- vcf-midatlantic - lists.vcfed.org

Exposed pins on vintage computers in storage
by Ethan O'Toole 29 Oct '19

29 Oct '19

I have a system in climate controlled storage. I currently leave all the CPU and memory boards installed. It has large connectors that are male pins on side of computer and female on side of the CPU and memory boards. Would it be a big deal to leave the boards removed from the system? The boards weigh a lot and I plan to move it upstairs in the storage unit -- reset the rent counter and lower the size of the unit. I could potentially get some desicant and wrap up the boards if needed but the cabinet not so much (it's a Cray.) Any thoughts? - Ethan

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Good news -- archiving the old Yahoo group
by Evan Koblentz 29 Oct '19

29 Oct '19

Many of you probably heard the recent news that Yahoo is about to delete all their old groups. Many of you also know that from 2004-2015, this very group operated on Yahoo. I filled out Archive Team's request to have our old group preserved and they accepted it. Apparently our activity was deemed historically important. :) I'll post a link to the archive location when they provide it. -- Evan Koblentz, executive director Vintage Computer Federation www.vcfed.org evan(a)vcfed.org (646) 546-9999 VCF is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization

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Museum Report
by Chris Fala 28 Oct '19

28 Oct '19

I was docent yesterday. I have been "assistant" docent or "co-docent" before, but this was my first time completely solo. It is always fun spending time at the museum, I highly recommend it! Fairly slow day, likely due to the intense rain we had for most of the morning and early afternoon. There were two groups. Early in the afternoon, a large group of Boy Scouts came through. They seemed fairly interested, and a few of them asked some questions. One boy took pictures of pretty much everything. Later in the afternoon a young family with five small children came through. The oldest daughter seemed very interested and, like the boy scout from earlier, took pictures of everything. Chris

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someone once wanted PC-AT case, VESA/VLB bus motherboard
by Jeffrey Jonas 27 Oct '19

27 Oct '19

I remember someone once asking for a PC-AT case, and someone else asking for a VESA/VLB motherboard. I just happen to have a PC-AT tower case with a socket-3 ISA/VLB motherboard. Speak up if you still need it! -- jeff jonas

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Looking for an Apple //c Plus
by Jason Perkins 26 Oct '19

26 Oct '19

A friend is looking to buy a //c Plus. Does anyone have one they're looking to sell? Thanks! -- Jason Perkins 313 355 0085

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OT: 3D print design for ESP32 VGA dongle
by Bill Degnan 25 Oct '19

25 Oct '19

Hi - Any one have a 3d printer file URL or if it does not exibt be interested in a little ($paid) project to make an enclosure for this device: *https://tinyurl.com/yy8uhffv <https://tinyurl.com/yy8uhffv>* "LILYGO® TTGO VGA32 V1.2 Controller PS/2 Mouse And Keyboard Graphics Library Game Engine And ANSI/VT Terminal For The ESP32" I have the printer but I don't have a scanner.. This is for a product to be sold at the Kennett Classic shop. Contact me privately through vintagecomputer.net/contact.cfm Thanks Bill

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Big Beautiful Vintage Computers, and Where To Find Them
by Paul Birkel 25 Oct '19

25 Oct '19

Congratulations Dave. Hittin' the "Big Time" :->. https://hackaday.com/2019/10/23/big-beautiful-vintage-computers-and-where-to -find-them/ -----

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] computer superstitions
by Jeffrey Jonas 25 Oct '19

25 Oct '19

> You need three sync's for it to work... > sync > sync > sync > halt I'm unsure there was a halt or shutdown for Unix v6. I think one just halted the CPU. There's a good reason for three syncs. The "sync" command only schedules/initiates the buffer/cache flush. The disk writes took time, so typing it 3x on a teletype was a simple way to delay the operator enough for the writes to complete before halting the system.

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computer superstitions
by Jeffrey Jonas 23 Oct '19

23 Oct '19

"Scandinavia and the World" is an online comic with an International flavor. This time literally: https://satwcomic.com/hangry-computer looking that up leads to: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Kuai_Kuai_culture Kuai Kuai culture is a phenomenon in Taiwan wherein workers put snacks of the "Kuai Kuai" brand next to or on top of machines. Workers who do this believe that, because the name of the snack - "Kuai Kuai" - stands for "obedient" or "well-behaved," it will make a device so adorned function without errors. As such, it can be commonly found in myriad places of work in Taiwanese society. A rigid set of best practices has arisen surrounding the proper use of Kuai Kuai snacks, such as using green bags only, and ensuring the snacks are not expired. other programming/computer superstitions: https://www.red-gate.com/simple-talk/opinion/opinion-pieces/programmer-supe… and kinda related to that: http://catb.org/jargon/html/magic-story.html -- jeff jonas

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MORE ado about chording keyboards
by Jeffrey Jonas 21 Oct '19

21 Oct '19

William Arthur Stewart Buxton ... is known for being one of the pioneers in the human–computer interaction field. https://www.microsoft.com/buxtoncollection/type.aspx?t=Chord%20Keyboard chording keyboards from Bill Buxton's collection of unusual computer interface devices https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Buxton the photo shows Bill Buxton with a Microwriter chord input device his own web site: https://www.billbuxton.com/

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