[cctalk] Re: mainframe vs mini

> On Mar 12, 2023, at 3:01 AM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk > wrote: > > On 3/11/23 14:34, Chuck Guzis via cctalk wrote: >> On 3/11/23 13:28, Paul Koning wrote: >> >>> >>> Dijkstra said as much when he evaluated the 1620 for possible use by the TU >>> Eindhoven -- a big problem is that it was

[cctalk] Re: mainframe vs mini

> On Mar 11, 2023, at 3:38 PM, Chuck Guzis wrote: > > On 3/11/23 10:48, Paul Koning wrote: > >> Speaking of 1620 peripherals, I know there were paper tape reader/punch >> options for it. Has anyone ever encountered those in the wild? > > I've seen a 1621 paper tape unit, but never used

[cctalk] Re: Why the Floppy Disk Just Won't Die

> On Mar 11, 2023, at 3:18 PM, Wayne S via cctalk wrote: > > I’ve heard of people using electric toaster ovens for reflow work. There’s a > few YouTube videos about it. Should work for baking tapes too. I think there > was quite a discussion about it on cctalk a few years ago. Yes, for

[cctalk] Re: mainframe vs mini

> On Mar 11, 2023, at 12:36 AM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk > wrote: > > On 3/10/23 20:55, jim stephens via cctalk wrote: > >> The 1620's I resurrected at USL in Lafayette, La. were card in and out. >> There was also a printer. It had an assembler deck and a Fortran compiler. > > But no

[cctalk] Re: mainframe vs mini

> On Mar 10, 2023, at 9:13 PM, Gavin Scott via cctalk > wrote: > > On Fri, Mar 10, 2023 at 7:01 PM Jon Elson via cctalk > wrote: >> On 3/10/23 13:00, Paul Koning via cctalk wrote: > >>> You mean DOS/360 as opposed to OS/360? > >> MFT was Multipro

[cctalk] Re: mainframe vs mini

> On Mar 10, 2023, at 6:26 PM, Sytse van Slooten via cctalk > wrote: > >> >> On Fri, 10 Mar 2023, Kevin Anderson via cctalk wrote: >>> >> >> Which machines needed 3-phase? > > None that I am aware of - even the very power hungry 9021 'mainframes' I > mentioned earlier could be powered

[cctalk] Re: mainframe vs mini

> On Mar 10, 2023, at 6:32 PM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk > wrote: > > On 3/10/23 15:11, Fred Cisin via cctalk wrote: > > >> extension cord / dedicated circuit / dedicated pole transformer >> >> Which machines needed 3-phase? > > Extra points for requiring an MG set furnishing 400Hz 3-phase.

[cctalk] Re: mainframe vs mini

> On Mar 10, 2023, at 1:38 PM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk > wrote: > > On 3/10/23 10:20, Bill Gunshannon via cctalk wrote: > >> The first mainframe I worked on was single user, single tasking. > > S/360 DOS provided for one "background" memory partition and two > "foreground" ones. Batch

[cctalk] Re: mainframe vs mini

> On Mar 10, 2023, at 10:05 AM, Kevin Monceaux via cctalk > wrote: > > On Thu, Mar 09, 2023 at 03:51:44PM -0600, Steve Lewis via cctalk wrote: > >> I always considered a mainframe to basically be a "fully decked out" >> minicomputer. > > I've always considered a fully decked out

[cctalk] Re: Why the Floppy Disk Just Won't Die

> On Mar 9, 2023, at 11:34 PM, Fred Cisin via cctalk > wrote: > >> On 3/9/23 18:40, Sellam Abraham via cctalk wrote: >>> I wonder how much challenge would be involved in making artisan batches of >>> 5.25" or 8" floppy disks using cobbled-together or homemade equipment? > > On Thu, 9 Mar

[cctalk] Re: Age of Tape Formats?

> On Mar 10, 2023, at 2:30 AM, jim stephens via cctalk > wrote: > > > > On 3/10/23 00:16, Chuck Guzis via cctalk wrote: >> I believe that this photo shows a Datamatic 1000 tape next to a standard >> 1/2" drive. >> >> https://i.pinimg.com/564x/00/3e/7d/003e7d4e3a2478db0b9a7c94f2033252.jpg

[cctalk] Re: mainframe vs mini

> On Mar 9, 2023, at 8:45 PM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk > wrote: > > On 3/9/23 17:33, Jon Elson via cctalk wrote: >> On 3/9/23 15:51, Steve Lewis via cctalk wrote: > >> Well, the IBM 709x was housed in 11 or more cabinets that were larger >> than the largest home refrigerator. These cabinets

[cctalk] Re: on the origin of home computers

> On Mar 9, 2023, at 5:20 PM, Murray McCullough via cctalk > wrote: > > A lot has been written about the origins of the microcomputer. I wrote a > book on the topic. Many thanks for mentioning Canada. Whether one is > playing games or doing something else micro-computing is usually

[cctalk] Re: mainframe vs mini

> On Mar 9, 2023, at 5:00 PM, Steve Lewis via cctalk > wrote: > > Actually, to answer my own question: if "main frame" refers to the actual > framing... well the PDP-1, PDP-10, PDP-10 were minicomputers and still > required a lot of metal "framing" to set up. So, can't they be considered >

[cctalk] Re: mainframe vs mini

> On Mar 9, 2023, at 4:51 PM, Steve Lewis via cctalk > wrote: > > Not to open a huge can of worms but... > > I always considered a mainframe to basically be a "fully decked out" > minicomputer. > > A minicomputer has a core CPU and memory (or racks of memory), then is > "decked out"

[cctalk] Re: on the origin of home computers

> On Mar 8, 2023, at 10:11 PM, Brian L. Stuart via cctalk > wrote: > > ... > If you all are interested a different take on the origins of > personal computing, here's a recording I made for use during > the pandemic of a talk that I give every year to our freshmen > at Drexel University. > >

[cctalk] Re: Age of Tape Formats?

> On Mar 8, 2023, at 10:23 PM, Chris Elmquist via cctalk > wrote: > > > >> On Mar 8, 2023, at 4:18 PM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk >> wrote: >> >> On 3/8/23 13:53, Sellam Abraham via cctalk wrote: On Wed, Mar 8, 2023 at 1:39 PM Chuck Guzis via cctalk wrote: On

[cctalk] Re: on the origin of home computers

> On Mar 8, 2023, at 2:37 PM, > wrote: > > ... > Computer Games are almost as old as (Turing Complete) Computers. Alan Turing > insisted that the Manchester/Ferranti MK1 had a Random Number generator. > Christopher Strachey wrote a tic-tac-toe (noughts and crosses to the > English) program

[cctalk] Re: on the origin of home computers

> On Mar 8, 2023, at 2:13 PM, Bill Degnan via cctalk > wrote: > > There is ample evidence of people doing personal computing before the > microprocessor was invented. There was a whole terminal/time sharing scene > in the late 60s, plus people who did personal computung by using the >

[cctalk] Re: Age of Tape Formats?

> On Mar 8, 2023, at 12:20 PM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk > wrote: > > On 3/8/23 06:19, Paul Koning wrote: > > >> I wouldn't exclude those, certainly not if they are relevant to the >> evolution of the technology. Are X1 tapes (and Eliott tapes if they are the >> same format, which I don't

[cctalk] Re: Age of Tape Formats?

> On Mar 8, 2023, at 10:07 AM, Bill Gunshannon > wrote: > > > On 3/8/2023 9:11 AM, Paul Koning wrote: >> >>> On Mar 8, 2023, at 7:25 AM, Bill Gunshannon via cctalk >>> wrote: >>> >>> >>> On 3/7/2023 8:30 PM, Dennis Boone via cctalk wrote: > I’m working on a project, and I need to

[cctalk] Re: Age of Tape Formats?

> On Mar 8, 2023, at 7:25 AM, Bill Gunshannon via cctalk > wrote: > > > On 3/7/2023 8:30 PM, Dennis Boone via cctalk wrote: >> > I’m working on a project, and I need to know the age of various tape >> > formats. For example when were 6250bpi 700’ 9-Track tapes or DC600A >> > cartridges

[cctalk] Re: Age of Tape Formats?

> On Mar 7, 2023, at 8:23 PM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk > wrote: > > On 3/7/23 17:04, Zane Healy via cctalk wrote: >> I’m working on a project, and I need to know the age of various tape >> formats. For example when were 6250bpi 700’ 9-Track tapes or DC600A >> cartridges introduced? Is

[cctalk] Re: Using Flashfloppies on Professional 350 and 380--SOLVED

> On Mar 4, 2023, at 11:06 PM, Chris Zach via cctalk > wrote: > > ...One issue I can see is that since both "drives" use the same head, stupid > software could assume that since drive 0 was seeked to track 30 then drive 1 > should be at track 30 and thus no need to change tracks. So far I

[cctalk] Spurious spam filters

The notion that mailing lists can filter spam by sender email address is fundamentally broken, at least when the addresses filtered are those of major ISPs. The mistake is that the fact a particular ISP customer sends spam doesn't mean that the millions of other customers do. Since the

[cctalk] Re: Need a 1.2mb 5.25 floppy

> On Feb 27, 2023, at 9:50 AM, Warner Losh via cctalk > wrote: > > On Mon, Feb 27, 2023 at 12:06 AM Chuck Guzis via cctalk < > cctalk@classiccmp.org> wrote: > >> ... >> I thought the Pro 300 series used RX-50 drives; i.e. 400K 96 tpi DD >> media. So even with your 5.25" HD drive, you

[cctalk] Re: Getting QRST files onto a floppy (sigh)

> On Feb 25, 2023, at 5:11 PM, Chris Zach via cctalk > wrote: > > So I'm working on restoring a Compaq DeskPro/XE system to allow me to use the > 5.25 floppy to copy files from my 3.5 floppies which will come from my > Windows 10 system so that I can extract on the Deskpro/XE using

[cctalk] Re: Stuff to go or it's off to the dumpster

> On Feb 22, 2023, at 12:19 PM, Chris Zach via cctalk > wrote: > > Hi all! > > Need to get rid of some things here that I am never going to use, maybe > someone else will: > > M7705 > M7706 > M7906 > M7907 > M7908 > > Quad boards, I think they came from an RK06/07. Maybe the boards from

[cctalk] Re: DEQNA vs DELQA bulkhead question

> On Feb 19, 2023, at 10:19 PM, Chris Zach via cctalk > wrote: > > Working on my second pdp11/73 here and trying to get Ethernet working with a > DEQNA instead of a Delqa. I'm using a DELQA card to AUI connector, the board > passes diagnostics without the loopback, but when I try to bring

[cctalk] Re: Late '70s DEC manual covers [niche!]

> On Feb 11, 2023, at 4:43 AM, Paul Flo Williams via cctalk > wrote: > > On Fri, 10 Feb 2023 22:33:03 + > Paul Flo Williams via cctalk wrote: > >> During lockdown I was having some fun redrawing old DEC manual covers >> with Inkscape, specifically terminal and printer manuals from the

[cctalk] Re: Store with "vintage" computers and parts

> On Feb 9, 2023, at 2:45 PM, Fred Cisin via cctalk > wrote: > >>> If in doubt, GOOGLE THE WEBSITE, and see if valid websites link to > > On Thu, 9 Feb 2023, Angel M Alganza via cctalk wrote: >> In my opinion, one of the first things to do to try to stay safe out there, >> if not the

[cctalk] Re: Chatgpt : I had a retro dream

> On Feb 9, 2023, at 1:45 PM, Fred Cisin via cctalk > wrote: > >>> How does ChatGPT say to do it? > > On Thu, 9 Feb 2023, Tapley, Mark B. via cctalk wrote: >> Where can I buy that bumper sticker? > > Ask ChatGPT where to buy it. > > Ask ChatGPT how ChatGPT could protect itself from being

[cctalk] Re: 3/16ths inch ink ribbon

Wow. Now I know where to get ribbons for my old DEC printer if I want to use it again. Thanks all! paul > On Feb 7, 2023, at 1:06 PM, Eric Moore via cctalk > wrote: > > The ribbon was well inked, and the keypunch is printing beautifully, thank > you! > > -Eric > >> On Sun, Jan

[cctalk] Re: Making sense of VAXstation 100 ROMs

Given 16 bit wide ROMs, I would expect the microcode width to be rounded up to a multiple of that, so 64 bits, which means the expected ROM size is 64k bits. That matches two of the ROMs you mentioned. paul > On Feb 7, 2023, at 12:25 PM, Lars Brinkhoff via cctalk > wrote: > >

[cctalk] Re: RQDX3's: Lessons learned.

> On Feb 3, 2023, at 10:48 PM, Chris Zach via cctalk > wrote: > > ... > I may try an RD53 in one of my Pro/380's. It's about time I loaded up the > final version of P/OS, as I can use the Gotek floppy to load everything > instead of screwing with the RX50's. Or can I do that and switch

[cctalk] Re: Computer Museum uses GreaseWeazle to help exonerate Maryland Man

> On Feb 3, 2023, at 1:12 AM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk > wrote: > > On 2/2/23 21:23, Tom Hunter via cctalk wrote: >> The actual ferrite core doughnuts do not break down with continued use, BUT >> moisture or mechanical impact or vibration will damage or degrade the >> ferrite cores. Otherwise

[cctalk] Re: Core memory (was Re: Computer Museum uses GreaseWeazle to help exonerate Maryland Man)

> On Feb 2, 2023, at 11:03 AM, Sellam Abraham via cctalk > wrote: > > This discussion on core memory got me thinking: > > Is it possible to "read" core memory by examining each core using some kind > of instrument that would sense its "charge" (or lack thereof) > non-destructively? > >

[cctalk] Re: Computer Museum uses GreaseWeazle to help exonerate Maryland Man

> On Feb 2, 2023, at 10:17 AM, Jon Elson via cctalk > wrote: > > On 2/1/23 22:10, Will Cooke via cctalk wrote: >> >>> On 02/01/2023 3:51 PM CST Paul Koning via cctalk >>> wrote: >>> >> ot sure about that. What sort of numbers are w

[cctalk] Re: Computer Museum uses GreaseWeazle to help exonerate Maryland Man

> On Feb 1, 2023, at 3:20 PM, Fred Cisin via cctalk > wrote: > > On Wed, 1 Feb 2023, Ali via cctalk wrote: >> But does that matter? If the main purpose is to be able to refresh the data >> so it is readable does it matter that the data is not in the same block as >> long as it is readable?

[cctalk] Re: Computer Museum uses GreaseWeazle to help exonerate Maryland Man

> On Jan 31, 2023, at 8:38 PM, Warner Losh via cctalk > wrote: > > On Tue, Jan 31, 2023, 5:03 PM Ali via cctalk wrote: > >>> I thought Flash could only hold the data in them X amount of years >>> until >>> the junctions discharge or whatever? It's less permanent than decent >>> quality

[cctalk] Re: [SPAM] Re: Computer Museum uses GreaseWeazle to help exonerate Maryland Man

> On Jan 31, 2023, at 5:03 PM, Zane Healy via cctalk > wrote: > > On Jan 31, 2023, at 10:22 AM, Steve Lewis via cctalk > wrote: >> >> I know the first generation CD/DVD disc are known to "go bad" - the >> material itself somehow degrades and becomes unreadable by modern drives. >> I'm not

[cctalk] Re: Computer Museum uses GreaseWeazle to help exonerate Maryland Man

> On Jan 27, 2023, at 11:23 AM, Jon Elson via cctalk > wrote: > > On 1/26/23 19:13, Paul Koning via cctalk wrote: >> >>> On Jan 26, 2023, at 6:29 PM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk >>> wrote: >>> >>> I take that back about Versatec, CHM has a

[cctalk] Re: Computer Museum uses GreaseWeazle to help exonerate Maryland Man

> On Jan 26, 2023, at 8:15 PM, Bill Gunshannon via cctalk > wrote: > > > On 1/26/2023 4:23 PM, Fred Cisin via cctalk wrote: >> On Thu, 26 Jan 2023, Chuck Guzis via cctalk wrote: >>> I submit that the Selectric was not the optimum platform with which to >>> set speed records. >> >> Of

[cctalk] Re: Computer Museum uses GreaseWeazle to help exonerate Maryland Man

> On Jan 26, 2023, at 6:29 PM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk > wrote: > > I take that back about Versatec, CHM has a document from 1970 on their > electrostatic printer: > > https://www.computerhistory.org/collections/catalog/X163.83A > > I know that Lawrence Livermore had one and used it quite a

[cctalk] Re: Computer Museum uses GreaseWeazle to help exonerate Maryland Man

> On Jan 26, 2023, at 4:23 PM, Fred Cisin via cctalk > wrote: > > On Thu, 26 Jan 2023, Chuck Guzis via cctalk wrote: >> I submit that the Selectric was not the optimum platform with which to >> set speed records. > > Of course not! > Even a daisy wheel is easily capable of twice that. >

[cctalk] Re: Computer Museum uses GreaseWeazle to help exonerate Maryland Man

> On Jan 26, 2023, at 2:39 PM, Fred Cisin via cctalk > wrote: > > On Thu, 26 Jan 2023, Steve Lewis via cctalk wrote: >> I recently came across the old H.S. yearbook of my grandmother from 1940s, >> and it had a report/atrticle of a typing-class (all female; it

[cctalk] Re: Computer Museum uses GreaseWeazle to help exonerate Maryland Man

> On Jan 26, 2023, at 1:34 PM, Steve Lewis via cctalk > wrote: > >> Changing keys would be rather hard on a touch typist, don't you think? > > As for what I said of morphing shape of keycaps: I think I recall a > MacBook circa 2018 having something like this - at least one special row >

[cctalk] Re: Excellent CHM Article on Apple Lisa Software (Apple Archive)

> On Jan 25, 2023, at 8:03 PM, Tarek Hoteit via cctalk > wrote: > > Though it is not a source code, there is a nice article by a retired > librarian that used to work at Apple. Anna Mancini helped save a lot of > material that Apple discarded in the past. Anna talks about the Apple >

[cctalk] Re: Computer Museum uses GreaseWeazle to help exonerate Maryland Man

> On Jan 25, 2023, at 3:52 PM, Bill Gunshannon via cctalk > wrote: > > > On 1/25/2023 3:22 PM, John-Paul Stewart via cctalk wrote: >> On 1/25/23 11:53, Steve Lewis via cctalk wrote: >>> And back on the stenography-keyboard like thing -- what about morphing >>> keys? If a keyboard had

[cctalk] Re: the mouse vs. touch sensitive devices

> On Jan 23, 2023, at 12:56 PM, Liam Proven via cctalk > wrote: > > On Mon, 23 Jan 2023 at 00:00, Ali via cctalk wrote: >> >> I am the exact opposite. I love my track point. > > Agreed. > > Trackpads are tolerable, but I preferred the era of trackballs. But if > my laptop is on my actual

[cctalk] Re: Computer Museum uses GreaseWeazle to help exonerate Maryland Man

> On Jan 19, 2023, at 9:47 PM, Fred Cisin via cctalk > wrote: > > On Fri, 20 Jan 2023, Chris via cctalk wrote: > >> Now this ia going to sound naive, but could't every law firm and attorney >> general in the country be informed of the possibility of retrieving data >> from old disks? And

[cctalk] Re: Disk pack production tools

> On Jan 20, 2023, at 4:27 AM, Christian Corti via cctalk > wrote: > > On Thu, 19 Jan 2023, David Gesswein wrote: >> Originally discussing RK05 head position sensor bulb. I have replaced it. The >> offical part to replace it isn't available. You can open it up and put in >> a new bulb. I

[cctalk] Re: Computer Museum uses GreaseWeazle to help exonerate Maryland Man

> On Jan 19, 2023, at 8:24 PM, Sellam Abraham via cctalk > wrote: > > On Thu, Jan 19, 2023 at 5:13 PM Paul Koning via cctalk < > cctalk@classiccmp.org> wrote: > >> My point here is that the community is substantial and contains vast >> expertise on m

[cctalk] Re: Computer Museum uses GreaseWeazle to help exonerate Maryland Man

> On Jan 19, 2023, at 8:22 PM, Tony Jones via cctalk > wrote: > > On Thu, Jan 19, 2023 at 5:13 PM Paul Koning via cctalk < > cctalk@classiccmp.org> wrote: > >> >> True. But if it is known to be a DEC (RX50) disk, reading it from Linux >> is a wel

[cctalk] Re: Computer Museum uses GreaseWeazle to help exonerate Maryland Man

> On Jan 19, 2023, at 6:03 PM, Jim Brain via cctalk > wrote: > > On 1/19/2023 3:38 PM, Paul Koning via cctalk wrote: >> >>> On Jan 19, 2023, at 4:31 PM, rar--- via cctalk >>> wrote: >>> >>> Museum Staff Helps Exonerate David Ve

[cctalk] Re: Computer Museum uses GreaseWeazle to help exonerate Maryland Man

> On Jan 19, 2023, at 4:31 PM, rar--- via cctalk wrote: > > Museum Staff Helps Exonerate David Veney > > January 19, 2023, Hunt Valley, MD — Staff members of the System Source > Computer Museum recently completed a project that helped exonerate David > Veney, wrongly convicted of rape in

[cctalk] Re: Disk pack production tools

> On Jan 19, 2023, at 2:46 PM, David Gesswein via cctalk > wrote: > > On Wed, Jan 18, 2023 at 12:42:26PM -0600, Jon Elson wrote: >> On 1/17/23 21:18, Marc Howard via cctalk wrote: >>> Does anyone know if that light bulb is still available? I’m not sure what >>> the response of that photo

[cctalk] Re: Disk pack production tools

> On Jan 17, 2023, at 5:09 PM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk > wrote: > > On 1/17/23 13:58, Paul Koning via cctalk wrote: >> >> No, 844 drives use linear voice coils (linear motors), which seems to have >> become the norm in the early 1970s. RK05 is another exam

[cctalk] Re: long lived media (Was: Damage to CD-R from CD Sleeve

> On Jan 17, 2023, at 3:34 PM, P Gebhardt via cctalk > wrote: > > > Am Dienstag, 17. Januar 2023 um 15:54:54 MEZ hat Paul Koning via cctalk > Folgendes geschrieben: > > ... >> I have an RM03 pack somewhere. There probably are a few places left that

[cctalk] Re: Disk pack production tools

> On Jan 17, 2023, at 3:45 PM, P Gebhardt via cctalk > wrote: > > > > > Am Montag, 16. Januar 2023 um 17:57:46 MEZ hat Chuck Guzis via cctalk > Folgendes geschrieben: > > Hi Chuck, > >> The 844 drives date from the early 70s. I worked for CDC on a military >> project where these

[cctalk] Re: Positive Logic vs. Negative Logic Controller in DEC TU56

> On Jan 17, 2023, at 10:17 AM, Bill Degnan via cctalk > wrote: > > ... > I found a good general description of how the negative / positive relates > to the PDP-8 and how peripherals fit into the picture. > https://homepage.cs.uiowa.edu/~dwjones/pdp8/models/ > > "The "negibus" or negative

[cctalk] Re: long lived media (Was: Damage to CD-R from CD Sleeve

> On Jan 17, 2023, at 2:07 PM, Chris via cctalk wrote: > > The ones that HAVE survived have kept worthwhile data integrity, granted. > > There we go. Just find a big mountain and start etching hex code. Or > texhtonic plates? They're pretty big. But those damned earthquakes. On >

[cctalk] Re: long lived media (Was: Damage to CD-R from CD Sleeve

> On Jan 17, 2023, at 1:32 PM, Sellam Abraham via cctalk > wrote: > > On Tue, Jan 17, 2023 at 8:57 AM Chris via cctalk > wrote: > >> The bottom line is you have to dispense with the fantasy that any media >> will reliably keep data for really any length of time. > > > I don't know, man.

[cctalk] Re: AI applied to vintage interests

> On Jan 17, 2023, at 12:05 PM, ben via cctalk wrote: > > On 2023-01-16 10:45 p.m., Fred Cisin via cctalk wrote: >>> On 1/16/23 19:42, Sellam Abraham via cctalk wrote: It didn't fall for your trick question. >> On Mon, 16 Jan 2023, Chuck Guzis via cctalk wrote: >>> In fact, feed it the

[cctalk] Re: long lived media (Was: Damage to CD-R from CD Sleeve

> On Jan 17, 2023, at 11:26 AM, Chris via cctalk wrote: > > Why wouldbyou need a whole server? Several 2.5" usb hard drives is all you > meed. But then you're dealing with stored media, and their shelf life. USB hard drives may be ok so long as USB interfaces are available; if they are

[cctalk] Re: long lived media (Was: Damage to CD-R from CD Sleeve

> On Jan 17, 2023, at 10:58 AM, Kenneth Gober via cctalk > wrote: > > ... > There is another significant advantage to focusing on a backup strategy as > opposed to an archival strategy -- I don't need to worry about tapes I made > today being readable decades in the future (i.e. I don't need

[cctalk] Re: long lived media (Was: Damage to CD-R from CD Sleeve

> On Jan 17, 2023, at 8:58 AM, Zane Healy via cctalk > wrote: > >> On Jan 16, 2023, at 6:48 PM, Fred Cisin via cctalk >> wrote: >> >> I am interested in whatever media are more likely to still be readable in a >> few decades. >> >> M-Disc claims 100 year life, but, obviously, no M-Disc

[cctalk] Re: long lived media (Was: Damage to CD-R from CD Sleeve

> On Jan 16, 2023, at 9:48 PM, Fred Cisin via cctalk > wrote: > >> What about M-DISC DVDs and BluRays? Archival grade, not susceptible > to magnetism or EMP. I think BluRay discs are made of a harder material than > DVDs and don’t scratch as easily. > > On Tue, 17 Jan 2023, Chris via

[cctalk] Re: Disk pack production tools

> On Jan 16, 2023, at 11:47 AM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk > wrote: > > The 844 drives date from the early 70s. ... > > Can't tell you more about the mechanics of the things--I haven't seen > one of these in many many years. They were the workhorse drive for CDC > large systems for quite some

[cctalk] Re: Disk pack production tools

> On Jan 16, 2023, at 11:54 AM, Jon Elson via cctalk > wrote: > > On 1/16/23 04:14, p.gebhardt--- via cctalk wrote: >> Hello list, >> >> Yesterday, I was wondering, if there are any multiplatter disk pack >> production tools known to exist? >> There are disk pack inspection and cleaning

[cctalk] Re: Reading Old Floppies

> On Jan 9, 2023, at 2:48 AM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk > wrote: > > On 1/8/23 22:28, Chris via cctalk wrote: >> If alcohol isn't a good idea, white vinegar or dilute ammonia could also >> work. Ammonia is the world's best peneyrant as far as I'm concerned. But to >> get into deep crevaces

[cctalk] Re: loading vt220 fonts

> On Jan 6, 2023, at 2:28 AM, Wayne S via cctalk wrote: > > You want to look at this manual. > https://vt100.net/docs/vt220-rm > Vt100 doesn't support soft char sets but vt220 on does. Or here:

[cctalk] Re: PDP-11 System Identification Register

The PDP11 architecture manual says it's specific to the 11/70, and the 11/70 handbook says it contains information "uniquely identifying each system" -- which suggests that it contains a serial number or equivalent. It's not clear what purpose it serves. RSTS (in the Init "Hardware List"

[cctalk] Re: Replacing NiCd with NiMH in a pro way.

> On Dec 23, 2022, at 3:09 PM, Christian Corti via cctalk > wrote: > > On Fri, 23 Dec 2022, gordon+cct...@drogon.net wrote: >> dumb charger. Might be worth a watch, but the tl;dr seems to be that trickle >^ > > The what ??? That's

[cctalk] Re: Replacing NiCd with NiMH in a pro way.

> On Dec 22, 2022, at 6:30 PM, Will Cooke via cctalk > wrote: > > > >> On 12/22/2022 4:34 PM CST Chuck Guzis via cctalk >> wrote: > >> >> That's not to say that Li-ion cells are without their quirks. I >> recently almost discarded a AA-sized 14500 cell because the output >> voltage had

[cctalk] Re: Replacing NiCd with NiMH in a pro way.

> On Dec 22, 2022, at 4:30 PM, Chuck Guzis wrote: > > On 12/22/22 11:42, Paul Koning wrote: >> I just read the battery chapter of the ARRL Amateur Radio Handboo, which >> discusses this particular point at some length. >> Among many other points it says (a) you can trickle charge a NiCd but

[cctalk] Re: Using Gesswein board with RQDX3

> On Dec 22, 2022, at 3:30 PM, Lee Gleason via cctalk > wrote: > > I'm using several of these, on PRO380s, and on RQDX3s on MicroVAXes > and a BA23 11/73. Lessee, did you create the container file for the > disk? And make sure it's the same file name used in the command line that > starts

[cctalk] Re: Replacing NiCd with NiMH in a pro way.

> On Dec 22, 2022, at 11:49 AM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk > wrote: > > I can't speak with any authority on the NiMH vs. NiCd substitution, > except that I've replaced them on low-draw devices and used the same > charger. After 20 years of doing this, I can't claim to have destroyed > any NiMH,

[cctalk] Re: Pertec controller; was: anybody need 1/2" tape drives?

> On Dec 1, 2022, at 8:35 AM, Peter Corlett via cctalk > wrote: > > On Wed, Nov 30, 2022 at 08:10:27PM -0500, Paul Koning via cctalk wrote: > [...] >> 5V tolerant does not mean 5V compatible. I have right now some 5V devices >> I want to control, and it's not e

[cctalk] Re: Pertec controller; was: anybody need 1/2" tape drives?

> On Nov 30, 2022, at 7:43 PM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk > wrote: > > On 11/30/22 14:45, Eric Moore via cctalk wrote: >> I have a kennedy 9100 with an unformatted pertec interface that I would >> love to use for imaging tapes from my AS/400 >> >> It seems like strapping a logic analyzer to the

[cctalk] Re: Pertec controller; was: anybody need 1/2" tape drives?

> On Nov 30, 2022, at 7:43 PM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk > wrote: > > On 11/30/22 14:45, Eric Moore via cctalk wrote: >> I have a kennedy 9100 with an unformatted pertec interface that I would >> love to use for imaging tapes from my AS/400 >> >> It seems like strapping a logic analyzer to the

[cctalk] Re: 100% Tape Seal (soft kind) failure

> On Nov 14, 2022, at 1:56 PM, Sellam Abraham via cctalk > wrote: > > Point of order for the dummies: what is a tape seal? A wrapper around the rim of a 1/2 inch tape reel, to protect it and allow for storage. It's more compact than the alternative, a canister to hold the tape, though

[cctalk] Re: Inline Serial Device?

> On Nov 13, 2022, at 2:31 PM, Cameron Kaiser via cctalk > wrote: > >> AI, not so clear. In my view, AI is a catch-all term for "software whose >> properties are unknown and probably unknowable". > > Someone recently on Hacker News talked about the possibility of neural net > models to

[cctalk] Re: Inline Serial Device?

> On Nov 12, 2022, at 1:08 PM, Anders Nelson via cctalk > wrote: > > I bet NN/AI would be helpful with data recovery - if we can model certain > common failure modes with those old drive heads we could infer what the > data should have been... NN maybe, I need to understand those better. I

[cctalk] Re: Inline Serial Device?

Perhaps cheaper still, a Raspberry Pico. Those go for $4, which even for the smaller Arduinos is hard to beat. paul > On Nov 11, 2022, at 4:29 PM, Nigel Johnson Ham via cctalk > wrote: > > Or even cheaper, and Arduino uno > > cheers, > > Nigel > > > Nigel Johnson, MSc., MIEEE,

[cctalk] Re: Replacement tachometer sensor for DEC RA80/1/2 drives ...

> On Nov 7, 2022, at 8:27 PM, Robert Armstrong wrote: > >> Paul Koning wrote: >> Does the tachometer have to be accurate, or does it just have to indicate >> "spinning fast enough" to satisfy the spin-up logic? > > It's not just spin up - the firmware monitors the disk speed all the time >

[cctalk] Re: Replacement tachometer sensor for DEC RA80/1/2 drives ...

> On Nov 7, 2022, at 6:51 PM, Robert Armstrong via cctalk > wrote: > > I have three DEC RA8x drives that have failed (all of them fault with > "spin error") because of bad photo-interrupter tachometer sensors. After > talking to a few friends, it sounds like this is a pretty common fault.

[cctalk] Re: Disk imaging n00b

> On Nov 3, 2022, at 7:38 PM, Fred Cisin via cctalk > wrote: > > On Thu, 3 Nov 2022, Paul Koning via cctalk wrote: >> An example of a non-PC format 5.25 inch disk that normal drives can read >> would be the DEC RX50 floppy, which has 10 sectors per track rather th

[cctalk] Re: Disk imaging n00b

> On Nov 3, 2022, at 5:57 PM, Glen Slick via cctalk > wrote: > > On Thu, Nov 3, 2022 at 2:08 PM Grant Taylor via cctalk > wrote: >> >> Hi, >> >> n00b alert >> >> Does anyone have a 101 level boot strap guide for someone wanting to get >> into creating better-than-dd disk images? >> >>

[cctalk] Re: 14 DZ11's for sale/whatever

> On Nov 1, 2022, at 7:59 PM, Chris Zach via cctalk > wrote: > > On 11/1/2022 11:49 AM, Ethan Dicks via cctalk wrote: >> I don't think the 11/750 could have handled that many users on DZ-11s. > > I think this is why COMM-IO-P systems were sold. They basically acted like > front end

[cctalk] Re: 14 DZ11's for sale/whatever

> On Nov 1, 2022, at 3:38 PM, Ethan Dicks via cctalk > wrote: > > On Tue, Nov 1, 2022 at 12:01 PM Paul Koning via cctalk > wrote: >>> On Oct 30, 2022, at 2:49 PM, Wayne S via cctalk >>> wrote: >>> >>> The difference between d

[cctalk] Re: 14 DZ11's for sale/whatever

> On Nov 1, 2022, at 2:32 PM, ben via cctalk wrote: > > On 2022-11-01 11:20 a.m., Paul Koning via cctalk wrote: > tents. The result is that the OS only has to deal with the device every 30 > characters or so (RSTS case) or even less often if the buffer size is larger. &

[cctalk] Re: 14 DZ11's for sale/whatever

> On Nov 1, 2022, at 1:05 PM, Wayne S wrote: >> ... >>> On Nov 1, 2022, at 09:01, Paul Koning via cctalk >>> wrote: >>> >>>  >>> >>>>> On Oct 30, 2022, at 2:49 PM, Wayne S via cctalk >>>>> w

[cctalk] Re: 14 DZ11's for sale/whatever

> On Oct 30, 2022, at 2:49 PM, Wayne S via cctalk wrote: > > The difference between dz and dh interfaces is that the dh used dma instead > of interrupts to get characters to the cpu. It would be transparent to any > software. No, it doesn't. I was confused about this but was recently

[cctalk] Re: LC:M+L (Living Computer Museum)

> On Oct 31, 2022, at 12:13 AM, Tomasz Rola via cctalk > wrote: > > On Sun, Oct 30, 2022 at 12:34:29PM -0400, Paul Koning via cctalk wrote: >> > [...] >> >> Even if it doesn't reopen, I'd hope that its collection would not >> simply be scrapped

[cctalk] Re: LC:M+L (Living Computer Museum)

> On Oct 30, 2022, at 12:22 PM, Michael Brutman via cctalk > wrote: > > My apologies if this topic is a sore point for some of you. Their abrupt > closing wasn't that long ago. > > Does anybody have any insight on what is going on there? The web site has > not been updated in about 2.5

[cctalk] Re: Data General Nova and Eclipse Hobbyist License...

d Wild Hare. > > Bruce Ray > Wild Hare Computer Systems, Inc. > > On 10/24/2022 5:35 PM, Paul Koning via cctalk wrote: >> Very nice! So I take it that's a sublicense of Dell/EMC IP? It doesn't say >> that. >> paul Bruce, That simplifies things a lot. Thank you for your efforts! paul

[cctalk] Re: LCM news?

> On Oct 24, 2022, at 7:39 PM, Ian McLaughlin via cctalk > wrote: > > Did anyone else just get the semi-automated-looking email from the Living > Computer Museum reminding that the online collection is still online and how > to access it? It was a bit of a shock to me - I was aware that

[cctalk] Re: Data General Nova and Eclipse Hobbyist License...

Very nice! So I take it that's a sublicense of Dell/EMC IP? It doesn't say that. paul > On Oct 24, 2022, at 6:26 PM, Bruce Ray via cctalk > wrote: > > > Wild Hare Computer Systems, Inc., is pleased to announce that a > "Hobbyist License" is now available for legacy Data General >

[cctalk] Re: FM/Armstrong was: [ Great Vintage Computer Heist of 2012

> On Oct 19, 2022, at 3:10 PM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk > wrote: > > Indeed, FM was one of the undesired side effects of AM unless you had a > well-isolated or crystal-controlled frequency source for your transmitter. I suppose so, but Idzerda's transmitter produces FM with essentially

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