I figured we needed one of these, since so many members here are interested in vintage/historic/retro computers/OSes. And also old computers-- the ones that can't quite be considered "vintage" just yet, but are well on their way. ;P
I'll start with an "old computer" story. Today, I visited my local used electronics shop on a whim. Just to ask the shopkeeper if he ever got any REALLY old computers in the store-- you know, micros and what not. Turns out he doesn't, but he does have an abundant supply of those "old" computers.
Me: "Er... eh.. yeah... okay, how do I put this: I'm a wannabe vintage-computer collector, and I wanna know if you ever get any old computers in here. I mean, like pre-1995 computers."
Shopkeeper: *goes into closet, pulls out 1995 Apple Powerbook 190 laptop*
Me: "OH MY GAWD." *eyes sparkle*
Shopkeeper: "I'll take $20 for it, as is, no power cord and no guarentees it'll work."
Me: "NOOOO, I SPENT ALL MY MONEY AT THE GROCERY STORE. ON USELESS FOOD." *sobs*
Then he went into the Closet of Old Computers again and pulled out a IBM Thinkpad 770z. Circa 1999. "Ten bucks for this one," he said. I sparkly-eyed again. Last and probably least, he produced a Gateway Solo 2500-- running Windows 98-- which he wants $5 for.
Me: "Will you hold these until I get some money?" *sobs*
Shopkeeper ".......I'm pretty sure these aren't going anywhere."
I'm thinking of rustling up some Christmas money and going over there to buy 'em-- the Powerbook I REALLY want (a laptop from the not-so-golden-age of Apple Computer? Hells yeah!), but the others seem too good to pass up for $15. I dunno, maybe if I buy the lot I'll get a discount or something. What think my OSC peeps?
badass win, makes me want to pay a visit to MY local computer shop.
any chance you could give some directions to yours? :3
Wanna talk golden age? My first computer was an Apple IIe (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_IIe), and that wasn't all that long ago either (well just under a decade, I think). Anyway, I wish I still had it, largely for nostalgia (and a little for entertainment too), but it was taking up too much space.
I still happen to have a few the old floppies that came with it (from the person that dropped it on us >_< ). Bard's Tale I & II remain some of my fondest gaming memories.
You lucky little nerd! I wish we had stores like that...
I REALLY want a 486 DX4 (100Mhz) computer that I can use for DOS and Win 95. But alas, only eBay is good for things lik that and the only one I've found is £100.
I got an old computer, not pre-dating 95 but it's from 2000 i think, doesn't start though and i havn't bothered opening it, bought it for 100 kroner from a guy for like 3 years ago :3 I wanna know where to get the old computers though.
I have both an old Apple powerbook 2400c/180 and a Performa... err... cant remember model, but it had a CPU around 150MHz. At moment theyre only collecting dust.
I dont know if 1st gen iMacs are "retro", but i have one, with OSX in it, for lulz. Actually, I have 2 them, though the other one doesnt boot.
My big bro just called me one day and asked if I wanted one, as he suddenly had a truckload of them, so he brought me 2.
I also have the chassis that has only its mobo and PSU intact, of a HP vectra from 1995.
Hmm, I have a laptop from 1996, 97, which I think is a Compaq, with Secchan installed and a AMD CPU at ~500MHz IIRC.
I actually got a Macbook (or whatever it was called back then) running Mac OS 7.5 for my birthday some years ago...I think I managed to break the poor thing, though. Inserted a floppy with an .exe file on it, after which it just refused to run anymore.
It weighed like brick, and looked REALLY old. I wonder, now...
@ Choco: Er... directions... lesse... well, you go north on I-93 for awhile, until you're in the middle of friggin' nowhere (you'll see the sign), then you take a left...
@ IDK: Noooo, how could you get rid of something like that? ;.; I have a friend in New Jersey who has an Apple ][ sitting out in his garage, and an old PC too. I asked to buy the PC off him if he ever decided to get rid of it, but he sounded rather attached to the ][ so I didn't mention anything. xD;;
@ Red: Really? No used electronics/computer shops at all? :V To be honest, I'm surprised we even have one here-- it's a bit of a one-horse town, you see. O.o
@ VonDaab: You have a nice collection of old Macs going!
@ Nejin: The Powerbook I'm looking at supposedly has System 7.5 installed. Hmmmph.
Tis true, the only place for used electronics here is classified ads in newspapers, eBay and car boot sales. Even charity shops don't take electronics these days.
At present, I have an old Pentium 90MHz laptop with 40MB RAM; currently with Win 95 OSR2.1. Bella, could you do with an 800MHz Pentium III at all?
Quote from: "Red-Machine"Tis true, the only place for used electronics here is classified ads in newspapers, eBay and car boot sales. Even charity shops don't take electronics these days.
At present, I have an old Pentium 90MHz laptop with 40MB RAM; currently with Win 95 OSR2.1. Bella, could you do with an 800MHz Pentium III at all?
Oh, I see... a lot of second hand shops around here won't take older electronics either. :(
What do you mean? Just a processor, or a computer?
Anyway, forgot to mention this before-- today I went to visit my long-time hardware adviser/guru/repairman. I asked what he thought of those three laptops, and my chances of finding power cords for them-- he gave me a weird sort of WTH look and tried to talk me out of it (cause they're "too old to be useful". I just sort of snickered, since that's OBVIOUSLY not possible). I'm fairly set on getting the three of them... heck, it's $35 for the lot, and if I hold onto them long enough they'll go from being "old junk" to "antique computers". ;P
True, the power cords might be tough to find (and rather expensive when I do) but it's not like they aren't out there. He did warn me against any cheap "knockoff" AC adapters, since those tend to have woefully short lifespans.
yea, you tend to get what you pay for there.
lesee, moar specific instructions, cause there's nowhere and then there's NOWHERE.
like, goffstown nowhere or cheever nowhere? :\
oh, the oldest computers have:
original shitty (technically no longer exists, except for speakers and hard drive) which was built in 97', and
tanky, who was running Sec-chan so somewhere aroun 99 i'd assume.
Last I checked, we still had thrift stores around here that sell "vintage" computers. I think that's where my Apple IIe went. Anyhow, I guess I should pay one of those places a visit and see what I find...
Yeah, just a processor, Bella. I also have plenty of RAM chips too.
i need to go to the thrift store one of these days or sumthin .__.
maybe once big brother's girlfriend moves away i can cheer him up w/ old computers. ^^
Hey i have to ask you guys and gals a question. I already tried googling it but i havn't been able to find the answer i seek. Thing is, i recently (just 2 hours ago) got hold of a Compaq Presario CDS 742. Im very eager to find out when this computer is from and what type of hardware it has, from what i know it has a 90mhz processor, 12 mb RAM and runs windows 95. Can anyone help? ^_^
Wikipedia gives me brand launch of Presario in '93. 742 is not on the list, but the CDS 744 is pretty high up...undated though, so I dunno - but from the specs I'd say around 95-96-ish.
Ok, thank you ^_^
Quote from: "Chocofreak13"yea, you tend to get what you pay for there.
lesee, moar specific instructions, cause there's nowhere and then there's NOWHERE.
like, goffstown nowhere or cheever nowhere? :\
oh, the oldest computers have:
original shitty (technically no longer exists, except for speakers and hard drive) which was built in 97', and
tanky, who was running Sec-chan so somewhere aroun 99 i'd assume.
Yep. :(
You're off by MILES, but I will admit, the latter is surprisingly close.
Is a computer still a computer, if all that exists is a HD and speakers? Do you still have Tanky?
So anyway. I'm probably going to buy those laptops on Monday (when the shop's open again). My father's not very happy with this idea. He already has be pegged as a "junk collector" and paying $35 for a pile of possible junk will reinforce my reputation. xD
Oh, come to think of it...
One of my first computers, if not the first was an old intel286 or 386, cant remember, but it had Win3.1 and a very heavy power switch (yes, a switch, not a button) that really made a distinctive "clack" sound when switched on.
Also had a monochrome laser printer the size of a large dog! woo!
But yeah, most games were accessible by DOS only.
Doom sure was an exciting game when I was 11...
Sadly, I dont have this machine anymore. It got replaced by a 100mhz Pentium in 1999 or 2000, and this again by a 600Mhz Celeron in 2002.
Out of these I have only the 600Mhz Celeron, that is currenly in use by my parents, as their less than 5 year old Fujitsu Siemens broke down... ultimate fail.
Oh yeah, the Celeron has Ubuntu on it, and runs surprisingly smooth, considering that it has only 256Mb's to work with.
that IS fail. >__<
if you ever find somethin' old in ur basement, POAST TOAST~
and bella, henniker? or further? :\
You got a 100MHz Pentium in '99/'00 and a 600MHz Celeron in '02? Um, why? Was money an issue of something?
I had a 150MHz Pentium MMX in '96 and a 1.5GHz Pentium 4 in '01.
Well excuuse me if I'm not from the wealthiest family...
lol, Sorry, I wasn't having a go or anythin. I'm just amazed you could still buy computers like that around then; unless you got them used, that is...
Well, they were used, and they were computers my big brother arranged us. As my parents had zero computer knowledge.
My big bro had a VIC-20 and a C64 back in the 80's, early 90's.
I remember Street Surfer on it...
my busdriver offered me an old laptop she has lying around this one day. xD
i still want it....i hope she wasn't kidding.
i think she said it was roughly the thickness of a brick, and i THINK she said it was ibm. :3
IBM is zeh old school stuff :'D I have a keyboard from IBM and it has no windows key xD
Well, yeah, IBM Model M keyboards are most probably made out of the indestructible Nintendium alloy, just like the NES and GameBoy of the same era.
Oh yeah, I had a photo of my Compaq lappy and also a retrotastic mouse.
(http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee258/VDaab/HPIM1810.jpg)
I used to have a compaq! was an older one then this tough, I'll post some pictures of my retro comps/mac's later :D
Wow, this thread is getting even more popularity than Topicless these days ^w^
VonDaab, that 3.1 machine sounds like the bomb-- a power SWITCH? That's just too cool. And that's a crazy looking mouse. :^D
(I wish somebody would create a retro-looking new computer-- you know, toggle switches, rows and rows of cool-but-essential-pointless status lights, old CRT-terminal-looking monitor and all that jazz... lol)
Choco-san-- you're getting farther away. Lemme give you a few hints: Lakes Region. White Mountains. Does the acronym "WV" mean anything to you...?
...
So yeah, today I finally bought those three laptops! ^^
(http://th02.deviantart.net/fs70/300W/i/2010/123/2/f/Apple_Powerbook_190cs_by_BellaCielo.jpg)
1995 Apple Powerbook 190cs (that's the colour screen model!)
I love this one... it's just so little and adorable. Plus it has the coolness of being a classic Mac from the OS wars era. ^.^
(http://th00.deviantart.net/fs70/300W/i/2010/123/5/5/Gateway_Solo_by_BellaCielo.jpg)
1998 Gateway Solo
I'll be honest, I probably wouldn't have bought this one if it wasn't selling for $5. It seems to be the most modern-looking of the three-- it has a very flat, notebook-like keyboard (unlike the others which look more like downsized desktop keyboards-- you know what I mean?). It also has a nifty port-flap in the back!
(http://th05.deviantart.net/fs71/300W/i/2010/123/6/e/IBM_Thinkpad_770z_by_BellaCielo.jpg)
~1998 IBM Thinkpad 770z
This one's a big, hulking fortress of a laptop, with all sorts of crazy buttons and switches and slides and clicky-things and LITTLE FLIP-DOWN FEET, it's so. friggin. awesome. ;v;
And just like Kurt's IBM keyboard-- this one doesn't have any Windows keys! xD
Unfortunately, this one seems to be the roughest of the three-- it's keyboard was full of cat hair and dust (still in the process of cleaning it out), it's covered in scratches and has a coffee-mug-ring on the lid, and smells like freakin' cigarettes (the store owner must have been chain-smoking in the back room). D:
(http://fc00.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2010/123/d/2/Stack_o_computers_by_BellaCielo.jpg)
The future Lakes Region Museum of Computing History's first artifacts. xD
But yeah, at the same used computer store the owner just took in an operational computer tower running WINDOWS 3.1-- I considered buying it, but 1) it was $50, a bit out of my price range and 2) is a desktop. I'm really more of a laptop person... all-in-one computers hold a certain appeal with me. (Hell, even my DESKTOP is an all-in-one computer.)
Nice, Bella. What processor did that 3.1 tower have?
The more I look at it...that Macbook looks a LOT like the one I had a few years ago.
@Red: I'm not sure, the shop owner didn't know. He had just gotten it in a bit before, hooked it up and tested it out-- still wasn't sure about the exact specs. :\
@Nejin: it probably is the same model. You said yours ran OS 7.5, yeah? That's the OS the 190 came loaded with.
That seems about likely. Too bad I have absolutely no idea of where it is...might still remain at home, but I digress.
Macbook looks like my glorious old Windows 98 machine.
bella, idk where da fuk that is. GIVE ME DERICTIONS. I WILL BUY THAT DESKTOP.
:3
Is that a fact, Stewart? I quite like the design of the Powerbook, aesthetically speaking.
I'm not going to give you directions here Choco, I too shy. ;v; You could PM me or email me if you're really interested, though. (But I can assure you that it would be QUITE a jog across our fair state).
So, today I headed over to Old Computers R Us (aka the local used computer shop) to buy that ~1993 Windows 3.1 machine. The owner retrieved the machine from the back room, put it on the work-table and fired it up. The BIOS settings seem to have been a bit scrambled in its years of disuse, so I left to take care of other business while he got everything together.
When I returned, the computer was up and running 3.1-- I even played around with it for awhile. It has a lot of programs installed (even MS Word 6.0!) and ran fine. But upon rebooting, it ran into trouble... it sometimes won't boot up. D:
I bought it anyway, though... he told me that, should I not be able to get it running again, I can return it and get my $50 back. I forgot the damn power cord, though, so I have to go back tomorrow and pick it up. ><;;;
Some VERY interesting info about the hardware: the computer was custom assembled by a local computer-builder called Diacad Associates (still have a website (http://www.diacad.com/sys-tmpl/door/)). Not entirely interesting, considering the high numbers of "homebrew" IBM clone computer companies back in the early 90s. But get this: the manager of Diacad is a man called David Ecklein. It says he's an MIT graduate and constructor of the world's largest homemade computer -- one I had never heard of until I googled the company -- 1959's EMAG III. And I mean... it is LARGE.
(http://www.diacad.com/sys-tmpl/nss-folder/pictures/emag.jpg)
I feel like calling the number and asking him about it. I can't find a shred of info about it online... it's weird. Half of me wants to think this is the result of some deft photoshop hoaxing, the other feels like I've just stumbled across another piece of my region's lost computer heritage. :\
Other weirdness: the monitor is from Universitat Bremen, a German university.
The keyboard is a lowly Gateway, and the mouse is... unknown. It's one of 'em old-timey three-button kind though.
But wait! Things get even crazier! Somehow, Mr. Computer Shop and I began discussing historic OS emulators, which led to a discussion of Dartmouth Timesharing System and the DTSS Reborn emulator. Mr. Computer Shop mentioned visiting to Dartmouth U in his youth, and participating in a live demo of the university's mainframe computers... he played tic-tac-toe on one of them. O.o
Yep, Mr. Computer Shop PLAYED TIC-TAC-TOE ON A GE MAINFRAME RUNNING DTSS IN THE 60S. :V
But wait, it gets a little weirder... no, actually, this isn't very weird compared to the rest of that stuff, but it's pretty cool! He has a first-gen iMac that I can have for free. He says he can't sell it due to un-upgradibility issues and offered it after I mentioned having a penchant for Macs. So yeah.
Wow, free stuff. We'll both have iMac G3s now!
Cool info about that 3.1 tower, and that machine is HUEG!
That huge tower is one of the coolest-looking PCs ever, but it must be really hard to maintain though!
You all are so lucky to find places that sell old computers. There aren't any I know of in my area. There was one that sold old computers, equipment and woodworking stuff, but either their stock of computers has been sold out for months, or they're about to close down. :(
Hm, I wonder if they'd still have plans to build that thing.... ask the dude for me Bella.
My old 3.1 had all sorts of kids games on it, really fun ones.
Going about that TRS-80 tomorrow.
@Red: You have a G3 iMac? Cool. ^^ I'm not sure what the condition is like on the one I might be getting, but hey, it's free. I'd use it as a doorstop at that price. xD
@Aurora: Not quite a PC, more like a two-story tall checker-playing machine. I found a little more info about it online:
http://www.sciencefairexperiment.net/sciencefairexperiment05.php
Apparently, the thing's from Iowa and was an entry in the NATIONAL SCIENCE FAIR. Yep. A school kid built it. @@
It takes some looking to find these sort of places... I wouldn't have ever known about our local used electronics shop had I not stumbled across it. ^^;
@Stew: Why d'you want plans? Do you have a few thousand vacuum tubes lying around that you want to put to good use? >:b
My 3.1 machine has a lot of art programs on it... mostly kids' stuff, but some other things too (like a needlework plotting program, haha).
Speaking of which...
(http://fc08.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2010/180/1/0/My_Windows_3_1_PC_by_BellaCielo.jpg)
A needlework sampler for the real world
I got 'er up and running! Took a little fiddling with the BIOS initially. And damn, it has a CRAZY BIOS-screen if ever I've seen one... if that's what it is, that is... it's all point-and-click, GUI stuff. D:
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0064.jpg)
Visible: the two floppy drives, a CDR drive, the status lights and the power, reboot and mysterious "turbo" buttons.
It's bootup time is about a second, she's a fast computer! Has 16mb ram, a 1.6gb hd and 133mhz processor and takes 5.25 AND 2.5'' floppies. The monitor Shamrock Brand, and was used at Bremen University if the sticker's any indication. It's a cool monitor... during bootup and shutdown, it has a line of chase-lights that strobe across the bottom. It's very minicomputer-retro in that respect. xD
Windows 3.1 and DOS 6.22 are installed; I can't believe how stable and fast it is, it hasn't given me any hangs or crashes or anything.
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0063.jpg)
Posing with the iMac
That was the thing with my 3.1 machine, one of the most stable computers I ever used.
TRS-80 pictures tomorrow, if I haven't managed to accidently break the fscking CPU power cord. It's a beast; three minidisk drives, an Expansion interface, Model I moniter & CPU, and line printer.
Wait, what. 2.5" floppies?
Sure looks like a 3.5"
Back in my old school where there was one education line for clothes and textile, they still had old pattern machines that used only 5.25-inchers.
This was in 2003-06.
Oi, I have an iMac as well!
Well, 2 actually...
I never got around posting proper pics of the working one.
(http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee258/VDaab/jotain4001s.jpg)
(http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee258/VDaab/jotain4005s.jpg)
Gentleman, behold! This is Lily.
26-1142 Expansion Interface with 32k RAM (bottem), TRS-80 Line Printer II (left of moniter), Model I moniter and Model I keyboard CPU 16k Level II (center), three Minidisk 5 1/4" flop disk drives (right). So, all told Lily wields a total of 48k RAM and comes with a wide variety of games and TRS-DOS (if I can get the drives to work properly).
(http://i45.tinypic.com/1j2n93.jpg)
(http://i46.tinypic.com/2qswhmf.jpg)
(http://i46.tinypic.com/25h39fq.jpg)
You lucky bastard. That is all.
Ooh, looks really nice.
Take good care of it.
http://daslineal.deviantart.com/#/d2sz1bu
My apple family!
From left to right:
Grandpa Quadra 650, Mother iMac, Daughter Mac G3, Grandma 8100
(Thats Grandma's case with the RAM on top of it)
Lucky SOB. :U
Good news and bad news! I picked up my freebie G3 iMac, got it home, and was able to get it to boot up (even though the monitor didn't switch on for a few minutes), and was able to play around with Mac OS 9.2. Thus fulfilling a childhood dream of owning a G3 iMac. Then I discovered that it had a second HDD installed with Mac OSX 10.2! This is where things start going bad. Because when I booted into THAT one, the monitor didn't come on (although I got a creepy computer-voiced welcome) and I ended up forcing a shut down and now its unbootable.
You know WHO I blame for this? UNIX. Of course I blame Unix for everything, it's become my all-purpose computing calamity scapegoat. ><;;;;
EDIT: Sounds like it's an issue with the PMU chip and I might be able to be fixed by resetting it (a fairly quick surgery). If only I had a screwdriver to fit that screw... D:
Oh, I'm taking very good care of her :D
I had a childhood dream of using our school's one student use G3, but it never happened.
Good to hear. ^^
Seriously, the G3 iMac was the first computer I ever WANTED. I remember the first time I saw one in person: 1998 or 99 in a camera shop. I was all like, "EEEEE PRETTY COMPUTER I WANT ONE!" and my dad was all like, "NO! IT IS MAC, WE DO NOT LIKE THEIR KIND." And somehow this convinced me that Macs were bad, a prejudice I harboured until maybe 2007 or so. (Of course, I never really hated them; I was just so sure I'd never HAVE one that it was easier to dislike them than to say I loved them if that makes any sense).
So yeah, this is literally the fulfillment of a 11-or-more year-old dream. I just hope I can get it working again! D:
Lol, that iMac I have is really just collecting dust and is going to need a nice clean installation if its going to work well again. Lucky for me I have an endless amount of Mac OSX installation disks which haven't done anything for years (Mac OSX 9 and 10) So i'm hoping to get that iMac up and running! I might sell it soon though, its just taking up space and my parents are most likely going to throw it out sooner or later so if any of you are interested I can see if I can sell it! :D
D: D: D:
Don't let them throw it out, you don't want to destroy a piece of technological history AND contribute to the horrible e-waste problem our world currently faces! :<
My latest acquisition, the Comodore C16.
(http://i223.photobucket.com/albums/dd55/Dominar_Rygel_XVI/Picture0028.jpg)
(http://i223.photobucket.com/albums/dd55/Dominar_Rygel_XVI/Picture0029.jpg)
(http://i223.photobucket.com/albums/dd55/Dominar_Rygel_XVI/Picture0030.jpg)
@Bella: Nice find! And at has a lot of programs loaded on too! For a mess of a computer, it works very well, and surprisingly stable!
And that EMAG-III computer is awesome, and also from my home state!
@VonDaab: Awww... makes me wish I still had my old iMac! Judging from the screenshot, that iMac is running 10.3, right?
@stewartsage: That set-up is amazing! You are luuuuucky! Over 30 years old and still working!
@Dr. Kraus: Nice collection! I used to have three of those four models pictured. I still have a blue+white G3 though.
@Bella: The iMac can't boot at all anymore? NOOOOOOOO! I also blame UNIX for destroying your childhood dreams!
In that case, the Classic Mac OS was more stable than OSX!
@Red-Machine: Coooool! :) What kind of games does it have?
It has 3 with it, 2 of which work only intermittently. I'm in the process of re-aligning the head on the cassette deck in an attempt to alleviate the problem.
Rockman
Return of Rockman
Mr. Puniverse
For a second I was trying to figure out how you were playing K-On with a C16... none the less, congrats Red, she's lovely!
Only problem with Lily is getting the drives in the right order, it seems that the labels have worn of soooo I need to try and figure out which one has the resistor in it.
My dad had an Macintosh XL when he was in university. But the hard drive just went BZZZZZZZP, and had a small explosion. From then, he started "hating" Macintosh computers. It was still at home, but dad sold it several years ago.
My first own PC was IBM PC 330. Originally ran on Win 2000, but I installed win XP, PC got damn slow, dumped in my storage room.
Woo, congrats on the C16, Red. :D
Turns out OSX wasn't responsible for the G3's nonbootablity; just an old CMOS battery in the Logic Board. I'm going to order a new one (3.6v 1/2 AA, btw) and pop it in, that should allow it to boot again. ^^
OH
EM
GEEEEEE
OH
EM
GEEEEEEEEEEE
So today I stopped by our used electronics shop to ask about what kind of coaxial cable I need for my VIC-20's TV modulator/adapter... before I can even ask the shopkeeper, though, he trots off to the back room and returns with TWO 1994 Macintosh Performas (a 6115CD and a 631CD), a Performa external modem and a 1998 Toshiba Satellite and says, "have them, I can't sell them".
Me: "BUT OF COURSE~!"
And then he pulls a 1998 Panasonic Toughbook from a bag, complete with external CDR drive, AC adapter and software set (install/boot disks, manuals, etc), and switches it on. Says I can have it for $50.
Me: "OMG YES!"
Finally I remember my original mission, show him the VIC-20's TV modulator and ask what sort of coaxial I might need to connect it to a TV. He doesn't know, but sends me to ANOTHER used electronics shop.
TO THE OTHER USED ELECTRONICS SHOP!
So I get to Used Electronics Shop Two, find stacks upon stacks of old TVs, printers, radios, turntables, record players and typewriters, squee, show the shopkeeper the modulator and he finds the right cables to connect to to a TV. Then I spot this cool old Sony TV set, which he says he'll sell for $20, provided he can 1) get to it through the stack of electronics boxing it in, and 2) get it to work, since the last owner was an Alzheimer's affected old woman who somehow tuned all the channels to 3, or something, so 3 is the only channel it has. Which doesn't affect me, since I'd be using it as a monitor set to.... channel 3.
So I leave with my cables, go home, connect the VIC-20 to my TV, switch her on and... VOILA! She works perfectly! Now I just have to study CMB and/or recall my training with Dartmouth BASIC.... and go back to try out that old TV set...
And I checked out the Macintosh Performas, and the 6115 switches on but the 631 doesn't seem to. So.... yeah.
Fangirl squee in 3...2...1...Action!
You have like the best luck with finding vintage stuff, Bella! Glad your VIC-20 works! (awww I want one!)
I'm also learning Commodore Basic, programming using a C64 emulator (currently learning of the many ways to put the POKE command to good use!), and I have the C64 app on my iPod- the latest version released a few days ago includes the BASIC interpreter!
Still, I think the VIC-20 is a cool computer in its own right, plus I like the obscure underdog-types! You should check out this community (http://sleepingelephant.com/denial/). :)
Sweet, we still have a Performa and laser printer at the library that's been literally chained to it's desk.
A Toughbook, awesome D:
There are so many awesome TV's at the Goodwill, actually sad that I've already purchased one or I could have gotten a kickass portable RCA or a B&W GE with UHF/VHF antennas.
Bella, you lucky SOB. Can I come live with you so I can shop at those stores, please?
Today I went into town and decided to drop by the computer store/repair shop to ask if they ever get any old computers in (as in, 1990s and earlier computers)...
Well, good news and bad news. Bad news is, our town had a rummage sale a couple weeks back and he took in TONS OF OLD COMPUTERS. They didn't sell and got sent to the dump. I made this face:
D,:
Then the storekeeper asked me why I was so interested in old computers anyway, and I triumphantly announced "I AM AN OLD COMPUTER COLLECTOR~!" and then he reacted like most people do when I tell them I'm an old computer collector, a mix of mild intrigue and "wait, WTF?"
But his interest was piqued! He said he had one vintage computer, however, and a minute later he came out of the back room (why are these old computers always kept in back rooms?) with a large leather laptop case. Opened it up and LO AND BEHOLD, this was inside:
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSCN2058.jpg)
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSCN2057.jpg)
This, ladies and gentlemen, is a Bondwell B310sx laptop computer. AND IT RUNS!!!!!! It didn't boot when I switched it on, but the very fact that it turns on and seems to have a working BIOS buoys my spirit...
I asked how much he wanted for it; he said I could have it, since I'm a collector and it'd be going to a good home. I said it would have a great home, with lots of other computers to keep it company. :3
It came with the leather Bondwell case, AC adapter, MSDOS manuals (even though he insists it has Windows 3.1 or 95 installed), and a software suite called Spinnaker Eight-in-One Office (for IBMs and Compatible Computers) in its original box.
Then we talked about computer collecting for awhile; turns out he has a TRS-80 Pocket Computer. That he will NEVER EVER SELL. EVER. His words. But he says he knows some people who might have old computer caches, including one ex Dell engineer who may have a few minis in his basement. He's not sure, but says this guy's wife will know -- "go visit her at her shop in Concord and ask."
I'm just trying to get the word out to my local used computer shops, so they won't be so quick to throw out old things, but people keep giving me computers. THIS IS MADNESSSSSSSSS~ D:<
I might have to make a squee-o-meter for the use of this thread, you know. -w-
That's why you always check the used electronics bin of your local dump.... though that causes tears more often the squees generated by that Bondwell.
The boring thing here is, there IS no such thing as a used computers store - possibly in Uppsala or Lund, but those things just cover somewhat recent things anyway. I don't know why, but the only thing Sweden seem to like vintage is wine. Not even old cars are all that high up.
Same here. The oldest anyone will go in a store over here is around 2005 or so. And that's a rarity.
weird. old computers are so commonplace here.
hey guys, little help? found an old computer that might not exist anymore....
(http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i98/Chocofreak13/th_DSCF0602.jpg) (http://s70.photobucket.com/albums/i98/Chocofreak13/?action=view¤t=DSCF0602.jpg)(http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i98/Chocofreak13/th_DSCF0603.jpg) (http://s70.photobucket.com/albums/i98/Chocofreak13/?action=view¤t=DSCF0603.jpg)
(http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i98/Chocofreak13/th_DSCF0604.jpg) (http://s70.photobucket.com/albums/i98/Chocofreak13/?action=view¤t=DSCF0604.jpg)
(http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i98/Chocofreak13/th_DSCF0607.jpg) (http://s70.photobucket.com/albums/i98/Chocofreak13/?action=view¤t=DSCF0607.jpg)
(http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i98/Chocofreak13/th_DSCF0609.jpg) (http://s70.photobucket.com/albums/i98/Chocofreak13/?action=view¤t=DSCF0609.jpg)
fern decided to show up in a few of the pics.....
(http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i98/Chocofreak13/th_DSCF0610.jpg) (http://s70.photobucket.com/albums/i98/Chocofreak13/?action=view¤t=DSCF0610.jpg)
you can vaguely make out "tim" in the upper righthand corner.....so thus, we have timmy. :3
i've never heard of this brand before, and i can't seem to get a lead on it......
any ideas? it's made for NT/98, so....
I think we used to own one of these back when 98 first came out. They where ether bought out by a big name to expand or just went bankrupt and fell out of the market. You do have a very unique machine there though!
i remember finding 1 95 desktop and lots of XP computers that where petty old
(´_ã,`)
@Aurora: It's odd, the moment I quit looking for old computers, they started coming out of the woodwork (after the 98 iMac I told myself I wouldn't buy any more for the time being lol). >>
I'm glad the VIC-20 works too, figured it would though, since there's really not a lot that can go wrong with those simple micros (ie, no moving internal parts like HDDs or heatsinks).
It's awesome that you're learning CBM! Maybe you can teach me a thing or two, heh. And that's an interesting community, thanks for sharing. :3
I like obscure and underdog computers too, second only perhaps to my love of flop computers (seriously, what is it with epic failures/tragedies that I like so much? Windows 1.0 and 2.0, OS/2, Multics, TSS/360, Apple Lisa and III, any OS Wars-era Macs...)
@Stew: Chained to the desk? That must be a tough neighborhood. <<
The Toughbook IS awesome, and arm-breakingly heavy, and it runs like a dream! Turns out it has Windows 98 SE installed, which is very nostalgic for me, since that was the second OS I worked with at any length. ^^
Hopefully I can start intercepting these computers BEFORE they end up in the dump, that's why I'm trying to get the word out that I'm collecting them. >>
@Red: Yes you can come live with me, I need an in-house computer tech expert. xD
So weird that the oldest computers you can find in your area are from around 2005... that's the approximate age of my second and third newest computers, K8 and DY (who're still used on a regular basis BTW). D:
@Choco: I'd suggest that maybe it's a "homebrew" PC, or at least one made by a small manufacturers (like my Diacad Associates 3.1 PC). Unfortunetly, Tiger's a rather common name and I doubt googling it will turn up any good leads... could you find any other form on identification on it? A place of manufacturing or date, etc?
Time for another installment of my long-running series...
ADVENTURES IN COMPUTER HUNTING! Or, WHAT THE HELL IS THIS CRAZY SH!T?!
Today I went out with my dad, looking into some possible photography work at various resorts, attractions, etc, around our area. Well. We happened to pass a computer repair shop, at which point I emphatically squeaked "EEEE STOP HERE~!" and so we did a u-ey and went back.
So, we went out back - since the shop's in an, ahem, shed - opened the door and found a, well, shed full of computers. And the owner. At this point I've become brave enough to introduce myself something like "hello, I'm a computer collector and am wondering if you have any old machines" and I did - to which the owner replied, "well I DID, but THOSE got sent to the dump."
Geekly tears were shed. ._____.
My father took this pause to interject, "Say, d'ye have any used Macs for sale?!" cause he needs a work computer and nothing short of a Mac will do, to which the owner replied, "nah, I don't work on Macs - I got enough on my hands with IBMs as it is," and he pointed at a table full of non-IBM PCs. Interesting. I've never heard of anyone refer to PCs as "IBMs" before. But it makes me like PCs a hella lot more. Yeah, from now on, PCs will be IBM-clones. >>
Then he handed me a 5'' HDD and said he had a ton of old floppy drives lying around that I could have. And a couple 1990s-era laptops, including a Thinkpad and Gateway which may still work. He said he'd put together a box of things I can have if I want, and to check back on Friday.
THEN, at an antique store on Lake Winnipesaukee, I found a... Commodore VIC-20. $20, in its original box with all the cables. I was iffy on buying it (why would I need one VIC-20, let alone two?), but I caved in the end. So now, I have a pair of VIC-20s. A Victor to go with my Victoria, if you will. Well, the antique store guy told me computers would be the collectible of the future, so I guess I'm getting in on the ground floor.
So, yeah. It scares me how I can find computers at the least computery of places. ._____.
OH YEAH! AND, I stumbled upon an arcade game museum in Weirs - 100s of 1970s and 80s arcade games, including the first coin-operated arcade game. It's based off of the PDP-1 game Spacewars! and called Space War. There were also several old Pong games.
Quotebut I caved in the end
The difficulty level of NOT making a Keine joke on this is beyond lunatic mode. __W__;
On the topic of IBM, I realize now that I've never mentioned that both my uncle and my half-uncle (and one of my sister-in-law(next year!)'s relatives which I don't remember face or name of) worked at IBM some decade ago. After which they've gone on to related companies, so no easy shot into the business for me. -w-; But meh.
Also COMPLAINT ABOUT LACK OF OLD COMPUTERS IN SWEDEN HERE.
NICE BELLA, You are really lucky to have old computers in your area! (Most get thrown out around here or in the back room of peoples houses). I actualy started to boot up my old mac's (iMac g2 and Mac G3) with the pleasent suprise that they still work properly. Found that the RAM in the G3 was only 98mb of PC100 so I put in 256mb of PC200 which really changed the speed from annoyingly usable to clean web surfing and Photoshop 6.0 Apple Desktop. The iMac needs a clean install of OS X because no one remembers the username and we can't log on or anything :(
Good hunting, I actually might be able to go through some of my school's older computer and snag a couple!
Do not come to us complaining of having two VIC-20s. I'll take two VIC-20s, a dozen IBM 5150s, maybe an IBM PC portable, an XT, another TRS-80, maybe an Amstrad CPC, Apple ][, Mac Classic, iBook G3, Powerbook 180c?
We have a ton of computers for sale around here dating back to Windows 3.1/95 era which is when most people in these parts started getting computers that they're willing to separate with. I know someone who clings fiercely to their heavily modified IBM XT. Additionally I have been informed that most other residents with computers that old cling to and protect them as well. Not the school though; here we just have hints of IBM and DEC's former hold on the school before the accursed standardization.
Personally I prefer to refer to modern PC's as IBMalikes.
In other words: DAMN YOU NEW HAMPSHIRE!
Bella, you're SO lucky. Period.
Fun fact: IBM used to have a veritable monopoly on the personal computer market, and therefore for a number of years, I would see this in the hardware requirements for software:
"IBM/PC Compatible"
Still do see it, as far as I know.
@Nej: I know an ex-IBM who worked in the microprocessor division, as well as a family friend whose father was some sort of executive. Both worked at the Essex Junction/Burlington facility in Vermont.
@Kraus and Red: Luck has everything to do with it, too. It's always when I'm NOT looking for them that I find them! D:
@Stew: I WILL COMPLAIN ABOUT HAVING TWO VIC-20s! I'm afraid if I let them out of their boxes, imma end up with a bunch of baby Vic-20s. ;O;
Most people round here cling tightly to their computers too, until they throw them in the GOTTDAMN TRASHHEAP ARGH. >< IBMalikes, that makes me like PCs even more! :3
DUN DAMN NEW HAMPSHIRE, OUR BOUNTY OF OLD COMPUTERS COMES FROM OUR GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATION! We have IBM Territory to the West, and the Cradle of Computer Civilisation to the South, it's only logical that we'd have a hidden computer culture here. .__.
And now for another installment of...
ADVENTURES IN COMPUTER-HUNTINNNNNNNGGGGGG~
Today I went 'Hup Nawth with my dad cause of some business and house-building stuff... well, mostly for the ride, since I don't get up there very often (the Notch is sort of like the New Hampshire's Pillars of Hercules; it's terra incognita, or at least terra Vermontia, past those mountains). Anyway, in Littleton we passed a computer shop, and I was all like, "eeeeeeee!!!" and he was all like, "oh HELL no" and I was all like "u-ey! U-ey! U-ey!" and then he was like, "OH FINE" and we went back.
Into an old office building and up a flight of stairs we entered an office full of, if you didn't see this coming already, computers. Including some G3 Mac towers, classic iMacs and eMacs, a giant pile of parts, and some old OS install disks -- in their original boxes -- including Windows Me and 95. *.*
Me: "I'm going to be straight with you: I collect old computers. Like, pre-millennium stuff. Have you any?"
Storekeep: "...there's an XP tower in my car I'm going to gut..."
Me: ಠ__à²
But we got to talking, and it turns out he has late 90s IBM Thinkpad that may or may not work (and may or may not have Windows Me installed) and he's gonna try to dig that out and give it a try. Then he asked about my computer collection, and I ran down the list (though I may have missed a few) at which point he got all thoughtful-like. Turns out he knows somebody in a neighbouring town who happens to be a computer collector (or hoarder -- there was mention of a STORAGE UNIT full of old machines), and that I should call him and ask if he's selling/purging any computers. Apparently he collects a lot of Apple stuff but ventures into other territories; there was mention of "some old IBM servers" and possibly minis. D:
Then he asked what I collected so he could keep an eye out for them; I wrote down a list something like:
Pre-2000 computers
Older the better
Apples and IBMs
Unusual or rare parts/machines
Preferably working, but non-working would be fine too
He said he'll email me if anything interesting turns up. And then told me to keep an eye out for G3 and G4 Macs and a 14'' Apple monitor, since he's collection those himself.
Yay for networking!
Yay for networking indeed.
There's no such thing as a network ;_;
There's an old Thinkpad hiding upstairs in the library archives, but it may be in the property box of a dead employee so not even I am gonna ask about that.
Time for another installment of...
ADVENTURES IN COMPUTER HUNTING!
So, today we had to drive past Computer Hunting Ground #237. Me being me, I said something like, "pwese can we stop and see if he ever found that old Gateway laptop?" >sparklyeyes<
Dad: >sigh< "fine."
So we stop, get out of the car, trudge up the walkway to the Computer Repair Shack, knock, find Mr. Computer Repair Shack inside soldering a mobo, and I was like, "OLD COMPUTAHS PLZ" and he was all, "TO THE OLD COMPUTER CLOSET~"
First he pulled out a rather unexotic looking Gateway notebook and handed it to me.
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0017.jpg)
Me: "Oh... that's nice..."
Mr. Repairman: "There's another."
Dad: "Come now SURELY you don't need TWO old Gateways... I mean... right?
Me: "PFFT! I can scavenge the other for parts if the need ever arises!"
Then the transaction took a turn for the.... 2am infomercial-ish.
IF YOU ORDER NOW, YOU GET NOT ONE, NOT TWO, BUT THREE GATEWAY 2000 COLORBOOK COMPUTERS! CALL NOW! LIMITED SUPPLIES!
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0014.jpg)
Me: *DIALING PHONE*
BUT WAIT! THERE'S MORE! IF YOU ORDER WITHIN THE NEXT FIVE MINUTES, WE'LL QUINTUPLE YOUR ORDER! NOT ONE COLORBOOK... NOT TWO OR THREE... YOU'LL GET AN A-M-A-Z-I-N-G FIVE COLORBOOKS!
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0015.jpg)
Me: oh hell yes. *‿*
THINK WE CAN'T MAKE THE DEAL BETTER? WELL YOU THOUGHT WRONG! WHEN YOU ORDER TODAY, YOU'LL GET AN ATTRACTIVE AND USEFUL IBM THINKPAD 560 ULTRAMOBILE NOTEBOOK! DON'T DELAY! OPERATORS ARE STANDING BY!
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0016.jpg)
Me: "IBM?! I'M SOLD!" *ω*
So, yes, I'm the proud mum of FIVE 1994 Gateway 2000 Colorbooks (two of which have been tested and power up - but can't boot for lack of a repair disk, or so theh error dialogue says), and a beautiful 1996/97 IBM Thinkpad 560. I call the Colorbooks the Clone Army, names 001 through 005. The 560's Ivana.
The Clones came with two original ac adapters/power cords both of which work; I've never seen such old-looking laptop cords before:
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0018.jpg)
Ivana came with a rebuilt IBM adapter; but it doesn't seem to work, since it can power up neither Ivana nor her sister, Iffy (at least it looks like most IBM Thinkpads use similar-ish AC adapters...)
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0019.jpg)
You won the lottery milady! CONGRATULATIONfadsjhf.ajsg A
Thanks Kraus-san. ^//^
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0020-1.jpg)
Turns out that two of the five Clones are bootable! Just had to let their batteries charge for awhile! One has Windows 3.11 installed, and the other has 3.11 for Workgroups.
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0024.jpg)
The trackball was hidden inside the case but I found it. Isn't it little and cute and retrotastic?
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0026.jpg)
One of the Clones has a program called "Neko"; created by a Japanese programmer, this seems to be an early example of a interactive "widget". When you pull the pointer over the tiny cat he follows it reacts to movements; when you leave the window, he curls up to sleep.
Awesomeness, Bella! What processors do they have?
....jealous. but happy for you. ^^
hmm, that adapter for the ibm looks like the one i had for it (untill fricken russel's condo ATE it >___< ), perhaps it's too new (my ibm's a 98/99)?
Each of your new finds gets more and more awesome, Bella!
DAT NEKO :W:
Dat 3.1 with da NEKO.
I don't really have that many 'awesome' stories with my computers, I'm more like an adoption agency :D people going to throw them out and I say I'll take it.
A lot of them are from my past too, since I keep pretty much everything.
Me too, I run a homeless computer shelter. XD
Though I'd like to think I've some pretty interesting acquisition stories; finding a VIC-20 at a festival in VT and having to carry it mile back to my car in 90+ degree heat, finding another VIC-20 at an antique shop, a working eMac at a dump and having to make a 60-mile dash to the border of Mass to buy my iMac while it was still on sale...
Actually, all of them have interesting stories. If only I had the time to tell them.
Wow, those are cool o3o
Oh, but you DO have time to tell them!
...please? /waterey-kitten eyes
Gah, who can resist sad kitten eyes? I guess I'll try jotting some of them down when I get the chance... for posterity's sake. =v=
As we speak it would appear that my PowerBook 165 has a busted hard drive. The extreme helpfulness of the school's network in facilitating my creating floppy images is to be commended. By commended of course I mean I haven't been more irritated since I couldn't read Dominic Deegan after 8AM in high school.
Further plans: Seek out the Mac loving tech guy and see if he has a real Disk Tools floppy he's willing to let me use. Or, you know, mad Mac skills and a willingness to let me format a disk in his Mac Classic.
If you can get your hands on a USB floppy drive you might be able to do your disk-making work from within an emulator (didn't you say it's System 7 you need to use?)
I wish I could be of more help... :,\
I've looked for a USB floppy drive for years now; they either cost an arm and a leg or don't exist. Charity time!
The prices I found doing a quick search didn't seem so bad...
I seem to have a different definition of reasonable pricing then the rest of the world.
Cue the tiny violins, it's time for a new installment of...
Heaps and Heaps of Misfortune in Computing!
K8 is dead. Or I should say dying again, two months after being fixed. Same overheating -> spontaneous shutdown issues, probably originating in the mobo. God clearly doesn't want me ever using a Linuxbox, I suppose I'll concede and won't.
I fished my Performa 6115 out of cold storage along with a keyboard, mouse and monitor, only to find that none of the peripherals will attach due to freaky incompatible Apple ports.
Guess I won't be able to use any of my old Macs until I find an Apple monitor, mouse and keyboard, or find + order converters. = =
I suspect the Bondwell's HD is dead... judging by its ability to start up, but not boot. Also, the monitor is on the fritz. I wonder if it just isn't getting enough power or something... maybe if I put some batteries in and let it charge it'll work.
Speaking of batteries, I did exploratory surgery on the unturnonable Aptiva, the latest in a series of OH GOD WHY CAN'T WE HAVE NICE IBM THINGS computers. What I found:
-dust
-dust bunnies
-rust
-rust bunnies
The Power of (IBM) Love compels me to try everything I can to get this computer running, so I'm going to try to find a 3v lithium coin battery for the CMOS and see if that doesn't make it less... brick-like.
If only I could ship these old Mac parts to you D:
Retrocomputing is a thing for people who don't mind being depressed. ;_;
I spent about three hours trying to work out why my legacy PC wouldn't turn on last night after successfully installing 95-san on it's second hard drive and testing the 95-compatible-only nVidia NV1 graphics card.
I unplugged everything and pulled the NV1, plugged the Voodoo5 back in and smelt an acrid antiseptic-type smell. Fearing the worst, I plugged everything in and hit the on button. Nothing. Not a whimper. SO I spent the next three hours laboriously troubleshooting. In the end, I dismantled the power supply because it had gotten rather hot while I was playing earlier and my dad suggested it might be fried. Could find nothing obviously wrong with it, so I dusted it off and put it back together. TA-DAAAAAA! It worked!
Y'know this is a recurring theme. Technology doesn't work. I take it apart. Find nothing wrong. Put it back together. It works. Oh well, I guess I must have magic hands or something. *does jazz hands*
If only Stew. >>
Yes Nej, this is the most tragic hobby ever. All the fun of treasure-hunting with the disappointment of being told all best treasure was chucked out yesterday, and you wind up being given a boring chest that may or may not contain treasure provided you can get it to open. It might be too rusted to open, or it might need a special key, which'll send you on yet ANOTHER treasure hunt -> disappointment -> frustration -> treasure hunt cycle again. INFINITELY.
We could really use your magic hands here at the basement computer museum/computer triage Red. D:
...
So, I got Corky (this 98 box I have nothing but contempt for, on the basis of being a 98 box) hooked up to a monitor, mouse and keyboard... it's weird, it turns on, the fans run, the CD trays open (and drives possibly work), but I can't hear any HD activity (nor does the HD light indicate any). The monitor is blank, so I don't think it's as simple as a failed HDD... cause even if it was, SOMEthing would show up on the monitor.
Tried opening up the case, but the case doesn't want to open, which means I'm at a dead end. At least until I can find a crow bar or something. >>;
Quote from: "Bella"I can't hear any HD activity (nor does the HD light indicate any). The monitor is blank, so I don't think it's as simple as a failed HDD... cause even if it was, SOMEthing would show up on the monitor.
Could be a combination of a failed HD and graphics card. I recently diagnosed a failed graphics card at the Apple store while looking around at the genius bar by sight alone and earned big brownie points.
They asked me why I thought it was a failed graphics card and I said that even at 0% brightness, you can hold the screen up to a light at an angle and see stuff on it, with a failed graphics card, you can't, since nothing appears.
Turns out it was the graphics card, the faulty nVidia series card to be exact.
Try shining a flashlight at the screen at angles and see if you can see anything.
I guess I've had the good parts of the hobby. Even with all these old computers, the worst I've seen is messed up Bios, which is easy to fix. Now Soviet Russian laptop interested I in. http://englishrussia.com/index.php/2006/08/20/first-russian-laptop/
Could be, though I won't be able to test the monitor that way since it's a CRT.
That's an awesome laptop. OvO
You've tripped Bells' Elektronika circuit Kriz.
Oh I'm sorry Borya, you weren't satisfied with two VIC-20S?
I've been trying to get my old Apple powerPC 8100 with system 7.5 installed up and running and all I have to do is connect the main server grade barracuda drive up with the scuzzy cable. problem is that to take the hard drives in and out you have to slide them out with the rail system attached. The main hard drive got bumped off and out of place of the rail system and its jammed in the box. I'd rather not bust the casing but I may have to bust the rail system up a bit to unjam the hard drive. Sometimes something like a rail system looks like its revolutionary but its just a step back with the increased risk of forcing and ruining the hard drive.
Just another day at the office...
Quote from: "stewartsage"You've tripped Bells' Elektronika circuit Kriz.
Oh I'm sorry Borya, you weren't satisfied with two VIC-20S?
IN SOVIET RUSSIA, BELLS TRIPS ELEKTRONIKA'S CIRCUITS.
They were accidental finds, accidental finds... I wouldn't have ever considered LOOKING for them, they just sort of presented themselves to me. PET aside, Commodores have never particularly appealing, too pedestrian, too common (I relise popularity is something that makes them desirable to most people due to readily available software and hardware making them more, you know, useful). But I appreciate all old computers even if they aren't my "thing"-- hell, I'd take a C64 or ][ if I
found one selling for the right price.
Two's just redundant, but like I was gonna pass up a mint-condition VIC-20 in its original box for $20.
Bella, I love you.
.////////////.
I've known that for some time but thanks. .///.
Not to break up the love fest, you filthy hippies, but I now posses an Amiga 500 w/hard drive.
I fukken hate Amigas but still
(http://kittensmewmew.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/fuuuuuuuuu.jpg)
(http://kittensmewmew.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/fuuuuuuuuu.jpg)
(http://kittensmewmew.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/fuuuuuuuuu.jpg)
(http://kittensmewmew.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/fuuuuuuuuu.jpg)
Would this be the non-optimal time to mention that it still has it's original monitor?
(http://i294.photobucket.com/albums/mm101/inund8/FUUUUUUUUUUUUU.jpg)
Bella, you need to come visit me. I has some computing stuff you can have!
Clearly that was the wrong thing to say. Probably going to see if I can trade/sell it for Apple ][/Kaypro/TRS-80 parts.
Quote from: "stewartsage"Clearly that was the wrong thing to say. Probably going to see if I can trade/sell it for Apple ][/Kaypro/TRS-80 parts.
*raises hand*
I fukken hate Amigas but I'd still take one for the right price. = =
A #1 and #2 Disk II drive, assortment of floppies, tape drive for a TRS-80, power cable and CP/M floppies...... or $35 cash money.
Bella? @RAAAAGE? Surely, I must be seeing things wrongly here. *rubs monitor with cloth* Still there? Oh, well. That settles it.
RUN AND HIDE, BECAUSE SOMETHING, SOMEWHERE IS GOING TO RANDOMLY EXPLODE WITH EXTREME PREJUDICE
$35 you say? Certainly qualifies as the Right Price, even if S&H will up the cost a fsckton. OvO
Quote from: "Nej"RUN AND HIDE, BECAUSE SOMETHING, SOMEWHERE IS GOING TO RANDOMLY EXPLODE WITH EXTREME PREJUDICE
(http://images.icanhascheezburger.com/completestore/2008/11/1/128700745204770798.jpg)
Your head asplode.
That is the problem.... shipping a CRT monitor.... yeah.
I won't be able to give you any answer until closer to Christmas, and after I see how this ebay auction turns out. Because if it turns out well, I'm probably not going to be buying anything else for a lonnnnnnnnng tiemmmmmmmmm (it's gonna be a bidding bloodbath, if the paypal account is even activated by then, not to mention the $150 limit I've been given [since it'd technically be a Christmas gift], but I'm still going for it... as far as my $150 limit goes... >>)
Ooooh, what is it?
Let's just say it's a big, heavy, potentially overheating cast-aluminum-cased bundle of joy and one of my personal Holy Grails. =w=
^ Is it an Apple ///? :D
It's totally an Apple ///
And Bingo is its name-o. Wouldn't even consider it; but it's not often you see a complete /// setup that isn't in the many 100's of dollars right off the bat. -w-
There are actually TWO I'm looking at; one's a sweet setup -- computer, monitor, drives, software and manuals, currently ~$60 with $56 S&H. Of course, this is gonna devolve into a bidding clusterfsck in the last few minutes. >>
The other is currently $100 with $40 shipping, working, with the floppy, monitor and printer included... but it looks a bit more worn than the other, and is missing a key. Doubt that'll discourage any retrocomputerists who want to engage in another last minute bidding clusterfsck.
There's still a few days left on both, so I'm just waiting and enjoying the calm before the storm. = =
Good luck! I got my iBook in a bidding war and won with $55!
Awww, I was hoping it was an Apple ][, then I could post the "Apple ][ Forever!" song...
But still awesome, Bells.
'tis the season for making dreams come true then; may the Spirit of the Bid be on your side, Bells. Just remember, everyone's out to get you (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7C6OQ3rDh_s&feature=related).
The /// is sort of the epitome of Early Apple Epicness, at least to me and my warped sense of affection for "failure" computers... -v-
*nervously wrings hands*
How much time is left on the auction? Has the price spiraled out of control yet?
A day and ten minutes approximately, the price is holding steady at ~$70 but I'm sure it's gonna go through the roof in the last few minutes. >>
Quote from: "Red-Machine"Awww, I was hoping it was an Apple ][, then I could post the "Apple ][ Forever!" song...
Searched for the song, found it, probably going to get it outlawed in my state due to tendency of addiction.
I JUST LOST THE CLUSTERFUK. ;________;
Awww. *hug*
I blame it on the corrupted spirit of yule. Curse you and your modern variety and lack of blood sacrifice, curse you!
I blame it on the DISAPPOINTMENT MAGNET that apparently lives somewhere in my body, attracting HEAPS AND HEAPS OF MISFORTUNE AND COMMODORE VIC-20s with laser-like precision. =.=
Why I shouldn't ever browse Ebay, cause looking for adapters for Mac ports will inevitably lead to looking at old Macs > vintage Apples > finding holy grails > being outbid > resigning myself to the fact that Fate doesn't want me getting said holy grails > considering that I should adopt more mainstream tastes in vintage computers and get myself a C64 and be all happy and shit. = =
Quote from: "Bella"I blame it on the DISAPPOINTMENT MAGNET that apparently lives somewhere in my body, attracting HEAPS AND HEAPS OF MISFORTUNE AND COMMODORE VIC-20s with laser-like precision. =.=
Why I shouldn't ever browse Ebay, cause looking for adapters for Mac ports will inevitably lead to looking at old Macs > vintage Apples > finding holy grails > being outbid > resigning myself to the fact that Fate doesn't want me getting said holy grails > considering that I should adopt more mainstream tastes in vintage computers and get myself a C64 and be all happy and shit. = =
/attempts to cheer up
http://cgi.ebay.com/Apple-Power-Macintosh-G4-Cube-500-MHz-M-/330505660985?pt=Apple_Desktops&hash=item4cf3ac2a39#ht_468wt_129
CHRIST ON A GOTTDAMN SKATEBOARD THAT OTHER APPLE /// IS NOW INTO THE SEVERAL HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS RANGE. MOAR THAN THE OTHER, FREAKISHLY, UNBELIEVABLY NICE SETUP WAS. ;____________;
So, yeah, god apparently wants me never to have one. I'll just sit here and let Commodores and 3.11 machines toss themselves at me. =.=
http://cgi.ebay.com/Apple-IIe-Computer-Tested-Works-perfect-15-Diff-games-/150530832347?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item230c5637db
Aparently needs more cheering.
Stand back yo,
http://cgi.ebay.com/Vintage-Early-1980s-Apple-III-Computer-License-Plate-/290394718303?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item439cdfc05f#ht_1372wt_937
please consult your doctor if you have a heart condition,
http://cgi.ebay.com/Steve-Jobs-US-PATENT-APPLE-III-Vintage-Art-Print-3-/390103483048?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5ad3fac2a8#ht_500wt_717
I'm now the proud parent of a working Original Macintosh 128k and a working Osborn 1 luggable. Found them whilst tripping around Salem Massachusetts.
I call them Romona and Tchotchske. Will post pix when I get them. :3
As I said, your finds get more and more awesome! You've even got a compact Mac!
The Osborn is interesting too, and sounds like a rare find. Isn't it the heaviest 'laptop' you've carried? :)
Quote from: "Bella"I'm now the proud parent of a working Original Macintosh 128k and a working Osborn 1 luggable. Found them whilst tripping around Salem Massachusetts.
I call them Romona and Tchotchske. Will post pix when I get them. :3
FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK
Damn you, Bells. Why are you so awesome?
Luck and Craigslist Boston lurking. I figure there have to be SOME old gems in the city and its outlying areas, considering its very technological past. (To wit: also found a NeXTCUBE selling in Manchester for $150, but it doesn't run, so, yeah). >>
Romona works fine (and seems to be running System 2, heh), but when I try to boot Tchotchske with the CPM disk I get a boot error. It worked fine yesterday -- well, when it was at the last owner's house -- I hope riding in the backseat over the so-so roads of Boston, or being left out in the car for a few hours in the cold didn't wreck its floppy drives. ><
Even better, your 128K runs one of the most obscure, most forgotten Mac OS versions! :D
Still envious!
I have 8in floppy drives, one of which might be up for disposal.
Good news ya'll, Tchotchske is fine! Turns out, in an act of infinite derp'itude, I forgot to...um... put the little latch down on the drive, thus not, you know, engaging the drive. I relised my mistake at about 2am last night and got up to try it out and it worked fine. >O<V
So, I didn't ruin it by letting it bounce around the backseat as we drove through the questionable roads of the North Shore/Boston/Cambridge... this makes me feel a lot better about the whole trip. Plus, how totally meta is it to take some vintage computers on a tour through Cambridge, their ancestral homeland? XD
Bells, if I was there I'd bonk you on the head for that.
ELEMENTARY MISTAKE, MY DEAR WATSON!
And I'd deserve it. ><;;;
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0089.jpg)
Here's Romona in action. Amazing how Apple computers have come full circle from the original Macintosh to the iMac; being all-in-one units where you only have to attach the keyboard and mouse... </introspective>
Also, according to the built in system profile program, she's running System 4.2, and Finder version 6.
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0093.jpg)
The software kit that came with her, note the original floppies, audio tour cassette and stickers.
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0295.jpg)
Tchotchske (powered down) and accessories. That white template on the keyboard is a listing of different WordStar tips/shortcuts; CPM and various program floppies; a book on using the Osborne 1, some manuals, and several issues of Portable Companion magazine from 1982-84.
Bella, can I just move over there and marry you now? Your collection is becoming progressively more awesome.
That's strange. Are you sure that's a 128K? It looks like it, with no name silkscreened on the front (It was either the Mac Plus or the 512Ke that was the first to do so), but the 128K can't run System 4.2 unless it was upgraded. But either way, awesome pics!
Maybe it has a different mobo in it or a 3rd party upgrade to the RAM.
It's an original 128k model but it does have an aftermarket 512k RAM upgrade.
That's what I had thought. There's no way the Mac could multitask with just 128k of RAM!
Yesterday at the dump I found an IBM PC/AT computer, two 1980-vintage IBM printers and a Model M keyboard (with a protective cover over top no less); they ended up in the trunk in a New York Second, even though the dumpmeister was looking at me all funny-like, as if to say, "weirdo, where are you going with this piece of trash?"
They currently reside in cold storage in a basement halfway across town. Haven't tested them out yet, but I'm not optimistic, given my penchant for ridiculously bad luck. >>
Bella, can I just move over there and marry you now?
How about we see if I can get it running first? :V
Quote from: "Bella"It's an original 128k model but it does have an aftermarket 512k RAM upgrade.
I see that happen often on ebay, so that is entirely plausible :D
also, would anyone happen to know where a good System 6 Emulator would be? (bet Bella knows)
Mmm, aftermarket RAM upgrades.... They made my Lily the beast she is today!
The Osborne 1 started smoking today; in case you missed the memo, smoke emanating from the interior of a computer = NOT GOOD. I'll go scream now. ><;;;
@Chozo: Basilisk II or Mini vMac, but never having installed a classic Mac system on either one I wouldn't be able to help out. This site has a tutorial, albeit for installing System 7... http://wiki.oldos.org/Mac/68kEmulator
Another site I stumbled upon concerning System 6; this might point you in the right direction: http://www.euronet.nl/users/mvdk/system6.html
I've used Basilisk II to run System 7.5.3, and it didn't work very well. I don't know if I did something wrong with the process, or that version of Basilisk just wasn't a good one (I've tried 7.5.3 under Mini vMac and it worked better).
Use Mini vMac. Installing System 6 on it is very easy! :D
Thank you for the resources! It was very easy and it even emulated my SE's startup beep. (although I was actually emulating a Mac Plus)
However... it's just not the same. Going through my SE's hardrive and seeing "last modified: 1987" is one of the finer points in life. With this one, it just doesn't feel real (probably because it isn't).
I just don't feel soulfully attached for some reason.
This was honestly my first attempt at an emulation though, so I'm happy it went by well, it gave me experience I could possibly use for the future.
However, if I had to write ONE MORE "800k.dsk" to install something... :p
So, I think I know why my Osborne 1 spewed SMOKE ALL OVER ME AND MADE THE DESK-AREA SMELL FOR FIVE MINUTES.
Poking around a but has revealed a blown electrolytic capacitor behind the monitor assembly. It's intact but appears bulged and has a hole in the top. I'm slightly relieved, since I was expecting there to be carnage inside (and there might still be -- I haven't completely disassembled it yet -- but nothing seems out of place besides that).
Also, this blog documents such issues (THE OH GOD BILLOWING SMOKE issue) quite well, and with a favourable outcome: http://www.classic-computers.org.nz/blog/2008-12-06-osborne-repair-1.htm
Actually, that entire blog is hella cool. Who'd have thought so many vintage machines settled in New Zealand?
That does sound a tad more promising than the initial outline for little Ozzy. -w-
There's a MONIAC in New Zealand.... so, yeah.
God my dad has made recovering the password for my old iMac even harder for me because he got rid of all his apple software like the Mac OSX 9 disk and the Mac OSX 10.2 disk and the imac recovery disk and the list go's on and on. such a hassle -.-'
Ugh... ><;;; I'm so sorry to hear that. :\
oh well it would of been a useless attempt anyway, the disk drive seems to have died and can't read any CD you put in so I have another set back. My dad wants to trash it but I'm probably going to smuggle it into my room and stick it in the closet for a while :D
Ah, the closet.... the last refuge of an abandoned computer.... (I have about seven in mine) ><;;;
I'm already trying to devise a plan to fix the Osborne 1; seeing as my desk is too small to support having a half-gutted computer on it for god knows how long, we're probably going to do surgery on it in the basement when we get the heat installed. Dad's volunteered to do soldering (>>;;), I think I know where I can get my capacitor(s) (the local used electronics shop), all I need is to figure out exactly what's wrong and if it's more than that one capacitor that's popped its top. :\
But whenever I ask techie people about it, they either give me a weird look or tell me how brave I am, poking around a monitor assembly, and it's shaking my confidence a lot.
It's worth noting that I operate under the assumption that old computers are hard as hell to kill and every malfunction, no matter how dire, is fixable with the right parts, skill, and time -- all of which can be found, hired, or even made -- and that you should keep a never-say-die attitude unless, you know, the computer in question is in pieces or melted. What say you OSC? Is this naive, stupid, or the result of watching too much Gurren Laggan? D,:
Quite commendable attidude there, Bells. I would lend you my magic hands, but I can't swim that far...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuQ3fg9knGo&feature=related
Go get'em bells, your Retro Computers are the Retro Computers that will pierce the heavens...or...yea, go get'em!
Quotetoo much Gurren Laggan
There is no such thing as too much Gurren Lagann, my dear. Row row, fight tha powah! -w-
Thanks guize. =w=
So, anyway, I have a situation.
Basically, a source in the Boston Metro Area informed me that a collector is purging about half of his private computer museum. The machines have been in his garage for the last two years, and now he wants to pass them off on somebody who'll have more use for them.
For $300 he's selling a collection of Apple hardware (including two ][s, 1980s and 90s Classic Macs), two Tandys in original boxes, two SPARCs and an Idris workstation, an IBM 5150 and PC Convertible, a DEC GIGI and several micros - C64, VIC-20 (>>), Timex T100 and TI 94/A. About two dozen in all, remaining accessories, software and documents included. Some have been tested (supposedly the ][s, Idris and SPARCs and 5150), some haven't, none are guaranteed to work.
Thoughts? My main concern - besides how the hell I'll get them home in the backseat + trunk of a sedan, and of course the chance of there being tons of irreparable issues - is that I'll find another collector selling off an even BETTER lot and I'll be out of mad-money for purchases like this.
Pick and choose. Never buy a hoarde like that, too many potential pitfalls.
Unfortunately he won't piecemeal it. Otherwise I'd probably just try to take the working ][ setups, the DEC micro and the workstations, and maybe other micros and the Tandys. The dozen or so Classic Macs, for instance, have no appeal to me in this situation.
I'll take the dozen or so classic Macs o3o
In other news, I'm cleaning my Macintosh SE out a bit to make it more spify.
Armed with flashlight, cleaning wipes and an air compressor, I shall pierce the heavens in cleanliness.
(http://i428.photobucket.com/albums/qq5/zchozo/Screenshot2011-01-12at94952PM.png?t=1294887246)
all done!
The age really showed in the floppy drive, looked like it had been collecting dust for 25 years or something.
I have an IBM screw driver like that with two sides (Long flat head one side the other short Phillips head)
Cleaned out my Macintosh G3 blue/white version and it was dusty as hell! (Also upgraded the ram a bit to 512MB and not 255MB or something like that)
I is writing from K8, my dying 2004 eMachines 6800 series running Mint right now...... cause my iMac's decided to be a bitch about going online.
*SO NOSTALGIC*
My dad made me take a test on Windows ME, oh god it was terrible (Because the test was to virtual ME and do some data recovery and all that). I must of crashed close to 15 times in VB.
Quote from: Bella on January 16, 2011, 03:14:50 PM
I is writing from K8, my dying 2004 eMachines 6800 series running Mint right now...... cause my iMac's decided to be a bitch about going online.
*SO NOSTALGIC*
Funny enough I'm using my old Emachine because my Gateway doesn't want to go on teh interwebz ether!
That's freaky Dr. K ><
Yeah, the eMachines decided to start spontaneously shutting down (as she usually does) so now I've been reduced to using the only other computer at my disposal that goes online: Dy, a 2005 HP. She's slow as fsck but surprisingly reliable. = =;;
Annnnnnnd now the iMac has a LinuxMint liveCD stuck inside the CDR drive, she won't boot off of it 'cause it's a 32-bit edition (WHY'D I THINK I DOWNLOADED THE 64-BIT ONE?!), I can't get it out and booted back into OSX. Damned Macs and their lack of manual CDR drive controls. ><
EDIT:
I got the CDR out of the drive. Fanks to the advice of the dudes at Rockingham Park Apple Store.
EDIT PART DEUX:
Huh, I got my iMac online using an old router that I used to use for my wireless network but its wireless transmitter quit and now it's just a wired router... weird.
Used the old paper clip method, did you?
*shutters at the thought of shoving paperclip into slot drive*
No, the old repeatedly click on mouse buttons at startup method.
You don't put it IN the slot drive, you shove it into a small hidden hole that manually pops the outdated disc thing out.
I had it happen to one of our old Macs at school once, so I promptly questioned them why they put the CD in backwards (this kept them busy for a little bit) as I popped it out with my paper clip.
Quote from: Krizonar on January 16, 2011, 06:32:42 PM
You don't put it IN the slot drive, you shove it into a small hidden hole that manually pops the outdated disc thing out.
I had it happen to one of our old Macs at school once, so I promptly questioned them why they put the CD in backwards (this kept them busy for a little bit) as I popped it out with my paper clip.
Old Slot imac's don't do that I think, from what I remember because my old green iMac dosen't do that 0.0
I believe it is hidden on the side of the old retro iMacs :)
(at least, I have one retro iMac and it's on the side)
Oh but I'm not talking about a retro iMac.... I'm talking about a 2009 24'' aluminum model. >>;;
Yesyes Xd mr dr professor Kraus was talking about an old iMac, but they are still on newer ones.
They're also on some very old machines, I found where you stick the paper clip to eject floppies from my SE.
At first I wasn't to sure weather it was a newer iMac or Classic so I went with the topic of Classic srry bout tat
The Hardrive inside my SE died today.
(http://lowendmac.com/conachey/05/art0116/question_mark.gif)
Yeah
:'(
I feel your pain :/
Oh noes! The CD drive in my iBook died when I tried to upgrade it's hard drive over the weekend.
Sorry man. D: Hardware failures on old computers are the worse. ><
Also, dis:
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0163.jpg)
I'll fix it somehow.
I'm also watching this awesome imacg4 on eBay.
I visited today the Manchester Museum of Science and Industry, and saw these lil fellows.
(http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee258/VDaab/IMG_0961s.jpg)
(http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee258/VDaab/IMG_0962s.jpg)
BBC MICRO YAY
The only computer I have that would classify as retro is an Apple Performa 475 running System 6.
Unfortunately the disk refuses to spin up 75% of the time and a replacement is nowhere to be found :/
Picture:
(http://th09.deviantart.net/fs70/PRE/i/2010/194/9/1/Macintosh_Performa_275_by_pwuerrer.jpg)
If kept in a very warm environment, that chance (of starting) will increase. Sonetimes the gears that spin those old drives get a little cold if left off for a while. It's a sign of age. Excersise it at least once a day and keep it warm. If all else fails, you can tilt it a bit and it should start.
If that fails... Well... Duck it.
The oldest computer we have in the house atm is windows 98SE. :3
I have a working 98SE box... well, Panasonic Toughbook. I <3 that computer, it's so nice for a machine of its age~
I beat all of you. The oldest machine I have is a Dragon 32 from 1982.
Mine's a 1980 Apple ][+
I beat most of you, mine are circa-1981 Commodore VIC-20s, both of whom work fine.
BUT. If you count the date the Japanese VIC-20 model (the VIC-1001) was released, then it's 1980... meaning I'm tied with Stew. V>O<V
@Paul: Awww... Too bad your Mac running System 6 doesn't work. :(
The oldest I have is my Blue+White Power Mac G3 from 1999.
However, I have used Apple I BASIC (http://www.pagetable.com/?p=35)! (click link for details. It's really geeky!)
I passed up a half dozen Performa's of varying ages because I couldn't carry them.
Mine is oldest!
(http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee258/VDaab/th_IMG_0965-1.jpg) (http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee258/VDaab/IMG_0965-1.jpg) (http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee258/VDaab/th_IMG_0966.jpg) (http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee258/VDaab/IMG_0966.jpg) (http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee258/VDaab/th_IMG_0967-1.jpg) (http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee258/VDaab/IMG_0967-1.jpg)
Okay, its not mine, but its a replica of the "baby" from 1948.
Apple I BASIC... fun. .w.
I've programmed Dartmouth BASIC before, on an emulated DTSS system. The oldest OS I've used is CTSS (~1961).
There are still functioning CTSS installations? :O
There hasn't been a functioning CTSS installation since the first and only one at MIT got shut down in 1973... but MIT open sourced its code in 2004, and by 2010 there was a mostly turnkey, minor-assembly-required emulated system made:
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/ctss.png)
...ironically, I got this up and running in a half-hour while the workings of the SIHM emulator still elude me after years. I've yet to find a single walkthrough/how-to that makes a bit of sense - the Hercules and 7090 emulator communities, ironically, seem geared at people who might not know what they're doing (Imagine that, some of us don't have an inborn knowledge of the workings of 40-year-old computers!) and lay everything out a lot more clearly.
Sorry for the rant - I can't find a single shred of info on how I can boot my emulated PDP-11/Unix v. 5, 6 and 7 system. The site that had the instructions is gone. >__<
@Bella: Would CTSS-tan be considered alive again, since after all, Multics was brought back from the dead when her OS was Open Sourced too?
CTSS looks so different- is it hard to use?
It seems that CTSS-tan should be alive again, considering that the system has been brought back - but then we'd have to make other concessions, like Xenix-tan being reintroduced since Xenix is totally alive and kicking...
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/Screenshot2011-03-08at73927PM.png)
...but at the same time, one could argue that Multics-tan and SAGE-tan shouldn't be alive since their representative systems are long dead. So it all comes down to storyline and creator preference.
Eh... I really haven't worked with it enough to confirm or deny its difficulty. : \
Zombies, zombies everywhere! Necromancers must be in vogue or something.
I met The Great Necromancer in First Aid at Scout camp years ago; great guy.
So, I'm now the proud mother of twin Commodore 128s, a 1571 floppy drive, monitor, modem, a few game cartridges, a stack of floppies (some of which are DEC-made, yay~) and a bunch of other accessories.
The seller was cool, he works in information and data destruction and sees old computers come through his facility all the time. Most of which get destroyed, 'cause, you know, it's a data destruction facility. (He says he's tried to convince the company to make a computer museum out of the stuff instead, to no avail). >___>
He demoed one of the 128s (the other is added as a scrap/parts machine, though it runs), and I got to play with a TRS-80 portable! And go on a five-minute Boston-is-the-cradle-of-computers-why-the-hell-does-nobody-realize-this rant! And then another rant/lecture about SAGE! And then, I did pretty much the same for Multics! Then we talked about DEC and mourned Ken Olsen's death.
Needless to say, it was a good day. Now I have to figure out how to load a game cartridge... don't look at me like that. I don't know how far to push it in, or whatever, and if it's supposed to be so loose-feeling. I don't think so... but then again, I abide by the old adage of Never Force ANYTHING.
Just jam it in. You'll feel some resistance, but keep pusing till it won't go in anymore. Then turn the machine on.
Simples.
I eventually came to this conclusion and it worked fine~
J-J-J-JAM IT IN~
Some pictures of Viola and Sweetpea, the twin C=128s. These were shot after I was done playing with them, so forgive me for not having any in-action shots.
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0154.jpg)
Viola and her power brick and monitor. This system was used as a work-computer in a business until 2000!
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0155.jpg)
A closer picture of the unit
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0156.jpg)
Sweetpea, the included-for-parts C=128. Note the missing key and JiffyDOS switch. (Which reminds me: I really should make some sort of guard for Viola's switch, 'cause it's very exposed and fragile. ><)
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0158.jpg)
Accessories: some sort of multi-cartridge adapter, a printer interface, serial cartridge, two game cartridges, a text-to-speech cartridge, a modem/1200, and a couple dozen floppies with various software
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0159.jpg)
I can now say I'm the owner of a DEC product! And a flight sim from the 1980s...
(http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s320/BellasOS-tans/DSC_0160-0.jpg)
1571 drive
Awesome sauce, Bells!
1571... now that was fast loader compared to tapes before. x) Wish I had a working drive like that still. ._.
I had an Oceanic drive which was rated at 30-40% faster than the 1571. :3
I just found something interesting... a big, old IBM AS/400 9406E.
Those monsters were built around 1990 and were then quite fast (35 MHz I think)
If everything goes smoothly this machine will be mine very soon :D
Oh wow, lucky! I'd love to bring home an old server or mini... but right now my budget/space/time only allows for micros. -.-
budget isn't the problem... the machine most probably won't go for much money.
I just have to think of a way to convince my dad to travel with me to Vienna and pick up the machine :D
When he comes home today it's gonna be like: "Hi dad, just shot a 80 kilo heavy AS/400..."
80 kilo's ain't much. At work, the heaviest pieces I work with are just short of that...
Needless to say, it's not very fun to work with those. -_-
Österreich!
Ah, the land of my great grandparents!
Such a beautiful country! I can't wait to visit in the summer!
Jawohl. Give us northerners some of those Alps, Would You Kindly?
NO, ours.
You can have France's mountains though! :D
COme here and get 'em :P
Tomorrow I'm gonna get my AS/400 *sing*
Kinda unexpected, but the guy I got it from includes a second, more modern machine (they're cleaning out their old computers and don't wanna scrap them) <3
I just hope that the tapes with the LIC are there, the passwords are known and the license of the OS is valid...else I'm gonna have two noisy room heaters (the OS is incredibly hard to come by and requrires to be reinstalled if no valid license is there, which you can only do if you've got the (MU)LIC tapes)
Pics will follow :D
This is becoming quite bloody interesting. -w- Please do provide~
U...U...Update!
The AS/400 guy just phoned and told me I'm gonna get a THIRD one O.O
The OS is installed but unfortunately the passwords are not known (there should be a way to reset them though) and also no tapes :(
That means this is gonna be BLOODY HELL... though there's a good German AS/400 forum so maybe I'm able to get all things needed.
In the evening, my dad's coming home with the machines then we'll see whether they work... that's gonna be something else than my trusty Unix computers
EDIT: and here they are :D (only two though, the third one didn't fit in the car xD)
(http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l531/randomguywholikescomputers/IMG_3506.jpg)
The big white one is a 9404, the smaller black one is a 9402-200 (more likely to get this one to run since there's a sheet with passwords :))
Those things use connectors I've never seen before o.o
As you see they're pretty dirty, haven't got the time to clean them properly.
Ok, I've given them names :D
The black one with the missing frontplate is Knuckles, the white one's called Holly... taking a break from my usual naming scheme there.
DId a quick boot test [quick is relative since those beasts take about 30 minutes to IPL (= initial program load, what booting is called by IBM)] and unfortunately both of the machines stop at an error code that is most probably related to not being able to IPL from tape (those things need tapes to boot, even if there's a system installed on the HDD).
The guys from the German forum are helping me though, and I'll most probably get the tapes in 2-3 weeks.
Now the only thing left to look for is a 5250-terminal for accessing the machines.
btw, they are not as loud as I supposed them to be, they have a "mighty" sound, sort of a deep rumbling and big fans blowing.
Quotethey have a "mighty" sound
That one's a keeper, mah boi. -w-
They look awesome, Paul! Hope you can get them working soon and please do keep us apprised of the progress - I find the details quite interesting.
Quote from: NejinOniwa on March 24, 2011, 03:11:59 PM
Quotethey have a "mighty" sound
That one's a keeper, mah boi. -w-
Yesh. :^D
Ok, terminals are on the way to me! As well as seven empty QIC-525 tapes that I'm gonna send to someone who loads OS/400 V3R3 on them ^^
Good to hear! 8D
They are here <3
(http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l531/randomguywholikescomputers/AS400/IMG_3548.jpg)
Machines + Terminals
(http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l531/randomguywholikescomputers/AS400/IMG_3552.jpg)
The IBM 3487 (those things beep!) displaying the DST (distributed service tools) menu, which complains about a missing disk (prolly one of them is dead :/) and refuses to boot the OS
(http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l531/randomguywholikescomputers/AS400/IMG_3553.jpg)
The 8-port twinax box... the display/terminal port of those AS/400
(http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l531/randomguywholikescomputers/AS400/IMG_3556.jpg)
The MASSIVE twinax cable
(http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l531/randomguywholikescomputers/AS400/IMG_3557.jpg)
same cable, side view
I managed to get some output on the screens... unfortunately the machines complain about missing disks (the black one has 9 installed!) and refuse to go any further than to the DST.
I knew I had one of these somewhere around here.
(http://i52.tinypic.com/24nmadv.jpg)
Woot!
Our used book store / computer repair shop had a Windows 95 install CD for sale; considered getting it, but I couldn't justify spending $10 on something I'd probably never use, and could just as well download from the internets. -w-
I have more copies of Windows 95 than I know what to do with; I have two RTM upgrade versions with their original boxes (One on CD, one on floppy. The floppy one is unusual for being labeled as a "promotional sample", but unfortunately, disc 1 is partially corrupt), along with OSR2 (My preferred version of 95) and OSR2.5 (The one with USB support). Also, there are my CD-R copies of two prototype builds (Chicago 58s and 189), which where obtained by...questionable methods.
At one obscure thrift store in town last year, I almost bought one variant I've never seen before (I believe it was OSR1 with Microsoft Plus bundled together on the same disc), but I passed it up because, to be honest, I'd likely never use it
Everyone talks about buying them secondhand; this is the first operating system I over owned. Bought new in 1996.
Windows 95 was my first PC OS, but I wasn't (still am not) enthusiastic about it, as it meant giving up Amiga. I think it was in May 1997 or something...
edit: Okay, I was enthusiastic about getting a new computer, but Windows itself I wasn't too keen on. I only learnt to live with Windows with Win98 some two years later. x)
The RTM upgrade CD is what originally came with my PC when it was bought (The on I call "The Yeti". For some reason, our tech guy insisted on giving us the upgrade version with a full version of 3.11, instead of just giving us a full version of 95). I remember being excited about getting it; after all, I loved the ads (The ones featuring Start Me Up) and was more than ready to move from Windows 3.1 on our old 486. It remained one of my favorite versions of Windows for years after; it was eventually surpassed by 2000 (Once I got over my initial, unjust hatred of it and actually used it)
Windows and I have had a bad relationship from the start.... the only two I ever used extensively were 98 (which sucked, quite a lot) and XP (which I mostly liked at the time). My favourite Windows versions are probably 1.0, 2.0, 3.1 and 98se.
I forgot to mention it before, but Paul, those terminal pictures are super cool! It's neat seeing how those things work "up close" like that - and gives a lot of perspective on just how complex those systems are.
Newsflash: They're holding a spring electronics recycling drive on campus. Bad news: it's being centrally monitored this time.
I've never had a problem with a Windows, from 3.1 to Vista. Nor have I ever had an issue with a Mac, from System 7 Apple DOS to OS 10.5
@Bells: complex they are... complex, heavy, dusty, ungrateful, tape-eating power hogs XD
Most of the problems I had with Windows came from poorly maintained PCs; that's where a lot of stability issues arise in my experience. When well cared for, even ME is surprisingly stable
There's a guy in town who wants to trade his two TRS-80 systems for some Commodorestuff; I'm offering a part trade/part cash deal involving a VIC-20, beat-to-hell C-128 and an unspecified amount of money. : |
UPDATE~
TRS-80 Dude says he's interested in doing that deal. So here's the question: how much are a pair of working TRS-80s worth, anyway? Is it even possible to pin down a value, since the value of a computer is often determined by the person buying it? One's a Model III, the other's a Model 4p; I was going to start by offering $75 and a VIC-20 and work up from there.
I have not a single idea, really. >_>
It all comes down to a level of how much you consider your VIC's to be valued versus your personal reserves, etc.
I paid fifty for my Model I, which is in excellent condition with all sorts of other stuff and that was a steal. It was probably worth about double that. For two late models, and with a VIC in the equation I'd say $75 is a good starting point.
Time for another installment of Adventures in Small-Game Computer Hunting!
Today I gathered up my second VIC-20 (the newer, and better-conditioned one, "Victor") and working, but in-need-of-repairs C=128 ("Sweet Pea" - since TRS-80 dude was very interested in it, broken parts and missing pieces be damned), loaded them in the car, and set off with my dad across town to meet aforementioned TRS-80 Dude. (I could ask a friend or my brother to go with me, but dad seems to especially enjoy going on these trips to meet old computer collectors; he has a fascination with "those weirdoes" and enjoys marveling at their accumulations of old tech, sort of like a technological Muggle looking in on a world that he can never fully understand.)
I was surprised to discover that TRS-80 Dude was a kid - and a rather shaggy, snowboarder/skater-ly looking kid at that - who's just about my age. (I'm always expecting these people to be crotchety old coots, and they always end up being much younger - and agreeable - than I imagine.) Out in the parking lot he looked the Commodores over, gave them a thumbs up, and invited us into his family's apartment.
His mom and dad did not seem pleased that more retrocomputers were coming home.
He led us up a flight of narrow stairs to his computer room/bedroom - it looked approximately like this:
(http://per.hedbor.org/lain/snaps/navi_1-4/lain_2_090.jpg)
...but with less loli. And virtually no free floorspace. There was a giant stack of Mac and Apple ][ stuff, another Apple ][ setup on a desk along with a Color Classic, a 1984 128k Mac that he found in a box in the basement at the town library (its floppy drive is dead, sadly), and a closet full of more Applestuff (and some clothes). And a stack of Ataris, a collection of vintage PDAs (including a working Apple Newton!) and old monitors/tv sets. There was a bed, on the ground, somewhere in all this, and stacks and stacks of milk crates that he uses as shelving (I'm going to remember that trick. Stolen milk crates = free shelving.)
So he had to literally dig the TRS-80s out of a stack of Macs; my dad saw the Model 4P and exclaimed "Oooh! It looks like your Osborne 1!" and then he pulled the Model III out of behind a stack of Ataris and dad exclaimed "Oooh! An all-in-one!" and when the 5mb external HDD that's the size of a suitcase showed up, dad reacted with similar wondrous glee. He then directed me to the collection of software and manuals, which took up several layers in his milk-crate shelving-unit, while he set up the computers.
They run, BUT - and it's a rather big caveat - their floppy drives are not in good condition. They need to be cleaned, which is gonna be tough, since it's not like there are tons of 5'' floppy drive cleaning systems floating around out there. Then came the bartering; I wasn't sure what I wanted to offer, considering the issues they had; he didn't have any ideas ether.
He said: "You know, I'm going to have to buy drives for them and fix up the C-128."
I said: "I'm going to have to clean/fix/buy replacement drives for them, too."
And we stared awkwardly at each other for a bit; all the while dad ogling the really huge external hard drive.
"How's $25 sound?"
"Deal!"
Then there was the task of getting everything down the stairs and to the car... his parents seemed glad to see some retrocomputers leaving the house.
So, yeah. He's going to send me any info on parts he can find; I'm going to send him some links to various VIC-20 and C-128 manuals. He says if he comes across any Apple ][ systems he'll let me know (since he has enough of them) and I invited him to check out the basement computer museum when it's set up.
@bella:
Lol, I've used the old milk crate trick with my dad's old stereo before! Milk crates are almost indestructible, put some wood planks in between and you got yourself a shelf! $25 is a steal in my opinion, good job!
I'm currently working on doing some long overdue upgrades to the oldest member of my fleet; The Yeti. Well, Minefield is much older hardware wise, but I've had the Yeti since 1996, so I consider it the oldest.
Once I'm done with this side project, I'll take it from the state it's been in hardware wise since roughly 1997 (75Mhz Pentium, 40MB RAM) and bring it to the same level as my old laptop, but with a lot more RAM (200Mhz Pentium MMX, 128MB RAM). At the moment, I'm just waiting on the OverDrive processor to arrive...
Today is the one year anniversary of the beginning of my vintage computer collecting hobby! Exactly one year ago, THIS was considered an exotic find:
Quote from: Bella on May 03, 2010, 09:33:43 PM(http://fc00.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2010/123/d/2/Stack_o_computers_by_BellaCielo.jpg)
The future Lakes Region Museum of Computing History's first artifacts. xD
...NOW, I consider those more or less "modern" and completely uninteresting. (They're from 1994, 98 and 99.) Amazing how in a year I was able to move from the late 1990s, to the early 90s, then to the late 80s, and now, my oldest machines are circa early 80s. I'm still trying to break the 1979 barrier, but at some point I'm not gonna be able to go back any farther. (I'm guessing 1976-77 is gonna be the limit, since before then there weren't any microcomputers, and minis and mainframes from before then are RARE AND EXPENSIVE AND TOO BIG TO FIT IN A SEDAN.)
I will have you assassinated before you break my age record.
Well, the project to upgrade the Yeti didn't go quite as planned; while the OverDrive processor worked, it somehow caused the USB ports I added a few years back to become nonfunctional until I put the original processor back in (Doing anything with USB with that processor in it, like plugging in a mouse, resulted in an inescapable BSOD unlike anything I've seen in 15+ years using Windows). The person I bought it from has shipped out a replacement (A normal 200Mhz Pentium with some kind of adapter to allow the Yeti's motherboard to support a processor faster than 100Mhz), so hopefully it'll work this time.
not exactly retro, but I'm currently messing around with the AIX 4.3.3 box (loading SSH and other fun stuff on it, I plan to use it as a login server)
The AS/400s are currently sitting in a corner unless I get a cheap tape drive that DOESN'T munch tapes :/
i just found out that the oldest computer part i have is this mouse from 1987, meaning it's as old as my sister. :3
i feel accomplished. ^^
I now own a trackball-mouse from 1990, found it at an antique store for $5. It's new in the box (unopened), with all the original manuals and install floppies. It's a Logitech and "Built for IBM PC, AT, XT and compatible computers." d:
I asked the shop keeper if he had any other other old tech items - he said he had an old printer out back, "and some vacuum tubes too."
Me: "VACUUUUUUUM TUUUUUUUBES!"
He directed me to a basket of old lightbulbs, wherein I found a clutch of several vacuum tubes - I picked two of the best-looking, a matching pair, and he let me buy them for $5.
Dad: "What are YOU going to do with vacuum tubes?!"
Me: "CONVERSATION PIECE!"
Dad: "...You could make earrings out of them."
Me: *thinks of Whirlwind-tan*
*wonders where dad got the idea of vacuum-tube jewelry*
*slow head tilt*
It's not a really a retrocomputer-based find, but it's still an interesting piece of technological history. ^^
Quote from: Bells*wonders where dad got the idea of vacuum-tube jewelry*
He lurks.
my mouse beats your mouse! >:3
but i can't beat the awesome vacuum tubes.... ;^;
if you make vacuum tube earrings you have to make me a set. >w<;
Quote from: NejinOniwa on May 31, 2011, 06:49:01 PM
He lurks.
I've considered this before, it seems unlikely considering his aversion to computers.
Quote from: Chocofreak13 on May 31, 2011, 07:51:53 PMif you make vacuum tube earrings you have to make me a set. >w<;
Errr... they're mammoth beasts actually, about four inches long and maybe and inch and a half in diameter. There will be no jewelering these... which actually makes his comments all the weirder... owo;;
A few weeks back, I almost called up a guy on craigslist about a Apple II he was selling. The only reason I didn't was because he didn't have any software for it, combined with the fact I don't have anywhere to have it setup
I may not know anything about the Apple II aside from it being made before the Macintosh, but it'd be cool to use one at least once.
dude, that sounds awesome. apple ][ forever. xD
@bella: i've seen earrings bigger than bracelets. xD
i wonder how i got into this thread.....likely by accident. :\
There's a fairly good chance of me getting a DEC Alphaserver AS1000 cheap in the next few days. :D
Let's play with the shark...
Quote from: Paul on June 18, 2011, 10:22:30 AM
There's a fairly good chance of me getting a DEC Alphaserver AS1000 cheap in the next few days. :D
Let's play with the shark...
That is so awesome. I'm assuming it runs VMS? It's an interesting system to work with, I've played around with it telnet before.
Fangirl mode detected. =w=
i know this isnt that old but...
motherfucking bitches, what does a turbo button do? i am going to buy a 3.1 gaming computer for 150.00, and i always been curious....is it a form of overclocking?
Nah, pressing it acutally SLOWS DOWN the CPU so it can be more compatible with older games and programs.
Quote from: AlexisDesu on June 18, 2011, 01:25:22 PM
what does a turbo button do? i am going to buy a 3.1 gaming computer for 150.00, and i always been curious....is it a form of overclocking?
I've always wondered the same thing - my 3.11 machine had a turbo button as well and I've never known the purpose.
EDIT:
Quote from: Red-Machine on June 18, 2011, 01:33:22 PM
Nah, pressing it acutally SLOWS DOWN the CPU so it can be more compatible with older games and programs.
Ah sou. Mystery, solved... -w-;
But..... how does THAT make it a "turbo" button? >>;
Well, 4.77MHz is "normal" mode and full speed is "turbo" mode.
@Bells: Yep, it does indeed run VMS (which is the only reason for me to buy it, because spec-wise it's kinda lame)
Also played around with it on deathrow, definitely interesting, but not necessarily user-friendly (but OS/400 ain't user-friendly either and I still like it ^^^)
So a guy here at the park cracked a C64 joke while I was in exhibit the other day; it was surprising. That is all I have to say on the retrocomputer front at the moment. Goodnight.
OK, the AS1000 is mine. Gonna pick it up on friday if everything works out fine... this one was literally a gift (1€) :D
Maybe I'll get two additional AS1000 plus a HSZ80 raid array (same seller) if the price is ok. Then one machine would run VMS, the second one Tru64 and the third one Linux *geek*
@Stew: What was the joke? :o
The closest I've had to a retrocomputer experience in recent memory is having that Old Timer New Hampshirite direct me to the vacuum tubes when I said I liked old tech/collected old computers/parts. >w>
@Paul: That is too awesome, let us know how everything goes/provide pics. ^.^
I found a couple of PDP-8s selling in Boston a few weeks ago on Craigslist, it's nice to know old DEC hardware is still kicking around. -w-
Happened to find someone selling a IBM Model M keyboard on craigslist which I'm considering because its THE GREATEST KEYBOARD EVER TO BE MADE
My AS/400 Terminals use a model m
And my DasKeyboard is based on it (clicky Cherry switches)
My Dell keyboard is a clone of the Model M. With Windows keys.
Hmm, just had a look at some pictures of the AS1000A and I gotta say... DEC sure knew how to make FUGLY computers (the PDP and VAXen looked cool, but the Alpha stuff not really)
And there's an IBM BladeCenter lurking around that apparently no one wants (still going for 4 days), but since it's pickup only I doubt the price will get high. Thing has 8 blades already installed *.*
Maybe, just maybe...
I think that really old keyboard I have is based on the Model M; it's shaped like most Model Ms I see pictures of, and it has the clicky keys. However, I'm not too sure...
The AS1000 is here :D
Guy who sold her actually is a huge Alpha-fan and was also one of the people who ported Linux to Alpha :3
Anyway, thing is heavy, white and really quiet for a server. Has 768mb ram and a 333 MHz CPU. Currently there's Linux on it, but I'm gonna feed it OpenVMS as soon as I get it.
Name's gonna be either Decathlon or Alfie, can't decide yet.
Pics will also follow!
EDIT!: Just ordered the OpenVMS Alpha hobbyist kit :3
Quote from: Paul on June 24, 2011, 11:37:59 AM
The AS1000 is here :D
Guy who sold her actually is a huge Alpha-fan and was also one of the people who ported Linux to Alpha :3
Anyway, thing is heavy, white and really quiet for a server. Has 768mb ram and a 333 MHz CPU. Currently there's Linux on it, but I'm gonna feed it OpenVMS as soon as I get it.
Name's gonna be either Decathlon or Alfie, can't decide yet.
Pics will also follow!
EDIT!: Just ordered the OpenVMS Alpha hobbyist kit :3
Awesome, dude! (Though Linux on Alpha... grrrrr.... I object to Unix-likes on anything DECish. It's just unnatural, yanno?) 'w'
I would go with DECathalon, if only 'cause it sounds cooler. 8)
And please keep us up-to-date on how the obtaining/installing OpenVMS process goes! I've always been rather curious about the details....
Obtaining OpenVMS is quite simple.
First you'll have to register at a VMS chapter (sort of a hobbyist group). DECUServe is the most unproblematic since it's free and registration takes about 5 mins.
Then you'll have to somehow get the media... if you are in DECUServe, simply go to openvmshobbyist.com and order a media kit - costs 30$.
Finally licenses are necessary. That's why you'll have to register at DECUServe - you can have yourself a license made on openvmshobbyist.com if you enter your DECUServe ID + CPU serial no.
For installing... we'll see (the kit isn't there yet) :P
And Linux on DEC - if it helps the machines survive, why not?
Ah-ha, that does sound surprisingly simple. I've always wondered, since I once heard (from another acquaintance who does large-scale system computing as a hobby) how difficult it can be to obtain a hobby license for an otherwise commercial system. Of course, in this case the person in question was trying to get a hold of a some sort of IBM mainframe OS, which means going through a dozen layers of corporate bureaucracy... the last I heard, he gave up when he couldn't even find a customer service rep to talk to.
Long story short: I'm glad HP is more reasonable when it comes to licensing VMS, and that they actually make it somewhat easy for non-commercial users to obtain. VMS has been called a dying system before, but as long as it's fulfilling its niche - however small - among commercial users, is available to hobbyists, and public-access systems exist, I don't see how it can die.
Hmm... it isn't exactly HP that is so nice towards hobbyists (they wanted to shut down the hobbyist project several times), but rather the VMS developers, who I heard are quite mighty in the corporate structure.
Here we go!
(http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l531/randomguywholikescomputers/IMG_3851.jpg)
that white/black box is a Storageworks BA362 SCSI enclosure with 2 disks in it
(http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l531/randomguywholikescomputers/IMG_3852.jpg)
(http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l531/randomguywholikescomputers/IMG_3853.jpg)
first power up!
Oh shit, I had no idea HP nearly pulled the plug on the VMS hobbyist program. I think that would have been disastrous for its future, it's usually the hobbyists who are the last to give up on an OS or computer system. (Since they have emotional / sentimental / recreational investment in it, as opposed to corporate users, who think in terms of the bottom line when it comes to keeping or abandoning a system.) If companies were the only ones who could legally use VMS, the public access sites would go away, and private users who want to install it on their own machines and emulators wouldn't be able to... ugh, I don't even like thinking about it, the ways corporations try to undermine their own products is sickening. (Especially when it's something as unique and well-designed as VMS).
But anyway.... nice pics! I'm not very familiar with Alphas (PDPs and VAXen have been the focus of my DEC research), so i was expecting to see a much larger computer. I'm also quite surprised that it has a floppy and CDR drive.
Retrocomputing related -
I'm using an IBM Model M keyboard hardwired with a PS2 cable instead of its original (wtf is it?) serial interface... Feels lovely
It's an experiment to see which microswitches I should get with Das Keyboard (http://www.daskeyboard.com)... Decided against a Steelseries 6gv2, since it's slightly smaller than I'm used to
@Paul That's hot
@svx: I'd take the Cherry Blues that come with the keyboard if you can stand the noise (quiet, it really isn't :D)
@Paul Man, after this using this Model M... I can't stand the racket!
I go to write some code, and I can't think at all :p
It's tough to listen to people spawning/getting items in Quakeworld, too... Throws my timing all off...
I think I might need to go with the silent one! But is Das Keyboard the best? It looks cool, but I hear that it's a glossy black that keeps fingerprints easily like the phat Playstation 3's
RESEARCH TIME ENGAGE!
@svx: It's great! Sure it gets fingerprints easily but that isn't a major problem for me. The best... it's the only kb that uses those clicky Cherries AFAIK.
Finally OpenVMS shipped. I installed it (pretty straightforward procedure, except the fact that it somehow abbreviated the hostname to 4 letters) and then tried to get into the whole VMS thingy. Let me tell you one thing. VMS is definitely not like any other OS out there (though it shares CDE with Unices). Directory format is slightly obscure (for instance the system manager's home is in SYS$SYSROOT[SYSMGR] and subdirectories are after a comma then.
Commands are ...different. To change a directory there's no cd. Rather the command is called SET DEFAULT (VMS doesn't know lowercase btw).
And VMS is a license whore. It needs a license for everything. The hobbyist program provides those licenses but you have to renew them every year. And when there's 104 licenses, you have to enter them by hand, and the command looks like the text that comes after this sentence this takes a loooooong time.
$ LICENSE REGISTER ACMS -
/ISSUER=OPENVMS_HOBBYIST -
/AUTHORIZATION=DECUS-DEC-xxxxxx-xxxxxxxx -
/PRODUCER=DEC -
/UNITS=0 -
/TERMINATION_DATE=29-AUG-2012 -
/ACTIVITY=CONSTANT=100 -
/CHECKSUM-x-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx
(blanked out personal data since I'm not allowed to share the functional licenses)
I also figured out how to mount the VMS CD with the layered products... but WHERE is this thing mounted?!? I couldn't even find that out. Frankly, I feel like a total noob right now :D
Here's a link to a brief, but pretty good beginners' guide to working with VMS (http://www.snee.com/bob/opsys.html). Though it's aimed at remote terminal users and absolute noobs so I don't know if anything within it will be of any use to you.
Thanks for the link! I'll take all the guides I can get my hands on :D
i don't really do much retrocomputing (unless 98SE counts as retro now), but since i play alot of vintage computer games, i thought you guys might find this interesting:
http://ski.ihoc.net/
i've always thought skifree was a pretty cool game (despite the damn snow monster), and the creator (on his site here) released an updated version that's compatible with 32 or 64-bit systems. ^^
YAY SKIFREE!
it's so awesome, isn't it? there's even a tshirt for sale with the snow monster on it xD
Ski was originally a game for VAX/VMS .... I wish the VMS machines I've used had that installed on them, it looks fun. ;_;
i read the page, and i don't think it was really released to the public. maybe it was leaked to the net, but the main public version of ki was skifree. :\
it seems he left the fortrand code behind though, so if you have any coding knowledge maybe you can make it work.
and if all else fails, there's a "contact me" button on the page, so you could ask for it from the guy. :3
(http://dooki.com/supercomputers/intel/intel.paragon.gif)
I own a tiny piece of one of these now.
So, guess what I found out in my dad's truck, when I went out there to load up my lawnmower and Asagi?
There was a Trash-80!
Yep; my dad found an abandoned TRS-80 Color Computer II somewhere in the hospital's storage rooms, so he brought it to me. I plan on testing it out once I get back home :3
Nice find. : o
Yep. Just tested it, and it is working ^_^
Now, to eventually track down a floppy drive and other cool stuff for it :3
Um, Bella...I think there's a possibility of you taking a detour on your way home from visiting Stew in order to break into my house in the middle of the night and steal what my dad just brought home for me; which was buried in an old storage building owned by the hospital:
A copy of SCO Unix System V/386, circa '90.
In case that needs further emphasis:
I have Unix >:3
It looks like everything is there, but I'm not 100% sure; since I've never seen Unix install disks in person. If you're interested, I could sell it to you :3
Hey, it's XENIX's descendant!
Started playing a truly ancient game today: the mother of all adventure games, namely Colossal Cave Adventure. The Fortran source I used is from 1977! :D Though it's actually running on pretty modern hardware, the PP250 with Solaris munches it with great delight. Also trying to get it to run on Farron but the HP Fortran compiler is picky!
Still I think it's pretty cool that a game written 35 years ago can still be made to run on today's OSes thanks to the sources :D
Ooooh, Colossal Cave Adventure! : o
Colossal Cave Adventure: 35 years of better dialogues and interface than in Skyrim.
edit: Forgot the interface.
true that xD
However I can't get that game to save properly -.-
I've always wanted to play it :3
Quote from: PentiumMMX on July 23, 2012, 08:57:42 AM
I've always wanted to play it :3
http://archive.org/details/200106-tops10-in-a-box
>Download PDP-10/TOPS-10 premade system
>Run
>Launch Adventure
>????
>
PROFIT ADVENTURE!
Thanks ^_^
Also, useless knowledge: The PDP-10 is as old as my dad xD
Do you mean this in a general way (the same way i can say my father is from the era of Harvard Mk I &ENIAC), or do you literally mean he was born in 1966?
The latter :3
I see...
Was your dad also a central figure in Hackerdom perchance?
Not really; he's more of a gearhead than a hacker ^_^;;
Well, we've certainly found where the similarities between him and the PDP-10 end, haven't we?
True that ^_^;
So, here are some pics of the copy of SCO Unix I obtained. I'm not 100% sure if it's all here, but here's pics of everything there is, including some views of the sides of the main crate:
(http://i180.photobucket.com/albums/x283/The_Real_PentiumMMX/Timey%20wimey%20stuff/100_6359.jpg)
(http://i180.photobucket.com/albums/x283/The_Real_PentiumMMX/Timey%20wimey%20stuff/100_6360.jpg)
(http://i180.photobucket.com/albums/x283/The_Real_PentiumMMX/Timey%20wimey%20stuff/100_6362.jpg)
(http://i180.photobucket.com/albums/x283/The_Real_PentiumMMX/Timey%20wimey%20stuff/100_6363.jpg)
(http://i180.photobucket.com/albums/x283/The_Real_PentiumMMX/Timey%20wimey%20stuff/100_6364.jpg)
(http://i180.photobucket.com/albums/x283/The_Real_PentiumMMX/Timey%20wimey%20stuff/100_6365.jpg)
(http://i180.photobucket.com/albums/x283/The_Real_PentiumMMX/Timey%20wimey%20stuff/100_6367.jpg)
(http://i180.photobucket.com/albums/x283/The_Real_PentiumMMX/Timey%20wimey%20stuff/100_6368.jpg)
That looks pretty awesome .... tho SCO-tan may sue you for posting images of her without asking her permission first....
(http://i.imgur.com/y21bQ.jpg)