@RetroViator@bitbang.social
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RetroViator

@RetroViator@bitbang.social

Classic Computer Enthusiast

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RetroViator, to random
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I'm trying to identify a 386sx motherboard. It has an unusual ISA slot arrangement, and it is using Chips & Technology's CS8221 NEAT chipset. The markings on the top of the board "PCC-77AT05E" have me thinking it might have been made by PC-Calc, and perhaps its a modified 286 board. I'd really like to know its jumper settings.

RetroViator,
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@vga256 The closest seems to be https://theretroweb.com/motherboards/s/dataexpert-386sx-neatsx. The seller on eBay understandably misidentified it as this one. Unfortunately, there is no documentation for jumper settings on this one either.

RetroViator,
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@vga256 Thank you very much! I guess it is a frustratingly common, rare board.

RetroViator, to random
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This is handy little USB cable tester I picked up on AliExpress. I have now labeled my power-only cables.

RetroViator, to random
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I am blown away by the quality and comprehensive nature of the eXo projects--especially eXoDOS with its related books, magazines, and soundtracks. Why did it take me so long to pay attention to this resource?

Granted, it takes a commitment to download ~2TB of data but what a preservation accomplishment. With projects for DOS, Windows 3.x, edutainment titles, Scumm-based games, LucasArts-games, and the Apple IIGS, this project focuses on playability, and it delivers.

https://www.retro-exo.com/

RetroViator, to random
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Maybe it’s a fluke, but it seems PC-DOS 3.1 will not properly format a drive if the system is using a current date. It proceeds with the format, but the drive is not accessible. Move to a vintage date, and it works.

RetroViator, to random
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I finally have one of the hardest things to find at a reasonable price in vintage computing.

billgoats, to random
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Throughout February I was trying to get this AppleTalk VPN thing to work: https://github.com/AceHusky12/atalkvpn

But it's far beyond my skillz (maybe one of you clever folk can get it going!)

Then @vga256 found the IP extension to Apple's AppleTalk Internet Router. Mildly perplexing software, but seemed to be figureable-out.

1/2

RetroViator,
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@billgoats @paulrickards This is amazing!

It is a blessing you both had the curiosity, time, and skills to pull this off. I hope you can memorialize your work somewhere.

ActionRetro, to random
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Hah neat!

RetroViator,
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@ActionRetro You’re a bigtime guy. Congratulations 🎉

RetroViator, to random
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Working on restoring two floppy drives and both are giving me fits. I think I was using a test disk that is shedding or moldy or something and it contaminated both drives.

Here is a clean disk before and after inserting into the drive and lowering the mechanism. I didn’t let it spin this time to verify the problem. Odd thing is I’ve cleaned the daylights out of these heads, but the problem remains. I think it’s time for a full disassembly to really get up close.

image/jpeg

RetroViator, to random
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I think I got to this one just in the nick of time!

image/jpeg

RetroViator,
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I might have been a bit too optimistic.

About a dozen traces are in bad shape under the Varta. Several are completely gone, but it’s likely salvageable.

RetroViator, to retrocomputing
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(1/2) I went to my local e-waste for the first time this week. I’d been avoiding it because I assumed it would simple dumpster, but I was surprised to find a staffed drive-thru building with stacks of gear being prepped for recycling.

I asked the guys working there if they ever see any old computers come through, and I was disappointed to hear that a pallet of boxed Apple IIs, with CRTs, has been there the week before, but were gone now.


RetroViator,
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(2/2) I spotted a Mac Pro sitting off to the side and asked what I should do if I wanted to take it home. The guy said matter-of-factly, “put it in your car.” I did just that!

I also spotted a particularly cute mini tower at the bottom of a pallet of non-descript late model Dells and Compaqs. They graciously allowed me to restack the pallet and bring a sweet 386 home too.

Needless to say, I’ll be going back!


RetroViator, to retrocomputing
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Time to repair this Tandon drive thanks to a 3-D printed part and a new dowel.

image/jpeg

vga256, (edited ) to SmallWeb
@vga256@dialup.cafe avatar

after watching doug block's Home Page (1999) documentary a half-dozen times over the past year, i realized how much i missed having a personal home page.

not an itch.io page. not a github repo. not an imgur album.

an actual personal home page full of links to interesting places and people, and a little blog area to write personal stuff in. i haven't had a personal blog since the early 2000s.

i wanted to have some fun, so I hauled my dusty ol' iMac G5 out of storage and installed Macromedia Dreamweaver and Fireworks. i hadn't used any of them in almost 20 years.

i thought it might take me a week to build a home page...

... it took me a year 😅

so this is my little attempt at rebuilding what we lost in the 90s. let me know if you've got a little homepage i can link back to in my hyperlinks area.

http://www.dialup.cafe/~vga256

RetroViator,
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@vga256 Lovely! The look and feel is impressive—better than the’90s for sure, but the aesthetic is spot on.

RetroViator, to random
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Now I just need a an early Pentium INTERGRAPH workstation to go with this unique keyboard.

RetroViator,
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@thomasfuchs Testing is required. Intergraph made high-end graphic workstations, so their stuff is a bit unusual.

RetroViator,
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@thomasfuchs I purchased this to go with a system I saw online, but once I won the bid on the keyboard, the computer was already sold. Dumb on my part.

I am interested in digging into the history of Intergraph.

RetroViator, to random
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It’s a small thing, but this is the vintage Apple keyboard I’ve been missing. Now to clean it up and use it with my Mac SE.

RetroViator,
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Somehow, cleaning a keyboard feels right on a cold wet November day.

RetroViator,
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I’ve learned it’s a good idea to reflow the ADB ports on vintage Macintosh keyboards as they sometimes have cracked joints.

RetroViator,
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I know the Apple Extended Keyboard II gets a lot of love, but this might be my favorite size to use regularly due to its smaller size (though some keys, including the arrow keys, are not great).

RetroViator,
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@thomasfuchs The original Extended is hard to find!

RetroViator, to random
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Getting this Hayes 2400 SmartModem back in business. Thanks to https://tempestfpga.com/.

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