- vcf-midatlantic - lists.vcfed.org

VCF Museum - Microcomputer slots, S-100 to Apple II to IBM PC, Lou Eggebrecht
by Douglas Crawford 26 May '23

26 May '23

This is the first in what I expect to be a series of posts that highlight subject I/We are thinking of at the museum. In the museum, one of our talking points- a "sub tour" in the museum, highlights concepts of interconnects, from back planes to buses. Bus slots are best represented currently in the micro era exhibits on S-100, Apple II, and the PC. One idea that is probably coming is to have a whole slew of labeled add-in boards on the wall to show how significant the ability and the practice of upgrading a microcomputer was. Slots were important to make these machines versatile and created entire sub industries around each machine that had slots. I'm less versed in the slot systems of the minicomputers; I imagine a certain amount of this dynamic occurred there too. I'd like to share a bit of lore on the IBM PC bus, as this, I find, is lesser known in the hobby. The father of the IBM PC ISA bus is Lou Eggebrecht, and its a great story. He wrote the book, literally, on the IBM PC ISA Bus. https://archive.org/details/interfacingtoibm00egge I just bought a copy. We'll have this in the museum. After the PC was launched, a situation happened between him and IBM and they "parted ways". A short interpretation might go along the lines that IBM perceived Mr. Eggebrecht was capitalizing too much personally on the ISA bus. My reference is "Blue Magic - The People, Power and Politics Behind the IBM Personal Computer" by James Chposky and Ted Leonsis. I don't know his whole career after IBM. I do know he went on to be an influential person at Commodore, ICS and Broadcom. Here's a period piece on him at Commodore (https://amr.abime.net/review_51617) He seemed to follow along with moves of Mr. Hock Tan. Hock Tan is the CEO that presided at Commodore at the end of line, selling off the assets I think. Hock Tan then came to ICS (Integrated Circuit Systems), a Valley Forge-based fabless mixed signal semiconductor designer with products revolving around phase-locked loops. Of interest to most of our hobby--- ICS was started by Ex-MOS process engineer Ed Arnold in the late 1970s. ICS had a number of ex-Commodore personnel on staff. Mr. Eggebrecht I believe was on the board of ICS for while, and this is where I had a chance to meet him in the late 1990s. At the time I only knew he had some involvement with the IBM PC. He was very likeable; humble, warm, and gracious. Mr. Eggebrecht was ideal to have on the board at ICS - who's chief products were the timing generators for the Intel processors and chipsets at the time. Hock Tan went on to IDT (as did I) when he sold ICS to IDT and then to Avago (I did not). Hock Tan orchestrated the huge merger of Avago and Broadcom. I mention this, because, not surprisingly, Lou Eggebrecht served on the board of Broadcom for some time too. He would be a great speaker at a VCF! :-O I hope his oral history gets taken too.

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VCF Museum - Microcomputer slots, S-100 to Apple II to IBM PC, Lou Eggebrecht
by Herbert Johnson 26 May '23

26 May '23

I read Doug's post, and subsequent posts, and started to write a response that filled in on a few points. Such as, actual S-100 bus history. Or, why a "slot" isn't quite a bus, and the history of that. And, how IBM's PC bus isn't quite like MITS's Altair Bus - which wasn't quite "S-100". That became a lecture, and it's not useful or polite to post a lecture. So I created a Web page instead, and I'm posting a link to that, for those interested in a little more background. While it's my opinion, it's a technically informed one; some history can be argued of course. It's also on-the-fly and a bit rough. http://www.retrotechnology.com/herbs_stuff/bus_history.html The point relevant to this discussion, is to flesh-out some of the background that Doug references. I hope it informs his intended display. It's certainly a good idea, to display and describe general features of vintage computers. One of them is a bus architecture, or maybe the lack of one, why such things occur, and their consequences. My interest in S-100 architectures is certainly a consequence. Much of my Web site is devoted to S-100 computers. Others who have posted, have sites or interests in specific brands or architectures. I'm informed by their responses in my document. Thanks to all and I hope I have some useful considerations in my offline response. Regards Herb Johnson -- Herbert R. Johnson, New Jersey USA https://www.retrotechnology.com OR .net preserve, recover, restore 1970's computing email: hjohnson AT retrotechnology DOT com or try later herbjohnson AT comcast DOT net

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August Repair Workshop & InfoAge Volunteer Cookout
by Jeffrey Brace 25 May '23

25 May '23

The August repair workshop will be August 26 & 27. Signup is here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1fWMqLQ_8wqgUHlUJMqLlH84z3CPpOzc2Tb-… There is a volunteer cookout run by InfoAge for all the volunteers on August 26. So we are invited. I need a count of who is coming, so please sign up on the Repair Workshop list to let me know that you are coming. Likely it will be burgers, hot dogs, soft drinks. There is no cost to volunteers. Volunteers and their families will be coming. Probably it will be around 6PM, but details will be forthcoming. Thanks! Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner VCF Mid-Atlantic Event Manager Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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Usagi Electric (Dave Lovett) visits Computer Museum @ System Source (20 Minute Video)
by rar 25 May '23

25 May '23

YouTube creator, David Lovett, (Usagi Electric) was here in Baltimore last week and filmed some of the highlights of the museum. He chose a few items that we rarely talk about in addition the items we usually show. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqiFOkJ_Kbg We are shipping him one of our Bendix G-15s for him to restore. Can't Wait! Bob Roswell https://museum@syssrc.com 410-952-9140

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Speaking of youtube videos - my museum vid.
by Dave Shevett 25 May '23

25 May '23

Finally edited this together - a tour of the museum when I was down there for VCF east. https://youtu.be/qCDxU6aJC3U -- Dave Shevett shevett(a)pobox.com

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I tube, you-tube, we all tube for ...
by Jeffrey Jonas 25 May '23

25 May '23

Just making sure everyone knows of 1) Bill Mauchly's videos https://www.youtube.com/@BillMauchly/videos 2) The wonderful followup to "The Secret Life Of Machines" is the 'Secret life of Components' https://www.youtube.com/@timhunkin1/videos This channel is about Tim Hunkin's work. It includes his TV work, arcade machines, public clocks and his recent youtube 'Secret life of Components' videos. 3) for purely mechanical devices, see Brad Litwin https://www.youtube.com/@BLitwin/videos http://www.bradlitwin.com/ These are the works of Bradley N. Litwin, kinetic sculptor, musician, self-made madman. Here, you will find all kinds of mechanical stuff, ranging from the miniscule to pieces that fill a proscenium stage. And, Brad is the inventor and maker of MechaniCards, an affordable collection of "mechanundras," designed to be mailed, presented as unusual gifts, or just zoning out, while playing with them, on your coffee table. and so much more! -- jeff jonas

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First TV Show Home Computer?
by Douglas Crawford 22 May '23

22 May '23

(Computer in the home) Munsters beat out Batman?! Claimed to be a UNIVAC https://youtu.be/aa2nCVke2XY?t=219

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Ohio Scientific 440 Video Board
by Bill Degnan 22 May '23

22 May '23

I almost surely have schematics and specs for all of this. What should I look for to assist? Or stop by at your convenience. I have reorganized the OSI stuff to make it easier to use and I have been planning to explore the 400 series stuff. Bill On Mon, May 22, 2023, 8:02 PM Alexander Pierson via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > Bill & Bill, > Mr. Degnan, I had seen your 400 board photo on vintagecomputer.net, which > I used as a reference during the construction of my replica from > glitchworks (which is now running!), but I had not seen the rest of the > image set including the 440. That will be helpful as a reference, as I've > only found photos of 4 other units out there. Seems yours has the last two > RAM sockets populated for color. > > > The documents for both the 440 and 420c available online from osiweb & > Mark's OSI archive are ones provided by Mr. Dromgoole himself, so thank you > for having uploaded those -- without them, I'd be up a creek. Also, good > to know about Mike's ASCII keyboard adapter. > > > I've also come across what might be an example of an original Challenger > with a 440 and a 420c on DigiBarn's page. They're the cards farthest from > the nameplate. > https://www.digibarn.com/collections/systems/challenger/page_01.htm > > I wish attending a workshop was in the cards for me, but the distance/time > tends to clash with my work schedule. > > > Thank you, > -Alexander 'Z' Pierson > On Monday, May 22, 2023 at 01:41:05 PM EDT, Bill Degnan via > vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > Maybe I will bring my osi 400 stuff to the upcoming vcfed workshop, If I > can go and have coverage at the museum then > B > > On Mon, May 22, 2023, 12:43 PM Bill Dromgoole via vcf-midatlantic < > vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > > You just need an ascii keyboard with TTL level outputs for the 440 video > > board. > > The input is enabled for one micro second every five milliseconds by the > > OSI 65V ROM. > > This means you need a keyboard strobe pulse about 10 milliseconds long > for > > it to work. > > You can use M. Willigals PC keyboard to apple 1 adapter board for testing > > purposes if you want. > > The early version only had a pulse width of 125 microseconds though. > > I had to use a 74ls123 with a 15K resistor and a 1.1 microfarad capacitor > > between the adapter and the 440 to get the correct pulse width. > > > > He no longer sells the board but can build your own. > > http://www.willegal.net/appleii/appleii-kb-int.htm > > > > Bill > > From: Alexander Pierson via vcf-midatlantic > > Sent: Monday, May 22, 2023 9:37 AM > > To: vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org > > Cc: Alexander Pierson > > Subject: [vcf-midatlantic] Ohio Scientific 440 Video Board > > > > > >

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Ohio Scientific 440 Video Board
by Bill Dromgoole 22 May '23

22 May '23

You just need an ascii keyboard with TTL level outputs for the 440 video board. The input is enabled for one micro second every five milliseconds by the OSI 65V ROM. This means you need a keyboard strobe pulse about 10 milliseconds long for it to work. You can use M. Willigals PC keyboard to apple 1 adapter board for testing purposes if you want. The early version only had a pulse width of 125 microseconds though. I had to use a 74ls123 with a 15K resistor and a 1.1 microfarad capacitor between the adapter and the 440 to get the correct pulse width. He no longer sells the board but can build your own. http://www.willegal.net/appleii/appleii-kb-int.htm Bill From: Alexander Pierson via vcf-midatlantic Sent: Monday, May 22, 2023 9:37 AM To: vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org Cc: Alexander Pierson Subject: [vcf-midatlantic] Ohio Scientific 440 Video Board

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August Repair Workshop Rescheduled to August 26 & 27
by Jeffrey Brace 22 May '23

22 May '23

Unfortunately a gremlin deleted our reservation for the August repair workshop back in January. Some other group has since reserved for our originally scheduled weekend. So the new date is August 26 & 27. *Signup for August*: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1fWMqLQ_8wqgUHlUJMqLlH84z3CPpOzc2Tb-… *Other dates for Repair Workshops:* *Signup for June*: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Y17roR2xP75sq5kjbv8jcVPk-a3vCVjWdmT… *Signup for July:* https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1TJJxdL8skd7giR1miP-5AKMHwoBSqU7gse-… *Signup for October*: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1skx8EEXuJl2fUdNGrDIeJO8eekSQQI-ciyT… *Signup for November*: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1gcb3OQ60zfuZpNcXkqi-rUwvlVeYLZF4t1s… Thanks! Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner VCF Mid-Atlantic Event Manager Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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Any DEC-ies coming to the June 10th workshop?
by Dave Shevett 22 May '23

22 May '23

Would love to have someone checking over my shoulder and take a look at my /73 that won't boot. I tossed my name and info on the spreadsheet. -d -- Dave Shevett shevett(a)pobox.com

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VCF PDP-8 pictures
by David Gesswein 22 May '23

22 May '23

Finally got pages online about my VCF exhibit. The pictures the PDP-8 took. http://www.pdp8online.com/shows/vcfe23/pics2.shtml And top page for exhibit. http://www.pdp8online.com/shows/vcfe23/index.shtml

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Ohio Scientific 440 Video Board
by Bill Degnan 22 May '23

22 May '23

Doing a quick check I found this pic from vintagecomputer.net, a modded 400 system that has a 440, but I don't have details. https://www.vintagecomputer.net/osi/400_series/OSI_440_B.jpg But it may not help, I'd have to see if I have any documentation too. More photos here: https://www.vintagecomputer.net/osi/400_series/ BIll On Mon, May 22, 2023 at 9:37 AM Alexander Pierson via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > Howdy, > > While at VCF East, I purchased a pair of OSI boards: a 440 video board, > and a 420c 4K RAM expansion. I've seen references in the documentation of > how the 420c can be used to supplement the memory of the 440, enabling > pixel graphics, not just 32x32 text. I've been looking for photos of what > 440 board builds look like with that supplemental 420c. I've yet to find > a photo of the ribbon cables from the 420c connecting to the 3 empty > sockets on a 440 to get an idea of how that might look. > https://www.commodorez.com/OSIC4P/OSI440.jpghttps://www.commodorez.com/OSIC… > I also noted in the manual that 3 kinds of keyboard can be used, including > the Sanders 720 keyboard commonly seen for sale in surplus listings in > places like Byte magazine. I'd like to put my 720 to use on the 440, but I > was also wondering if anyone had seen such a keyboard installed with this > or any other OSI video board before. > https://commodorez.com/OSIC4P/Sanders720.jpg > I've seen Sanders 720 keyboards on TV Typewriters, notably the example in > the LSSM: > https://www.commodorez.com/LSSM/20220913_172443.jpg > I've already asked the OSI forums about it, but figured it wouldn't hurt > to enquire in other places in hope of finding photos and information about > just such a setup, especially since I know I'm not the only OSI fan on the > list. > > Thank you,-Alexander 'Z' Pierson >

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Ohio Scientific 440 Video Board
by Alexander Pierson 22 May '23

22 May '23

Howdy, While at VCF East, I purchased a pair of OSI boards: a 440 video board, and a 420c 4K RAM expansion. I've seen references in the documentation of how the 420c can be used to supplement the memory of the 440, enabling pixel graphics, not just 32x32 text. I've been looking for photos of what 440 board builds look like with that supplemental 420c. I've yet to find a photo of the ribbon cables from the 420c connecting to the 3 empty sockets on a 440 to get an idea of how that might look.https://www.commodorez.com/OSIC4P/OSI440.jpghttps://www.commodorez.com… I also noted in the manual that 3 kinds of keyboard can be used, including the Sanders 720 keyboard commonly seen for sale in surplus listings in places like Byte magazine. I'd like to put my 720 to use on the 440, but I was also wondering if anyone had seen such a keyboard installed with this or any other OSI video board before.https://commodorez.com/OSIC4P/Sanders720.jpg I've seen Sanders 720 keyboards on TV Typewriters, notably the example in the LSSM: https://www.commodorez.com/LSSM/20220913_172443.jpg I've already asked the OSI forums about it, but figured it wouldn't hurt to enquire in other places in hope of finding photos and information about just such a setup, especially since I know I'm not the only OSI fan on the list. Thank you,-Alexander 'Z' Pierson

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Anyone want some Mac boxes?
by CJ Reha 21 May '23

21 May '23

I have boxes for a Mac SE and IIcx that are taking up way too much space, but I don't have the heart to throw them out without finding some possible takers first. It's just the boxes and foam packaging inside, no systems ;). But they're free to a good home, if no interest I'll likely just fold up and toss. Can bring to the VCF June swap meet. Thanks, CJ

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Reminder: Kennett Classic May 20th hack-a-thon and Swap
by Bill Degnan 21 May '23

21 May '23

Thank you Jeff for allowing me to post a notice about our event here. I am hoping my friends from the Vintage Computer Federation will join us at our hack-a-thon swap. Kennett Classic May 20th hack-a-thon and Swap May 20th, 2023 | 9AM – 11PM 115 S. Union St. Kennett Square, PA (Hack-a-thon is in our large workspace "The Garage" across the street from the museum) Plenty of room for everyone, tables, chairs and power supplied. REGISTER NOW TO ENSURE YOUR SPACE Here is the URL for the EVENT REGISTRATION: https://www.kennettclassic.com/spring-hack-a-thon-may-20th-2023/ $5 / person (family) $10 / vendor Kids free. HACK-A-THON Any vintage computers (older than 20 years) you wish to restore, demo or sell during the day Hacking? Bring Your Tools (power strip, soldering irons, volt meters, screw drivers, spare parts) Dolly or cart to bring items in from the parking lot area. VENDORS Spaces for people who want to sell their items or exhibit/demo their projects. EXHIBITORS / DEMOS welcome! GENERAL PUBLIC There will be a pretty steady stream of visitors from the local community too. We have a growing vintage computing community in the South Eastern PA / North Delaware / North MD area. Saturdays are usually the busiest days at the museum, and downtown in Kennett. The museum will be open as usual for a Saturday, 12-5. Visit our event page for more details, contact, directions https://www.kennettclassic.com/spring-hack-a-thon-may-20th-2023/ EVENT MAILING LIST https://www.kennettclassic.com/contact.cfm Bring the Family! Things to do in Kennett Square https://www.kennettclassic.com/while-at-kennett-classic-food/ We're Nearby Longwood Gardens https://www.longwoodgardens.org Thank you. Bill Degnan Kennett Classic 484 732 741 https://www.kennettclassic.com Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/6130337163716721

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Food for sale at the Swap Meet June 10
by Jeffrey Brace 21 May '23

21 May '23

The South Monmouth Fire Museum will be selling food across the road from the swap meet. It is a fundraiser for their non profit museum. So far they have on their menu: hotdogs chili chips drinks Take care, Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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Help advertise VCF Swap Meet
by Jeffrey Brace 21 May '23

21 May '23

Google Form is here for those who can help spread the word: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1jhYR_K7u-4vUWR1VzH7K85fGZvpiLrtk9m-… Thanks! Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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Repair Workshop 2023-06-10
by Jeffrey Brace 21 May '23

21 May '23

There is a repair workshop the same weekend of the swap meet. Sign up here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Y17roR2xP75sq5kjbv8jcVPk-a3vCVjWdmT… For those that are still around Sunday morning we will be going to breakfast at Americana Diner <https://goo.gl/maps/BvvTN9J4SedqbQwn9?coh=178571&entry=tt> ( in Shrewsbury at 9AM. It is a 14 minute drive from InfoAge. PLUS ... After breakfast we will be going to a private residence to see what someone has for sale. Lots of good stuff from a long time member. It's just getting too hard to haul all these heavy items to a swap meet for him so we are going to his house. Take care, Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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Swap Meet June 10 volunteers
by Jeffrey Brace 21 May '23

21 May '23

Hello everyone, I need volunteers for the upcoming swap meet on June 10. Please send me a private e-mail if you are available to volunteer. Thanks! Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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OT: What's old is new again. A new 8088 based DOS laptop
by Christian Liendo 19 May '23

19 May '23

Ok.. I made sure to add the OT label, but reproductions of other computers are here, I thought this would be of interest. https://liliputing.com/past-meets-present-in-this-200-mini-laptop-with-a-in… I am on the fence on getting this. I don't know how much classic 8088 based laptops are as I don't collect them, but this may be fun to play with.

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Using a newer IEEE 696 RAM on an IMSAI front panel system
by Bill Degnan 16 May '23

16 May '23

Hey all, I posted the basics of upgrading an IMSAI 8080 with front panel to use 64K IEEE 696 RAM and thought some here might be interested. The newer s-100 bus standard (IEEE 696) conflicts with the older S-100 systems (PHANTOM disrupts the Altair/IMSAI front panel). BUT if you can resolve the bus conflicts, newer RAM boards are less electrically noisy and they help make for a more stable system. More RAM the better. Worth the effort. So, if you're interested, here is how I got the Morrow MM65K 64K RAM board to work on my IMSAI: https://www.vintagecomputer.net/browse_thread.cfm?id=811 I provide links to sources including Jon Chapman's GWMON-80 ROM and Herb Johnson's info about S-100 bus particulars. For the upcoming workshop this Saturday at Kennett Classic for my project I plan to hack into an ancient hard drive that is password protected by using an Z80 in-circuit emulator to extract the password (hopefully). I also have a NABU computer that I want to map out with the emulator. Maybe I can get a little help with my PDP-8 (straight 8). Hope to see you there. Let me know what you're bringing/wanted. Here is a link to the event page: https://www.kennettclassic.com/spring-hack-a-thon-may-20th-2023/ If you want to get on the event mailing list: https://www.kennettclassic.com/contact.cfm I have not posted much about the swap end, but there will be items for sale, I have a few vendors who plan to attend. I will have a table or two of choice items, spares/donations to Kennett Classic Bill

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Morris Tanenbaum, Inventor of the Silicon Microchip, Dies at 94
by Christian Liendo 13 May '23

13 May '23

https://spectrum.ieee.org/in-memoriam-may-2023 Tanenbaum’s research in the mid-1950s proved that silicon was a better semiconductor material for transistors than germanium, which was commonly used at the time. His discovery paved the way for more efficient transistors critical in technologies that ushered in the Information Age. He began his career in 1952 at Bell Labs, in Murray Hill, N.J., as a researcher in its chemical physics department. Two years later, under the direction of physicist and inventor William Shockley, who at the time worked at Bell Labs, Tanenbaum began investigating whether silicon crystals could be used for transistors. In 1955 he and colleague Ernest Buehler demonstrated the first silicon transistor. Tanenbaum later developed the first gas-diffused silicon transistor, which could amplify and switch signals above 100 megahertz at a switching speed 10 times that of previous silicon transistors. Despite Tanenbaum’s early work on silicon transistors, AT&T did not support further research or advancement of the technology. At the time, Bell Labs was the research arm of AT&T. Although Bell Labs had “a significant technological lead in silicon transistor technology, it stopped doing proper research in the field—partly because it just wasn’t immediately relevant to AT&T’s business—so silicon transistor technology, including the integrated circuit, was done by Intel and Texas Instruments instead,” Tanenbaum said in a 1999 oral history conducted by the IEEE History Center. Tanenbaum instead worked on other new technologies in the decades that followed. In 1962 he was named assistant director of Bell Labs’ metallurgical department. He led the team there that created the first high-field superconducting magnets, which are now used in MRI machines and other medical imaging technologies. Later he helped develop optical fiber and digital telephone switching. Tanenbaum went on to serve as president of AT&T’s New Jersey Bell (now part of Verizon) in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He was appointed president of AT&T Communications in 1984. He retired five years later as AT&T’s vice chairman and chief financial officer. A member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, he also was a Fellow of the American Physical Society and a member of the MIT board of trustees. He received a bachelor’s degree in chemistry in 1949 from Johns Hopkins University, in Baltimore, and earned a Ph.D. in physical chemistry from Princeton.

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What was DESQview like on 80286?
by John Heritage 13 May '23

13 May '23

Hey folks, I used DESQview a lot on 386SX and higher machines 'back in the day', and it was quite useful for running multiple nodes on a BBS, or for 'multitasking' -- running a terminal program in DOS while writing code, etc.. It worked great, and as long as you had 2MB of RAM you could do a lot with it. In my experience, a 486DX became fast enough for 4 BBS nodes at once, etc.. I was curious what DESQview was like on a (faster - 12 MHz or higher) 286? Could you run two 500KB+ DOS programs with enough memory? were there limitations because of the lack of (memory) modes relative to the 386? I remember QEMM386 being essential with Desqview to pull drivers and all sorts of things out of conventional memory.. so I imagine conventional memory in Desqview 'instances' was lower on a 286 than a 386. (A bit of nostalgia here - but late in the time I ran my BBS, I accidentally killed two 286-16 cpu/board combos.. trying to power them on stupidly -- on the outside of a static bag. I was planning to put them through their paces and use them for BBS nodes. From what I remember a 386SX or DX @ 16 MHz wasn't really faster than a 286 @ 16 MHz for 16-bit code). Thanks! John

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VCF East 2023 YouTube videos and articles
by Jeffrey Brace 08 May '23

08 May '23

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Does a Linux 1.0D count yet
by Kelly Leavitt 08 May '23

08 May '23

TAMU Linux 1.0D running X11. Reliving the glory days of 1992. Took me a while to remember all the Mojo needed to get X11 running. https://imgur.com/a/8IKHOoW [https://i.imgur.com/kJrwqLo.png?fb]<https://imgur.com/a/8IKHOoW> imgur.com<https://imgur.com/a/8IKHOoW> Discover the magic of the internet at Imgur, a community powered entertainment destination. Lift your spirits with funny jokes, trending memes, entertaining gifs, inspiring stories, viral videos, and so much more from users. imgur.com Kelly

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New Warehouse Cleanup went great! 2023-05-07
by Jeffrey Brace 07 May '23

07 May '23

Today (5/7), 7 of us came to clean out what will be our new warehouse section. I got there about 10AM with Gregg Levine who took the train from manhattan to help us. Ian Litchfield and Thomas Gilinsky came over a few minutes later. Then a few minutes afterwards Ken Gober came. An hour later Bill Inderrieden joined us and Doug came about 1:30PM after driving an hour and a half from his home. We cleared out a section and filled up a quarter of the dumpster. Unfortunately it was already 3/4 full of other groups' trash, so we could only remove part of the trash. The rest will have to wait until the dumpster is emptied and returned. We did sweep a lot, staging most of the remaining trash for removal in the future. We also move items out that we wanted to save for future purposes. Ray Brown helped move some heavy items with the forklift like metal radiators and a huge pallet of shelving parts. Some items need to go to e-recycling or hazardous waste (paint, etc.) at a later time. I will be scheduling a new date for the remaining cleanup when the dumpster is emptied. Thanks to all who helped! Here are some pictures and video: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1-h7yP_xknMw0SvDpKyr8xM70uP39yYi-?us… Take care, Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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VCF East 2023 Survey results
by Jeffrey Brace 06 May '23

06 May '23

No need to look at the results. Everything was 100% perfect! ;) https://bit.ly/vcfe2023post_results Take care, Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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Cleanup tomorrow 5/7 at 10AM of VCF's new warehouse area
by Jeffrey Brace 06 May '23

06 May '23

If you are coming tomorrow to help cleanup and haven't let me know, then let me know now. If you have already let me know, then contact me when you arrive so that I can direct you to where we are. Thanks! Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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OT: Monmouth County Museums Free this weekend May 6 & 7
by Jeffrey Brace 06 May '23

06 May '23

A Weekend in Old Monmouth (Includes InfoAge) https://www.co.monmouth.nj.us/page.aspx?ID=3464 Take care, Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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OT - Fiber to 9010
by Martin Flynn 01 May '23

01 May '23

CDL is installing single-mode fiber to Building 9010 (The building with the current VCF Museum space) the weekend of June 17th and 18th, replacing the problematic MOCA network gear at Camp Evans. To save time while we have the rented boom lift on site, We plan to route the cable through the vault and up to the pole the prior Saturday (June 10th) Plan is to divide into two teams on the 17th: * The first group will install the steel messenger cable, and begin lacing the fiber to the messenger * The second group will pull the fiber through the 9010 attic to the new rack above the future VCF museum space Link: http://compdecon.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/IMG_1383.jpeg So far, just the usual suspects from CDL are signed up, however extra hands from VCF would be appreciated greatly! Please reply off list to reduce list clutter. Martin Flynn

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VCF West 2023 is happening! August 4 & 5 @ CHM
by Jeffrey Brace 01 May '23

01 May '23

Erik Klein, showrunner for VCF West has just declared: *"It has been a long time coming, but we’ve finally made arrangements to have a 2023 VCF West.* *I’ll share some of the boring details later, but, for now, I want to encourage everyone interested in this year’s show to get ready for a great event, but one with a very short runway. So get those exhibits prepared and registered, get those talks planned and free up your time for FRIDAY AUGUST 4th and SATURDAY August 5th.Yes, you read that right. One of the big hang-ups with getting 2023 off of the ground was that our traditional, and preferred, venue, the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California, is not available for Sunday on our normal show weekend.So this year’s event will be Friday and Saturday with setup on Thursday.While this scheduling issue was the main holdup to getting the show off of the ground - It took a while to come to terms with the CHM for the rental, dates, etc. - the good news is that the CHM are very excited to have us back and they will help us promote the show, hopefully increasing our attendance even with the awkward days.That said I do apologize profusely for the delays and inconvenience this will cause. I also apologize for “ignoring” most of the emails from folks asking about our progress. I really wasn’t sure until just today that the show would even go on and I didn’t want to spur a rumor mill in advance of an announcement.Thankfully the announcement is a positive one!Exhibitor registration is now open. Because of the short timelines I’m encouraging everyone to sign up ASAP.The same goes for speakers. If you’d like to speak at the show please let me know soon.Thank you all for the encouragement and support. This show can’t happen without you all. Once again I apologize for compressing all of the planning. This won’t happen again."* Facebook post: https://www.facebook.com/100064572070138/posts/pfbid02Yxz3xMtN7FCymg5f9CCQn… Website: https://vcfed.org/events/vintage-computer-festival-west/ Please spread the word!

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Help with sorting swag Sunday May 21 at 10AM
by Jeffrey Brace 01 May '23

01 May '23

I plan on sorting all the swag from VCF East Sunday May 21 at 10AM. Everything was put in bags and boxes in a hurry and has to be sorted and made ready for the swap meet on June 10. If you are interested in helping, then please send me a message privately. Thanks! Jeff Brace -- Take care, Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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VCF Swap Meet June 10
by Jeffrey Brace 29 Apr '23

29 Apr '23

Just reminding everyone that there is our VCF Swap Meet this coming June 10 from 8AM to 2PM. Information is here: https://vcfed.org/vcf-swap-meet/ Take care, Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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I Adore My 64 - Kickstarter Preview
by Christian Liendo 29 Apr '23

29 Apr '23

So someone is making a video about the Commodore 64 Looks decent. https://youtu.be/huzRxVdrwUY

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Warehouse Cleanup Sunday, May 7 starting at 10AM
by Jeffrey Brace 29 Apr '23

29 Apr '23

Hello everyone, Just making sure that everyone knows that the correct date for warehouse cleanup is Sunday, May 7 starting at 10AM. Contact me off list if you are interested. Bring gloves if you have them as the items are dirty. Wear clothes that you don't mind getting dirty as it is a dusty space. Wear masks if you are sensitive to dust. There is nothing of interest in the warehouse at this point. Unless you want a 32 inch CRT TV or two, broken Christmas lights, scraps of clothing, a big old painting, and other general debris. Pieces of wood, plastic, etc. It's not construction debris. It was used for CEBOT.. There were a few rounds of cleanup already to remove items. It was a general storage for CEBOT (Camp Evans Base of Terror) and other museums. Take care, Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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Survey for VCF East 2023
by Jeffrey Brace 29 Apr '23

29 Apr '23

In case you haven't filled it out yet. Here is a post event survey for VCF East 2023: https://bit.ly/vcfe2023post Take care, Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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Nice Little VCF-East Recap Video
by Chris Fala 28 Apr '23

28 Apr '23

Nice little show of our event! Sorry if this was already shared. https://youtu.be/mpXgVQpH1Bk

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Rescue?
by Ian Litchfield 27 Apr '23

27 Apr '23

I have a sent a scout out to see if it’s there and to take it if so! Hopefully it’s in one piece still there or if it’s gone I hope it’s not with a scrapper. On Thu, Apr 27, 2023 at 08:08 Tony Bogan via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > I see it now. Can’t get there myself today. > > Tony > > Sent from my iPhone > > > On Apr 27, 2023, at 8:03 AM, Sentrytv via vcf-midatlantic < > vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > > > > > <mime-attachment> >

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Rescue?
by Tony Bogan 27 Apr '23

27 Apr '23

I see it now. Can’t get there myself today. Tony Sent from my iPhone > On Apr 27, 2023, at 8:03 AM, Sentrytv via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > > <mime-attachment>

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Rescue?
by Dean Notarnicola 27 Apr '23

27 Apr '23

Any one in central Jersey care to rescue this? https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/228205343229436/?mibextid=6ojiHh

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Halt and Catch Fire Syllabus
by Christian Liendo 26 Apr '23

26 Apr '23

Someone posted this and I started to read it and I'm not a fan I think there are a lot of things missing, I figured I would share as it may be of interest to others. https://bits.ashleyblewer.com/halt-and-catch-fire-syllabus/ This site features a curriculum developed around the television series, Halt and Catch Fire (2014-2017), a fictional narrative about people working in tech during the 1980s-1990s. The intent is for this website to be used by self-forming small groups that want to create a “watching club” (like a book club) and discuss aspects of technology history that are featured in this series.

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Looking for a diskette for a book
by Richard Cini 24 Apr '23

24 Apr '23

All – Would anyone have a copy of the diskette for the book “PC System Programming” by Michael Tischer (Abacus Books)? There are a few programs in there I’d like to use, so I’m just trying to avoid the typing/OCR effort. Thanks! Rich -- Rich Cini http://cini.classiccmp.org

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Thank you VCF-East
by Jeffrey Brace 24 Apr '23

24 Apr '23

Ryan, Glad to hear that you had a great time! It was a lot of hard work by me personally as well as the many volunteers who made it all possible. Our community is really the best! Jeff On Tue, Apr 18, 2023 at 9:04 PM Ryan Stapleton via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > My friend and I had a great time at our first VCF East this past weekend. > He flew into NVA and we drove up and were just blown away by the awesome > community. > > Thank you for the organizers and all those that helped make this a great > experience for us and others. > > Thank you > -Ryan

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My magical moments
by Jeffrey Jonas 23 Apr '23

23 Apr '23

I met up with folks I know from so many other groups/associations/groups - David from Unigroup (NYC's oldest Unix/Linux user group) http://unigroup.org/ - Murph from NJ Linux https://www.meetup.com/NJLinux/ - Chris Liendo, Brian Cirulnick, Saul Trabal from the NY anime club https://en.wikifur.com/wiki/Cartoon/Fantasy_Organization - many members of the anthropomorphic community I'm VCF's unofficial tummler ( https://www.wordnik.com/words/tummler ), schmoozing with everybody ( https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/schmooze ). I did my best to be a catalyst to great conversations among folks and direct them to things they'd enjoy. I had lotsa one-on-one quality time with everyone, particularly those I helped load their cars. Everyone saw me delivering heavy items all around. It's hard to be serious when using a genuine Radio Flyer little red wagon https://www.radioflyer.com/shop/all-terrain-wagons.html Believing that few things are truly "off topic", I had toys for kids in the free pile (and saw very happy kids playing with them), and sold a lot of the Playable Metal toys (Tinkertoy for big kids). This is my 10th year of printing the exhibitor/vendor signs (since 2014). I hope they made all the exhibitors & vendors feel welcome and appreciated. -- jeff jonas

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Fw: re-animating IBM front panels
by David Keith 23 Apr '23

23 Apr '23

To: Jeff Jonas <jeffj(a)panix.com>Sent: Sunday, April 23, 2023 at 12:51:17 AM EDTSubject: Re: re-animating IBM front panels Thank You Jeff, Sorry I missed the VCF East 2023 event. I have transportation issues, and a bad back. I am currently using, for each front panel, an esp8266 driving individual ws2811 LEDs, NOT the light strings; with a refresh rate of over 100 cycles per second. The plan is to drive the IBM 370 / 145 front panel using a Raspberry with Hercules VM/370 emulation. I also have a 3270 display console, that is internally trash, looking to replace the guts with an old VGA monitor connected to another Raspberry PI running 3270 emulation. These front panels weigh a ton, and are made of big IBM iron. I will have a difficult time hauling them to the New Jersey shore from Northern Virginia. Thanks David duBose On Saturday, April 22, 2023 at 11:48:39 PM EDT, Jeff Jonas <jeffj(a)panix.com> wrote: > I am in the process of reanimating my IBM front panel collection. I wish I could have a hand in the process but my project backlog is too much :-( 1) I heard that the "Living Computer Museum" was mostly modern controllers (Raspberry Pi, etc) emulating the real systems. If they ran the real incandescent lamps, find out how! 2) Carl Claunch has a FPGA clone of the IBM 1130, complete with LED retrofit for the front panel. I believe he even has firmware for the LEDs to faithfully emulate incandescent lamps/bulbs. I'm of the opinion that using the proper color LEDs is cheaper and probably faster / more responsive than retrofitting with "Neopixel" controller-color-LEDs. Please keep everyone "in the loop". forever watching das blinkenlights, Jeff Jonas ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- On Wednesday, April 12, 2023 at 07:07:04 PM EDT, David Keith <beloved_wind(a)yahoo.com> wrote: Since I have now retired, I am in the process of reanimating my IBM front panel collection. With this challenge, you may have given me a deadline to get them completely animated again. I have the following in my collection: IBM System 370 Model 145 Mainframe CPU Operators Console Panel w/ header IBM 3705 Communications Controller front panel IBM 3803 Tape Control Unit Control panel Let me know, if there is any interest, transportation will be a issue, these items are made of big iron. Thanks David duBose

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Cleanup of new warehouse space May 6, 2023
by Jeffrey Brace 23 Apr '23

23 Apr '23

I need help cleaning up the space that will become our new warehouse space. I can't do it by myself. Now that VCF East is over, I have a little more time. So I'm proposing May 6 at 10AM to throw out into a big dumpster behind the space on that date. Who can come help? ========================================= Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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Nice Blog of VCF East
by Jeffrey Brace 22 Apr '23

22 Apr '23

Found this on cc-talk: https://voidstar.blog/vcf-east-2023/ ========================================= Jeff Brace VCF National Board Member Chairman & Vice President Vintage Computer Festival East Showrunner Vintage Computer Federation is a 501c3 charity https://vcfed.org/ <http://www.vcfed.org/> jeffrey(a)vcfed.org

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VCF East 2023 Post Event Survey
by Jeffrey Brace 22 Apr '23

22 Apr '23

Please fill this out to help with planning the event for next year: https://bit.ly/vcfe2023post

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Hackaday article about VCF 2023
by Christopher Gioconda 22 Apr '23

22 Apr '23

This came up on my newsfeed before and wasn’t sure if others had seen it: https://hackaday.com/2023/04/19/vintage-computer-festival-east-was-a-retro-… Unfortunately I wasn’t able to attend this year, but I’m curious whether others felt the same way as the author (Tom Nardi).

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