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Re: Experience using an Altair 8800 ("Personal computer" from 70s)

by brianb1224

If I had his digital basement I would never come out.

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Richmond Retro Computer Meetup - Sat. Jun. 15, 2024 - Richmond, VA

by Jeffrey Brace

Richmond Retro Computer Meetup Sat. Jun. 15, 2024 at the Richmond Public Library in Richmond, VA https://www.meetup.com/richmond-retro-computers/events/301122005/?utm_mediu…

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Re: Experience using an Altair 8800 ("Personal computer" from 70s)

by John

On Mon, 03 Jun 2024 12:00:08 -0500 cctalk-request(a)classiccmp.org wrote: > > It's like John Conway's "game of life," but more prone to cause > > uncontrollable fits of laughter. > > You owe me a new keyboard (and another glass of milk). Even in death, his power remains ;)

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TinyTapeOut and the Z80

by Martin Bishop

https://www.eenewseurope.com/en/tiny-tapeout-7-readies-open-source-z80-desi… May be of interest both in the context of the Z80 and other unobtanium silicon The lead time is long, ~6 months Martin

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Re: Experience using an Altair 8800 ("Personal computer" from 70s)

by John Ames

From: CAREY SCHUG <sqrfolkdnc(a)comcast.net> > I used 1620s, and 360/30s, a 360/40, and others as a personal > computer at times, for things like writing a Tim Conway game of life, > keeping track of my vinyl records, etc. It's like John Conway's "game of life," but more prone to cause uncontrollable fits of laughter.

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Re: C. Gordon Bell, Creator of a Personal Computer Prototype, Dies at 89

by Mark Matlock

In addition to the Goodyear STARAN computer, another tire company Firestone did built some interesting one off systems of unusual design. My first job out of college was with Firestone Central Research. While there, I became friends with William Clayton who was one of three of their research fellows. He was a big proponent of APL and there I was exposed to the MCM/700 (see https://www.softwarepreservation.org/projects/apl/Brochures/MCM700Brochure ) and the IBM 5100 desktop APL computer as well as APL via IBM 360 timeshare. We used APL to simulate the heat flow and rubber curing in very large earth mover tires with finite-element techniques coupled with chemical kinetics. However, Bill Clayton most interesting work was around optimizing formulations from designed experiment data. He built an analog computer that used static card readers that provided contacts to feedback resistors to simultaneous compute the output of 16 second order polynomial equations with cross terms for 8 independent variables. Each of these 16 polynomials had 54 static coefficients that were determined from second order statistical regressions of data from designed experiments. One equation for example might be tensile strength of a rubber compounded with various amounts of sulfur, carbon black, oil, accelerators, etc. Then another equation might represent wear resistance measured from the same combination of compounding ingredients. The 16 equations had upper and lower limits of acceptable values for tensile strength, wear, etc. The analog computer would then begin an exhaustive grid search of the 8 independent variables to find a combination of the 8 ingredients that met all 16 of the desired output traits. When a solution was found the independent variable value voltages were read by an A/D controlled by a PDP-8 and then printed on a console. Thus the system was actually a hybrid computer part analog and part digital. I was told that doing the 8 factor grid search in Fortran on an IBM 360/168 would have taken 1300 hours but this hybrid system did it in 5 minutes, Only three of these systems were ever built, two of which were used outside of Firestone (one by the Air Force). U.S. Patent 3,560,725 from 1968 provides some background as it covered an early version of the later more highly developed system. Mark > From: Paul Koning <paulkoning(a)comcast.net> > Subject: [cctalk] Re: C. Gordon Bell, Creator of a Personal Computer Prototype, Dies at 89 > Date: May 23, 2024 at 6:58:06 PM CDT > To: "cctalk(a)classiccmp.org" <cctalk(a)classiccmp.org> > Cc: Kevin Anderson <kevin_anderson_dbq(a)yahoo.com> > Reply-To: "General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts" <cctalk(a)classiccmp.org> > > > I have a vague memory of visiting the Computer Museum when it was still at DEC, in the Marlboro building (MRO-n). About the only item I recall is a Goodyear STARAN computer (or piece of one). I found it rather surprising to have see a computer made by a tire company. I learned years later that the STARAN is a very unusual architecture, sometimes called a one-bit machine. More precisely, I think it's a derivative of William Shooman's "Orthogonal Computer" vector computer architecture, which was for a while sold by Sanders Associates where he worked. > > paul

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Re: interlace [was: NTSC TV demodulator ]

by CAREY SCHUG

This may have been covered before, VERY early in this tread. I think I tried a game on a flatscreen, and had issues. I don't know if it applies to the radio shack Color Computer, the interest of the original poster. many games and entry pcs with old style tv analog format, don't interlace, and tube TVs nearly all (except maybe a few late model high end ones?) are fine with that, but I seem to recall that most or all digital/flat screen can't deal with non-interlace. <pre>--Carey</pre>

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Punchcards

by lukaskron＠posteo.de

Hello! This is my first message to this mailing list but I think this question is well suited for here. My name is Lukas and I am currently living in Germany and I am searching for punch cards preferable with logos/universities around the world. If someone still has some of such cards laying around I would love a message of your offer (off-list). Highly appreciated as I am collecting them. Kindly Lukas

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Video/keyboard mono cable for Sun 386i

by Stefano Sanna

Hi. I recently bought a Sun Microsystems 386i and I discovered (too late...) that monitor and keyboard are connected to the same D15 connector on the back using a "Y" cable (I had experience with other Sun workstations, this was first contact with Intel-based hardware). Unfortunately, I have not such a cable neither I was able to find any info on the web about the pinout/wiring; probably it would be possible to create the cable from scratch (assuming that no other circuitry was inside the original Y cable). Moreover, I discovered that there is more than one option for video boards (mono and color): therefore, there is more than a single Y cable to connect monitor and keyboard. Looking at the official Sun's hardware list, I found this item: 630-1621 386i video/keyboard cable but it does not specify whether it is the mono or the color cable. In any case, it seems impossible to buy it on eBay or similar. Does anybody have some information on how to rebuild it? Thank you. -s

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Re: Video/keyboard mono cable for Sun 386i

by Stefano Sanna

[sending message again, with attachment replaced by a link: https://www.mmcc.it/resources/misc/IMG_7975_video.JPG ] Thank you Richard! To use this cable, I need to replace my video card with a color one. Please, see attached picture of the connector I have on my 386i. I suppose that finding the video card is harder then the cable itself! :-) However, this cable could be a good start for trying to do some reverse engineering of the pinouts. Since the code I found is different, I supposed that we can assume 630-1621 is the code of monochrome screen/cable. BR. -s On 30/05/24 11:47, Richard wrote: > Oh and there is this > > > > s-l400.jpg > SUN Microsystems 530-1366-01 Monitor + Keyboard Cable 13W3 Mini Din8 > /A4 8 Pin > <https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/295331844851?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=705-154756-…> > ebay.com.au > <https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/295331844851?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=705-154756-…> > > <https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/295331844851?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=705-154756-…> > Which looks right > Sent from my iPhone > >> On 30 May 2024, at 19:07, Stefano Sanna via cctalk >> <cctalk(a)classiccmp.org> wrote: >> >> Hi. >> >> I recently bought a Sun Microsystems 386i and I discovered (too >> late...) that monitor and keyboard are connected to the same D15 >> connector on the back using a "Y" cable (I had experience with other >> Sun workstations, this was first contact with Intel-based hardware). >> >> Unfortunately, I have not such a cable neither I was able to find any >> info on the web about the pinout/wiring; probably it would be >> possible to create the cable from scratch (assuming that no other >> circuitry was inside the original Y cable). Moreover, I discovered >> that there is more than one option for video boards (mono and color): >> therefore, there is more than a single Y cable to connect monitor and >> keyboard. >> >> Looking at the official Sun's hardware list, I found this item: >> >> 630-1621 386i video/keyboard cable >> >> but it does not specify whether it is the mono or the color cable. In >> any case, it seems impossible to buy it on eBay or similar. >> >> Does anybody have some information on how to rebuild it? >> >> Thank you. >> -s

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