- vcf-midatlantic - lists.vcfed.org

Festivus Who's Bringing What spreadsheet
by Jeffrey Brace 15 Nov '19

15 Nov '19

Tell us what you are bringing here: < https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1x0oSxqZXh8tmqqbUsP3KS3OywiNsEAOOmtq… > The other e-mail about EventBrite/PayPal is for payment only and separate. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Items available at Festivus
by Jeffrey Brace 15 Nov '19

15 Nov '19

On Fri, Nov 15, 2019 at 10:33 AM Sentrytv via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > Well apparently that's what everybody wants since we can't set up tables > with stuff and there's not enough space > I never said that you can't setup tables, I just said that I don't want it to get out of control. I want to control where it goes so that it doesn't get crowded in the event space (which is meant for eating, drinking and socializing) and doesn't take tables that are meant for eating or food. Last year there were 4 tables where someone put stuff and never asked anyone and we had not enough room to sit and eat. I'm more than happy to supply 1 or 2 tables for people. If there is enough demand, then we can use the adjacent room which has plenty of space. Again, I just don't want people bringing stuff without asking and putting wherever they please. If you ask, then I can find a space and accommodate anyone. > > Sent from: > My extremely complicated, hand held electronic device. > > > On Nov 15, 2019, at 8:52 AM, murph via vcf-midatlantic < > vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > > > > > > > ----- Original message ----- > > From: Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org > > > > To: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> > > Cc: Evan Koblentz <evan(a)vcfed.org> > > Subject: Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Items available at Festivus > > Date: Thursday, November 14, 2019 22:53 > > > >>> will make sure that I keep anything that I have for sale in my van and > > just let other people know what I have when the time comes > > > > LOL ... sounds seedy > > > > > > ------------------------ > > > > I'm imagining a windowless panel van with "OLD COMPUTERS" badly painted > on the side. > > -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Items available at Festivus
by Evan Koblentz 15 Nov '19

15 Nov '19

>> will make sure that I keep anything that I have for sale in my van and just let other people know what I have when the time comes LOL ... sounds seedy On Thu, Nov 14, 2019, 4:40 PM Sentrytv via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > I will make sure that I keep anything that I have for sale in my van and > just let other people know what I have when the time comes > > Mike R > > Sent from: > My extremely complicated, hand held electronic device. > > > On Nov 14, 2019, at 2:08 PM, Jeffrey Brace via vcf-midatlantic < > vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > > > I want to stress that selling/buying during Festivus is allowed, but > there > > is limited table space and I want people to remember that this is > primarily > > a party. > > Last year there was too much stuff on tables which inhibited places to > eat, > > put food and move around. > > I do however have an idea of where we can put stuff for those who need 1 > > table. > > Everyone, please ask me first before bringing a large number of stuff. > > I figure out if there is space and tables available. > > Just remember this space and tables are limited and I won't let it turn > > into an uncontrolled swap meet. > > > > > > On Tue, Nov 12, 2019 at 9:55 PM Jeff Galinat via vcf-midatlantic < > > vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > > >> Since I have missed the last few workshops due to scheduling conflicts > and > >> since some of you have expressed interest in some of the vintage > computing > >> items I posted a few months ago, I will be attending Festivus to deliver > >> those items before I move to Tucson. There are now some additional > items on > >> this list so please let me know if you are interested in any of this > stuff > >> so I can bring it. Feel free to make an offer if you feel the price is > out > >> of line. I will probably list a few more items before the event as I > >> uncover them. > >> > >> Altair Clone with optional cassette interface $325 > >> Please see altairclone.com for details > >> > >> Apple //c with power supply $100 > >> Composite Apple //c monitor with stand $40 > >> $130 for the above pair > >> (Been in storage for 2 years - will test before Festivus > >> > >> ECT S-100 chassis with 10 slot ECT passive terminated backplane & power > >> supply $125 > >> > >> ZETA 2 - Z-80 SBC with CP/M in ROM, 512kb RAM, floppy disk controller > >> Assembled & tested $115 > >> ParPortProp board for above - adds SD card storage $40 > >> Details here => < > http://www.malinov.com/Home/sergeys-projects/zeta-sbc-v2> > >> > >> Lee Hart's 1802 Membership Card early version - $35 > >> > >> Q & T - 8" Floppy drive enclosure power cord, fan, barrier strip for AC > >> power but NO POWER SUPPLY. Holds 1 - 8" full height drive or 2 - 8" half > >> height drives. $20 > >> > >> HP 6100Cse SCSI flatbed scanner new in box - perfect for vintage desktop > >> publishing $20 > >> > >> Assorted 4164, 41256 and 411000 type dynamic RAM NOS stored in tubes $5 > for > >> quantity 10 of any type > >> > >> Protec PRO-83 Z-80 microprocessor trainer with on board S-100 bus > expansion > >> capability. Tested & working. A French manual is included along with an > >> English manual for its predecessor, the PRO-80. Keyboard operation is > the > >> same for both units. $80 > >> > >> Quantronics/PSS 8K S-100 boards passed 2 types of memory tests no errors > >> (2 available) $30ea > >> > >> Maximize BBX Computer - Modern day BASIC computer with case, power > supply, > >> keyboard & speakers- $60 > >> Details here:< > >> > >> > https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/818225433/maximite-bbx-the-modern-day-… > >>> > >> > >> > >> Regards > >> > >> Jeff Galinat > >> > > > > > > -- > > ========================================= > > Jeff Brace > > Vice President > > Vintage Computer Federation > >

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More Stuff available at Festivus
by Jeff Galinat 15 Nov '19

15 Nov '19

Hi All, I found a few more items in storage. I will only be bringing the items that have definite buyers so please let me know if you are interested and I will bring it. I will not be setting up a table, the items will remain in my van until they are transferred to the buyer. Apple ImageWriter II in box $25 (been in storage for at least 10 years) Commodore Modem 300 in box $5 Princeton Graphics 17" LCD monitor with Digital FlatPanel Interface (not VGA, noy DVI, not HDMI - Free Qty 2 - IBM 5170 PC/AT chassis (one has a original MB, the other has a 386MB, I think - $50 for the pair A couple of large 17" to 19" CRT monitors - Free I will list more stuff as I uncover it. Regards, Jeff

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Items available at Festivus
by Jeff Galinat 15 Nov '19

15 Nov '19

Since I have missed the last few workshops due to scheduling conflicts and since some of you have expressed interest in some of the vintage computing items I posted a few months ago, I will be attending Festivus to deliver those items before I move to Tucson. There are now some additional items on this list so please let me know if you are interested in any of this stuff so I can bring it. Feel free to make an offer if you feel the price is out of line. I will probably list a few more items before the event as I uncover them. Altair Clone with optional cassette interface $325 Please see altairclone.com for details Apple //c with power supply $100 Composite Apple //c monitor with stand $40 $130 for the above pair (Been in storage for 2 years - will test before Festivus ECT S-100 chassis with 10 slot ECT passive terminated backplane & power supply $125 ZETA 2 - Z-80 SBC with CP/M in ROM, 512kb RAM, floppy disk controller Assembled & tested $115 ParPortProp board for above - adds SD card storage $40 Details here => <http://www.malinov.com/Home/sergeys-projects/zeta-sbc-v2> Lee Hart's 1802 Membership Card early version - $35 Q & T - 8" Floppy drive enclosure power cord, fan, barrier strip for AC power but NO POWER SUPPLY. Holds 1 - 8" full height drive or 2 - 8" half height drives. $20 HP 6100Cse SCSI flatbed scanner new in box - perfect for vintage desktop publishing $20 Assorted 4164, 41256 and 411000 type dynamic RAM NOS stored in tubes $5 for quantity 10 of any type Protec PRO-83 Z-80 microprocessor trainer with on board S-100 bus expansion capability. Tested & working. A French manual is included along with an English manual for its predecessor, the PRO-80. Keyboard operation is the same for both units. $80 Quantronics/PSS 8K S-100 boards passed 2 types of memory tests no errors (2 available) $30ea Maximize BBX Computer - Modern day BASIC computer with case, power supply, keyboard & speakers- $60 Details here:< https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/818225433/maximite-bbx-the-modern-day-… > Regards Jeff Galinat

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11/9 & 11/10 Workshop
by David Gesswein 14 Nov '19

14 Nov '19

I got the Museum 3B1 operating again. The hard drive wasn't spinning up. I took the dead drive home and did a quick poke at it. Its not a stiction type problem, it just doesn't seem to be trying to spin up. The original drive was 40 MB. I put in a MFM hard drive emulator emulating the biggest drive the machine supports without modifications, 67 MB. I installed the OS, development tools, some games we had on our machine, utilities such as less, compress compatible with "current" compress etc, script to allow setting Y2k date, Kermit, and some demo programs which display slides with sales/promotional material. The basic I found was a DD copy which I haven't figured out the magic to write it to a floppy that can be used to install it. I ran out of time to install some of the things discussed such as Emacs. The emulator does loose the distinctive sounds of the MFM drives. What do people think of emulated sounds? I've thought about adding it to the emulator but wasn't sure if it was just a gimmick. I also replaced the soldered in coin cell battery with a battery holder and coin cell. The information I found online said it used a 2325. I put in a BR2330. The actual battery I found in the machine was a CR2430 which has slightly higher capacity. My understanding is BR batteries are a little less likely to leak so I like to use them though they have slightly less capacity. I cleaned the dust out and it still worked. The foam that they put in instead of a left side fan is starting to deteriorate. It does not spring back if touched but isn't quite to turning to dust. I will replace it next time I open the case. My original plan was to route an Ethernet cable from the emulator down into an unused expansion slot to allow easy access to update/backup the image on the emulator. I found the machine had all the slots full so couldn't do that. One has a memory board, the second a RS-232 & memory board, and the third the DOS-73 PC DOS board. For now the cable tucked behind the drive which requires the case to be opened to get to it. If we decide that we want better access there are a couple options. 1) Snake a cable out through the case such as the non used left side fan. Its convenient and won't be too visible but probably not the best option since I can be seen. 2) See if a smaller cable such as USB can still be snaked into the center expansion slot which has an easy to remove cover. The beaglebone in the emulator supports Ethernet over USB. 3) Wireless. The 3B1 has extensive shielding so probably would have to remote the antenna to outside the metal drive enclosure. This is probably overkill. I gave a quick walk-through to Jeff on what can currently be demoed. Future plans are to finish installing useful programs for demo on an emulator at home and update the image in the museum machine next time I visit. I'll also document what is installed and how to demo. I also checked out the straight 8. The programs in memory were corrupted but it seemed to work fine when I reloaded them. I left it with the moving AC bits program and the punch letters on paper tape program loaded.

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Festivus Docent Signup Sheet
by Jeffrey Brace 14 Nov '19

14 Nov '19

Please sign up to be docent for an hour or two during Festivus. Signup sheet is here: < https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1RsBm7PmAj1BnJtLfB-WfeYSQeA12LfFuP1n… > It's important that someone is there because of the holiday model train show brings in a lot of people. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Festivus Tickets Buy Now!
by Jeffrey Brace 14 Nov '19

14 Nov '19

Three weeks left for Festivus Tickets. Pay for your Festivus tickets online via Eventbrite: < https://www.eventbrite.com/e/festivus-2019-tickets-77436696243?aff=VCFMaili… > If anyone wants to pay via PayPal, then you can use the Friends and Family option. Send to paypal(a)vcfed.org and put in the note your Name, "Festivus 2019 dinner", "Festivus Dinner and Overnight". Cost is $10 for Festivus, $15 at the door. Overnight stay is $25 via Eventbrite and $30 at the door. Tickets are available until Dec. 6 (day before Festivus). Dec. 7 you have to pay at the door. After you pay online, you don't have to bring any EventBrite barcode or anything because I will have a list of those who paid. Here is the signup sheet which is separate from the tickets to tell us what food, drink, etc. that you will bring: < https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1x0oSxqZXh8tmqqbUsP3KS3OywiNsEAOOmtq… > -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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what were the Workshop videos?
by Jeffrey Jonas 14 Nov '19

14 Nov '19

Vintage computer restoration videos were playing in the background. Playlist, please.

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More stuff available at Festivus
by Jeff Galinat 13 Nov '19

13 Nov '19

Hi All, In digging through my stash, I have uncovered a few more items to let go. IBM Selectric II - mechanism is jammed since the the grease in it has turned to gunk - needs serious TLC- FREE! IBM 5155 Portable PC - Given to me about 20 years ago & I have never powered it up. will not have time to test it - $80 HP DesignJet 430 Wide carriage inkjet printer - prints up to 24" wide. Given to me by a retired architect friend about a year ago - $50 I will post more items as I uncover them. Regards, Jeff Galinat

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Festivus PayPal Tickets
by Jeffrey Brace 13 Nov '19

13 Nov '19

Some people have asked me about the Festivus tickets through Eventbrite. Eventbrite takes $2.50 for each ticket which is paid for by VCF. We decided to do it this way to put the burden on VCF and not the membership. The reason we are doing Eventbrite is because it is very easy to manage. I'm trying to get away from walking around all night collecting money from 50+ people. The other option for those not wanting to do Eventbrite is PayPal. If anyone wants to pay via PayPal, then you can use the Friends and Family option. This way VCF doesn't have to pay the extra fee. This is still good for me because I don't have to walk around collecting money from 50 people. If you want to do PayPal, then send to paypal(a)vcfed.org and put in the note your Name, "Festivus 2019 dinner", "Festivus Dinner and Overnight". Any questions? -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Atari 810 Case / Drive
by John Heritage 13 Nov '19

13 Nov '19

Good Morning everyone - i'm still looking for an Atari 810 drive with the center 1/3rd flap style (rather than the 'full size door / barn door' style front lip) to go with my (recently restored) Atari 800 setup. I bought one off of Ebay a few years ago but the seller packed it terribly, and the case was damaged in two places (front side, and a whole on the 'left' side towards the back). if you have a bad drive but a good case i'd be very interested in that too.. If anyone has one they'd be willing to sell, please let me know. I know someone on the list had one but i failed to follow up (a year or two ago..) Thanks! John

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11/9 & 11/10 Workshop Review - and Photos !
by dillera＠gmail.com 11 Nov '19

11 Nov '19

I had a great time, it sounds like I missed a fun Sunday also. Here are photos of the group on Sat: https://imgur.com/a/aOcgqOK It was a blast sitting back and screwing around with Tony and our 68k Macs and troubleshooting SCSI gremlins for five hours. Just like the old days. I did finally install system 6 on a working external SCSI drive, then upgrade it to System 7.0 with Tony's disks. The one big drive that was causing errors on my Macintosh Classic came up fine on Tony's SE/30 - so I'm pretty sure the caps are going on my Classic and messing with the SCSI on it. I did get some cool 68k B&W games from Tony while my harddrive was hooked up to his SE/30. I hope I didn't get any viruses.... And thanks again for the Perkins Perks - you usually bring something amazing for the group, I do appreciate that. I took some video w/ my goPro and the little stedi-cam I got, I'll throw that together in iMovie and see what I can come up with. I'll def grab some video at the upcoming festivus. -andy

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] 11/9 & 11/10 Workshop
by Jason Perkins 11 Nov '19

11 Nov '19

Tony helped me remove a virus I'd spread around my external mac HDDs. Thanks!! I spent some time working on a Tektronix 4696 printer. It's an early color inkjet, a casual search suggests it was introduced in 1987. Mine was bought in 1988, and never used. After figuring out what the magic "maintenance fluid" is (water), and many hours of cleaning cycles & manual cleanings (Thanks Connor!) it started producing great output! https://twitter.com/compu_85/status/1193681132442787841 On Sun, Nov 10, 2019 at 10:10 PM Tony Bogan via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > I’d also like to give a shout out to David Gesswein, Bill Dromgoole, Ian > Primus for helping work on other VCF/museum machines, Connor and Jason for > helping anyone with anything and everyone else who chipped in as always. > Workshops are so great because everyone pretty much jumps in and helps > everyone with everything. It’s why we get so much done in so short a time! > > I’d also like to thank Adam Michlin for all his help today along with Jeff > for organizing and running everything. A special super big thanks to Dean > and Drew Notarnicola for coming all the way down here just to man the > museum all day so everyone else could work on their own projects. I’m sure > I forgot someone, my apologies. > Dean, Drew, Adam and I took a quick lunch break and Drom and Jeff covered > the museum. > > Total team effort. Thanks everyone! > Tony > -- Jason Perkins 313 355 0085

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November Workshop Update
by jsalzman＠gmail.com 11 Nov '19

11 Nov '19

It's been a while since I was at a VCF Workshop. This was the first time I attended one in the Hackerspace. I don't know which working area I prefer the most. The 9032-A building lets you S-P-R-A-W-L for sure. I found myself uncomfortably encroaching in the Hackerspace building into space I didn't feel I needed to take up. However, nobody seemed to mind, and I made sure not to block paths and get in people's way. I did like the high top workbenches and the fixed power strips with outlets every three inches. It was very kind of the Hackerspace group to lend us the use of their facilities (and the few tools I needed and did not have on hand). I hope they soon develop a payment system for parts that they stock. I know they're working on something to manage that process, but they do have quite a selection of parts in stock. It would be a nice symbiotic relationship between VCF and CDL when we are otherwise unable to source repair parts for the items we fix by buying directly form CDL. And speaking of fixing... I brought the following items to the workshop: - Kaypro 10 - garbage screen on the lower half of the display - Compaq Portable - former keyboard refoaming project which had issues after refoaming - (3) Coleco Adam systems - mainly for triage to determine what I have that works and doesn't - My MOBIDIC project stuff - In case I had free time to work on it - SupercardPro flux reader - To identify and archive unknown disks in my collection - Raspberry Pi 4 - because... Raspberry Pi 4! - All my 74XX and 74XXX chips - to count and sort if I got bored. The first thing I did was start on the Kaypro. This was one of those systems that worked fine when I put it away a year ago, but suddenly had problems when I turned it on a few weeks ago. Thanks to the advice of Ian and others, the display issue was the result of a bad 2128 RAM chip. Nevell happened to have a replacement with him and it WORKED! Thanks again Nevell! A Kaypro isn't a big thing for many, but it's my only dedicated CP/M machine and I like to keep it running as long as I can. BTW, the Kaypro 10 was kind enough to nominate me for the honorary "First to Smoke" award, having unceremoniously given up it's RIFA cap before lunch. Sorry about the air freshener, folks! The next things I worked on were my Coleco Adam computers. These took most of my time over the weekend (and most of my vehicle's cargo space). I have one working system. A second system is completely DEAD, which I did not attempt to fix due to issues and discoveries made while working on the third one. The third one partially booted to the built-in Smartwriter software, but locked up before it completed drawing the typewriter screen. Subsequent resets of the system produced a consistently cascading set of problems. First reset would only show a cyan screen. The next reset would produce a blank screen. Each additional reset created a blank screen, but at random, would introduce low volume sound tones. After Internet research, and posts to the Coleco Adam Facebook group, I discovered that operational issues like this could be the result of a bad 6801 in the system, or the surrounding operational logic for each one. Each one meaning that the Adam actually has several support microprocessors in them. I was unaware of this. Each support microprocessor is a 6801, which is very similar in concept to the Texas Instruments TMS9000 series, where the microprocessor has built-in mask ROM on board. So while several 6801 chips are in the system, they can't be swapped within the system to test for a bad one, as they each have their own dedicated code. I'd have to swap from a known good system, but even then, they are soldered to the board. It would be a risk to try and remove a good one, just to test on another system. They are not easily replaceable and there are not any known modern alternatives for them (i.e. like the PLAnkton for the C64). In all my research and struggle, I completely failed to test the other two Adam printers I brought with me. If you weren't aware, the Coloco Adam system's power supply is in the printer. Therefore, you need the printer hooked up to the system to make it work. I just kept using the same working printer to test the remaining systems in my collection and didn't bother pulling out the other two printers I had to see if they worked Since it was Sunday by now on this two-day Workshop, I decided to look at my Compaq Portable. The keyboard on them are capacitive, not mechanical switches. There are foam and mylar pads inside each key, and the foam deteriorates over the years, rendering the keys inoperable. About a year ago, at another Workshop event, I began to replace bad foam pads in the keyboard. I had a pad kit that was long awaiting use, and I finished the swap. However, the keyboard failed to work afterwards. I didn't dwell on it too much back then due to other items I wanted to work on, so I saved it for a future date and got back to it at this past weekend's event. It was suggested by others that I carefully check each and every pad to make sure it "snapped" under the all four clips on each key top. I found a few that were not clipped in completely. The symptoms of the keyboard were a 301 error upon boot and a "+" symbol on the input field where it asks for system time. I'm thinking I have a stuck key. This assumption is based on the fact that the mylar cap on the bottom of the key foam on all keys is near flush with the body of the key as it mounts against the circuit board. I'm guessing the aftermarket foam replacements I got are too thick, and the mylar part is resting on, or too close to, the circuit board contacts. Maybe this Compaq Portable will show up at January's workshop... Next, I brought out my SupercardPro. I have this conveniently mounted in an old IBM external drive case, since it contains a working drive power supply, room for my dual 3.5" and 5.25" half height drive, and the SupercardPro board. The SupercardPro is a disk flux reader whose software handles many disk formats. I had a bunch of unmarked disks from one of the many disk lots I've acquired over the years and could not identify on other systems. With a flux reader, I should be able to find patterns to help identify a disk format. Unfortunately, these disks were stored in less than stellar conditions and have accumulated surface dirt and other unnaturally formed coatings. The iron oxide layer was getting brittle and in some cases, had gotten scraped away under the head of the floppy drive. So, I abandoned further attempts to read any more disks and may consider them a loss. I think they may have had CP/M or Minix data on them, if I remember correctly where I got them from. Finally, over the entire weekend, I spent about 10 minutes, tops, on my MOBIDIC project, and that time was spend just showing its progress to others and not any additional coding. I also did not get to any of the remaining items I planned to work with as I ran out of time. Thanks for the great weekend! Jeff Salzman

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] 11/9 & 11/10 Workshop
by Tony Bogan 10 Nov '19

10 Nov '19

I’d also like to give a shout out to David Gesswein, Bill Dromgoole, Ian Primus for helping work on other VCF/museum machines, Connor and Jason for helping anyone with anything and everyone else who chipped in as always. Workshops are so great because everyone pretty much jumps in and helps everyone with everything. It’s why we get so much done in so short a time! I’d also like to thank Adam Michlin for all his help today along with Jeff for organizing and running everything. A special super big thanks to Dean and Drew Notarnicola for coming all the way down here just to man the museum all day so everyone else could work on their own projects. I’m sure I forgot someone, my apologies. Dean, Drew, Adam and I took a quick lunch break and Drom and Jeff covered the museum. Total team effort. Thanks everyone! Tony

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11/9 & 11/10 Workshop
by Tony Bogan 10 Nov '19

10 Nov '19

Very productive workshop! While others will chime in no doubt with they’re accomplishments, here’s my update from the workshop. Saturday Andy Diller and I spent a lot of time on his Mac Classic and a couple SCSI hard drives. We used a few different Macs and peripherals to troubleshoot the Classic and confirm the hard drives are working (I forgot how much I love SCSI voodoo....yeah. Right.) I also got to disinfect two hard drives that belong to Jason Perkins. Can’t remember the last time I used Disinfectant to remove the Wdef virus!! Jason brought a bunch of HP i5 mini machines. A bunch of us picked up one or two and spent some time installing Windows 10 or Linux on them (not very retro, but it’s a workshop so who cares!?!) Sunday I spent the better part of the day working on the Apple /// from the museum. The computer was working but the drive was a bit wonky. After a good cleaning it worked fine. I ran the Apple /// confidence test and discovered some bad ram on the Memory Board. This is a first run Apple /// so it has the 12v memory board. A run to the warehouse revealed the other 3 Apple /// machines we have are all later models with the 5v memory board. Alex Jacocks used his new IC tester to determine which ram chips were bad. Now we know the ones we need to replace. Meanwhile, as Adam Michlin and I went through the machines in the warehouse we discovered the in box Apple /// we have is actually a nice Apple /// plus!! We brought it back to the workshop and with Ian’s help we got it running. It is now the Apple /// running in the museum. Side notes: The museum Apple /// decided to let out the magic smoke from the RIFA caps during testing. While Adam and I were going through the warehouse machines Ian removed those caps from the PSU. He also preemptively removes the ones from the ///+ PSU. I had brought my library of Apple /// software in anticipation of working on the museum machine, and Adam and I picked out a couple of dealer demo disks I had to run on the machine in the museum. I also got to spend a little time with my newest acquisition, and Apple II J-Plus. It was used to donate parts to Mike Rosens Apple II+ for troubleshooting and donated its 6502 to the Apple ///+ to get it working! Not what I planned on doing with it, but it was fortuitous I brought it! Saved some trips to the warehouse for parts! Tony Sent from my iPhone

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] First to smoke award goes to ... (Jeffrey Brace)
by Tony Bogan 10 Nov '19

10 Nov '19

Unfortunately the Apple /// was the one from the museum. Fortunately it was just a RIFA cap. It’s no longer a problem. Tony

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] First to smoke award goes to ... (Jeffrey Brace)
by Michael Thompson 10 Nov '19

10 Nov '19

> From: Jeffrey Brace <jeffrey(a)vcfed.org> > Subject: [vcf-midatlantic] First to smoke award > > Jeff Salzman and his KayPro at our VCF repair workshop today. > -- > ========================================= > Jeff Brace > Vice President > Vintage Computer Federation We did that at the RICM a few weeks ago. The RIFA cap below the AC inlet in a Kaypro-4 let out a huge amount of really stinky smoke. We just cut it out for now.

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Workshop start time today
by Jeffrey Brace 10 Nov '19

10 Nov '19

We are all at breakfast now. We should be finished by 10:30 and back at the repair workshop by 11. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Wanted 286, 386 working motherboard
by Sentrytv 09 Nov '19

09 Nov '19

I have a couple of cases that had a 386 and 286 motherboards in them. The 286 motherboard is corroded beyond repair, so I would like to put a working motherboard in the case and get the system working with DOS and windows. I have tons of software, I just don't have a good working motherboard. So if anybody out there is coming to the workshop tomorrow, Sunday, if you have a spare and you want to get rid of it, please contact me off list. Also If you have one and your not coming to the workshop, still contact me, maybe we can work out a way for me to either pick up or have it shipped. Thank you Mike R. Sent from: My extremely complicated, hand held electronic device.

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Repair Workshop Sat Dinner
by Jeffrey Brace 09 Nov '19

09 Nov '19

I took the liberty of making reservations at Asbury Festhalle and Biergarten. I went there Wednesday night for my birthday and it seemed like a great place that our group would like. Lots of great beer selections. Good food. I currently have reservations for 10 people. So if you are definitely interested, then let me know and if you aren't going, then let me know as well. The reservation is for 7:30PM. Yes, you have to pay for parking, but it is only about $1 per hour and you can download an app "Asbury Park Parking" to "pay the meter" over your smartphone. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation <https://www.avast.com/sig-email?utm_medium=email&utm_source=link&utm_campai…> Virus-free. www.avast.com <https://www.avast.com/sig-email?utm_medium=email&utm_source=link&utm_campai…> <#DAB4FAD8-2DD7-40BB-A1B8-4E2AA1F9FDF2>

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Sunday breakfast at Americana Diner 9AM
by Jeffrey Brace 09 Nov '19

09 Nov '19

Those wishing to join us tomorrow at the Americana Diner tomorrow at 9AM. A few of us from the VCF repair workshop will be meeting there tomorrow (Sunday). Let me know if you will be joining us. It is about 20 minutes from Infoage. I will be at Infoage at 8:30 if anyone wants a ride. I can take 4 people. Address is: 1160 Route 35, Shrewsbury, NJ. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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First to smoke award goes to ...
by Jeffrey Brace 09 Nov '19

09 Nov '19

Jeff Salzman and his KayPro at our VCF repair workshop today. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Repair Workshop location
by Jeffrey Brace 09 Nov '19

09 Nov '19

I'm just reminding everyone that the building for the workshop is different than the usual one. It will be here this month: InfoAge Building 9059 (CDL Hackerspace (formerly IXR)- (2201 Marconi Road, Wall Township, NJ) The reason for the change is that the 9032-A is being used by the model train guys to setup for their holiday train show. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Repair workshop Saturday overnight people
by Jeffrey Brace 08 Nov '19

08 Nov '19

Those staying overnight Saturday night: you will be using the small bunk room next to the men's room. There will be other volunteers from another group staying in the other bunk room. Please take care not to make too much noise when settling in for the night. If any of you are not clear, then I will explain and show you in person Saturday night. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Reminder Repair Workshop building 9059 CDL (formerly IXR)
by Jeffrey Brace 08 Nov '19

08 Nov '19

I'm just reminding everyone that the building for the workshop is different than the usual one. It will be here this month: InfoAge Building 9059 (CDL Hackerspace (formerly IXR)- (2201 Marconi Road, Wall Township, NJ) The reason for the change is that the 9032-A is being used by the model train guys to setup for their holiday train show. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Ian's coming to workshop this weekend
by Jeffrey Brace 08 Nov '19

08 Nov '19

For those wondering, I just confirmed that Ian will be coming to the workshop this weekend. All rejoice as the MacGyver of vintage computer repair arrives. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Repair workshop Nov. 9 & 10
by Jeffrey Brace 08 Nov '19

08 Nov '19

We still have plenty of space available for The next VCF repair workshop is Nov 9 & 10, but space will fill up quickly, so ... Signup here: < https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Le5_EtutRBgnOc9_4gLxJb7CGGEpIuTQWjZ… > This time it will be in CDL (formerly known as IXR), the hackerspace by the front gate entrance. Also known as 9059 or the Telecom Building. I think I will do things differently with the food this time as there were some people who never paid for pizza or dinner and I was short on money last workshop. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] OT: large # of Vintage items for sale
by Evan Koblentz 07 Nov '19

07 Nov '19

>> That is well beyond what I'd pay. Agreed. That's nuts. On Thu, Nov 7, 2019, 9:39 PM madodel via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > On 11/7/19 21:23, Alexander Pierson via vcf-midatlantic wrote: > > The pricepoint this kid has in mind doesn't seem to be based heavily on > previous transactions. While I currently don't have my ear to the ground > for Hero robot ebay sales, I used to for quite awhile. tl;dr: take my > assessment here with a grain of salt. > > > > Complete Hero-1 robots usually fetch a few hundred bucks, anywhere from > 200 for ones in need of serious repair, all the way up to about 500 for a > complete working unit. Sometimes you see them go higher, especially if > they've got all the bells in whistles, in good shape, complete > documentation with the addendums issued by Heathkit. Those schematics > changed with time, and so they sent you little pieces of paper to cut out > and tape over the old sections of schematics. > > > > I've only ever seen one complete, sealed, mint Hero 2000 for sale > before, and that went for 3 grand. Now, keep in mind that the Hero 2000 is > by far the most elusive model, with the fewest total manufactured units, > but also the most power. A base Hero 2000 has somewhere like 6 > processors/coprocessors on board and can be maxed out at about a dozen, > depending on installed options. I've never seen seen a Hero 2000 in > meatspace before. I know this seller has one for just over 5 grand, but > it's in rough shape from what the pictures show. I spot plenty of rust. > At a tenth of that, it might be worth the gamble, but even that's pushing > it in my book. > > > > Back to the NIB Hero-1. Seeing as it was the popular model used by > schools and hobbyists alike, they're far more common than the 2000 or the > Jr. To put one of those at about 14 grand for a sealed kit? That's quite > absurd. Unbuilt Hero-1's are something I've only ever seen once before, > and it was a long time ago, so whatever it fetched has long since left my > mental cache. Plus, it only looked like one box -- there's no way that > includes a lot of the features that make a Hero-1 desirable. Thus, it's > likely a very barebones unit from what I understand. You would have to > confer with Robert Doerr, who is the defacto expert on all things Heathkit > Hero, in order to reach a better assessment. > > Lastly, that same seller has another Hero-1, with no visible arm, and > not all of the panels visible. I see manuals, but I do not see > schematics. It's also dirty in ways that make me sad. There's also more > circuitry than I've ever seen near the head battery cage, stacked on top of > the sonar receiver. Maybe that's a later revision? Again, Mr. Doerr is > your best resource there. Anyway, you could cut his price in half and I > still wouldn't touch it based on this condition. > > Hopefully my rambling mess is helpful. > > > > -Alexander 'Z' Pierson > > > Thanks. That is helpful. I know nothing about this and the seller told me > to make an offer. I'd be just buying it to donate to the museum. He gave > me no price. So if I offer $2000 would that be fair? I just want a fair > price to him that doesn't Did he ask $14,000 for it? That is well beyond > what I'd pay. > > > Mark > >

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] OT: large # of Vintage items for sale
by madodel 07 Nov '19

07 Nov '19

On 11/7/19 21:23, Alexander Pierson via vcf-midatlantic wrote: > The pricepoint this kid has in mind doesn't seem to be based heavily on previous transactions. While I currently don't have my ear to the ground for Hero robot ebay sales, I used to for quite awhile. tl;dr: take my assessment here with a grain of salt. > > Complete Hero-1 robots usually fetch a few hundred bucks, anywhere from 200 for ones in need of serious repair, all the way up to about 500 for a complete working unit. Sometimes you see them go higher, especially if they've got all the bells in whistles, in good shape, complete documentation with the addendums issued by Heathkit. Those schematics changed with time, and so they sent you little pieces of paper to cut out and tape over the old sections of schematics. > > I've only ever seen one complete, sealed, mint Hero 2000 for sale before, and that went for 3 grand. Now, keep in mind that the Hero 2000 is by far the most elusive model, with the fewest total manufactured units, but also the most power. A base Hero 2000 has somewhere like 6 processors/coprocessors on board and can be maxed out at about a dozen, depending on installed options. I've never seen seen a Hero 2000 in meatspace before. I know this seller has one for just over 5 grand, but it's in rough shape from what the pictures show. I spot plenty of rust. At a tenth of that, it might be worth the gamble, but even that's pushing it in my book. > > Back to the NIB Hero-1. Seeing as it was the popular model used by schools and hobbyists alike, they're far more common than the 2000 or the Jr. To put one of those at about 14 grand for a sealed kit? That's quite absurd. Unbuilt Hero-1's are something I've only ever seen once before, and it was a long time ago, so whatever it fetched has long since left my mental cache. Plus, it only looked like one box -- there's no way that includes a lot of the features that make a Hero-1 desirable. Thus, it's likely a very barebones unit from what I understand. You would have to confer with Robert Doerr, who is the defacto expert on all things Heathkit Hero, in order to reach a better assessment. > Lastly, that same seller has another Hero-1, with no visible arm, and not all of the panels visible. I see manuals, but I do not see schematics. It's also dirty in ways that make me sad. There's also more circuitry than I've ever seen near the head battery cage, stacked on top of the sonar receiver. Maybe that's a later revision? Again, Mr. Doerr is your best resource there. Anyway, you could cut his price in half and I still wouldn't touch it based on this condition. > Hopefully my rambling mess is helpful. > > -Alexander 'Z' Pierson Thanks. That is helpful. I know nothing about this and the seller told me to make an offer. I'd be just buying it to donate to the museum. He gave me no price. So if I offer $2000 would that be fair? I just want a fair price to him that doesn't Did he ask $14,000 for it? That is well beyond what I'd pay. Mark

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] OT: large # of Vintage items for sale
by Alexander Pierson 07 Nov '19

07 Nov '19

The pricepoint this kid has in mind doesn't seem to be based heavily on previous transactions. While I currently don't have my ear to the ground for Hero robot ebay sales, I used to for quite awhile. tl;dr: take my assessment here with a grain of salt. Complete Hero-1 robots usually fetch a few hundred bucks, anywhere from 200 for ones in need of serious repair, all the way up to about 500 for a complete working unit. Sometimes you see them go higher, especially if they've got all the bells in whistles, in good shape, complete documentation with the addendums issued by Heathkit. Those schematics changed with time, and so they sent you little pieces of paper to cut out and tape over the old sections of schematics. I've only ever seen one complete, sealed, mint Hero 2000 for sale before, and that went for 3 grand. Now, keep in mind that the Hero 2000 is by far the most elusive model, with the fewest total manufactured units, but also the most power. A base Hero 2000 has somewhere like 6 processors/coprocessors on board and can be maxed out at about a dozen, depending on installed options. I've never seen seen a Hero 2000 in meatspace before. I know this seller has one for just over 5 grand, but it's in rough shape from what the pictures show. I spot plenty of rust. At a tenth of that, it might be worth the gamble, but even that's pushing it in my book. Back to the NIB Hero-1. Seeing as it was the popular model used by schools and hobbyists alike, they're far more common than the 2000 or the Jr. To put one of those at about 14 grand for a sealed kit? That's quite absurd. Unbuilt Hero-1's are something I've only ever seen once before, and it was a long time ago, so whatever it fetched has long since left my mental cache. Plus, it only looked like one box -- there's no way that includes a lot of the features that make a Hero-1 desirable. Thus, it's likely a very barebones unit from what I understand. You would have to confer with Robert Doerr, who is the defacto expert on all things Heathkit Hero, in order to reach a better assessment. Lastly, that same seller has another Hero-1, with no visible arm, and not all of the panels visible. I see manuals, but I do not see schematics. It's also dirty in ways that make me sad. There's also more circuitry than I've ever seen near the head battery cage, stacked on top of the sonar receiver. Maybe that's a later revision? Again, Mr. Doerr is your best resource there. Anyway, you could cut his price in half and I still wouldn't touch it based on this condition. Hopefully my rambling mess is helpful. -Alexander 'Z' Pierson On Thursday, November 7, 2019, 07:58:34 PM EST, madodel via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: On 11/5/19 15:47, Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic wrote: > VCF would love to have the Hero 1 in its box. Our policy remains that we > only accept donations, we don't purchase artifacts. Would someone like to > acquire this for us? Anyone have an idea on what a fair price for this is? The seller says it was a sealed box that he opened to check if there was anything in it but it was never assembled. Mark > > On Tue, Nov 5, 2019, 2:49 PM Tony Bogan via vcf-midatlantic < > vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > >> All, I’ve been working with a young man from California who inherited a >> large amount of vintage computers and other items. >> He’s reached out to a number of Facebook groups, but I’m trying to help >> him reach interested parties without having to go on a dozen different >> groups back and forth. >> >> Short story, his grandfather passed away and has a storage unit filled >> with items. >> PET 2001, hero robots (one of which is a Hero 1 still new in the box) >> Atari, Tandy portables, Model 1, Compact Mac through Mac II era, Apple II+, >> IIe, the list goes on, with lots of boxes still unopened. He’s trying to >> sell everything, and we are trying to avoid anything being thrown away or >> brought to recycle. >> >> Please contact me off list via email and I will put you in touch with him >> directly. >> >> Tony >> >> Sent from my iPhone >>

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] OT: large # of Vintage items for sale
by Evan Koblentz 07 Nov '19

07 Nov '19

VCF would love to have the Hero 1 in its box. Our policy remains that we only accept donations, we don't purchase artifacts. Would someone like to acquire this for us? On Tue, Nov 5, 2019, 2:49 PM Tony Bogan via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > All, I’ve been working with a young man from California who inherited a > large amount of vintage computers and other items. > He’s reached out to a number of Facebook groups, but I’m trying to help > him reach interested parties without having to go on a dozen different > groups back and forth. > > Short story, his grandfather passed away and has a storage unit filled > with items. > PET 2001, hero robots (one of which is a Hero 1 still new in the box) > Atari, Tandy portables, Model 1, Compact Mac through Mac II era, Apple II+, > IIe, the list goes on, with lots of boxes still unopened. He’s trying to > sell everything, and we are trying to avoid anything being thrown away or > brought to recycle. > > Please contact me off list via email and I will put you in touch with him > directly. > > Tony > > Sent from my iPhone >

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Gauging Interest: CompuGraphic MCS hardware
by Herb Johnson 07 Nov '19

07 Nov '19

> I'm helping to clear out a storage unit that belonged to a deceased friend, > and I've come across some CompuGraphic MCS hardware: Does anyone have any interest in this? Kenneth, If I recall these are early 1980's or late 1970's technology. While these may not be of interest within "vintage personal computing", they are a part of a segment of microcomputing and computing of typeography and digital publishing. I'm writing the following from memory, so I may have some ideas and references mushed up. But I'm making a point: this CompuGraphic stuff isn't just ugly boxes of boards and clunky mechanical stuff. Details, you can look up. There was a prior revolution in typesetting by use of PHOTOtypesetting instead of physical blocks of type laid out by hand. Wheels of typefonts were projected by character, onto photosensitive paper, to produce text masters. A textbook would be a good application example. You needed a lot of wheels (master fonts) and they were proprietary (hard to replicate) and not cheap. Big business only, and in a world of PAPER information ONLY there were a lot of them. But the next revolution, was to use a CRT instead of optical projection. The CRT was driven digitally; just bits on a screen. Minicomputers (PDP-8s) were the initial digital technology, and later microprocessors made that digital technology cheaper. A company or service could now produce quality text copy, in a unit that took much less space, and which stored fonts on digital media not mechanical font-wheels. Since all the visual stuff was "in the machine", one could drive this technology with a text-based description language, on a computer without all this typeset technology. This is why old schemes like DEC's "runoff" were popular. A lot of these applications, drove mechanical text printers like daisy-wheel, IBM Selectrics, and other such printers. One made do with overprinting on simpler printers. Other steps followed later of course: laser printing for direct production of text; and computers with the power to compose pages visually. Note that TeX was early software means to compose type-set text and arbitrary graphics (math symbols, etc). But once personal laser printers could produce bit images, and microcomputers could run complete page-editing software; and once this stuff became "personally" priced; all these "phototypsetting" services went away except for massive printing services. And all the mechanical and optical printing technologies became "junk". So the CompuGraphic stuff is at the junction of these events. It's small enough to be manageable by a person or small institution. And it has some hope of working. There may be people or groups interested in just this segment - mostly post-60-year-olds from the era, I imagine. That's my "any interest" comments. Regards, Herb Johnson retrotechnology.com -- 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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Festivus Buy Tickets Now!
by Jeffrey Brace 07 Nov '19

07 Nov '19

Pay for your Festivus tickets online via Eventbrite: <https://www. eventbrite.com/e/festivus-2019-tickets-77436696243?aff=VCFMailingList> Cost is $10 for Festivus, $15 at the door. Overnight stay is $25 via Eventbrite and $30 at the door. Tickets are available until Dec. 6 (day before Festivus). Dec. 7 you have to pay at the door. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Repair Workshop Sat Dinner
by laurakid 07 Nov '19

07 Nov '19

not sure about workshop. been doing craft fairs so busy with glue and paint n stuff. however i live super close to there so maybe I’ll drop by to say hello. No need to save a place for me though. I will probably eat before going Sent from Yahoo Mail for iPhone On Thursday, November 7, 2019, 8:59 AM, Sentrytv via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: I will not be going to the restaurant. Mike R. Sent from: My extremely complicated, hand held electronic device. > On Nov 7, 2019, at 12:32 AM, Jeffrey Brace via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > I took the liberty of making reservations at Asbury Festhalle and > Biergarten. I went there Wednesday night for my birthday and it seemed like > a great place that our group would like. Lots of great beer selections. > Good food. > I currently have reservations for 10 people. So if you are > definitely interested, then let me know and if you aren't going, then let > me know as well. > The reservation is for 7:30PM. > Yes, you have to pay for parking, but it is only about $1 per hour and you > can download an app "Asbury Park Parking" to "pay the meter" over your > smartphone. > -- > ========================================= > Jeff Brace > Vice President > Vintage Computer Federation > > > <https://www.avast.com/sig-email?utm_medium=email&utm_source=link&utm_campai…> > Virus-free. > www.avast.com > <https://www.avast.com/sig-email?utm_medium=email&utm_source=link&utm_campai…> > <#DAB4FAD8-2DD7-40BB-A1B8-4E2AA1F9FDF2>

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Repair Workshop Info for Nov. 9 & 10
by Jeffrey Brace 06 Nov '19

06 Nov '19

As a reminder the workshop is $10 *per* person, *per* day. Sorry this is InfoAge's rule and not our decision. So that means for two days it is $20. Sign up quickly to guarantee a table. DATE: November 9 & 10 LOCATION: InfoAge Building 9059 (CDL Hackerspace (formerly IXR)- (2201 Marconi Road, Wall Township, NJ) TIME: Start about 10 A.M. on Saturday and ends whenever we go to sleep. End about 5 P.M. on Sunday. (Starts around 10 A.M. Sunday morning) SIGNUP: < https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Le5_EtutRBgnOc9_4gLxJb7CGGEpIuTQWjZ… > COST: - $10 per person, PER day. This is required by InfoAge for us to pay for renting the space. - $25 for those wanting to stay overnight (Money goes to InfoAge). Please pay ME (Jeff Brace) when you get there so that I don't forget. Credit cards accepted. I will be using VCF's PayPal Here tablet with bluetooth credit card machine. OVERNIGHT: Bring your own pillow, blankets, soap etc. We provide a bed frame and an uncovered mattress. There are showers and a kitchen for your use. - You can pay via PayPal to paypal(a)vcfed.org. or to me via cash or credit card in person. EQUIPMENT: - VCF will provide a table and you can use any available electrical outlet. - Bring your own tools, power strips, power cords, and supplies etc. - If you need particular tools that you don't know or particular parts, please post to the list for those going. They may have what you need. Let them know ahead of time. - Please bring an extra one or two power cords as these are often forgotten by people. DRINKS: You should bring your own. I would recommend bringing a cooler of some type. FOOD: Bring your own, but we will usually order pizza or go out to eat for dinner. If the weather is nice, then we might cook burgers out back. GATE: During the hours from 1 pm to 5 pm close the front gate behind you. We want museum visitors to go to the front lobby and not wander through the middle of the campus. Outside of those times, you can feel free to leave the gate open. PARKING: Park in the main parking lot, unless you are unloading in front of 9059 (CDL / IXR Hackerspace). InfoAge doesn't like us parking on the lawn anymore. QUESTIONS? Contact Jeff: 732-759-1783 jeffrey(a)vcfed.org Have fun everyone! -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] OT: large # of Vintage items for sale
by Tony Bogan 05 Nov '19

05 Nov '19

These items are for sale, (from Dom, not from me) not donation. Tony Sent from my iPhone > On Nov 5, 2019, at 2:49 PM, Tony Bogan via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > <mime-attachment>

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OT: large # of Vintage items for sale
by Tony Bogan 05 Nov '19

05 Nov '19

All, I’ve been working with a young man from California who inherited a large amount of vintage computers and other items. He’s reached out to a number of Facebook groups, but I’m trying to help him reach interested parties without having to go on a dozen different groups back and forth. Short story, his grandfather passed away and has a storage unit filled with items. PET 2001, hero robots (one of which is a Hero 1 still new in the box) Atari, Tandy portables, Model 1, Compact Mac through Mac II era, Apple II+, IIe, the list goes on, with lots of boxes still unopened. He’s trying to sell everything, and we are trying to avoid anything being thrown away or brought to recycle. Please contact me off list via email and I will put you in touch with him directly. Tony Sent from my iPhone

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Gauging Interest: CompuGraphic MCS hardware
by Kenneth Gober 05 Nov '19

05 Nov '19

I'm helping to clear out a storage unit that belonged to a deceased friend, and I've come across some CompuGraphic MCS hardware: 2 dual 5.25" floppy drives (I assume these are the system units) 2 CRT displays, ~12" diagonal (one with white bezel, one with black bezel) 1 keyboard with a DB-something connector (I hope to unearth another) 1 8204/HR phototypesetter 1 8216/HR phototypesetter many phototypesetter font cartridges several boxes of documentation, including some CP/M-86 manuals floppy disks Does anyone have any interest in this? Is it something VCF would want? I prefer for everything to stay together (i.e. a request for just the keyboard and nothing else isn't generally welcome, with one exception). Note that the phototypesetters are fairly large -- bathtub sized. While researching what this stuff is, I found a very old request from Al Kossow for a CompuGraphic keyboard needed for some reverse engineering work. So far I've only found one, and if I can't find another I'd consider sending the one I have to Al on extended loan (assuming the one I have is what he wanted, and he's still interested) but I really don't have space to store the rest (especially the phototypesetters) and I would really really hate to break up this set. -ken

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VCF @ Brickfair NJ report
by Evan Koblentz 04 Nov '19

04 Nov '19

Friday I gave a lecture at Brickfair on the history of Lego robotics from before Mindstorms (1980-1997). Only 5 people attended, but they were all enthusiastic about the subject. One guy knew about VCF. Another said he came to Brickfair solely because he heard about my topic. So that's cool. IMO the event management did a terrible job of advertising their Friday sessions. Saturday I demo'd my favorite of the various pre-Mindstorms sets, #9700, using the Apple II platform. I didn't bring the IBM version. The demo worked well until about 4pm. I troubleshooted it as best I could while also talking to visitors. Some of the basic diagnostics between the computer and the interface box stopped working. I know it's not the computer, so this will take more fixing than I can do. I will bring it to the workshop next Saturday. I told the show managers there was no point in me coming back today without having a working demo. My table was in an island of its own, so they understand and said it's fine. The show traffic Saturday was pretty good. I had a steady stream of visitors all day, most of which liked what I had to show them. Lego is an excellent gateway drug to vintage computing. :) Tons of parents my age (40s) came over to reminisce about 8-bit computers. Only one person ever heard of Laser. A lot of people came over and told their kids it's a "Mac II". I enlightened them... I found out there are several dozen Lego shows nationwide. They experts said Chicago and DC (Northern Virginia next summer) are the biggest. I'll look into Virginia next year. My goal is to have a schematic of the interface box done by then (Nevell agreed to do it) and a working replica made in time.

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VCF Repair List
by Jeffrey Brace 03 Nov '19

03 Nov '19

At the next workshop (Nov. 9 & 10) if anyone wants to repair any of the following VCF museum machines, then please let me know. OSI Challenger = Bill Drogoole will look at Sony monitor for Apple 2 = Ian will repair Apple /// = Tony will look at AT&T 3B1 = David Guesswein will look at Needs someone to look at: Sinclair ZX-80 IBM PC Convertible -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Museum Report 2019-11-03
by Jeffrey Brace 03 Nov '19

03 Nov '19

My day started out well and right away. I rarely get people wanting to see the museum at 1PM when I arrive. Usually people make their way to our museum by 3:30PM or later. A 7th grade boy with his grandmother were waiting for me and had previously been to other InfoAge museums on a previous trip, but ran out of time. I gave him the full 2 hour tour and he really enjoyed it. The rest of the day was filled with casual visitors. I also got a chance to try out the instructions for the SOL-20 and how to operate it. This was my first time using it! -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Speaking of the 3b1...
by Win Heagy 02 Nov '19

02 Nov '19

I have a 3b1 that I think is mostly complete and working, but I'm missing the mouse. Is there anything unique about the mouse (other than its looks)? Can another mouse be made to work with it? I've seen the mouse listed on eBay but for $$$$. Thanks, Win

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Brickfair NJ
by Evan Koblentz 01 Nov '19

01 Nov '19

Brickfair (Lego show) is arranged like VCF East: Friday sessions for serious hobbyists and weekend family-centric demos. I gave my 1980s Lego robotics lecture there today. Tomorrow and Sunday I'll have a VCF booth of the same stuff; the computer is the Laser 128 because I did not want to schlep the Compaq Portable too. It's at the Meadowlands Expo Center if anyone wants to go.

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Museum 3B1 & PDP-8
by David Gesswein 01 Nov '19

01 Nov '19

I'm looking fixing the 3B1 at the next workshop. From the last workshop it seems like the hard drive has died. Since I likely will need do do a new installation Was there anything in particular on it that people liked for demos? Is their anything people like on Unix machines to use for demos? If not I'll go with standard OS & software that was on the machines and see what interesting stuff I see in the archives. For the straight 8 has anyone tried to operarate it since the last workshop I was at (the one previous to the last workshop). If so was their any problems? If not would anyone doing the tours like to learn how to use it?

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Bell Labs
by Evan Koblentz 01 Nov '19

01 Nov '19

Our demo at Bell Labs today was great! I'll write more about it and post pictures later this week.

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Unix Tell All Book From Kernighan Hits The Shelves
by Christian Liendo 31 Oct '19

31 Oct '19

https://hackaday.com/2019/10/29/unix-tell-all-book-from-kernighan-hits-the-… Can we get him to come back and sell / sign books?

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Museum 3B1 & PDP-8
by Dave McGuire 31 Oct '19

31 Oct '19

On 10/31/19 12:22 PM, Brian L. Stuart via vcf-midatlantic wrote: > I used to use the 3b1 quite heavily in the early '90s, and > I'm pretty sure I remember running a build of rogue on > it, though I usually ran without the windowing system to > get a full 80 columns. Now that you mention it, I believe nethack could be built on the 3B1 as well. > As Dave mentiones, yes there are many other editors for > it. But there's only one TRUE editor, as you know: emacs! [dave ducks] -Dave -- Dave McGuire, AK4HZ New Kensington, PA

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Transparent Apple II/II+ Case Kickstarter
by J. Alexander Jacocks 31 Oct '19

31 Oct '19

All, I met the MacEffects team at Vintage Computer Festival Midwest, a few of weeks ago, and saw the prototype for their truly amazing clear Apple II/II+ case: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/maceffects/injection-molded-clear-case… The pictures truly do not do it justice. My wallet was duly robbed. They are down to the last few hours, and the kickstarter is close, but not quite there. Help out, if you can! - Alex

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