[Ham-Computers] RE: Blind Man's CPU Down For The Count?

[John McClain]

I see we have a bunch of old timers here.  I wire wrapped my first
computer.  Does anyone remember the ELF computer that was a
construction project in Popular Electronics Magazine?  Well, I built
one with my wire wrap gun and then designed a D/A to generate tones
and later music.  My best contribution to the ELF was a tape interface
that allowed me save my programs and not have to key them in with the
hex toggle switches.  The ELF was followed by a TRS-80 Model I, Timex
Z80, California Computing CPM system with a Z80, and then scads of
PC's.  Those were the good old days weren't they?

John
K7SVV

----- Original Message -----
From: "George, W5YR" <w5yr@att.net>
To: <ham-computers@mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Monday, May 13, 2002 9:44 PM
Subject: Re: [Ham-Computers] RE: Blind Man's CPU Down For The Count?


> Duane, I was there when all that was happening at TI and you have
the story
> about right.
>
> I was one of four engineers who designed and built the first TI
digital
> computer - a system named DARC that had over 3000 tubes in it and
required
> 80 tons of a/c! Its solidstate brother was the TIAC which used
similar
> architecture. If you want a good laugh, take a look at Patent No.
3074636
> to see what primitive really is!   <:}
>
> I, too, started programming in small computers with the 99/A. My
most
> ambitious effort was a rather complete transmission line analysis
program
> which used all available memory! Even calculated hyperbolic
functions to
> account for line loss, etc. Really a workout but ran like a top.
Prior to
> that I had written several programs on the TI-59 programmable
calculator
> that used all memory - that was a bad habit of mine in those days!
<:}
>
> And glad those days are gone forever, although I still have a TI
> Professional portable in the closet, along with the NEC 8300 version
of the
> Radio Shack Model 100, the Commodore 64 with which I developed the
TNC64
> packet terminal program which financed the early days of the Tex-Net
packet
> network built by TPRS, a virtually brand new C128, etc. etc. Seems
like I
> just can never get rid of computer equipment.
>
> Duane, glad you got your problem cleared up. If I have learned
anything
> useful about Windows in all its incarnations it is that when the
problem no
> longer makes any sense, it is time to clean everything out and start
> re-installing.
>
> 73/72/oo, George W5YR - the Yellow Rose of Texas
> Fairview, TX 30 mi NE of Dallas in Collin county EM13qe
> Amateur Radio W5YR, in the 56th year and it just keeps getting
better!
> QRP-L 1373 NETXQRP 6 SOC 262 COG 8 FPQRP 404 TEN-X 11771 I-LINK
11735
> Icom IC-756PRO #02121  Kachina 505 DSP  #91900556  Icom IC-765
#02437
>
>
> "Duane Fischer, W8DBF" wrote:
> >
> > Elden,
> >
> > Hey, the old Radio Shack "trash 80"! I remember those and the
early Apple with
> > that horrible Apple Soft language.
> >
> > TI had some very good chess programs in ROM modules. I enjoyed
many games I
> > loaded in by casette tape. Some great music with graphics to match
contributed
> > by owners.
> >
> > The original TI 99/4 had the so called chicklet keyboard, which
was a trick to
> > type on. The later version known as the 99/4a had a more normal
keyboard, but
> > still not typewriter like. I had the PES, peripheral expansion
system with
> > additional 32K of memory (16K was stock, 48K was maximum), disk
drive
> > controller, 90K 5.25 inch disk drive, speech synthesizer and
RS/232 card. The
> > PES cabinet was actually line with Lead! It was a boat anchor! Ah
yes, what fun
> > that was. TI was a decade ahed and they all made fun of TI. Little
did they
> > know.
> >
> > Then came IBM. TI had some engineers, J. Fred Bucy was the CEO,
design a IBM
> > compatible computer for TI. They came up with two designs. One was
TI's own
> > design, the other was a barely legal copy of the IBM PC. The
powers that were,
> > decided to use the TI design instead of the legal copy. This made
some engineers
> > very angry, they took their designs and left Texas Instruments.
They opened
> > their own company. They called it Compaq! Yep, a Texas Instruments
product.
> >
> > TI looked the other way, for a while. When Compaq caught on, TI
took them to
> > Court for stealing the engineering designs that belonged to TI.
Which they truly
> > did. Compaq lost and TI quietly put them back under their
corporate control, but
> > the world never knew this had even happened. It was all kept very
very low key
> > and out of the media whenever possible. Later on TI sold their
rights to the
> > engineers who founded Compaq, along with their stock holders. And
now you know
> > the rest of that story -
> >
> > Duane W8DBF
>
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