Re: IBM Type 31 Alphabetical Duplicating Keypunch available, Seattle area

2020-02-11 Thread Josh Dersch via cctalk
On Tue, Feb 11, 2020 at 9:44 AM Al Kossow via cctalk 
wrote:

>
>
> On 2/11/20 8:28 AM, Rick Bensene via cctalk wrote:
> > It has a label on it that says "BR 2412".
>
> Bunker-Ramo, originally Nuclear Data NDP-812
>

Yep.  12-bit machine, four accumulators, multiply/divide logic standard.
All built on a single large, wire-wrapped board stuffed with 9000-series
logic, using extremely poor quality wire-wrapped sockets.  The one in that
picture almost works properly after a week or three of cleaning and
debugging (the mul/div hardware screws up somewhere and I never tracked it
down).  Bigger issue is that my unit doesn't have any I/O devices at all,
so I'll have to build one.

The BR 2412 is basically identical to the ND-812, except the latter used
core memory and the former uses battery-backed SRAM.  (Big lead-acid
battery in there.)


>
> Hang in there, man.
>
>
Seconded.

- Josh


Re: IBM Type 31 Alphabetical Duplicating Keypunch available, Seattle area

2020-02-11 Thread Chuck Guzis via cctalk
On 2/11/20 8:26 AM, Rick Bensene via cctalk wrote:

> In the background of one of the photos (#1, IIRC) is the front panel
> of what appears to be a 12-bit computer (ala PDP 8), but the panel is
> most decidedly not DEC.  It has a label on it that says "BR 2412".
> It appears that there is a second one of these located directly below
> this panel.  These are in a rack that appears to have a PDP 8/e
> mounted above them. The question is...what is this "BR 2412"
> machine?
I'll take the liberty of answering the question being asked.  Please
forgive the intrusion.

BR 2412 = Bunker-Ramo 2412.

--Chuck


Re: IBM Type 31 Alphabetical Duplicating Keypunch available, Seattle area

2020-02-11 Thread Al Kossow via cctalk



On 2/11/20 8:28 AM, Rick Bensene via cctalk wrote:
> It has a label on it that says "BR 2412". 

Bunker-Ramo, originally Nuclear Data NDP-812

Hang in there, man.




RE: IBM Type 31 Alphabetical Duplicating Keypunch available, Seattle area

2020-02-11 Thread Rick Bensene via cctalk
Sorrythis was meant to go to just Josh, but accidentally copied to the list.
My apologies.

Rick Bensene
The Old Calculator Museum
http://oldcalculatormuseum.com


-Original Message-
From: cctalk [mailto:cctalk-boun...@classiccmp.org] On Behalf Of Rick Bensene 
via cctalk
Sent: Tuesday, February 11, 2020 8:26 AM
To: Josh Dersch; General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts
Subject: RE: IBM Type 31 Alphabetical Duplicating Keypunch available, Seattle 
area

Hi, Josh,

I can't possibly think about getting this wonderful old beast from you, but 
something about the photos captured my curiosity.

In the background of one of the photos (#1, IIRC) is the front panel of what 
appears to be a 12-bit computer (ala PDP 8), but the panel is most decidedly 
not DEC.  It has a label on it that says "BR 2412".It appears that there is 
a second one of these located directly below this panel.  These are in a rack 
that appears to have a PDP 8/e mounted above them.
The question is...what is this "BR 2412" machine?

I have managed to get TSS-8 running on two terminals on my 8/e.   I configured 
a third serial card for current loop and 110 baud to try to get my Teletype 
running on it as a third terminal, but I can't get any response out of it.   I 
did reconfigure TSS-8 for the third terminal.   I think that the problem might 
be the serial board not generating interrupts, and I was just getting going on 
troubleshooting using my trusty Tektronix 2465 scope, when the scope died.   
Something went amiss in the horizontal deflection such that the trace is pushed 
off the left-hand side of the tube.  Beam Finder does put the trace in the 
center of the screen, albeit all squished.   I opened the scope up and checked 
all the connectors and switches, and all else I could think of, but nothing 
made any difference.   Arrggh.   So, then I went to get my old backup, a 465, 
which last I used, worked.  But, something is not right with its high voltage 
supply...the trace slowly fades away over the course of about 5 minutes.  Turn 
it off and let it cool down, and the trace comes back, for a couple of minutes. 
  So, I have no oscilloscope.   I lost interest at that  point, but figure I 
can use the logic analyzer to figure out if the interrupt is being generated 
without too much trouble...just need to get the motivation to fiddle with it.

Complicating things is that about three weeks ago, I woke up in the morning, 
and as I went to get out of bed, I felt something in my lower back twinge, but 
didn't really pay attention to it.  As I went to put my weight on my feet, my 
left leg collapsed, and there was a sharp pain in my lower left back.   From 
that moment on, I've been in extreme pain in my lower back, extending to my 
groin, then down the front side of my left let to the knee.   I called my 
doctor, and went in.  He took XRays and the diagnosis was spinal stenosis 
(narrowing of the spinal cord canal) due to arthritis, as well as a bulging 
disc in the lumbar vertebrae.  All of this is causing a bundle of nerves that 
serve the upper left leg to be pinched, and thus...the pain.  My doctor said 
that in order to figure out treatment, an MRI would be needed.  The insurance 
company denied two requests he made to get the MRI.   I ended up calling the 
insurance company and letting them know that I was both in incredible pain, as 
well as pretty much made immobile by this, and without the MRI, I would not be 
able to be treated, which was unacceptable. The finally relented, and allowed 
the MRI, but this whole escapade took about a week.   Then, getting scheduled 
for the MRI took another five days, and another three days to get the MRI 
reviewed by a spinal specialist.   I was then referred to the spinal 
specialist, and it took four days to get that on the schedule.  I went to that 
appointment, and he said that there were two options, surgery or a combination 
of cortisone and platelet-rich plasma by injection into the affected area.   I 
opted for the injection, as the specialist said in cases like mine that the 
success rate (e.g., relief of the pain) was better than 85%.   Surgery will 
also fix it, but the recovery time is longer, and there are far more chances 
for complications.   I go in tomorrow for the CT-guided injections.   I should 
get relief within 3 to 7 days.  Fingers are crossed it works, and there are no 
complications.

I am still looking for a job.  I had a good prospect week before last, did well 
in a phone screening, and asked to come in for an in-person interview.  
However, I was terribly sleep-deprived, as well as in terrible pain from my 
spine issue when I went in for the in-person interview, and though I had 
thought I did OK (I made no mention of my back issue/pain), apparently it 
wasn't good enough, even though I had tons of experience in the areas they were 
looking for and could prove it, they wrote me on Friday (the intervi

RE: IBM Type 31 Alphabetical Duplicating Keypunch available, Seattle area

2020-02-11 Thread Rick Bensene via cctalk
Hi, Josh,

I can't possibly think about getting this wonderful old beast from you, but 
something about the photos captured my curiosity.

In the background of one of the photos (#1, IIRC) is the front panel of what 
appears to be a 12-bit computer (ala PDP 8), but the panel is most decidedly 
not DEC.  It has a label on it that says "BR 2412".It appears that there is 
a second one of these located directly below this panel.  These are in a rack 
that appears to have a PDP 8/e mounted above them.
The question is...what is this "BR 2412" machine?

I have managed to get TSS-8 running on two terminals on my 8/e.   I configured 
a third serial card for current loop and 110 baud to try to get my Teletype 
running on it as a third terminal, but I can't get any response out of it.   I 
did reconfigure TSS-8 for the third terminal.   I think that the problem might 
be the serial board not generating interrupts, and I was just getting going on 
troubleshooting using my trusty Tektronix 2465 scope, when the scope died.   
Something went amiss in the horizontal deflection such that the trace is pushed 
off the left-hand side of the tube.  Beam Finder does put the trace in the 
center of the screen, albeit all squished.   I opened the scope up and checked 
all the connectors and switches, and all else I could think of, but nothing 
made any difference.   Arrggh.   So, then I went to get my old backup, a 465, 
which last I used, worked.  But, something is not right with its high voltage 
supply...the trace slowly fades away over the course of about 5 minutes.  Turn 
it off and let it cool down, and the trace comes back, for a couple of minutes. 
  So, I have no oscilloscope.   I lost interest at that  point, but figure I 
can use the logic analyzer to figure out if the interrupt is being generated 
without too much trouble...just need to get the motivation to fiddle with it.

Complicating things is that about three weeks ago, I woke up in the morning, 
and as I went to get out of bed, I felt something in my lower back twinge, but 
didn't really pay attention to it.  As I went to put my weight on my feet, my 
left leg collapsed, and there was a sharp pain in my lower left back.   From 
that moment on, I've been in extreme pain in my lower back, extending to my 
groin, then down the front side of my left let to the knee.   I called my 
doctor, and went in.  He took XRays and the diagnosis was spinal stenosis 
(narrowing of the spinal cord canal) due to arthritis, as well as a bulging 
disc in the lumbar vertebrae.  All of this is causing a bundle of nerves that 
serve the upper left leg to be pinched, and thus...the pain.  My doctor said 
that in order to figure out treatment, an MRI would be needed.  The insurance 
company denied two requests he made to get the MRI.   I ended up calling the 
insurance company and letting them know that I was both in incredible pain, as 
well as pretty much made immobile by this, and without the MRI, I would not be 
able to be treated, which was unacceptable. The finally relented, and allowed 
the MRI, but this whole escapade took about a week.   Then, getting scheduled 
for the MRI took another five days, and another three days to get the MRI 
reviewed by a spinal specialist.   I was then referred to the spinal 
specialist, and it took four days to get that on the schedule.  I went to that 
appointment, and he said that there were two options, surgery or a combination 
of cortisone and platelet-rich plasma by injection into the affected area.   I 
opted for the injection, as the specialist said in cases like mine that the 
success rate (e.g., relief of the pain) was better than 85%.   Surgery will 
also fix it, but the recovery time is longer, and there are far more chances 
for complications.   I go in tomorrow for the CT-guided injections.   I should 
get relief within 3 to 7 days.  Fingers are crossed it works, and there are no 
complications.

I am still looking for a job.  I had a good prospect week before last, did well 
in a phone screening, and asked to come in for an in-person interview.  
However, I was terribly sleep-deprived, as well as in terrible pain from my 
spine issue when I went in for the in-person interview, and though I had 
thought I did OK (I made no mention of my back issue/pain), apparently it 
wasn't good enough, even though I had tons of experience in the areas they were 
looking for and could prove it, they wrote me on Friday (the interview was last 
Thursday) saying they had picked someone else.   Nothing else on the horizon, 
and finances are not good.   I keep applying for jobs, but either get no 
response at all, or get messages saying "thanks, we'll keep your information on 
file...".It's frustrating.

Anyway, I my curiosity got the best of me when I saw that odd front panel in 
the background and figured I'd drop a quick line your way.

Hope things are going well for you.

-Rick

-Original Message-
From: cctalk [mailto:cctalk-boun...@cl

Re: IBM Type 31 Alphabetical Duplicating Keypunch available, Seattle area

2020-02-10 Thread Lyle Bickley via cctalk
I forwarded your email to the 1401 Restoration Team at the Computer History
Museum...

Cheers,
Lyle
--
On Mon, 10 Feb 2020 15:34:36 -0800
Josh Dersch via cctalk  wrote:

> (resending as this appears to have gotten eaten last time...)
> 
> Hi all --
> 
> As the subject line says I've got an IBM Type 31 Alphabetical Duplicating
> Keypunch sitting in my basement, in the Seattle area.
> 
> It's in well-loved but decent physical condition and appears to be
> completely original.  I have not powered it on (still has the original
> selenium rectifiers in it, for one thing) but mechanically it seems fine.
> No rust or obviously damaged parts, but it's clearly gotten a decent amount
> of use since the 1930s.
> 
> It's really cool but it's not really something I'm interested in keeping --
> if any of you are interested or know someone who is interested, please feel
> free to make an offer.  Due to the size and fragility of the item I don't
> want to ship this thing.
> 
> 
> Pictures are available here:
> https://1drv.ms/u/s!Aqb36sqnCIfMo9BhHMhAok3F4cAInQ?e=EhXDPP
> 
> Thanks!
> Josh



-- 
73   NM6Y
Bickley Consulting West Inc.
https://bickleywest.com

"Black holes are where God is dividing by zero"


Re: IBM Type 31 Alphabetical Duplicating Keypunch available, Seattle area

2020-02-10 Thread Tony Aiuto via cctalk
Wow. That is gorgeous.

On Mon, Feb 10, 2020 at 7:24 PM William Donzelli via cctalk <
cctalk@classiccmp.org> wrote:

> How did you end up with that?
>
> Anyway, I forwarded your message to see if the Techworks! Binghamton
> Bunch wants it.
>
> --
> Will
>
> On Mon, Feb 10, 2020 at 6:35 PM Josh Dersch via cctalk
>  wrote:
> >
> > (resending as this appears to have gotten eaten last time...)
> >
> > Hi all --
> >
> > As the subject line says I've got an IBM Type 31 Alphabetical Duplicating
> > Keypunch sitting in my basement, in the Seattle area.
> >
> > It's in well-loved but decent physical condition and appears to be
> > completely original.  I have not powered it on (still has the original
> > selenium rectifiers in it, for one thing) but mechanically it seems fine.
> > No rust or obviously damaged parts, but it's clearly gotten a decent
> amount
> > of use since the 1930s.
> >
> > It's really cool but it's not really something I'm interested in keeping
> --
> > if any of you are interested or know someone who is interested, please
> feel
> > free to make an offer.  Due to the size and fragility of the item I don't
> > want to ship this thing.
> >
> >
> > Pictures are available here:
> > https://1drv.ms/u/s!Aqb36sqnCIfMo9BhHMhAok3F4cAInQ?e=EhXDPP
> >
> > Thanks!
> > Josh
>


Re: IBM Type 31 Alphabetical Duplicating Keypunch available, Seattle area

2020-02-10 Thread William Donzelli via cctalk
How did you end up with that?

Anyway, I forwarded your message to see if the Techworks! Binghamton
Bunch wants it.

--
Will

On Mon, Feb 10, 2020 at 6:35 PM Josh Dersch via cctalk
 wrote:
>
> (resending as this appears to have gotten eaten last time...)
>
> Hi all --
>
> As the subject line says I've got an IBM Type 31 Alphabetical Duplicating
> Keypunch sitting in my basement, in the Seattle area.
>
> It's in well-loved but decent physical condition and appears to be
> completely original.  I have not powered it on (still has the original
> selenium rectifiers in it, for one thing) but mechanically it seems fine.
> No rust or obviously damaged parts, but it's clearly gotten a decent amount
> of use since the 1930s.
>
> It's really cool but it's not really something I'm interested in keeping --
> if any of you are interested or know someone who is interested, please feel
> free to make an offer.  Due to the size and fragility of the item I don't
> want to ship this thing.
>
>
> Pictures are available here:
> https://1drv.ms/u/s!Aqb36sqnCIfMo9BhHMhAok3F4cAInQ?e=EhXDPP
>
> Thanks!
> Josh