[cctalk] Re: WTB Any storage for a PDP 8/A

On 2/26/2023 1:15 AM, jos via cctalk wrote: On 25.02.23 18:52, silvercreekvalley--- via cctalk wrote: Thanks Vince - I knew about the RX emulators but not the serial disk - that sounds interesting. Is there any documentation on that - I had a look at the GitHub but seemed a bit sparse. I can

[cctalk] Re: WTB Any storage for a PDP 8/A

type "pdp8" in that directory and your new system should boot in SIMH. Hope that helps, Vince On Sun, Feb 26, 2023 at 2:34 AM Vincent Slyngstad via cctalk < cctalk@classiccmp.org> wrote: ... The one I use most uses the SIMH simulator to automate the ritual of uninst

[cctalk] Re: WTB Any storage for a PDP 8/A

Here's a link to a distribution for the E8 emacs-like editor I mentioned: https://tangentsoft.com/e8/wiki?name=Home Also, tangentsoft has a bunch of information about software development related to the PiDP effort, including their version of the C compiler.

[cctalk] Re: WTB Any storage for a PDP 8/A

On 2/25/2023 9:52 AM, silvercreekvalley--- via cctalk wrote: Thanks Vince - I knew about the RX emulators but not the serial disk - that sounds interesting. Is there any documentation on that - I had a look at the GitHub but seemed a bit sparse. Suggestions on how to make it more accessible

[cctalk] Re: WTB Any storage for a PDP 8/A

On 2/25/2023 6:46 AM, silvercreekvalley--- via cctalk wrote: Hi all, I'm cooking up a new interpreter for the PDP 8. It uses a C like language (C-) and is really a project to get my head round the PDP 8 architecture. Note its an interpreter not compiler :-) I have recently got my hands on a

[cctalk] Re: ZFS, was [... GreaseWeazle ..]

On 2/2/2023 3:54 AM, emanuel stiebler via cctalk wrote: So, what else do you guys use, to make sure your data is safe for the years to come? I maintain a large SVN repository, which also serves as the backing store for my website. I rely on the backup policies at DreamHost, but I also keep

[cctalk] Re: WPS-8 vs. WPS-200

On 1/17/2023 12:21 PM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk wrote: Other than the media size (8" vs. 5.25"), what are the substantial differences between WPS-8 and WPS-200?  I'm mostly interested in the software functionality. Are you actually asking about the WPS operating system? I don't know many

[cctalk] Re: Diablo series 30 or Dec RK03

On 1/8/2023 3:34 AM, jos via cctalk wrote: Is it even possible to add a diskdrive to a PDP8/L ? My 1970 "Small computer handbook" only mentions TU55/TC01 and DF32 as mass-storage options for the 8/L. Both are essentially unobtainable. As others have suggested, a "period correct" 8/L solution

[cctalk] Re: PDP 8a front panel hardware

On 10/11/2022 10:49 AM, geneb via cctalk wrote: On Tue, 11 Oct 2022, Vincent Slyngstad via cctalk wrote: The DEC part is essentially bent bar stock, with a nut press-fit into it. Also easy to to do if you have the tooling. I know a lot more folks with a 3D printer than I do the folks

[cctalk] Re: PDP 8a front panel hardware

On 10/11/2022 12:27 PM, Tony Duell via cctalk wrote: I reckon you could make a couple (i.e. what you need for one machine) from steel or brass in an hour using only hand tools. The only things you'd need that are not in every reasonable toolkit are a 6-32 UNC tap and whatever the correct tapping

[cctalk] Re: PDP 8a front panel hardware

On 10/11/2022 12:37 PM, geneb via cctalk wrote: Anyway, the original is bent bar stock, with notching near the apex, and a nut press-fit/spot welded where I've drawn an indent.  I've drawn it as a triangular plastic block in an effort to make it more structural. I wonder if a heat-set insert

[cctalk] Re: PDP 8a front panel hardware

On 10/11/2022 10:48 AM, geneb via cctalk wrote: If someone wants to provide me with a drawing, I'd be happy to design a 3D model of the part and print a few of them for testing. Here's a pointer to mine: https://so-much-stuff.com/pdp8/cad/3d.php

[cctalk] Re: PDP 8a front panel hardware

On 10/11/2022 10:08 AM, Tony Duell wrote: On Tue, Oct 11, 2022 at 6:04 PM Vincent Slyngstad via cctalk wrote: Those are the ones. The 3D printed parts are essentially triangular blocks that mount to the rack and have a drilled and tapped hole for the recessed Allen screw. Why on earth

[cctalk] Re: PDP 8a front panel hardware

On 10/11/2022 8:17 AM, Robert Armstrong via cctalk wrote: Bill Degnan mbilldeg...@gmail.com> wrote: Is there a 3D print gcode for the hardware that connects a PDP8a front panel to the chassis? Assuming you're talking about the KC8-A (the panel with the push buttons and 7 segment displays)

[cctalk] Re: PDP 8a front panel hardware

On 10/11/2022 8:17 AM, Robert Armstrong via cctalk wrote: Bill Degnan mbilldeg...@gmail.com> wrote: Is there a 3D print gcode for the hardware that connects a PDP8a front panel to the chassis? Assuming you're talking about the KC8-A (the panel with the push buttons and 7 segment displays)

[cctalk] Re: PDP 8a front panel hardware

Once you've printed one, it might be possible to cast additional ones more quickly and the result might be stronger. That metal bezel with the two PCB inside is rather heavy for a plastic mount. Vince On Tue, Oct 11, 2022, 2:37 AM Vincent Slyngstad via cctalk < cctalk@classiccmp.

[cctalk] Re: PDP 8a front panel hardware

On 10/10/2022 11:00 PM, Adrian Stoness via cctalk wrote: theres 3d print models made of them theres the orig design with does not prit very well and a modified design thats better list forget where might be buried on this site? https://so-much-stuff.com/pdp8/repair/repair.php I tried to do one

Re: List migration

I recently used "Reply" instead of "Reply List" to attempt a private reply. That attempted to send to the list anyway, but I didn't notice. That lead to three days of "delivery delayed", and finally to "Delivery Status Notification (Failure)", with this reason given: 554 5.7.1 Service

Re: DECmate II disk image tooling?

On 3/13/2022 7:57 AM, David Schmidt via cctech wrote: Good point about the CP/M disk - actually it is read just fine with cpmtools with this diskdef: # PRO CP/M RX50 DZ format (Perhaps only 79 tracks should be used?) diskdef dec_pro seclen 512 tracks 80 sectrk 10 blocksize 2048

Re: rotron caravel fan used in DEC and other cabinets

On 2/20/2022 5:39 PM, Don R wrote: You might also consider All Electronics: https://www.allelectronics.com/index.php?page=seek%5Bm%5D=pattern%5Bq%5D=Fan Maybe I missed them, but I didn't see anything big enough

Re: rotron caravel fan used in DEC and other cabinets

On 2/20/2022 4:34 PM, Noel Chiappa via cctalk wrote: > From: Vincent Slyngstad > I had to replace one of those recently Where did you source the replacement? I need a few. Thanks! I may be wrong, but from what I could tell these are bog standard 10 inch blowers of a sort used in

Re: rotron caravel fan used in DEC and other cabinets

On 2/20/2022 2:33 AM, Paul Anderson via cctalk wrote: Does anyone have a video or printed procedure they can send me or point me somewhere that could help? Are we talking about the 10 inch fan at the top of the rack? I had to replace one of those recently, but it wasn't very difficult.

Re: Odd board in a pdp8/e

On 2/3/2022 6:41 PM, Chris Zach via cctalk wrote: It's a MD-V PL/PDP8 303-0112-002. Half populated with 4k RAMs. So I'm guessing 16kw in the computer in core, 16kw RAM. Ah, now *that* apparently has a manual on bitsavers:

Re: Odd board in a pdp8/e

On 2/3/2022 5:42 PM, Chris Zach via cctalk wrote: But two odd Omnibus cards: One is a memory board, half populated, my guess is it's enough memory to bring the computer to 32kw. The other is an mets 303-0115-001. Bunch of 7400 series logic chips, nothing too special. Any idea what it might

Re: Testing a H744 Regulator on The Bench

On 12/30/2021 10:08 AM, Rob Jarratt via cctalk wrote: Also, the indicator light does not work (as expected). I have seen the suggestion to replace it with a CM7381. It looks like these can be sourced with relative ease,

Re: K12MIT on PDP-12

On 11/26/2021 1:43 AM, Christian Corti via cctalk wrote: I've found the bug. Charles Lasner broke PDP-12 support (and probably also older PDP-8 models like 8/I) with his additions to support the DECmate family. The location is at 0206, labelled SETBAUD. This should be a NOP on standard

Re: K12MIT on PDP-12

On 11/25/2021 1:15 AM, Christian Corti via cctalk wrote: On Wed, 24 Nov 2021, Vincent Slyngstad wrote: I haven't had much use for K12MIT -- the tools that come with the latest SerialDisk can take apart and rebuild/modify bootable/server images, so I just copy whatever to or the directory those

Re: K12MIT on PDP-12

On 11/24/2021 1:47 AM, Christian Corti via cctalk wrote: So, with the help of you here, I was able to create OS/8 LINCtapes and to run SerialDisk. Everything runs very fine. Yay! Now comes the next thing: I want to have K12MIT, and it is no problem to compile or load the program. *But*: When

Re: LINCtape images

On 11/5/2021 7:07 AM, Chris Zach via cctalk wrote: Speaking of which I have a couple of boxes of Linctapes from a pdp12 system that was used in a college. Is there any value in getting the data off them? I'd say yes :-). It's a bit of a pain to do the imaging, but storing the images has

Re: LINCtape images

On 11/4/2021 5:46 PM, David Gesswein via cctech wrote: On Tue, Nov 02, 2021 at 07:53:42PM -0700, Vincent Slyngstad wrote: On 11/2/2021 2:25 PM, Jay Jaeger via cctalk wrote: Here is a program I wrote for reading/writing tape images via XModem protocol for my PDP-12, and another for comparing

Re: LINCtape images

On 11/3/2021 9:13 AM, Jay Jaeger wrote: On 11/2/2021 9:53 PM, Vincent Slyngstad via cctalk wrote: In making the page zero literals line up (so that the code matches the originals), I found two locations in xmtape which are coded as  TAD    (16. but the code references a new literal

Re: LINCtape images

On 11/2/2021 2:25 PM, Jay Jaeger via cctalk wrote: Here is a program I wrote for reading/writing tape images via XModem protocol for my PDP-12, and another for comparing two linctapes. Cool! I was able to recover the code and convert it into a more modern PAL dialect. Your listings also

Re: SerialDisk (Re: LINCtape images)

On 11/2/2021 7:12 AM, Christian Corti via cctalk wrote: On Tue, 2 Nov 2021, Vincent Slyngstad wrote: https://github.com/drovak/os8diskserver The current version should have no problems with the 8/I or with the PDP-12. (Maybe even the straight-8, but I can't remember checking if it is

Re: SerialDisk (Re: LINCtape images)

On 11/2/2021 2:42 AM, Christian Corti via cctalk wrote: On Fri, 29 Oct 2021, Vincent Slyngstad wrote: There seem to be a couple of formats that were frequently used, and a third lesser used format.  One of the issues is that you have to go into maintenance mode, as far as I can tell, to

Re: LINCtape images

On 10/29/2021 5:22 AM, Christian Corti via cctalk wrote: Short question: How do I transfer LINCtape images back to tape on a PDP-12? Ideally there is some binary program to load via papertape to format a tape and recreate it with data transfer over the console serial line. I was thinking to

Re: Linux and the 'clssic' computing world

On 9/28/2021 5:14 AM, Toby Thain via cctalk wrote: On 2021-09-27 11:46 p.m., ben via cctalk wrote: POSIX requires a byte to be exactly 8 bits I read somewhere. C99 C standard? Great for ARM and INTEL, not so great for the 36 bit computers. We've been through this before. No. As I understand

Re: What's left of the Houston Museum stuff

On 7/23/2021 2:56 PM, Zane Healy via cctalk wrote: Personally when I see “Museum” in this context, I don’t think of this as a museum not taking care of the artifacts, I look at this from the standpoint of the founder not taking the necessary steps when setting the Museum up to ensure its

Re: DEC Computer Lab for sale

Jack Rubin sent me photos of the patch cords he has, which are quite different. Maybe they are originally from the older logic lab, instead of the computer lab? Anyway, I updated my page: https://so-much-stuff.com/pdp8/computerlab/computerlab.php slightly to include the pin numbers and the

Re: DEC Computer Lab for sale

R 30 O 25 Y 20 G 10 B 2 Vince On Sun, May 30, 2021 at 3:40 PM Vincent Slyngstad via cctalk mailto:cctalk@classiccmp.org>> wrote: On 5/30/2021 10:54 AM, Ethan Dicks wrote: > On Sun, May 30, 2021 at 11:42 AM Vincent Slyngstad via cctalk > mailto:cctalk@classic

Re: DEC Computer Lab for sale

On 5/30/2021 10:54 AM, Ethan Dicks wrote: On Sun, May 30, 2021 at 11:42 AM Vincent Slyngstad via cctalk wrote: https://so-much-stuff.com/pdp8/computerlab/computerlab.php The photos get a little bigger if you click them. Those bits of stamped brass or whatever they are made of were probably

Re: DEC Computer Lab for sale

of were probably pennies each. Vince On Sun, May 30, 2021, 3:08 AM Vincent Slyngstad via cctalk mailto:cctalk@classiccmp.org>> wrote: On 5/29/2021 10:52 PM, William Donzelli wrote: >> While the mini-banana makes a passable (though expensive) modern >> sub

Re: DEC Computer Lab for sale

On 5/29/2021 10:52 PM, William Donzelli wrote: While the mini-banana makes a passable (though expensive) modern substitute, I believe the originals were hollow crimp-on taper pins, #42107 or #42279. Really? I have loads of taper pin patch cables. I should try one out. The sockets just loom

Re: DEC Computer Lab for sale

On 5/29/2021 5:58 PM, William Donzelli via cctalk wrote: Who's idea was the mini-banana anyway? I do not think it was General Radio. Pomona? I recently came across some dual mini banana adapters (for someone without correct context that would be very confusing) but they have no makers marks.

Re: cctech Digest, Vol 80, Issue 10

On 5/11/2021 10:29 AM, Mark Matlock wrote: Vince, I recently had Shapeways 3D print some of your card handles in Nylon 12. They call Nylon 12 “versatile plastic” on their web site and they use a laser sintering process for fabrication. I used the card handles on my QBone and UniBone boards

Re: QBUS/UNIBUS card handles

On 5/10/2021 9:25 AM, Fritz Mueller via cctalk wrote: On May 10, 2021, at 7:14 AM, Joshua Rice via cctalk wrote: I would assume it would be trivial to do an injection-moulded run of these handles... They might also be ideal for silicone mold / resin cast, for smaller/home production

Re: PDP-8/I Negative-bus termination

On 5/5/2021 12:03 AM, Josh Dersch via cctalk wrote: Until this point I've never had any peripherals for my negibus systems (apart from teletypes), and it occurs to me that I have no idea if the bus needs to be terminated (and if so, with what). There are 6 slots in the RF08 backplane (D01-D06)

Re: DEC RF08/RS08 module placement info

On 4/25/2021 1:42 PM, Josh Dersch via cctalk wrote: 2) Can someone with an RF08 and/or RS08 take a few detailed pictures of the logic (from the handle side, of course) so I can compare? (Note: the available RF08/RS08 pictures on the 'net are of the unit currently in my possession, so are not

Re: DEC RX50 disks with mystery content

On 3/31/2021 10:20 AM, David Schmidt via cctech wrote: Hello, DEC enthusiasts - I've got some 5-1/4" disks here that purport to be from a DECmate (probably II) and may have data offloaded from a bigger system.  But the disks don't have any recognizable trace of a filesystem on them; just

Re: Need to have a roll of paper punch tape read by a tape reader and printed

I am a cctalk subscriber, but I don't seem to be getting messages reliably any more. So, I'm replying to the reply, as I never got the original query. Anyway Gary, I'm in Beaverton OR, USA and so quite possibly local, and I can read your paper tape easily enough. Email or a thumb drive or

Re: DEC part number system

On 12/31/2020 12:48 PM, Noel Chiappa via cctalk wrote: So, DEC part numbers (xx-y-zz) have a system where the 'xx' says what _kind_ of part it is; e.g. bootstrap PROMs are all 23-x-yy. I seem to recall reading at some point something which listed all the xx- codes, and what they meant -

Re: non-shunting jumpers?

On 10/22/2020 11:30 AM, brian--- via cctalk wrote: Hi all, Oddball question here: has anyone ever seen a way to cap off or protect standard 0.1" pin header jumpers? Maybe there exist jumper plugs that *don't *conduct across the two pins? I'm looking at a piece of hardware that has some jumper

Re: Dilithium Press (Computer Books)

On 7/14/2020 6:53 AM, Zane Healy via cctalk wrote: > Out of curiosity, does anyone know anything about this publisher? They apparently existed in the late 70’s and early 80’s. They were apparently located in Beaverton, Oregon in the same business park, on Nimbus, where Norvac Electronics was.

Re: Fixing an RK8E ....

On 6/19/2020 12:24 PM, Robert Armstrong via cctalk wrote: Ok, maybe a bad bit in the command register so I'll check it out. But then it dawns on me - how do you work on this thing? It's three boards connected with "over the top" connectors - you can't use a module extender on it. Worse, the

Re: DEC OS/8 Question (getting an error TOO BIG INIT)

On 4/8/2020 12:34 PM, Bill Degnan via cctalk wrote: . FRTS ..dumps me to the * prompt ... *RKB0:ADVENT.LD [return] * [esc] rather than loading ADVENTURE I get the following result: D.F. TOO BIG INIT MAIN 1740 . Have you seen this?

Re: Box of HP 1000 series MUX cards - 12040

On 7/8/2019 6:35 PM, Guy Dunphy via cctalk wrote: At 12:18 PM 8/07/2019 +, jesse cypress-tech.com wrote: If anyone wants 87 HP 1000 series mux cards for gold or to play around with, I'm starting to clean house. The ebay link is below. https://www.ebay.com/itm/383039137321 Wow. Way to

Re: OS8 filesystem tools

On 5/24/2019 5:00 PM, Charles Dickman via cctalk wrote: Besides PUTR are there any tools for reading and writing to pdp8 OS8 device images? Something with source for Linux maybe? I've got tools that will unpack OS/8 images into files, which work on Linux and Cygwin (they are Perl scripts). It

Re: PDP-8: count number of set bits in a word

From: Kyle Owen via cctalk: Friday, April 05, 2019 8:59 AM Just wondering if anyone has come up with a fast way to count the number of 1s in a word on a PDP-8. The obvious way is looping 12 times, rotating the word through the link or sign bit, incrementing a count based on the value of the link

Re: 8-Update

From: Anders Nelson via cctalk: Saturday, February 16, 2019 10:58 AM Oh boy, how did I miss that someone has created a front panel PCB layout for a PDP-8/e? Can you ask Vince to share that design please? Took me a bit of hunting to see how my name came up, as the thread is from a while back,

Re: Info, spice model parameters for DEC pulse transformers?

From: Joseph Oswald: Wednesday, July 18, 2018 9:44 AM Thanks for the response. I had seen your info on the two other parts. Unfortunately, I have no idea if these system modules exist outside a museum. You're welcome. I've seen them occasionally, but not often. Like the flip-chip modules, I

Re: Info, spice model parameters for DEC pulse transformers?

From: Joseph Oswald: Wednesday, July 18, 2018 12:15 AM I'm trying to model the PDP-1 DEC system models, first with SPICE (ngspice on Linux), then with VHDL. The spice modeling of flip-chip modules has been an interest area for me. I imagine that's similar, though perhaps less daunting, than

Re: DEC H960 stabiliser feet. Have some questions.

From: Steve Malikoff via cctalk: Wednesday, January 03, 2018 3:26 PM Vince - thanks for the measurements, I will redraw a better 3-view using those. Not sure about how the extra bolt goes though. You're welcome, and thanks for your work on the drawing. One thing I forgot to mention -- on

Re: DEC H960 stabiliser feet. Have some questions.

From: Steve Malikoff via cctalk: Tuesday, January 02, 2018 6:24 PM I'm in need of some feet for my H960s and am intending to make a few pairs, so I thought I might as well try and make them look close to the originals. I have some questions- Does the (optional?) sheetmetal kickplate play any

Re: RL02 to PC image

From: Ethan Dicks: Friday, December 15, 2017 6:15 AM On Fri, Dec 15, 2017 at 2:36 AM, Vincent Slyngstad via cctalk <cctalk@classiccmp.org> wrote: Mine are available here: http://www.so-much-stuff.com/pdp8/cad/3d.php It's a fairly finicky print. Fine detail and cantilevered thin pins tha

Re: RL02 to PC image

From: Adrian Stoness via cctalk: Thursday, December 14, 2017 9:33 PM On Thu, Dec 14, 2017 at 9:01 PM, John Welch via cctalk wrote: Is there a simple cluedge to convert the indicator light on RL02 from one number to another? My RL02 has the "2" and I likely need to change that to a "0" thers

Re: PDP8 ALGOL

From: Michael Thompson via cctalk: Tuesday, December 05, 2017 4:59 PM The paper tape images are here: http://www.bitsavers.org/bits/DEC/pdp8/papertapeImages/set3/ The RICM also has an original set of the DECUS 8-213 ALGOL paper tapes, but they are different from the ones on Bitsavers. I need to

Re: Aaron Nabil & pdp-8.org

I wrote to Aaron a couple of days ago, and mentioned Jay's offer to him. I did hear back from him -- he's aware of the problem and does have his site backed up. (He didn't volunteer any details about his plans, but I assume he's got things in hand.) Vince

Re: Aaron Nabil & pdp-8.org

From: "Tomasz Rola via cctalk" Sent: Saturday, October 07, 2017 7:11 AM On Sat, Oct 07, 2017 at 10:01:40AM -0400, Noel Chiappa via cctalk wrote: Did you get it all? Anyone else download it? I have got - probably - all. It is slightly above 500m in size (first try kind

Re: Aaron Nabil & pdp-8.org

From: "Zane Healy via cctalk" Sent: Thursday, October 05, 2017 9:09 PM I’m not sure if Aaron’s website was offline prior to the last couple days or not, as I honestly don’t remember the last time that I visited, but it’s offline now. Aaron once upon a time, used to work

Re: Warren Stearns info.

From: Doug Ingraham via cctalk: Friday, August 11, 2017 3:53 PM He has been working on a Flip Chip tester for a couple of years now and has been using a bread boarded early version of this for several years. I am hoping I can find someone with the knowledge and drive to continue working on his

Re: early (pre-1971) edge-triggered D flip-flop ICs

From: Ethan Dicks: Thursday, July 20, 2017 11:08 AM On Thu, Jul 20, 2017 at 11:35 AM, Norman Jaffe via cctech wrote: Or, in today's dollars - $58. Ouch. Wow! That's many dollars per flip and or flop! If that lasted any time at all, one can see the rationale behind

Re: RL02 Replacement indicator bulbs

From: "Aaron Jackson: Sunday, June 18, 2017 11:02 AM Thanks Vince. Some useful information there. I'll take another look. They seem a bit hard to find in the UK, for a sensible price anyway. No problem. I did find them on the Farnell UK site. The CM73 is local, but the GE part is in the USA

Re: RL02 Replacement indicator bulbs

From: Aaron Jackson via cctech: Saturday, June 17, 2017 2:14 AM Can anyone suggest a source of replacement indicator bulbs for an RL02 drive? Are they fairly standard? The correct bulb is the GE-73, a fairly common bulb: http://www.so-much-stuff.com/pdp8/repair/bulbs.php I found this eBay

Re: Looking for PDP-8 G603 "Memory Selector Matrix" boards (or dec T-2052 transformers)

From: Charles Dickman via cctalk: Saturday, April 15, 2017 6:15 PM Do we know who made the transformers originally? I maintain some old industrial hardware designs that used pulse transformers from the mid-60's and I may still have catalogs and/or data sheets. The DEC part number for these

Re: Looking for PDP-8 G603 "Memory Selector Matrix" boards (or dec T-2052 transformers)

I realize it's a long shot, but does anyone have: - Any spare T-2052s (or know of a source) - Any idea what the T-2052 *was* so I can try to replace them. I haven't found much detail as of yet. Good news on this front! I had previously obtained a data sheet for the T2037, a similar