I am currently in the process of replacing my Amiga 2000's battery... On the
one I was finally able to remove there *seems* to be some damage to the
circuit board that was underneath and nearing the 68000. Instead of the
circuits being a nice green colour, it is now black. Is there any way to
tell if this is only a colour change? Also, it looks like some of the
copper has been eaten away around where the negative part of the battery
was soldered to the motherboard.
I have cleaned all of the white crap off with vinegar and a toothbrush. I
then used "Precision Electronics Cleaner" from RS which is _supposed_ to
leave no residue.
Also, how are the solder tabs affixed to the battery? The replacement
batteries I got don't have any.
Cheers,
Bryan Pope
I know some of you on this list work for various museums, or have
extensive enough collections that a proper asset management system might
be needed :-)
I've been working on one for the museum here for a while, with the goal
of making it easy to add information (so that museum staff aren't
tempted to not bother!) and easy to search / browse in a useful way.
(Heck knows we need a proper centralised 'list'!)
I've pretty much figured out what data's useful to capture, and how a UI
might work from the point of view of different user roles (maintenance /
administration / browsing etc.)
What I'm puzzling over is how to record any relationship between
hardware / software / documentation, or even to what extent any
relationship needs to be recorded. Thoughts on this would be most
appreciated, and I wonder what other museums do...
As an example, say we're given a Sinclair machine with some tape
software and some manuals. Obviously the machine needs an asset sticker
plonked on it and its details stuck in the register. The docs and
software also need recording in a DB somewhere such that we know what
software we have, and that we have x copies of such-and-such a doc (we'd
like to have a public-access library on site, and even lend docs out to
trusted people when possible)
Question is, do we link the docs and software to that particular
machine, or is it better to just put those in essentially isolated
databases and recording that they're for such-and-such a model of
machine?
And what's best for the odds and ends - power supplies, leads, packaging
etc.? Do they warrant recording / tagging somehow? And as for what to
do with donations of bits I don't know (e.g. when someone gives us a
stack of random DEC boards)
It gets to be a little more complex than a traditional museum where
there's a collection of distinct items - in this case there's a big
collection of stuff with a lot of interchangability (if that's a word)
between components, and so managing it all is something of a total
nightmare!
Maybe the idea of knowing exactly what we have at any one time is
impossible - but that's a shame if we've got some redundant bit of
hardware lurking in storage which we could donate to someone else who
desperately needed it to restore a system.
Ideas and comments would be *very* much appreciated!
cheers
Jules
On Mon, 2004-11-08 at 19:29 +0000, Alex White wrote:
>
> On Mon, 8 Nov 2004, Jules Richardson wrote:
>
> > On Mon, 2004-11-08 at 16:47 +0000, Alex White wrote:
> > > Want me to diagram it in UML?
> >
> > UML diag could be useful just to capture your thoughts, if it's a quick
> > job for you.
>
> http://www.microvax.org/~melt/computers/computerMuseum.png
grabbed a local copy - thanks :) Will take a proper look in a mo...
> I used qSEE Superlite if you want to grab the .qsee file from that
> directory. Free (0 quid) for noncommercial use, will generate ugly XML and
> Java from UML.
rats - no Windows around here :-)
> > I can't mail you privately by the way - NTL's bouncing the message with
> > a 'microvax.org not found' error, although it resolves via ping OK.
> > Dodgy MX record somewhere?
>
> Strange. I'm logged into mail.microvax.org right now in Pine and
> everything else is coming through fine. Maybe it's because i'm on an NTL
> residential line myself (yes, i'm breaking one of my own cardinal rules
> about hosting an email server on a residential line but it's for my own
> use only, and I can't afford any better right now). Strange stuff, though.
> Have poked my unreliable nameservice provider.
Hmm, I run my mail using the same setup; I send outgoing mail via a
local running sendmail and then to NTL's mailserver(s) though - the NTL
server's a smart relay host in my local sendmail config.
*very* occasionally I'll find I can't mail someone because their ISP
detects that the mail originated from a machine within a dynamic address
range, but by very occasionally I mean once every 6 months or so. And
that's me sending out from here anyway, not receiving.
I've never seen this problem before though; I rather suspect it was just
NTL's systems having a total spaz. If I remember (or prod me!) I'll see
you a test msg tomorrow and see if that goes through...
FWIW, yahoo's junk filter is flagging your messages as spam, so it
thinks something is up too (unfortunately it isn't useful enough to tell
me *why* it thinks it's spam)
cheers
Jules
Zsibvasar / GARAGE SALE !!!
I'm from Hungary, you can contact me at <hoild(a)amiga.hu> or via the
mailing list.
Shipping to abroad is manageable, however, as I'm in central europe,
shipping to asia or the US can get somewhat difficult.
The following items are for sale (or perhaps exchange, if you got
something I might want):
CISCO console cables, RJ-45 to RJ-45, RJ-45 to Dsub9, even a few adapters,
bleeh...
DEC Alpha soundport , part no.: #5424572 (has audio I/O jacks, TDA1517
amp, and slot for Hw wavetable module).
DEC Alpha Eth 10/100 module, part no.: #5424560 (has DP83840 and DP83223
xceiver, and UTP jack).
IBM frame buffer cable, part no.: "58F2903".
2 pcs. of B.A.T.M. BNC/m to RJ45/fm coax baluns, , part no.: "BMC-9303".
2 pcs. of AMPHENOL BNC/m to RJ45/fm balun, part no.: "555058-1".
SINIX keyboard adapter cable, part no.: "T26139-Y2370-V701 GSO2 GTL".
SUN serial cable, part no.: "530-1662-01 REV-52 0843-9113".
SUN serial cable, part no.: "530-1662-01 REV.50 0843-9024".
SCSI stuff
Sort of anything SCSI -- the list goes:
68pin UW SCSI mobile rack, brand new condition, still in packaging, by ViPower.
4 pcs. of LVD-capable 68 pin to SCA adapters (BEWARE - salvaged from IBM
RS6000 hot-swap racks, might or might not be standard wide2SCA, seems to
be std. enough, though).
2 pcs. of IBM RS6000 hot-swap Wide SCSI racks, 3 HDD/rack, part no.:
"61G3842", plus a weird wide SCSI to ??? twisted-pair cable and a power
distributor cable. Might be HVD equipment?
Wide to SCA adapter "XPL-065B v1.1", brand new, seems to be SE-only.
Wide and narrow to SCA adapter "XPL-065-C v1.0", brand new, seems to be SE-only.
Internal to external narrow SCSI port w./ Dsub25F ext. connector.
Internal to external narrow Fast narrow SCSI port w./ HDsub50M ext. connector.
Internal to external SE wide SCSI port with 30 cm long cable.
Wide SCSI to "Centronics" adapter with active negation, brand new.
External narrow SCSI HDsub50m to ??? (looks like a half-size Centronics,
definitely not the sub-mini "SUN" connector), brand new.
External narrow SCSI cable HDsub50M to Centronics M.
External narrow SCSI cable Centronics M to Centronics M.
External narrow SCSI cable Dsub25M to Centronics M.
2 pcs. of External narrow SCSI cable Dsub25M to Dsub25M, brand new, IOMEGA
brand, from ZIP drives.
160cm long narrow SCSI 'RAID' cable, 8 heads + active terminator.
Apple stuff
ADB expander, miniDIN4M to miniDIN4M, 120cm long spiralled cable(160cm max
length).
Mac to Sync-on-Green BNC display adapter-cable by FORMAC.
Mac to VGA adapter "MG65PMA", with display sense bit switches, I even have
the docs.
Exotic keyboards
Left-handed (kinda 'reversed') keyboard for ppl who like challenges,
high-quality mechanism, p/s2 compatible, practically brand new, .de
layout, NO WINDOWS KEYS! If I don't sell it, I might even consider
swapping the keycaps to Dvorak layout (this keyboard is freakish enough by
default, though).
"Type 5" SUN-compatible keyboard made by Solbourne Computer in Japan for
their SUN clones, US layout, good working condition, has both RJ-11 and
miniDIN connectors. SC assembled this keyboard in a smaller and more
compact case than genuine SUN-made Type5s, and for a time I was
considering to build the MCU-based p/s2 adapter I found online to be able
to use this nice keyboard with my thin client.
Bull Questar 303 keyboard, part no.: KBU 3031, US layout.
INTERGRAPH keyboard with RJ-11 jack, US layout.
RAM
*A buddy of mine has about 6 pieces of 64MB 60ns 72pin FPM w. parity SIMMs
for sale.
All these SIMMs came from HP 9000 boxes, and are BIG double-height bastards.
*I am looking for a 32MB 5V buffered ECC EDO DIMM, preferably of part no.:
"HP XU6/200 3554B", for my ProLiant 6500 quad PPro box -- this box uses
4-way interleaved memory and I have but 11 pcs., so I can't install the
3rd bank of RAM. Please tell me IF you can help.
2 pcs. of 16MB 5V buffered 60ns NP EDO DIMMs, IBM part no.: "92G7334".
One 16MB 5V buffered 60ns ECC DIMM, HP part no.: "1818-6485"
IEEE-488 stuff
Amazing range of IEEE-488 stuff, price varies (ie. what you got in
exchange?)
Physical interface adapters to/from different IEEE-488 aka GPIB alias
HP-IB connector standards, like IEC-625 <-> ANSI MC 1.1, gender changers,
whatever, several still in factory packaging.
Cables, extender cables, "hub" cables and adapter cables. Ask.
Also an Addonics IND-311 (ISA) host card w. mint condition manual.
PeeCee junk
A fat dozen ISA cards and some PCI ones.
NICs (Eth and TokenRing), I/O, VGA, VGA+EGA, CGA, ASUS SuperMulti VLB card
with IDE + SVGA + i/o ports, like-brand-new 120 MB Maxtor PIO Mode-0 HDD
(from a factory sealed ESCOM 386 PC I found and salvaged).
Voodoo3 3000 PCI.
SIGMA "REALmagic" DVD/home-theater card, compatible with 'libDXR3' in
linux, supported by mplayer and xine -- provides accelerated video
post-processing + AAC playback in Hw + a generic '/dev/pcm' soundport with
analogue and digital (coax) sound outputs in a single PCI slot.
That's all!
Hoild^UNC
http://www.newcomer.hu
On Mon, 2004-11-08 at 16:47 +0000, Alex White wrote:
>
> On Mon, 8 Nov 2004, Jules Richardson wrote:
>
> > What I'm puzzling over is how to record any relationship between
> > hardware / software / documentation, or even to what extent any
> > relationship needs to be recorded. Thoughts on this would be most
> > appreciated, and I wonder what other museums do...
> >
> > Question is, do we link the docs and software to that particular
> > machine, or is it better to just put those in essentially isolated
> > databases and recording that they're for such-and-such a model of
> > machine?
>
> Record make and model that the main machine itself, docco, boards etc
> apply to and also record an overall asset ID for the entire shipment
> itself which links into a seperate table for information about who,
> where, history of etc a shipment (machine, some manuals and a few tapes)
> came from.
>
> Manuals and bits can float around in the collection but can be tracked
> back together as a complete "gift" from a person.
>
> Want me to diagram it in UML?
UML diag could be useful just to capture your thoughts, if it's a quick
job for you.
I can't mail you privately by the way - NTL's bouncing the message with
a 'microvax.org not found' error, although it resolves via ping OK.
Dodgy MX record somewhere?
cheers
Jules
I just came into a rather load of several hundred used 5.25" DD floppies.
There is no way I want to hoard them all. It is a mixed bag of SS, DS, 48 TPI,
96 TPI, brand names, generics, unlabelled, some have been double-notched, etc.
There are also some boxes of new disks still in shrinkwarp (3M mostly. Some
Kodak). Most seem to have been Apple II and C64 stuff. Anyway, if your in the
market for a fairly good sized lot (say 50+) of untested disks cheap, drop me a
line.
__________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
Check out the new Yahoo! Front Page.
www.yahoo.com
Actually I'm not quite sure how old the machine is - maybe it is ten
years old now and so on topic just...
Anyhow, are there any experts out there who know if a specific version
of HPUX is needed to run with SMP support on an HP 9000 T500?
We've got a 6-CPU T500 at the museum with HPUX 11.xx on it, but
according to the status LEDs it's just running everything on the one CPU
with the other 5 sitting idle.
Possibilities that spring to mind:
a) as above, it's a version / installation issue
b) it's a licensing thing and there's no way of using standard HPUX
media on a multi-CPU machine without paying HP lots of money (boo!)
c) the machine or HPUX is a bit funny in the way it handles multiple
CPUs and we need force processes to run on a specific CPU via some
command, rather than it being transparently handled by the CPU
d) user stupidity (none of us really know much about the machine and nor
are we HPUX experts)
Option d would probably be preferable - we can always learn :) Option
b's obviously the least desirable and would result in us looking at
Linux for the machine I think!
Anyone worked with these beasts before and know offhand what the problem
might be? (we've got HPUX 11 media by the way; but as stated maybe not a
version that's truly compatible with a multi-CPU machine)
Being able to force stuff to run on a specific CPU from a shell would
actually be beneficial, as I have an idea to do a bit of distributed
raytracing on the machine for giggles (6 CPUs is good, but 90MHz each
IIRC is less so :-)
ta
Jules
Does anyone know of any online resources containing rough prices for
mechanical and early electronic calculators?
I need to sort out some insurance details for some of the museum
collection, and whilst I can come up with ballpark figures for the big
iron and ebay's a good source for prices for common 8 bitters, it
doesn't help for some of the early (and rare) mechanical / electronic
calculators.
Are there any good online resources out there, even if prices are a
little out of date? (In particular I'd like to put a value on some of
our Sumlock and Anita stuff)
Out of interest, my general insurance thoughts are: The insurance value
should really cover the costs of finding something of similar "value" in
the event of a lost item being unobtainable. So it needs to cover
purchase cost, shipping cost, additional purchase of any
manuals/docs/software as necessary, and of someone's time to commission
the item and learn how it works. In other words, it's more than the
simple "but it on ebay" value. Thoughts, anyone?
cheers
Jules
--
"We've had a lot of loonies around this place, but you're the first one
who thought the sunrise was made out of stale beer. Now are you going to
pick up your flute and leave, or shall I part your hair with this
crowbar?"
