > > see the raster, I can see that the text is actually displaying as dark > > > instead of bright. > > > > > > Pointers? > > > > > > Cheers, > > > Garrett > > > > > > > > > > > > > >

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Collection of Commodore items for sale in Facebook Group
by Christopher Gioconda 18 Apr '20

18 Apr '20

Sharing this to everyone because it’s a private group on Facebook and folks may not be members- there’s a pretty impressive collection of Commodore items being sold up in Schenectady NY, but it sounds like the owners aren’t aware of the value of the collection. https://www.facebook.com/groups/2006480029587942/?ref=share is a link to the group. There’s a CMD RamLink, SuperCPU, CMD hard drive, SX-64 amongst others. Good luck, and hope everyone is staying healthy. Chris

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InfoAge update from Mike Ruane (CEO of InfoAge)
by Jeffrey Brace 18 Apr '20

18 Apr '20

To All - Due to the continued impact of the coronavirus, InfoAge is now scheduled to be closed until June 29. A further decision to open on June 29 or to remain closed will be made in mid-June. In the meantime, as I mentioned in my March 16 email, some organizations and/or volunteers will want to work on their museum projects, exhibits, buildings, etc. These organizations/volunteers can use their own discretion as to whether or not they wish to work on their sites or various projects. However, many of our volunteers are in the “at-risk” category and should stay at home if at all possible. Again to repeat what I put out before, be aware that the COVID virus is thought to spread mainly from person-to-person, and especially between people who are in close contact with one another (within about 6 feet). COVID is transmitted through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes and these droplets land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly be inhaled into the lungs. Therefore: if you have any common flu symptoms — coughing, sneezing — please refrain from visiting InfoAge. It is an unnecessary risk, even if you are not presenting the additional COVID symptoms of fever, cough and shortness of breath. If you are coming to InfoAge make certain you observe the following guidelines are observed to insure your good health: 1. If you feel sick, stay home. Do not come to InfoAge. 2. If you do come, practice social distancing. If you are working alone, there is no problem. However, if you are working with someone else, keep at least 6’ apart and wear an N95 mask or another mask that protects your face. Remember, a mask pulled below your nose is of no help at all. 3. Remember to continue to always practice good hygiene: Wash your hands frequently, especially after touching any frequently used item or surface. Avoid touching your face. Sneeze or cough into a tissue or the inside of your elbow. Disinfect frequently used items and surfaces as much as possible. To learn more about the virus and what you can do to protect yourself and your family and friends, please visit the Centers for Disease Control website https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/about/index.html.” Organizations – Please pass this email to all your members. Thank you and be safe. This will end!! Mike -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President & Board Member, VCF East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation http://www.vcfed.org/ jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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COBOL wise-guy
by Jeffrey Jonas 16 Apr '20

16 Apr '20

Bill Degnan posted Q. State the four divisions of a COBOL program A: earth air fire water: the 4 elements that make everything :-)

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] MITS Altair 8800 C&K switches
by Herb Johnson 15 Apr '20

15 Apr '20

My apologies for all the fuss. Again: who knew this was difficult? > Jeff Galinat writes: > > According to Mike Douglas AKA deramp .. the American > Switch brand was used in the original Altair not C & K. > > S1 Toggle Switch On-None-On (Silver) APEM 5236AB > S10-S25 Toggle Switch On-None-On (Gold) APEM 5236CDB > S2-S9 Toggle Switch (On)-Off-(On) (Gold) APEM 5237CDB > > Take this as you wish but I do value Mike's opinion on this Um, I also saw this information 1) in the VCFed discussion list referenced earlier in this thread and 2) on notes it referenced on the deramp site, about a MITS Altair front-panel replica. But... But: those references to a replica, have confused me, as to whether the original Altair switches were of that brand; or if these identified switches are reasonable replacements; or if these are for the replica. Pardon my confusion. Also: in my most-prior post here, I acknowledge I *do not know* what brand was in-use. My error, to suggest C&K. That's why I'm asking. Again: proof beyond doubt, would be a photo of an original switch, in place, on an original front panel. Such a photo seems to be surprisingly hard to produce, hard to find. I certainly don't want to disassemble my MITS Altair just to take an internal photo. And my apologies, this is not a "personal trust" issue. I appreciate the identifications given, it's a "lead". My request for evidence is not unreasonable. I'm surprised it's so obscure! At least in year 2020. I've seen BUNCHES of photos of lots of MITS boards. But not of the original front panel, in profile. I'll be sure to provide those, should I tear my Altair apart. (No it's not for sale). Regards, Herb -- Herbert R. Johnson, New Jersey in the USA http://www.retrotechnology.com OR .net preserve, recover, restore 1970's computing email: hjohnson AT retrotechnology DOT com or try later herbjohnson AT retrotechnology DOT info -- Herbert R. Johnson, New Jersey in the USA http://www.retrotechnology.com OR .net preserve, recover, restore 1970's computing email: hjohnson AT retrotechnology DOT com or try later herbjohnson AT retrotechnology DOT info

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] COBOL wise-guy
by gsteemso 15 Apr '20

15 Apr '20

On (Tue, 14 Apr 2020 15:36:58 -0400), Dean Notarnicola <dnotarnicola(a)gmail.com> wrote: > Last time I did any COBOL was 1987. Never looked back. Ah, but /did you inhale?/ (Not Sorry) :¬) G.

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MITS Altair 8800 C&K switches
by Herb Johnson 13 Apr '20

13 Apr '20

An odd thing. I was trying to buy some C&K brand "toggle switches" for a MITS Altair 8800 front panel. I could not find on the Web, a good photo of it's front-panel PC board "naked" to see the original switches; so I could buy one of the proper size. Specifically, the length of the "neck" below the toggle lever. Does anyone have such a photo, of the unmounted PC board with switches, or a photo of of the actual real original switch bodies, or a measure of the physical length of that mounting-shaft? The length does vary. Just to be clear and exact. I'm talking about the original model of the MITS Altair 8800. NO 8800a, no 8800b. These switches have a narrow round "toggle" - not the flat wedge-like toggle on the 8800b and 8800a. And no, MITS doesn't have a C&K number, and no sketch in their original manuals (that I could find). And a Web search for such images is a nightmare. Bunches of faux Altairs, faux front panels. Some number of original Altairs - with the front-panel PC board covered of course with the decorative front-panel. Or poor, low-rez photos from 15 years ago. I've made a good guess, without disassembling my own 8800. Looks like 11/16 inches from base of threaded shaft to top of same. Looks like a 3/4" net length from the base of the C&K body to the top of the threaded shaft. These are eyeball measures and are not likely what are in the C&K 1975 data sheets; but these provide clues. Can anyone measure the damn thing? Or take a clear photo and point me to it? Looks like I'll haveta take a lot of photos, next time I repair the real deal. Regards, Herb "missed" Johnson -- Herbert R. Johnson, New Jersey in the USA http://www.retrotechnology.com OR .net preserve, recover, restore 1970's computing email: hjohnson AT retrotechnology DOT com or try later herbjohnson AT retrotechnology DOT info

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COBOL
by Michael Pohl 09 Apr '20

09 Apr '20

The State of New Jersey needs COBOL help - https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/08/business/coronavirus-cobol-programmers-new-j…

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Wanted: Disk Jockey 2D/B
by Mike Loewen 08 Apr '20

08 Apr '20

Does anyone have a Morrow Disk Jockey 2D/B for sale or trade? I have other S100 boards for trade. Mike Loewen mloewen(a)cpumagic.scol.pa.us Old Technology http://q7.neurotica.com/Oldtech/

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OT: HP 660LX Color Palmtop PC available
by svcatitc＠aol.com 07 Apr '20

07 Apr '20

So that the final disposition of the HP palmtop is not in question, it has been spoken for. Many thanks to Bob Shuster for his assistance. Bill Inderrieden ---------- Original Message ---------- Jim Scheef js at sdf.orgTue Mar 31 23:21:59 EDT 2020 The HP660 is eminently collectible along with the other four or five models in the HP palmtop product line based on WinCE. The DOS-based palmtops starting with the 95lx are even more interesting although not as 'rare'. Hopefully someone will take Bob's offer.Jim

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Free: Radio Shack CoCo disk interface
by Jason Perkins 05 Apr '20

05 Apr '20

Cleaning up. Found a RS Color Computer disc controller cartridge. Email me and it’s yours for postage. Thanks! -- Jason Perkins 313 355 0085 Sent from my iPhone

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ACM digital library is free thru 30-June
by Jeffrey Jonas 05 Apr '20

05 Apr '20

Paywalls and membership only databases are annoying. One obstacle has been temporarily removed: The Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) announces: "To help support our community working remotely during COVID-19, we are making all work published by ACM in our Digital Library freely accessible through June 30, 2020." e.g. http://dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?doid=307824.307853 -- on MindForth AI -- is now freely accessible to read or download as a Portable Document FIle (PDF).

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State of New Jersey needs COBOL programmers
by Jeffrey Brace 05 Apr '20

05 Apr '20

https://josephsteinberg.com/covid-19-response-new-jersey-urgently-needs-cob… -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President & Board Member, VCF East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation http://www.vcfed.org/ jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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IBM Selectric Prestige Elite 72 element available for free
by Martin Flynn 03 Apr '20

03 Apr '20

IBM Selectric Prestige Elite 72 element available Will leave in the top of the CDL red tool box for pickup on Saturday the 11th. Martin Flynn

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Commodore Vic-20 Visual Companion Book Free
by Christian Liendo 02 Apr '20

02 Apr '20

https://www.oldcomputr.com/product/commodore-vic-20-a-visual-history-pdf-ed… On Thu, Apr 2, 2020 at 7:57 AM Sentrytv via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > Website? > > Sent from: > My extremely complicated, hand held electronic device. > > > On Apr 2, 2020, at 2:17 AM, Jeffrey Brace via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > > > Due to the Covid-19 outbreak the author is offering his book free as a PDF > > from this website. I had already bought the book form of this, so a PDF is > > a great companion. > > > > > > -- > > ========================================= > > Jeff Brace > > Vice President & Board Member, VCF East Showrunner > > Vintage Computer Federation > > http://www.vcfed.org/ > > jeffrey(a)vcfed.org >

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Commodore Vic-20 Visual Companion Book Free
by Jeffrey Brace 02 Apr '20

02 Apr '20

Due to the Covid-19 outbreak the author is offering his book free as a PDF from this website. I had already bought the book form of this, so a PDF is a great companion. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President & Board Member, VCF East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation http://www.vcfed.org/ jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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Important IBM 701 Anniversary
by Bill Degnan 02 Apr '20

02 Apr '20

On this day in history, April 1 1952 The IBM 701 computer successfully calculated with highest precision the universe "atomic core number" is 41.99349992(etc). rounded up to 42. This is the source of the tongue-in-cheek Hitchhiker's Guide book reference.

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OT: Science Fiction: Science Advising on Star Trek
by Jeffrey Brace 01 Apr '20

01 Apr '20

Science History Institute is doing an online event on April 8: https://www.sciencehistory.org/event/scientific-fiction-science-advising-on… -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President & Board Member, VCF East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation http://www.vcfed.org/ jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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OT: a SETI@home system now searching for a cure
by Jeffrey Jonas 01 Apr '20

01 Apr '20

from the NJ Linux list: 1) folding@home has been updated for the corona virus. maybe some of you can contribute some CPU / GPU resources. 2) I've been running Rosetta@home, which also is working on Covid-19 problem solving. I've found that the BOINC client behaves better under Linux. I got the client from the repos under both Fedora and Ubuntu. Sorry, even a Beowulf cluster of 6502 or Z80s won't help much :-/

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OT: HP 660LX Color Palmtop PC available
by Bob Shuster 01 Apr '20

01 Apr '20

I was going to toss this, but thought someone in the group might be interested in this Windows CE device from 1998. In the box with manuals, two battery packs, stylus, power supply, modem card, a docking station, and an additional circuit board which I did not try to ID (perhaps leftover from a RAM upgrade?) This does power up, but I’m sure the batteries need to be replaced. Any interest? Contact-free front porch pickup in Wyndmoor, PA (near the Fort Washington exit of the PA Turnpike.) Contact me off-list if interested. Btw, I finally powered up the 2006 Dell XPS 700 Jet Black which I had offered before (nobody wanted it.) It had apparently never been powered up as the power cord is proprietary and was never out of the package. Motherboard is bad. :( I pulled the three 500GB HDs and the rest is going to electronics recycling. If anyone wants any bits of this, let me know too! Dual video cards, RAM, dual optical drives, etc., all stuff easily pulled. Look up the specs. - Bob

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] OK seriously, how rare is the real 1541-II drive?
by jaj＠totallyamused.com 31 Mar '20

31 Mar '20

>From: Bill Degnan via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> >Date: Mon, March 30, 2020 10:40 pm >To: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> >Cc: Bill Degnan <billdegnan(a)gmail.com> > >Now I wonder, compared with other CBM drives, is there a rarity ranking? > >I am thinking some of the rarest 8-bit CBM drives manufactured by CBM are >(in no particular order and without looking on the internet for the answer) > >8080 (dual 8" IEEE drive) >1540 >1551 >9060 >9090 >1570 (where these actually sold) >The drive that came with the C-65 > >am I missing anything rarer than these? > >Next would be >2040 (IEEE) >4040 (IEEE) >8250 (IEEE) >SFD-1001 I would add 8050 after SFD-1001 You said 8080 -- is that part of the 8060 series? 8060, 8061, 8062, 8280 (I've only seen pictures) Any third party drives make your list? MSD MSD-2 Indus GT

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Rare Variant CBM 1541 II on Ebay
by Bill Degnan 31 Mar '20

31 Mar '20

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Commodore-1541-II-Floppy-Disk-Drive/143557971394 Even I don't have this one! As some of you may know the Khizzopistni variant of the CBM-II was packaged in a Polaroid case briefly, before reverting back to the more familiar drive profile. I'd totally get this one, but it will probably shoot up to $4000 or more. Bill

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OK seriously, how rare is the real 1541-II drive?
by Bill Degnan 31 Mar '20

31 Mar '20

Now I wonder, compared with other CBM drives, is there a rarity ranking? I am thinking some of the rarest 8-bit CBM drives manufactured by CBM are (in no particular order and without looking on the internet for the answer) 8080 (dual 8" IEEE drive) 1540 1551 9060 9090 1570 (where these actually sold) The drive that came with the C-65 am I missing anything rarer than these? Next would be 2040 (IEEE) 4040 (IEEE) 8250 (IEEE) SFD-1001 Bill

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] How's everyone doing?
by Michael Thompson 30 Mar '20

30 Mar '20

> > Date: Thu, 26 Mar 2020 23:42:21 -0400 > Subject: [vcf-midatlantic] How's everyone doing? > > Things are rough these days. How's everyone handling it? > > -- > ========================================= > Jeff Brace > I work from home periodically and used to travel more than 50% of the time. With the VPN I can connect to anything that I need on the company network, so it really doesn't matter if I am in the office or not. I spend about 40% of my time on conference calls, and they work fine from home. So for me work is normal. Home life is a little different. We just went shopping during elder hours. There were very few people in the supermarket, so social distancing was easy. The shelves were about 80% full and were being restocked. There were no wipes or hand sanitizer. Canned vegetables were a little thin on the shelves. They did have TP today so maybe people who are hoarding it already have all they can store. Last week there were no Cheerios. This week it was buy two get one free. I think that it will be hit or miss for a while until shoppers get used to this new normal and the demand settles out. We haven't tried one of the delivery grocery services yet, and are using shopping as an excuse to get out of the house. I see lots more delivery trucks in the neighborhood, so others are ordering everything they need online. We walk in our neighborhood during the day. There are probably a lot more walkers than normal, which is a good thing. I connected a battery maintainer to my car because I haven't driven it in two weeks. I can't take advantage of lower fuel prices because the tank is still full. My trip to Germany and Sweden is probably going to get canceled. I was really looking forward to visiting another PDP-9. Maybe we can reschedule for late in the summer or next year. -- Michael Thompson

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OT: Theranos Blood Analyzer
by Dag Spicer 29 Mar '20

29 Mar '20

Hey everyone, The Computer History Museum is always looking for unique computer technology for its permanent collection, as well collecting “the classics!” Right now we’re seeking a Theranos Blood Analyzer. If you have any information, would you mind reaching out to me? dspicer(a)computerhistory.org <mailto:dspicer@computerhistory.org> Thanks everyone! Dag

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How's everyone doing? Correction
by svcatitc＠aol.com 29 Mar '20

29 Mar '20

In checking my own submission, it seems my paste of the link: https://museum.syssrc.com/artifact/251/ does not work right form the Email list, however if you manually copy and paste the link to your crawler, it gets to Roswell's page just fine. Freaky! Bill

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How's everyone doing?
by svcatitc＠aol.com 29 Mar '20

29 Mar '20

Bill I. here; This sounds like a group therapy session in a psych ward! (LOL) But as the comedian Steve Allen said "all seriousness aside folks". . . I'll chime in. We're doing OK here in Brick, NJ. Wifey and I are doing well health wise. (other than my wife's prolonged physical handicaps) The north end of town just got our 1'st Covid-19 test site at the Rent-a-Docs walk in clinic, in the parking lot. Being part care giver to my wife makes it hard to have time to work on fun stuff, however, this down time will give me the much needed time to clear out my warehouses of projects that are just not viable anymore. Before you guys start drooling, I do not havea lot of surplus CPU stuff. Most if it is industrial and lab stuff I was going to overhaul and resell. The stuff is longpast its prime and is ready to be scrapped. I spent way too much money on rent housing this stuff for the opportune time to work on it, which has come and gone. Its time to shed the overhead. Field service work has been put on hold for right now by my clients (I'm in the same boat as Dave McGuire), and my consulting contract with my affiliate in St. Louis will be terminated as of June 1. So the shedding aforementioned warehouse overhead is a must. I still have past invoices to submit, so that will also take up my time. (and get some much needed cabbage in the till) Enough of my tales of woe, (giggling). When I do have the spare time, I am working on the EAI TR 20 ground buss system for the display rack here at home. With all the peripheral displays planned (plotter, scope, etc.), a good quality analog ground summing point is required. I plan on incorporating the Comdyna GP-6 analog mini-computer into the TR-20 display as signal processing. Our unit in the warehouse is in need of some TLC (busted jacks etc.) If you want to see what a GP-6 looks like, see Bob Roswell's website,and look at the glamour shot pictured. https://museum.syssrc.com/artifact/251/ F.Y.I. Ray Spiess, founder of Comdyna, is an ex-EAI alum, so the artifact fits in the story line in our analog display. The other VCF project I got "volunteered" into (smiling) is the Wang 4000 restoration. I got two of the rack drawers,photographed, documenting each card in the file. I am working with Rick Bensene of the Old Calculator Museum, who has an immense knowledge of the Wang Calculators and informs me that some of the calculator components are incorporated in the ' 4000. That project, obviously, has been put on hold until crisis conditions improve. Best get back to the insanity! Stay Well Folks; Bill

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] How's everyone doing?
by Jeffrey Brace 28 Mar '20

28 Mar '20

On Fri, Mar 27, 2020 at 5:58 AM ajpierson1 via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > Been working from home to keep us on the air. Fortunately, it's > much easier to keep a TV station operational when you don't have to keep > the studio spaces running, and more than half of the employees aren't > generating new trouble tickets. In the mean time, I've played through Doom > Eternal which was amazing. I've also repaired my Heathkit H89's power > problems which knocked it out of commission on Friday night of Oh, you know how to fix them? VCF has one in the museum that you could look at. I'm not sure of its condition as I haven't powered on, but I assume that it needs some repair or at least TLC. > VCF East last year. A TO-3 socket for one of the 5V regulators was > damaged, and while I was making the repairs the other day, I swapped the > old linear regulator for a drop-in switch mode supply (also in a TO-3 > package). So far, I've had good luck with those in a VIC-20 and a 1541 > drive, thus it seemed like a natural choice to reduce heat output in my > H89. I've also had way more group voice chats with friends around the > world these past few weeks, mostly talking about vintage computer topics. > In this way, a few of us helped one friend through some H89 diagnostics and > repair which has brought the machine back to life (mostly). I believe he > will be using it for his VCF exhibit soon enough. Last week, I was also > taking a crack at implementing Glitchbus on the Cactus, but that's been > sidelined for the moment. I also took a brief (and isolated) drive out to > my storage unit last week to drop off projects I don't have space for at > the moment. If any of you are familiar with the Votrax SC-01-A speech > synthesizer chip, I scored a Type'N Talk on ebay recently, and spent some > time figuring out how to interface with it properly. It sounds great, and > I was not expecting to find an entire 6802 based machine inside the tiny > chassis.I've always got a stack of projects to tackle, so this really isn't > all that different for me. We'll get thru this with a little vigilance, > patience, and isolation. -Alexander 'Z' Pierson It's nice to hear that you have time to work on projects and to keep in touch with other vintage computer friends. I plan on getting back on IRC now that I have more free time than I used to! -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President & Board Member, VCF East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation http://www.vcfed.org/ jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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How's everyone doing?
by Jeffrey Brace 28 Mar '20

28 Mar '20

Things are rough these days. How's everyone handling it? -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President & Board Member, VCF East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation http://www.vcfed.org/ jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] How's everyone doing?
by Jameel Akari 28 Mar '20

28 Mar '20

Howdy everyone. Glad to see things are generally ok. Work has been busy - more or less the same, just WFH instead. A lot of time hand-wringing over VPN issues of course, but we’re handling them. At least for us, business has been good. I am planning to go by myself to the datacenter next week to work on some deferred maintenance; chances are I won’t even see another person the whole day. I do not mind that. I’ve been in several videoconference meetings per day - this has finally made me clean up my office / lab, which is still cluttered with VCF East 2019 / UNIX50 parts. My coworkers are alternately confused and amazed. ;) So I put away some things that were just collecting dust, promoted the VAXstation I got from Bill D. all that while ago to somewhere I can use it, and decided my Mac Plus deserved a space on my office shelf. I am concerned about what its insides might look like after years in storage. Maybe I’ll crack it open tomorrow. I’ve continued to work on, albeit more slowly now, my SYM-1 6502 project that was slated for VCF East. I might consider doing some videos and/or blog posts about it… that’d be a new thing for me. A new EPROM programmer and UV eraser came in the mail, woohoo! While cleaning out the shed I re-discovered boxes of electronic components that will finally be of use. I was really hoping for VCF-East consignment to be an outlet for some of my surplus. I’m debating whether eBay is worth trying. Are people buying used stuff from randos on eBay now? No idea. So… pretty ok. Until today. My wife found out she is being furloughed for an indeterminate time, as are most of her coworkers. Healthcare paid through May at least. The reality has set in. We’ll be fine, and we’ll figure it out, but I worry about people who may not. — Jameel Akari > On Mar 27, 2020, at 2:08 PM, Peter Cetinski via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > > From: Peter Cetinski <pete(a)pski.net> > Subject: Re: [vcf-midatlantic] How's everyone doing? > Date: March 27, 2020 at 2:08:38 PM EDT > To: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> > > > I’m in the same boat as many here. Working from home full-time on a new gig I just started this week. Of course, many TRS-80 projects continue to be on the queue. > > If anyone here is interested we’re having another live TRS-80 Trash Talk on Zoom tomorrow at 4pm EDT. > > I know you’re all on Zoom now so there’s no execuse! :) Everyone is welcome even if you don’t own a TRS-80. Maybe you’ll learn something you didn’t know about one of the original trinity microcomputers. > > https://zoom.us/j/567066261 <https://zoom.us/j/567066261> > > Take care, > Pete > > >

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TO-3 Regulator Replacements
by Alexander Pierson 27 Mar '20

27 Mar '20

Ethan, Thus far, I've been using a few different regulator types from https://www.ezsbc.com/ in various amperage and voltage combinations. A few people have warned about needing additional capacitors to mitigate jitter, but I haven't seen all that much during tests. When I did the first one, I added an extra tantalum per recommendations, however it actually added more ripple to have the extra caps so I removed them. Your mileage may vary. Here's the VIC-20 I installed one in: https://commodorez.com/img/silvervicguts.jpgAnd a photo of the outside, if you're curious: https://commodorez.com/img/silvervic1.jpg That VIC-20 is assembled from the discarded parts of at least 5 machines, including most of a C16 keyboard, and 6502 + 6522's from a dead 1541 drive. The case was pretty scuffed up, so I figured there was no harm in giving it a paint job while I was at it. It runs super cool now, even after a few hours of operation. I've contemplated adding heat sinks for some of the IC's but haven't crossed that bridge yet. This VIC came with me to VCFMW last fall, flown in as my carry-on item, where I used it to wardial the show's PABX with a modem 300. Here's the 1541 that received the same treatment: https://commodorez.com/img/1541regs.jpg The downside is that you can no longer us it to keep your coffee/tea warm. Let's see if the list serve processing will preserve my line spacing this time.-Alexander 'Z' Pierson

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Making lite of our situation
by Neil Cherry 27 Mar '20

27 Mar '20

On 3/27/20 12:48 PM, Sentrytv via vcf-midatlantic wrote: I have no problem with it. I'm asthmatic but I also ride my bicycle in traffic so I laugh at stuff like this (while I still can). Once crashed, cracked several ribs, rode home 15 miles, my friend was torturing me with bad jokes (it was justified). We laugh, I cried, life goes on. ;-) -- Linux Home Automation Neil Cherry ncherry(a)linuxha.com http://www.linuxha.com/ Main site http://linuxha.blogspot.com/ My HA Blog Author of: Linux Smart Homes For Dummies

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] How's everyone doing?
by Ethan Dicks 27 Mar '20

27 Mar '20

On Fri, Mar 27, 2020 at 5:58 AM ajpierson1 via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > In the mean time, I've played through Doom Eternal which was amazing. I see my friends playing that but I'm pretty sure it will crush my gaming box. > I've also repaired my Heathkit H89's power problems which knocked it out of commission on Friday night of VCF East last year. I recently acquired an H89. I haven't even powered it on yet and it's in the basement of our makerspace so I won't be getting to it anytime soon. > ...while I was making the repairs the other day, I swapped the old linear regulator for a drop-in switch mode supply (also in a TO-3 package). So far, I've had good luck with those in a VIC-20 and a 1541 drive, thus it seemed like a natural choice to reduce heat output in my H89. Which one of these are you using? I have a similar assortment of machines (and there are some of these in PETs as well) so it's a part I could use in multiple locations. > If any of you are familiar with the Votrax SC-01-A speech synthesizer chip, I scored a Type'N Talk on ebay recently, and spent some time figuring out how to interface with it properly. I saw your posts. The arcade-sized Gorf and the RB5X robot have either an SC-01 or SC-02 (I'd have to check). Nice chip. Sounds like you have plenty of fun projects going. Cheers, -ethan

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Making lite of our situation
by Sentrytv 27 Mar '20

27 Mar '20

Is it too early to make light of the situation? Sent from: My extremely complicated, hand held electronic device. > On Mar 26, 2020, at 11:42 PM, Jeffrey Brace via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > Things are rough these days. How's everyone handling it? > > -- > ========================================= > Jeff Brace > Vice President & Board Member, VCF East Showrunner > Vintage Computer Federation > http://www.vcfed.org/ > jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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InfoAge in The Star Ledger donates N-95 masks
by Jeffrey Brace 27 Mar '20

27 Mar '20

*1,400 old face masks were sitting in a basement. They’re now fighting coronavirus.* Photo Caption: The masks were stored for several years at the InfoAge Science and History Center in Wall Township, Monmouth County.InfoAge Science and History Center *By Anthony G. Attrino | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com <http://connect.nj.com/staff/AAttrino/posts.html>* Volunteers at one of New Jersey’s most historic museums on Thursday donated more than 1,400 N-95 face masks to a local hospital and other emergency workers to help them fight the spread of coronavirus <https://www.nj.com/coronavirus/>. “They were in the back of one of our warehouses, literally gathering dust,” said Mike Ruane, chief executive officer of InfoAge Science and History Center in Monmouth County. <https://infoage.org/> The masks, which had originally been ordered eight years ago for people responding to Hurricane Sandy, were uncovered days ago inside at the museum on Marconi Road in Wall Township. The museum is the site of the former U.S. Army base Camp Evans and the Evans Signal Laboratory, where scientists in 1946 bounced the first radio signals off the moon. When Hurricane Sandy swept across the state in 2012, devastating Monmouth County, a slew of volunteer recovery workers built a headquarters for themselves on InfoAge’s sprawling grounds, which contains 11 museums and five exhibits spread out across 34 acres. The masks were ordered for volunteers, who spent months knocking down damaged homes and repairing what they could. “The masks were needed for the workers, who went all over Monmouth County, tearing down sheetrock and helping to rebuild,” Ruane said. When the coronavirus pandemic hit, a museum worker remembered the masks were stored in a warehouse on the property. “Some of the boxes were banged up and some had mildew,” Ruane said. “But on the inside, the masks were wrapped up and not compromised at all.” The museum donated 1,000 masks to Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank and another 400 to Wall Township, which was planning to distribute them to emergency workers and senior citizens. “We think it’s great that we were able to help,” Ruane said. “We are members of the Wall Township community. We enjoy being here and this is our way of giving back.” As of Thursday, at least 742 people in New Jersey had tested positive for coronavirus. Nine people have died, including members of a family from Monmouth County. <https://www.nj.com/coronavirus/2020/03/nj-family-ravaged-by-coronavirus-los…> -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President & Board Member, VCF East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation http://www.vcfed.org/ jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] How's everyone doing?
by ajpierson1 27 Mar '20

27 Mar '20

Been working from home to keep us on the air. Fortunately, it's much easier to keep a TV station operational when you don't have to keep the studio spaces running, and more than half of the employees aren't generating new trouble tickets. In the mean time, I've played through Doom Eternal which was amazing. I've also repaired my Heathkit H89's power problems which knocked it out of commission on Friday night of VCF East last year. A TO-3 socket for one of the 5V regulators was damaged, and while I was making the repairs the other day, I swapped the old linear regulator for a drop-in switch mode supply (also in a TO-3 package). So far, I've had good luck with those in a VIC-20 and a 1541 drive, thus it seemed like a natural choice to reduce heat output in my H89. I've also had way more group voice chats with friends around the world these past few weeks, mostly talking about vintage computer topics. In this way, a few of us helped one friend through some H89 diagnostics and repair which has brought the machine back to life (mostly). I believe he will be using it for his VCF exhibit soon enough. Last week, I was also taking a crack at implementing Glitchbus on the Cactus, but that's been sidelined for the moment. I also took a brief (and isolated) drive out to my storage unit last week to drop off projects I don't have space for at the moment. If any of you are familiar with the Votrax SC-01-A speech synthesizer chip, I scored a Type'N Talk on ebay recently, and spent some time figuring out how to interface with it properly. It sounds great, and I was not expecting to find an entire 6802 based machine inside the tiny chassis.I've always got a stack of projects to tackle, so this really isn't all that different for me. We'll get thru this with a little vigilance, patience, and isolation. -Alexander 'Z' Pierson

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Looking for a Handle for the Kraft Premium II Joystick
by Alexander Jacocks 26 Mar '20

26 Mar '20

All, I got a pair of Coco joysticks, and they're the deluxe version, in really great shape. However, both are missing the tip of the handle. Does anyone have a set of spares? Or a drawing, so that I can design a replacement? Thanks! - Alex

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OT: Webcams for remote students
by Evan Koblentz 26 Mar '20

26 Mar '20

Everyone, My employer (New Jersey Institute of Technoloy), like most other schools/universities, is teaching all courses virtually for at least the rest of this semester. Employees were informed that there are not enough webcams to go around for students. NJIT now is turning over every stone to make sure its students are equipped to participate in a productive and collaborative learning environment. There are outstanding orders with different vendors, but stock is low and deliveries are slow. If you have an unused webcam that you would like to donate to NJIT, it would go a long way in benefiting a student in need. The specifics about brands, models, and specs aren't important. It just has to work and be modern, not vintage. :) Of course, please hold back anything broken, obsolete, missing key parts, dirty, etc. The address to send them is: Dean of Students Office, Campus Center 255 323 Martin Luther King Blvd Newark, NJ 07102

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] vcf-midatlantic Digest, Vol 22, Issue 21
by Dag Spicer 23 Mar '20

23 Mar '20

Wow — GREAT going guys!! Dag > On Mar 23, 2020, at 9:00 AM, vcf-midatlantic-request(a)lists.vcfed.org wrote: > > Send vcf-midatlantic mailing list submissions to > vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > https://lists.vcfed.org/mailman/listinfo/vcf-midatlantic > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > vcf-midatlantic-request(a)lists.vcfed.org > > You can reach the person managing the list at > vcf-midatlantic-owner(a)lists.vcfed.org > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of vcf-midatlantic digest..." > > > Today's Topics: > > 1. InfoAge in The Star Ledger donates N-95 masks (Jeffrey Brace) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: Sun, 22 Mar 2020 12:12:04 -0400 > From: Jeffrey Brace <jeffrey(a)vcfed.org> > To: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> > Subject: [vcf-midatlantic] InfoAge in The Star Ledger donates N-95 > masks > Message-ID: > <CALWfZA+Yw_0N3VW=AQnFqQn1XMtZLKWW_3_fenrAkPEatJxAMw(a)mail.gmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > *1,400 old face masks were sitting in a basement. They?re now fighting > coronavirus.* > > Photo Caption: > > The masks were stored for several years at the InfoAge Science and History > Center in Wall Township, Monmouth County.InfoAge Science and History Center > > > > *By Anthony G. Attrino | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com > <http://connect.nj.com/staff/AAttrino/posts.html>* > > Volunteers at one of New Jersey?s most historic museums on Thursday donated > more than 1,400 N-95 face masks to a local hospital and other emergency > workers to help them fight the spread of coronavirus > <https://www.nj.com/coronavirus/>. > > ?They were in the back of one of our warehouses, literally gathering dust,? > said Mike Ruane, chief executive officer of InfoAge Science and History > Center in Monmouth County. <https://infoage.org/> > > > > The masks, which had originally been ordered eight years ago for people > responding to Hurricane Sandy, were uncovered days ago inside at the museum > on Marconi Road in Wall Township. > > The museum is the site of the former U.S. Army base Camp Evans and the > Evans Signal Laboratory, where scientists in 1946 bounced the first radio > signals off the moon. > > When Hurricane Sandy swept across the state in 2012, devastating Monmouth > County, a slew of volunteer recovery workers built a headquarters for > themselves on InfoAge?s sprawling grounds, which contains 11 museums and > five exhibits spread out across 34 acres. > > The masks were ordered for volunteers, who spent months knocking down > damaged homes and repairing what they could. > > ?The masks were needed for the workers, who went all over Monmouth County, > tearing down sheetrock and helping to rebuild,? Ruane said. > > When the coronavirus pandemic hit, a museum worker remembered the masks > were stored in a warehouse on the property. > > ?Some of the boxes were banged up and some had mildew,? Ruane said. ?But on > the inside, the masks were wrapped up and not compromised at all.? > > The museum donated 1,000 masks to Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank and > another 400 to Wall Township, which was planning to distribute them to > emergency workers and senior citizens. > > ?We think it?s great that we were able to help,? Ruane said. ?We are > members of the Wall Township community. We enjoy being here and this is our > way of giving back.? > > As of Thursday, at least 742 people in New Jersey had tested positive for > coronavirus. Nine people have died, including members of a family from > Monmouth County. > <https://www.nj.com/coronavirus/2020/03/nj-family-ravaged-by-coronavirus-los…> > > > -- > ========================================= > Jeff Brace > Vice President & Board Member, VCF East Showrunner > Vintage Computer Federation > http://www.vcfed.org/ > jeffrey(a)vcfed.org > > > End of vcf-midatlantic Digest, Vol 22, Issue 21 > ***********************************************

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Sol 20 update
by Mike Loewen 19 Mar '20

19 Mar '20

My Sol 20 is up and running: http://q7.neurotica.com/Oldtech/S100/Sol20/ As expected, I had to replace all of the foam pads in the keyboard. For some reason, the TexElec pads hardly worked at all so I sacrificed a Sun Type 4 keyboard for its pads. Other than that, a couple of RAM problems (dirty DIP switch and a defective 74LS157 multiplexer) were all that I had to fix. As time permits, I'll investigate getting a couple of 8" drives working with a Micromation Doubler board. For now, I'm loading programs through the serial port at 1200 baud. Mike Loewen mloewen(a)cpumagic.scol.pa.us Old Technology http://q7.neurotica.com/Oldtech/

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Semi-OT: Win 95 kernel file needed
by Dean Notarnicola 19 Mar '20

19 Mar '20

http://www.ecsis.net/pub/netuser/updates.html On Wed, Mar 18, 2020 at 10:39 PM Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > Long story, but I need the kernel32.dll file from a later version of > Windows 95. > > Two requirements: > > - It must be from 95, not 98 or newer > > - I have version 4.00.950, so I'm looking for a more recent version > > - You can send it to me by email or a download link (original Microsoft > links found by Google no longer work) > > - I need it ASAP. Tonight would be awesome > > Reach me off-list: evan(a)snarc.net > >

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Semi-OT: Win 95 kernel file needed
by Evan Koblentz 19 Mar '20

19 Mar '20

Got it from someone. Thanks for playing, everyone... On 3/18/20 10:38 PM, Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic wrote:

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LSSM COVID-19 shutdown, and a plea for help
by Dave McGuire 19 Mar '20

19 Mar '20

Hello VCFers. I am posting this with the permission of the VCF Steering Committee. Dear friends of LSSM/MACT, Due to the ongoing COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, we are suspending in-person visits to the museum, effective immediately, until May 31st. While our museum is free for visitors, much of our operating funds come from donations from in-person visitors, and the loss of that revenue stream puts us at significant risk. Even while shut down, we must pay our normal monthly expenses, such as utility bills, to maintain our security systems and minimal climate control, for the safety of our exhibits. In the past, our donors have helped us drive to far-flung places to pick up vintage hardware, restore systems, and keep things going here. Now, we must ask for your help to cover these expenses. Up until now, I (Dave McGuire, founder) have personally absorbed any financial shortfall, but my work as a consulting engineer in embedded systems (under McGuire Scientific Services, LLC, http://www.mcguirescientificservices.com) has come to a sudden halt as my clients scale back operations. Honestly I don't know how I'm going to keep the power on at home, much less at the museum. Some of you may be in a better situation than me, and I'm asking you personally to help LSSM/MACT survive. The COVID-19 pandemic will deeply affect our society, but it is my hope that we can come out of it in one piece. Building and running our museum has taken years of hard work by our team, and we're looking forward to reopening to the public once this pandemic has run its course. We plan to do our part to help society return to some semblance of normalcy after this crisis has passed, but we can't do it without your help. You may donate via PayPal or check. Our PayPal address is donations(a)mact.io. Checks may be made out to Museum of Applied Computer Technology, and mailed to 924 4th Avenue, New Kensington, PA 15068. Thank you for your support, and for being a friend of LSSM/MACT. Thank you, Dave McGuire President/Curator, LSSM/MACT

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