The Computer Pile
Last Modified: Tuesday, 05-Aug-2003 00:03:51 PDT

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Okay, so I have this big pile of computers. No, a really big pile of computers. Here's the list. Items in green are actually connected and online. Items in red are in some way broken and do not work. Also, you will find some of the entrys have links. Whenver you see them, they are offsite links containing more information about the particular machine in question.

The "Modern" Computers

These are the computers I actually use on a day to day basis.

• venus - Athlon 2400+XP: 640 megs of RAM, 40GB disk. Yeah, it runs Windows XP. The machine that I generally fiddle with.
• neptune - Duron 800: 512 megs of RAM, 200GB disk. This is my primary Linux machine now. It's got the standard array of services, and generally is never turned off.
• ganymede and chiron Apple iBooks: Almost identical, except one is a 700MHz G3 and the other is an 800MHz G3. Note that one currently dosen't work. I'm not happy about that. I like to wander around the house with the Mac laptops. And OS X is a big turn-on.
• fizzgig - AMD K6-2/350(?): Gave this machine to the wife. She rarely uses it, because her work gave her a shiny new Pentium 4 fairly recently.
• mercury - AMD K6-2/500: Runs Windows 2000 Pro. Harware configuration does tend to vary widely. Somewhat depricated now that I have a speedy Athlon Windows box. Will likely get relegated to some kind of Linux use in the future.
• muse - Cyrix/VIA C-III/700 128 megs of RAM, 800MB total disk, Debian Linux. This is the machine that currently runs the "tunetosser", a program called otto, that provides tunage by the tonnage. Note that the actual mp3 stash is on neptune. nfs is a beautiful thing.
• pax - Sun SPARCstation IPC: 12 megs of RAM, 1 GB total disk, runs NetBSD for SPARC. Currently used as an Xterminal. Not on much anymore.
• electra - Sun SPARCstation 4: 32 megs of RAM, 500 megs total disk, runs Sparc Linux. Also primarily an Xterminal.
• shiznat - Intel Pentium/100: 16 megs of RAM, PCI/ISA, 1GB total disk, runs a perverted Linux called "Mikrotik" for routing. This machine is also called "wowtuh", becuase it's a.. wowtuh. huhuhuhuhuhuuuhuhuuh. </fudd>
• dustpuppy - Intel Pentium/166: Dell Dimension XPS/166. 32 megs of RAM, PCI/ISA, 10GB total disk, runs WindowsMe. Rarely used.
• ethel - Gateway 2000/Intel Overdrive 486DX/66: 16 megs of RAM, ISA, 3GB total disk, runs Windows 95. Recently decommissioned. Actually, I don't know exactly where it is at the moment.
• littlericky - Intel Pentium/133: 48 megs of RAM, PCI/ISA, 1GB total disk, runs Windows 98. This is another machine that my wife uses for her work. I apologize for the B&W television references.
• friday - generic 486SLC laptop: 8 megs of RAM, 200MB total disk, runs Slackware Linux. This box is a "hardened" host.
• desoto - Canon Notebook: This machine needs a new keyboard. It will eventually become a larger version of desoto. Hey... if my wife can name her computers after I Love Lucy characters, I can name mine after Emergency! ones.
• snot - Intel Pentium/60: 16 megs of RAM, PCI/ISA, 2GB total disk, runs Windows 95 OSR2. Set out to pasture recently. This was my first Pentium: purchased when Pentiums were brand new. No, it does not have the math bug, but thanks for asking.
• gage - Toshiba T2100 Laptop Not really used that much.
• wimpr - Macintosh LC/40: Hey. I like Macs. So sue me.
• wizzr - IBM 486SLC: In pieces right now. In the past, wizzr was also known as kd6cos.ampr.org. It served many moons as my amateur packet radio gateway. It may have a future as a terminal and/or a print server.
• "old" wopr - AMD 486DX4/100: 16 megs of RAM, VLB/ISA, 560 megs total disk, runs Slackware Linux. It started out a 386SX, and has been upgraded three times in the four years of it's existance. This machine also has the strange honor of being the only box I own that had a Y2K problem. wopr was officially decommissioned some years ago. Note that there is a "new" wopr: a quad-Pentium Pro machine that serves colo duty at ExoCom.

The Atari Pile

Okay, I know some of this should probably go into the video game list, but here it goes.

• Atari XEGS: with Atari 1050 Disk Drive and two joysticks.
• Atari 1200XL
• Atari 520ST: With SMM804 "E.T. Head" Color Monitor. This was my first 680x0 based machine. I purchased this when the Atari ST first came out, with my third check from my first "real" job working for Pacific Bell as a directory assistance operator. I was 16, fresh out of high school, and thought this computer kicked ass. In retrospect, I probably should have bought the Amiga 1000 instead. Not that the ST was a bad machine... it's just that the Amiga was more the computer I really wanted. That being said, I have fond memories of sitting up until 3AM with my Atari ST, playing games and chatting online with it.
• Atari 1040STM: With SMM804 "non-E.T. Head" Color Monitor
• Atari Mega ST 2

The Commodore / Amiga Pile

• Commodore 128D: It actually is part of my A/V system. You can play games, log on to mercury, or just listen to the beautiful noises generated by the Commodore SID chip.
• Commodore 64C: with a Commodore 1541 disk drive. It was placed into storage in working order.
• Commodore 64: The original.
• Commodore VIC-20: The original. It infrequently gets connected, just to scare little children with it's huge 22-column text.
• Amiga 500: With 1 Meg of RAM and a Trumpcard Classic
• Amiga 600: with 1 meg of RAM and a 100MB hard disk. This machine was put in storage in working order.
• Amiga 3000: with 4 megs of RAM and a 240MB hard disk, plus a Video Toaster board. Picked up at a swap meet. It currently does not work.
• Amiga 1000: with 512k of RAM. Blown CIA. Will actually fix someday.
• Commodore 128: It's parts.
• A stack of disk drives: A couple of 1541 drives, a 1581, a SFD1001, a 1541-II, and a 1571.
• Some printers.
• C2N Datasettes. Lots of 'em.
• A VICMODEM. My first modem (seriously).

The Museum Pile

These machines are ones that are in "museum-quality" condition. Every attempt has been made with these machines to preserve them in operating condition for as long as possible. All replacement parts are taken from other non-working machines of similar vintage and manufacture. These are really the "pride" of my collection, and I make an effort to keep them in good shape.

• Xerox 820-II Microcomputer: 2 8" floppy drives, 64K RAM, ADM 3A-style console. This beast from the early 80's runs CP/M 2.2, perhaps it's only redeeming quality. I got stacks of disks, and a complete manual set. Software that works include a copy of WordStar, a bunch of BASIC games from Creative Computing, and a really crummy VisiCalc ripoff called "Multiplan" from some small little software company named Microsoft. This is a museum piece. It was purchased at an electronics swap meet from a friendly older gent who claimed to have worked at Xerox at the time of it's manufacture. Based on the quality and quantity of his software library, I'd have to believe him.
• AT&T 7300 "UNIX-PC" Microcomputer: 20 Meg hard disk, 4 megs of RAM. Has a serial expansion card in it. Runs AT&T UNIX System 5 Release 3.something. Dosen't do a hell of a lot other than UUCP. In fact, for about a year, it was my UUCP feed machine.
• IBM PC-XT Microcomputer: 20 meg hard disk, single 5 1/4" floppy, CGA graphics card. This one's a classic: all original hardware, including 88-key keyboard. And it works. It even has a copy of IBM DOS 3.3 and WordPerfect 4 i nstalled on it. Heady days, those.

The Generic PC Clone Pile

Like anybody else in the computer business, I've amassed quite a collection of motherboards, cases, I/O cards, hard drives, and even complete systems. Some of these are the results of countless upgrades of existing computers. A few are hand-me-downs and swap meet purchases. There are a few PC Clone bits that kinda stand out, however.

• The Xerox PC:
I know little about this machine, other than it was my first PC clone. I got it in exchange for some work for a friend right about the time the 386's started to come out. It was an 8088-based machine, with a single floppy drive and a small (20 meg) hard disk. It came in a slimline case, with a really sharp composite monochrome monitor. For many years, this machine ran my BBS. For what it's worth, this was perhaps the best running Intel machine I ever had. It would run reliably, consistantly, and predictably. Microsoft could learn a lot from this old machine.
• BarfBox:
Somewhere in my storage unit, sits a mini-tower case with a peculiar brown stain on the front. This machine, then a 386 SX/20, was a UUCP tosser and a small BBS that I co-ran with a friend in Reno, Nevada. The brown stain was the result of a party, and we still don't know exactly how the stain appeared, all we know is the next morning, it was there. The hot rumor was, at the time, that a guest at the party got really drunk and puked all over the machine, and then cleaned it up before it was discovered. Apparently, he had been drinking a large quantity of wine, and that stained the machine. We hope. The mind recoils. At any rate, the machine was then dubbed "BarfBox", and we even renamed the BBS to "The Barf Box." It fit, because at the time we were trying to run a BBS that catered to... well, a certain clientele. barfbox.reno.nv.us stood as a monument to this blessed event, and the BBS it ran. (Note: we did eventually find out how the stain came about. It's not much better than the rumor, unfortunately.) Oh, and by the way, ask me about the whole "Professor of Regurgitology at Barfing U" bit sometime.

The PS/2 Pile

I have a real knack with Microchannel. I don't know what it is.. I can't understand it, nor do I want to. I seem to always end up with a grip of these every time I go to a swap meet. Oh well...

• IBM PS/2 Model 50Z: with Kensington CPU upgrade to a 386DX/25, 40 meg ESDI hard drive, a Hayes MC Modem, a Kensington 2 MB memory expansion, and a 3Com Etherlink-MC NIC. This machine acts as a terminal on my home network. True to the model, it runs IBM PC-DOS 4.0. Just to be classic.
• 5 Other IBM PS/2 Model 50Z's: These are all various configurations. Most have at least one Microchannel card in them, usually a modem or NIC. They all work. Some are lacking hard drives.
• IBM PS/2 Portable: This machine may not actually work properly. It seems to have a keyboard problem, but I can't diagnose the problem. If anybody out there knows anything about this style of machine, please let me know.

"... And The Rest" Pile

• An Apple Macintosh Portable: [about]
• A GRiDpad: Don't know the specs, just picked it up. It works.
• A Palm III Organizer
• A Pilot 1000 Organizer

The "Warm Fuzzy" Pile

These machines I keep around because they give me warm, fuzzy feelings inside. Some of these machines have personal stories behind them. Others are just here because I always wanted them when they were new. Regardless, if you have an hour, ask me about these machines.

• The Apple ][GS: Ah, what fond memories. An Apple ][ machine with real sound and actual graphics. This machine was rescued from a friend's house where it had been badly abused by a bunch of kids. Some cleaning, a little soldering, and some disk head realignment, and it worked. I have always had a soft spot in my heart for the Apple ][ line of computers, and this one was the whupass of them all. It even had Appletalk support in it, so hypothetically I guess you could connect it to the Internet. Someday, I hope to do just that.
• Timex Sinclair 1000: I have a few of these, actually. I purchased one of them at a K-Mart quite a long time ago. It was quite bizarre, actually, because I was used to the (considerably) more powerful Atari 600XL at the time. But, it still gave me a lot of joy. The original one I bought I don't believe works anymore, but I've got plenty more. I will take one down once and a while, plug it in, and write some silly BASIC program or load a copy of Frogger off of tape. Ahh. Nothing like a shitty membrane keyboard to make you long for an IBM Selectric-style 101 key.
• Sanyo Creative Computer: I have memories of my junior high school, Ball Jr. High, getting one of these towards the end of the school year. Nobody besides me had a clue about it. It ran CP/M, and had color and graphics, too. I was quite happy when I found one at an electronics swap meet, only to be depressed again when I couldn't get it to work when I got it home. So, it sits, forlorn, in my storage unit. Someday, I'll dig it out and fix it.

The "What Is It?" Pile

Every collection has it's orphans. Here are mine. These machines are, for whatever reason, hardly ever brought out to play. They tend to sit in my storage unit and collect dust. However, I can't bear to get rid of them, because sitting in my dusty storage unit beats the trash heap, I guess. Most of these machines are probably under-appreciated for what they were, even by me I guess. It would seem that my collection would somehow be incomplete without them. So, here they are.

• Franklin ACE 1200: So close to an Apple //e, but so far. I really wanted one of these machines as a kid. I now understand that perhaps fate smiled upon me by not granting my wish. The hardware was amazingly fragile, and it tended to overheat quite a lot. But, when an opportunity came up to buy one, I was there, cash in hand. Fortunately, I only paid $50 at a swap meet.
• Sun 3/60: I'd really like to do something with this machine, but I'm not even sure if it works. I have no monitor, and the serial console connector is not your father's RS-232. If some Sun guru would bless me with some information, I'd be eternally grateful. Or, if somebody wants it who can actually use it, let me know.
• Lobo MAX80: As a kid, I had a crush on CP/M machines (this crush continues to this day, BTW). That crush was deepend when I got my first taste of it (granted, the saccharine substitute style) when I got a TRS-80 Model I and a disk drive and ran TRS-DOS. The Lobo was a dream come true: it was a TRS-DOS style machine, but it could also run CP/M. And it did, for quite some time. Unfortunately, mine is now dead. It's a shame, but I'm not quite as upset about it as you might think. The machine was kindof a dud, and by the time I really had enough computer skills to appreciate it, the IBM PC and the Atari ST were on the horizon to whisk me away to the world of 16-bit computing. I suspect that the battery-backed up clock has leaked, potentially corroding some core component.
• TI99/4A: The computer I loved to hate. Crappy keyboard, clunky hardware, and lousy BASIC. And don't even get me started on that power switch. Ah, but it was a 16-bit machine now, wasn't it? And, for what it tried to do, it was a marvel. It may be a good thing that they only had marginal success in the PC market. However, it would have even been better if they had made the machine right in the first place. That would have been cool.
• Tandy Color Computer 3:
• Tandy Color Computer 2: Since these machines are very similar, I'll lump my comments together. Lousy computer, great operating system. OS-9 still makes me hard. When I found this CP/M-on-steroids, I was in heaven. 'Tis a shame that my initial exposure to it was on such lousy hardware. I'd probably still be running it, like some of those CP/M diehards that have huge megawatt-chomping Z-System machines in their basements, strapped together with so much wirewrap and Molex connectors. It was a good start to make me really sprout wood when the Atari ST came along.

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