[vcf-midatlantic] IBM Series/1 Collecting?

[Dave Wade]

Cory,

  I have a little knowledge of Series/1. I used to work on some VM/CMS X.25 software that used one to talk to interface X.25 to mainframe channels.
  Not sure why there are not more in private hands.   Perhaps they were leased, or just not popular? They are a bit special. In the UK IBM used them to do building control.
  There are no emulators, probably because IBM was stricter at controlling software than say DEC and the PDP-11 and PDP-8 ranges.
  So if you could find one it should be a reasonable price, but finding one might be challenging. You certainly won't find a pile of interface cards on E-Bay like you might for a PDP-8 or PDP-11.

Dave
 

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Burning Image <visual_storytellers at yahoo.com>
> Sent: 13 October 2018 17:36
> To: vcf-midatlantic at lists.vcfed.org
> Subject: IBM Series/1 Collecting?
> 
> Hi. All:
> 
> Over the years, I've owned many systems, going back to 8080-based
> hardware.  I've also had more than a few PDP-11 and MicroVAX systems.  I'm
> now looking for something a little different and could use some guidance.
> 
> In the early eighties, I worked for a company in NJ that refurbished IBM
> mainframe systems.  They also sold Series/1 mini's.  One of the partners was
> even developing the hardware interface and software for a cartridge tape
> backup system.  For some reason, I now have the urge to play with a Series/1
> system of my own.
> 
> Thinking back, I've seen very little - if anything - about someone owning one.
> Perhaps there's a good reason for this.  I'm also not seeing too much on used
> systems, peripherals, or software - like languages - I could use to develop
> some applications.  Perhaps there's a good reason for that, too.
> 
> Is it worth pursuing the acquisition of this old system or is it best left alone?
> Any constructive advice on this would be appreciated.
> 
> Thanks in advance,
> Cory Sickles