May 2019 - vcf-midatlantic - lists.vcfed.org

OT Atari 800 key caps needed and Commodore VIC 20 case.
by Sentrytv 23 May '19

23 May '19

To all on this list: I am looking for a Commodore VIC 20 case (top & bottom) I have a working system but no case right now. ALSO I am looking for key caps "X" and " ]." for an Atari 800 computer. Please contact me if you have one or all of these, for sale or trade. Also, I will be at the workshop in June. Thank you Mike Rosen Sent from: My extremely complicated, hand held electronic device.

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] New info about ol' MOBIDIC
by Evan Koblentz 23 May '19

23 May '19

>> sure some did call it MOBOL, was Sylvania part of RCA at this point? Nope On Thu, May 23, 2019, 6:46 AM Ben Greenfield via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > > > On May 23, 2019, at 1:45 AM, Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic < > vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > > > Many of you know that my second-favorite computer -- the Apple //e is my > favorite -- is MOBIDIC. I wrote in my book ("Abacus to smartphone" in 2015) > that Sylvania gave it a COBOL compiler. Tonight I found a document that > goes into detail about that compiler. I learned that Sylvania called the > compiler "MOBILE", although it would've been much funnier if they called it > MOBOL, don't you think? :) > > I’m sure some did call it MOBOL, was Sylvania part of RCA at this point? > > > > Pages 4-1, 4-2, and 4-3 (pages 11, 12, 13 of the .pdf) explain the > programs that they wrote. Read all about it at > https://ia902808.us.archive.org/27/items/DTIC_AD0406874/DTIC_AD0406874.pdf > . > > Thanks for sharing. Archive.org is the closet thing I have experienced > that reminds most of the pre-graphics internet or just after mosaic hit. > > Thank you for sharing, > > Ben > > > > >

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New info about ol' MOBIDIC
by Evan Koblentz 23 May '19

23 May '19

Many of you know that my second-favorite computer -- the Apple //e is my favorite -- is MOBIDIC. I wrote in my book ("Abacus to smartphone" in 2015) that Sylvania gave it a COBOL compiler. Tonight I found a document that goes into detail about that compiler. I learned that Sylvania called the compiler "MOBILE", although it would've been much funnier if they called it MOBOL, don't you think? :) Pages 4-1, 4-2, and 4-3 (pages 11, 12, 13 of the .pdf) explain the programs that they wrote. Read all about it at https://ia902808.us.archive.org/27/items/DTIC_AD0406874/DTIC_AD0406874.pdf.

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Who's an ACM member?
by Evan Koblentz 22 May '19

22 May '19

I need to read a paper from 1978: https://dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=1198367

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Hayes 1200
by Mike Loewen 22 May '19

22 May '19

The most expensive Hayes modem, ever! https://www.ebay.com/itm/Hayes-Smartmodem-1200-with-Power-Supply/2026859300… Free shipping, too. :-) Mike Loewen mloewen(a)cpumagic.scol.pa.us Old Technology http://q7.neurotica.com/Oldtech/

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Museum report
by Evan Koblentz 22 May '19

22 May '19

Interesting day. I arrived around 11:30 and caught the end of the IEEE milestone plaque ceremony at the Diana/TIROS site. Then I did some museum maintenance for a while. One visitor distinguished herself: an IEEE local section officer who stayed for a thorough tour. Turns out she once worked with Isaac Asimov!

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Maker Faire this year
by Evan Koblentz 22 May '19

22 May '19

Yes please -- Kenbak! On Wed, May 22, 2019, 12:46 PM Alexander Pierson via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > Two machines come to mind:The uKENBAK-1 and the ELF membership card. I > have the former, and I'm willing to lend that, but the latter I'm sure > someone else has on hand. > -Alexander 'Z' Pierson > > > On Tuesday, May 21, 2019, 11:24:56 PM EDT, Evan Koblentz via > vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > Everyone, > > This year's idea for our World (NYC) Maker Faire exhibit is > replicas/workalikes. > > The registration opens next month, so for now this is conceptual. > Me/Dean/Jeff/Corey are planning it behind-the-scenes. > > We will bring: > > - Replica 1 (Not a Mimeo, because the former is hobbyist-friendly; > latter is for true aficionados) > > - Altair Mini > > - PiDP > > - Kim Uno > > - Commodore Mini > > - Glitchworks 8085 > > - Atari Flashback (maybe) > > Two questions: > > - Does anyone have Oscar's PDP-11/70, and if so are you willing to loan > it to us or (better yet) exhibit it personally at the event? > > - What other replica hardware should we consider for this exhibit? > > >

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] OT: NJARC YouTube
by Alex Duboski 21 May '19

21 May '19

Done

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DC area people: Fwd: Vintage Computer Books
by Evan Koblentz 20 May '19

20 May '19

See below. Reply directly to Gerald, NOT to this list. PS. Attachments don't work well here, so I put his books photo at https://tinyurl.com/y5lc3af7. Nothing that the VCF museum needs. -------- Forwarded Message -------- Subject: Vintage Computer Books Date: Mon, 20 May 2019 21:35:38 -0400 (EDT) From: GERALD TERLITZKY <gterlitzky06(a)comcast.net> Reply-To: GERALD TERLITZKY <gterlitzky06(a)comcast.net> To: evan(a)vcfed.org Good Evening, I found your name on the VCF Museum site by accident. I have a friend that develop Parkinson disease 5 years ago and I had to put him into an assisted living facility. He work as an computer operator for the Washington Gas Light company back in the 70's. I've been cleaning his house out for the past 6 weeks. He has a collection of computer books around 100 total. I'm attaching a picture of books in his library. I would like to sell them all, but I'm located in Bowie Maryland. Maybe you might know someone in the Washington Metro area that you can suggest for me to contact. All the funds that I make goes towards his living expense. Sincerely, Gerald Terlitzky

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Scopewriter Issue Resolved.
by Herb Johnson 20 May '19

20 May '19

> It’s interesting how many of the hobby designed products from the mod 70’s have marginal aspects to their designs. Whenever anyone recreates or restores any old electronic device, it often can be a tricky problem to determine whether a problem is introduced or original to the design > > regards, > Mike Willegal The very earliest microcomputers or microprocessor-based things from the early to mid-1970's, were often designed by people new to microprocessors and/or TTL logic. Some of course (TV Typewriter) were all TTL logic. The very earliest microprocessors needed odd voltages and timings. So some of the logic design was a bit, er, funky. A common practice was to use a resistor/capacitor circuit (R/C circuit) to create timing delays, or turn level-shifts into pulses. These don't age well, and didn't work well when new. The IMSAI front panel has a couple of these. Also, "straight" TTL draws a lot of current; later LSTTL and much later ALSTTL draws less current and is faster. Early CMOS was challenging too. Things got better, later on. And some brands (Compupro, etc.) produced pretty solid designs from the start. These are restorer's considerations which aren't documented. It's part of the fun, in my opinion. Notably, Herb 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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