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

Help with installing 1980s DOS program
by Herb Johnson 17 May '19

17 May '19

> Devin Heitmueller: I would assume there's a good chance that the user isn't so much > interested in using an ancient word processor for nostalgia, but > rather to gain access to some old documents. > > Evan Koblentz: Nope. He refuses to upgrade! He had it running for eons on XP, then that > went haywire, so he was desperate for someone to get it back running for > him. Evan is correct. That is, this user wants what he wants for the reasons Evan stated; and not as Devin speculated. This caught my attention, because I resell old Macintosh computer parts and systems. "Old" as in 68K and PowerPC based, 1980's and 1990's. While many of my customers are just playing with old Macs for nostalgia, or for non-use interest; a good number of them are "desperately" trying to keep their original, now-vintage systems running with now-vintage software. Why? 1) they have a stable environment, which they learned to use. It supported their line of business or work for decades. It still does. So there's no intrinsic (look it up) reason to change. 2) "modern" programs on modern computers add complexity or undesired features. The MS-DOS environment was either pure command-line, or used an 80 X 24 text display (in color sometimes) and "escape sequences" on the keyboard to navigate that screen. Or, yeah, a mouse. For touch typists, and for users who do repetitive work, keystrokes are faster than a mouse. Oh - and no networking needed. 2a) Some modern equivalents of now-vintage programs, can't do what the old programs did. Or they do something different. That's annoying to persons who find it hard to change their established habits. It's more than annoying, when you don't get the results you want from a "new" program. The forms look wrong, the images aren't the same, the calculations aren't the same. Sometimes that matters. From a business point of view, they would find it hard to rework "scripts" and forms to perform the same tasks. Or worse, hard to find someone able to both understand the "old" and provide the "new". *And*, provide patient training and support, to the now-new user of this new set of hardware, operating system, software... on and on. I don't offer any of that service, by the way. And many of these customers know, if they try to go the "replace everything" route, they will be abandoned with new stuff that won't work for them; and old stuff that's now "broken" and doesn't work either. In short: total failure. That's their view, and who am I to argue otherwise? Without offering to fix it? 2b) For some who use their computers with embedded equipment - say a mass spectrometer - they *can't* change the programming. Or possibly they can't change the hardware interface, or internal bus-hardware card (NuBus in the case of desktop Macs, ISA for old PC's, etc.) 3) Given the decades of use so far, these users simply want to run the clock out. They will retire soon; why make efforts to change everything, only to walk away from it a few years from now? And when the new-person will simply abandon whatever they've left behind, most likely? "We don't do that anymore, it was obsolete and the person retired." You-all should get the idea, at this point. For many people, use of a computer was yet another part of the "mechanics" of doing their job or running their business or service. They weren't programmers. Changing programs and computers, was simply not necessary, for a stable service. And believe it or not, there are still niche businesses, and long-running equipment, where "stability" is more important than "new". And where "new" doesn't necessarily mean "better". Many of you reading all this, if you haven't stopped already, have decided this is dead-end thinking, old-people who lack flexibility, or just incomprehensible. I only bothered to post it, because, well, this is a list about vintage computing, right? You are interested in vintage computers, right? Do-ya-THINK, some people used these for *purpose* at some time? And if so, maybe some people *still* use them for purpose, now? And, even so, it's worth preserving how and why these computers and programs were used. It's already largely forgotten. But that's another discussion. regards, 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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FYI: Interesting event at InfoAge
by Evan Koblentz 16 May '19

16 May '19

This Saturday from 10am-noon the IEEE is dedicating a plaque at the Diana site (location of the big satellite dish, a few hundred yards down the road from the main campus). The event is open to all. Unfortunately I can't be there until 11ish.

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Post-VCF East show survey
by Evan Koblentz 16 May '19

16 May '19

Everyone: please take a few minutes to complete our show survey. It's a (somewhat) analytical way for us to know what was awesome, what was so-so, and what we did wrong: https://bit.ly/2ZLuz0A

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Didn't get a VCF East 2019 t-shirt? And still want one?
by Jeffrey Brace 13 May '19

13 May '19

We sold out of many sizes and some people still wanted t-shirts (actually almost all sizes). I will be ordering again soon, so if you want a VCF East t-shirt and didn't get one, then send me a private reply with the quantity and size and I will make sure that you get it. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Help with installing 1980s DOS program
by Evan Koblentz 13 May '19

13 May '19

Someone posted on my local Facebook town page in need of ordinary PC support. I replied because that stuff is usually quite easy to fix -- easy/quick cash on the side, or so I thought!! Turns out it's an elderly attorney running a mid-1980s DOS version of Leading Edge Word Processor installed on Windows XP. Seriously????? The problem was it keeps giving him an error message about unable to read drive a: (3.5") even when he's not trying to use that drive. The error pops up randomly and prevents him from continuing to use the program. I confirmed that the drive reads/writes fine. Rather than trying to chase down an inconsistent bug, he asked me if he can dump Windows and just run the program under straight DOS. Okay, sure. I figured it would be fun to do this even if the guy wasn't paying me. After all, if I don't promote semi-vintage computing then who will? :) I downloaded DOS 6.22 at home and put the image files onto disks via a USB floppy drive. Went to install that on an old PC that I happened to have, and it gave errors about lack of memory space when I ran setup, which is bizarre but whatever .... I downloaded version 5.0 instead and that installed without any trouble (not counting one damaged disk; I used another disk and it worked that time). So now I've got a bare-metal DOS 5.0 installation on an older PC for this guy. His son pointed me to the word processor program at an abandonware site (I put a copy of the files at http://snarc.net/lewp/ if anybody wants to play along at home). I copied the files onto a disk via DOSbox (thanks to Dean for the tip to use emulation there!). The files read/write fine on the DOS computer. Currently I'm stumped at how to install this program on the computer. I copied them all into the same directory structure on the DOS computer. The install.bat file requires a second floppy drive, which I don't have but I am getting one tomorrow. (Local FB marketplace seller has another external USB floppy drive for eight bucks.) I have two questions: 1. Is there a way around needing a second drive? 2. If the second drive is required, is it even the correct procedure to just run the install.bat or must I do something else to install the program?

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DEC CR-11 at auction
by Mike Loewen 13 May '19

13 May '19

DEC CR-11 card reader at the usual auction site: https://www.ebay.com/itm/DEC-CR-11-Documation-M200-Card-Reader/202677568290 No affiliation with the sale. Mike Loewen mloewen(a)cpumagic.scol.pa.us Old Technology http://q7.neurotica.com/Oldtech/

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BK 467 CRT rejuvenator calibration question
by corey cohen 13 May '19

13 May '19

I posted this on the VCF forum but got nothing in replies. So I just recapped my new to me BK467 and easily calibrated the Heater voltage. This is my last step to clear my workbench off for a new project arriving later this week. Next up on the BK467 is the tracking range calibration. The service manual I got online isn’t very clear. After hooking up the resistor and warming the unit up in setup mode, it says to put the 467 into test mode, adjust the G2 red control till it reads full scale on the meter. I assume that means when it's at 2.0 (all the way to the right)? Then it says while pressing the tracking button and adjust R23 until it reads the minimum setting. Does this mean 0 on the meter or at the "set tracking mark". I can't adjust R23 any lower than .2 on the meter so I'm hoping it's not supposed to be set to 0. Any help is appreciated. Thanks, Corey corey cohen uǝɥoɔ ʎǝɹoɔ Sent from my iPhone

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Monochrome and VGA together?
by Richard Cini 13 May '19

13 May '19

All — I’m working on another project (with an early version of Windows) and for debugging on my AT, I need to run both a monochrome and EGA/VGA together. I’m quite rusty on this because I remember doing this long ago but it might be pre-VGA. Is this possible? Thanks! Get Outlook for iOS<https://aka.ms/o0ukef>

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paging Glenn Roberts
by Evan Koblentz 13 May '19

13 May '19

Please check you Gmail for a private message from me. -- Evan Koblentz, executive director Vintage Computer Federation www.vcfed.org evan(a)vcfed.org (646) 546-9999 VCF is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization

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Northstar floating point BASIC (S-100)
by Herb Johnson 13 May '19

13 May '19

Anyone know where to find Northstar's BASIC FPB software, which used Northstar's floating-point S-100 board? I think versions 5 and 6 used the FPB. The manual is available; the software itself seems hard to find. Thanks. binary 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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