Some of our latest additions are shown below - clicking on the link will take you to the items main page and will also show any further photographs
A W Faber-Castell GmbH has its origins in the pencil making firm founded by Kasper Faber in 1761. They started making slide rules in 1882 and became Faber-Castell after 1906. Besides slide rules they have made a wide range of pencils and other drawing items such as scale rules.
The Rietz name comes from 1902 when MAX RIETZ modified and enhanced the »System Mannheim« with a X-cubic scale and mantissa scale on front and gaps with index lines on the back side: Now the slider could be read on the back side without turning the slider in the slide rule. 1925 he added a reciprocal-X scale and scales for small angles.
The Faber-Castell 57/87 Student Rietz is a ten inch closed frame plastic slide rule dated 3/65. It has a clear plastic case and instructions. Scales are: inK,A{B,C1,C}D,L//{S,ST,T}.
Our slide rule is complete with the original instructions and the clear plastic case. This was very kindly donated by Tony Priest
One of the first successful single board micros was the Ohio Scientifc Superboard II. In 1978, this machine shipped with a 6502 processor, 4K of memory and was expandable to quite respectable 8K. The video system displayed 24 lines of 24 characters on a monochrome composite monitor and a system monitor and 8K Microsoft BASIC was supplied in ROM. All you had to do was add your own case, power supply, display, and a cassette recorder for saving/loading programs. The price? An astoundingly affordable $279. They also offered basically the same system as the Challenger IP with case and power supply for $349, and a fully expanded system with 16K memory and a 5 1/4-inch floppy drive wentfor $1190. OSI sold a considerable number of these machines to hobbyists because the 1P was extremely good value.
Our unit Superboard II model 610 has been enhanced with additional memory board and hard disk interface and was very kindly donated by Michael J Davis from Rochdale who has ownwed the system since new. It has a Control Data CDC 5.25" dual disk drive unit as well as a power supply. This is all in excellent condition and includes all manuals and documentation
Our 1973 Decimo Realtone model 9100 was very kindly donated by Barry Samuels and has a serial number of 5143200
|
Size (approx): |
114mm x 193mm x 45mm (max) (w,h,d)
Weight 514g excluding batteries but including strap |
| Power: |
6.0V DC, 4 x C size batteries. Also accepts adapter (Type 2Q11B, 6V DC, 200mA) through a top side socket on the right. Remove adapter to operate with batteries. There is an auto power off feature to save batteries. Innovative two key on/off system. |
| Case: |
Large heavy battery-desktop machine that was built to last. The case is made from two-piece mottled black plastic top and bottom and has thick metal panels on the sides, top and keyboard surround. The latter wraps around the bottom and has some black printed text for the switch labels. The top front has a large plastic sticker with the Decimo branding. The area below has a recessed metallic sticker, printed in black and blue, with the Realtone brand and "auto shut off" text. The keys are large, long travel and hollow sounding but work well enough. The deep blue display filter is slightly inset and heavily tilted with white text for the numerals and symbol display. The rear has a large sticker with loads of calculation info. There is a metal lug on the left hand side for the black plastic carry strap. |
| Display: |
8 digit blue VFD display – with a ninth used for negative, overflow and battery low indicators |
| Features: |
Standard four function with switched constant, switched fixed decimal. RPN logic. |
| Age: |
1973 |
Thanks to www.vintagecalculators.com/ for the information
The 1975 Decimo Vatman Memory. was very kindly donated by Barry Samuels
Specification:
6V (4 x AA).
8 digits, green fluorescent.
4 function, %, square root, memory.
83 mm x 130 mm x 28 mm (3.25" x 5.2" x 1.1").
Made in Japan.
The % key is marked "VAT" for use in calculations of Value Added Tax within the EEC (European Economic Community).
Thanks to www.vintagecalculators.com/ for the information
The Amstrad ACL-386SX120 was a Japanese manufactured 1991 "portable" 386SX machine running at MHz with a 120 Mb hard drive and a 3.5 inch 1.44 MB floppy drive and 4 MB RAM. It an extremely heavy machine
It had a TFT colour screen and ran DOS 5.0 and Windows 3.1. Hard Disk Type 40. Our unit is in excellent condition and was very kindly donated by Barry Samuels.
The Displayphone was interesting attempt to combine voice and data functionality in one unit. Although we take voice and data integration for granted today, back in 1982 this was a unique, and slightly futuristic concept. The Displayphone combines a telephone with a small computer terminal and a blazingly fast :-) 300 baud modem. The terminal also features a few basic personal productivity applications.
Although it never garnered much success in the telephony market, it did prove to be a hit with movie goers. The high-tech look of this early 80's technology proved to be too much to resist of the producers of sci-fi flicks of the period. I've been told that the Displayphone appeared in a number of movies where it was protrayed as a furturistic video phone - a novel concept for the time, but certainly a function never actually performed by this artifact.
Ourdisplayphone incudes an external power supply unit and was kindly donated by William McDowell.
The model number is NT6K80 AA with a serial number of 003164 and a date of December 1985
The NEC APC Advanced Personal computer (October 1983) is quite a large/heavy machine which was a very reliable business computer. It runs CP/M-86 and MS-DOS. It is one of the very few machines which runs MS-DOS from 8" floppy disks.
The NEC Advanced Personal Computer runs at 5 MHz and has a detachable key-board but apartfrom that it sits in a single cabinet: no disk plinth and separate monitor. The cabinet contains integral, vertically mounted 8" floppy disks and a built in monitor The 8' disks ate breakaways from the normal standard of 51/4" buy repay the user with over 1 Megabyte per drive at double-density, doublet-sided or equally can operate in single-density. IBM 3740 compatible mode. They are fast, but rather noisy.
The single module appearance disguises the fact that the APC comes in significantly different configurations. The basic machine, which starts at $7388, comes with 128K of RAM, a single disk drive, a Centronics and one RS-232 port, sound, and a green screen monitor
Ourunit is the basic monochrome APC with a serial number of 3908266N and was made in Japan
HP Jornada 720 Handheld PC
Product features
Work faster than ever before
•Get fast access to your critical data with the high-performance processor, high-speed memory data bus, and 2D graphics acceleration.
•Find the information you need instantly with quick launch screen icons and user-configurable hot keys.
•Synchronize with your desktop or notebook PC to keep all your work current.
Access e-mail and enjoy rich Web browsing while on the go
•Stay in touch - send and receive e-mail while away from your office.
•Surf the Web no matter where you are with Microsoft (R) Internet Explorer v 4.01. For a rich Web browsing experience on a handheld PC, a special power management feature keeps you connected for extended periods (by shutting down the display when idle) so that you can continue to be notified of incoming e-mail.
Convenient portable power
•Create or edit documents and spreadsheets, and view presentations using pocket versions of familiar
Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
•Enter data conveniently with the comfortable 3/4 full-size touch-typeable keyboard, and enjoy viewing Web pages, documents, or personal files on the rich color display.
•At just over a pound, the compact HP Jornada 720 handheld PC fits easily into your briefcase or handbag and offers you the advantage of up to nine hours1 of continuous use.
More security, greater peace of mind
•Safeguard your confidential files from unauthorized access with special password protection, and enjoy peace of mind knowing your essential information is safe from accidental loss by using the built-in HP backup application that allows backup on a memory card.
•An added level of security is provided with the built-in Smart Card reader and authentication security software in a corporate environment2 ; additional security functionality can also be developed.
Processor 206 MHz 32-bit StrongArm RISC
Display •6.5 inch (16.7 cm) color LCD display (supports up to 65,536 colors)
•640 x 240 pixels on screen
•2D graphics acceleration
Input •Comfortable touch-typeable keyboard (3/4 full-size)
•Embedded numeric keypad
•Touch screen
Memory 32 MB SDRAM, 51 MHz
Physical specifications •7.44 x 3.74 x 1.34 inch (189 x 95 x 34 mm)
•1.1 lbs (510 g) with standard battery
Introduced 2000
Our model is in excellent condition and is complete with Docking Station, Power Supply, Cables, Manula and soft carrying case and was very kindly donated by Leonora Sheppard of http://www.leonora.uk.com/
Our IBM Options External V.34Data/Fax Modem model no. MT2834BLK has a serial number of 42-P2055 and was manufactured by MultiTech for IBM and was introduced in 1996. It is complete with power supply, cables and manuals all in the original IBM Options box.
The MultiModem BL Series modem connections can be made on Public Switched Telephone
Networks (PSTNs) and/or point-to-point 2-wire and 4-wire leased telephone type circuits.
Your modem offers interactive automatic dialing, as well as Command Mode option configuration.
You may store up to ten command line/telephone numbers, of up to 60 characters each, in the
modem’s nonvolatile memory. The modem pulse or tone dials, and recognizes dial tones and busy
signals for reliable call-progress detection. The modem can detect AT&T calling card tones. It is
FCC-Registered for connection to telephone networks without any Data Access Arrangements
(DAA’s).
The modem also features Callback Security to protect networks from unauthorized use, and to
manage phone line costs. By using the modem’s phone number and password directory, a host site
can, upon receipt of a call, callback to a remote site at a predetermined number.
Remote Configuration permits you to assist users at remote sites, saving you the time and trouble of
site visits and preventing misinterpretation of configuration instructions.
The MT2834BL modem meets the proposed Enhanced V.34 ITU standard for data signalling rates
as high as 33.6/31.2K bps in full duplex mode. Enhanced V.34 is an extension of V.32/V.32bis/V34
standards, and supports and is compatible with those features, including EIA extended Automode;
adaptive line probing; automatic symbol rate and carrier frequency during start-up; and retrain and
rate renegotiation (in 2400 bps increments).
The major application for the MT2834BL is in 4-wire leased line networks with the addition of dial
backup capability. With this capability, the dial-up feature saves any down time if the leased line fails.
Since the MT2834BL operates according to ITU V.34 modulation, it can operate full-duplex over two
wires, so that the dial backup mode performs the same throughput as the leased line.
The MT2834BL features ITU V.42 error correction and V.42bis data compression, providing 100%
error-free data transmission. V.42 error correction incorporates MNP( Classes 3 and 4, and LAP-M.
You may select V.42bis data compression for 4-1 throughput, or MNP Class 5 for 2-1 throughput.)
SPARCstation Classic is a workstation formerly manufactured by Sun Microsystems. It is based on the sun4m architecture, and is enclosed in a lunchbox chassis and was announced in November 1992
Specifications
CPU 50 MHz Texas Instrument microSPARC (sun4m) (1 soldered)
Memory 24 MB (max 96 MB - 6 x 4 or 16 MB 72 pins parity SIMMs)
Bus SBUS at 20 MHz - 2 slot
Video onboard CG3 - 8 bit color unaccelarated framebuffer
Sound onboard amd7930 telephone quality audio with internal speaker - 8 bit mono at 8000 Hz
Disk Controller onboard NCR 53c94 SCSI-2 narrow
internal 50 pin narrow flat cable male connector
external 50 pin HD narrow female connector
Case Sun Lunchbox
1 x 3.5 inch floppy drive
1 x SCSI-2 narrow 50 pin male connector for half-heigth hard-drive
External Connectors
1.Sun keyboard/mouse 8 pin mini-DIN connector
2.Audio In - 1/8 inch mono
3.Audio Out - 1/8 inch mono
4.SCSI-2 HD 50 pin narrow female connector
5.Ethernet AUI Sun connector - HD 26 pin connector
6.Serial port A and B - DB25 female connector [port A wired as standard DTE, port B isn't]
7.Female 13W3 Sun video connector
8.Parallel port - DB25 female
9.Ethernet 10baseT RJ connector
Network support
The SPARCstation Classic comes with an on-board AMD Lance Ethernet chipset providing 10BaseT networking as standard and 10Base2 and 10Base5 via an AUI transceiver. The OpenBoot ROM is able to boot from network, using RARP and TFTP. Like all other SPARCstation systems, the SSC holds system information such as MAC address and serial number in NVRAM. If the battery on this chip dies, then the system will not be able to boot.
Operating systems
The following operating systems run on a SPARCstation Classic:
SunOS 4.1.3c onwards
Solaris 2.3 Edition II to Solaris 9
Linux - Some but not all distributions still support this sparc32 sub-architecture
NetBSD/sparc32
OpenBSD/sparc32
Our unit has a serial number of 416M242b
Click on pictures for larger images
Advanced Gravis MouseStick for the Amiga/Atari ST
The Advanced Gravis MouseStick is an ST controller that can replace your mouse, joystick or both. It's easy to connect and use, and can be configured for a host of options.
The MouseStick actually consists of two units: the stick itself and the Gravis Mouse Processing Unit (GMPU). The stick is mounted on a wide, stable base with rubber feet, and is connected to the GMPU, which plugs into your joystick or mouse port. There are two fire buttons on the base and one on top of the stick.
You can set the base fire buttons to emulate your right and left mouse buttons, or to emulate your left mouse button and activate the MouseStick editor.
The mouse editor lets you configure the MouseStick and includes a variety of options. Since the GMPU has only a single-line LCD display, however, programming it is slow and somewhat tedious. You can save up to four configurations (three plus the default configuration).
Enter the editor for a true test of your trigger finger; you have to push the designated editor button three times fast and hold it down on the last press. The editor gives you a list of options the most complex of which is RECALL A SETUP Besides letting you recall any one of the four configurations, it lets you set the MouseStick for AUTO CENTERING, VECTORING, COMBINATION or JOYSTICK modes.
AUTO CENTERING gives you direct control over the mouse pointer and returns the pointer to the center of the screen when you release the stick. In VECTORING mode, the pointer position glides across the screen in the direction of your stick handle's movement. COMBINATION mode provides a combination of AUTO CENTERING (when the stick handle is upright) and VECTORING (when it's moved left and right). JOYSTICK mode sets the MouseStick to emulate a standard eight-position joystick.
PROGRAM A BUTTON option allows any of the three buttons on the MouseStick to be set in TURBO FIRE mode. This is handy for some games, although rapid fire attachment for joysticks are sold at most toy store for about five dollars.
Our unit is in the original box with a serial No. of 9005839 and the GMPU with a serialNo. of 9004456 and was kindly donated by Andy Taylor of http://www.retrocomputers.eu/
In July 1991 this cost £69.00 + £1.50 P & P
Click on pictures for a larger image
AES Data Inc., a Montreal based international manufacturer of word-processing hardware and software.
AES Data Inc.was founded by Stephen Dorsey Massachusetts Institute of Technology-trained engineer in 1972. AES launched the AES 90 computer, years before Microsoft and Apple were companies. Marketed as a "word processing system," the AES 90 was really the world's first general-purpose personal computer. AES went on to grow to more than $200 million in annual sales.
On Sept. 1 1987 Kinburn Technology Corporation of Ottawa announced that it had completed the acquisition for $16.5 million of all the outstanding shares of AES Data Inc. of Montreal.
The AES 7100 Model 203 was primarrily a Word Processor and was produced in 1983. The unit is approximately 26.5-inches wide, and over 16-inches deep including the handles on the back for pulling out the motherboard. The main box is about 4.25-inches high, with a 10.5" green phosphor monitor monted on the base unit connected with a swivel neck.
The motherboard pulls out on a tray from the back of the machine. There is a 12-pin female port with a connection for a printer. The pins arranged in a 3x4 grid. On the motherboard, there is a Mostek Z80A, probably 4MHz. There are three Z80A PIO chips, and two Z80A CTC chips.
This unit is in very good condition and together with the dedicated AES printer, manuals and training software was very kindly donated by Leonora Sheppard of http://www.leonora.uk.com/ together with an AES promotional plastic bag and mug.
Click on the picture for a larger image
Prinztronic Scientific Calculator
Model: SC500IM (Model 1450)
Type: Scientific calculator
Batteries: AA x 4
Display is 8 digits (or 5 digits mantissa & 2 digits exponent), green fluorescent.
74 mm x 142 mm x 33 mm (2.9" x 5.6" x 1.3").
Made in Taiwan.
Notes: Scientific calculator with memory, by the English brand Prinztronic.
Uses a switch to select between radians and degrees.
The fluorescent display is oriented left-to-right, meaning that when you type a number the first digit shows up on the left side of the display, and following digits are appended at the right.
Our model together with a soft zipped case was kindly donated by Alan Bowmaker and has a serial number of 3888027
General Note:
"Prinz" and "Prinztronic" were own-brand trade names of the British "Dixons" photographic and electronic goods stores, which have been rebranded as "Currys.digital" stores, and are part of DSG international.
A variety of calculator models was sold in the 1970s under the Prinztronic brand, all made for them by other companies. The history section of the DSG international website says "[The company] forged vital links with Japanese manufacturers who supplied Dixons directly with products often made to the company's own specification and sold under the brand name of "Prinz". Hard bargaining and bulk buying, predominantly in Japan, gave Dixons the competitive edge over its rivals".
This Bondwell Disk Drive unit - model No: 112B with a serial number of BO 02919 was kindly donated by Alan Bowmaker together with the Bondwell model 8 laptop computer
Bondwell (Bondwell Industrial Co Inc, Fremont, CA) was a manufacturer of personal computers.Originally, in the early 1980s, Bondwell sold a line of Z80, CP/M-80 based Osborne-like luggables such as the models Bondwell-12, Bondwell-14 (1984) and Bondwell-16 (1985).
Bondwell Model 8 (1985) was a lap-top portable computer from Bondwell Industrial Co Inc, Fremont, CA, made in Hong Kong 1985.
It has a backlit LCD display with 80 x 25 characters or 640 x 200 graphic.
Built in battery and a 3.5" 720 kb floppy drive.
76 keys keyboard, note the special cursor keys!
The US version had a built-in 300 baud modem.
An Intel 80C88 processor is running at 4.77 MHz.
Shipped with MS-DOS 2.11 and GW BASIC version 2.0.
Dimensions: 284 x x78 x 310 mm,
Weight: 5.5 Kg
Cost: $1595.00
OS: MS-DOS - DOS 2.11
ROM: 8KB
I/O ports: RS-232C (serial), printer (parallel), disk drive, RGB, Video, Teleco & Teleset
Text modes: 80 x 25
Graphic modes: 640 x 200
Colours: Monochrome
Sound: Beep
Built in media: 720 KB 3.5" disk drive
Power supply External or battery
Our model 8 was very kindly donated by Alan Bowmaker and is complete with disk drive unit, manuals and software
Click on picture for a larger image
Sumlock Duolectric Comptometer
Sumlock dual-register comptometer, Model 912, S/N 912/S/Va/510,003B
12 columns (13 digits), Sterling, dual register, electric
Dimensions: 13"W x 13"D x 8"H
Weight: 29 pounds
the Duolectric cost £325 [about US$900]
Manufactured: Bell Punch Company, England, 1953 onwards
A 12-column machine for Sterling currency (no farthings), with an electric motor drive and a second "grand total" register at the rear. The Bell Punch Company (BPC) was established in London in 1878, and took its name from its original product - a bus conductor's registering ticket punch. The company expanded into ticket printing and issuing equipment for buses, trams, and cinemas, racecourse betting tickets, and taxi meters. Their activities were generally related to "cash control systems", and were coordinated through a holding company "Control Systems Ltd" from 1927. Both companies established branches in Australia and other Commonwealth countries. In 1936 the company purchased the rights to a small half-keyboard adding machine which was sold as the "PLUS Rapid Adder". Larger full-keyboard versions with Comptometer-style safety mechanisms were marketed under the name "Sumlock". The London Computator Corporation was established in 1940 to handle the calculator business, but the nameplate soon reverted to The Bell Punch Company.
The PLUS and Sumlock machines were very popular in Britain and Commonwealth countries. They continued in production for almost 40 years, until replaced by computers and electronic calculators in the 1970s. In the late 1950s the Bell Punch Company acquired the British rights to the Comptometer name from the ailing Comptometer Corporation (formerly Felt & Tarrant) of Chicago. When Comptometer production ended in 1961, the Bell Punch Company exported re-badged Sumlock machines to America to be sold as new-model Comptometers.
Our machine is in excellent condition and has a model number of 912/S/4a/507.034.A and was very kindly donated by Mrs Pauline A Toghill
Click on picture for a larger image
Sumlock Sumlomatic 1959
The "Sumlomatic" was the final development of the Bell Punch Company's mechanical calculators. It is based on the motor driven dual-register machine, with the addition of a third register and a control mechanism to perform semi-automatic multiplication. The concept is described in Webb's US Patent 2956741, filed in 1955, but the machine did not reach the market until 1959. A full keyboard Sterling Currency "Comptometer" type machine with a multiplier register. According to an exhibition review in "Office Magazine" for June 1958: "The star on the Sumlock stand is the Sumlomatic. This is a new key-driven calculator with a multiplier register as well as the usual working register and store register. Digits for the multiplier (the lowest-register in the illustration) are set from the keyboard by means of a transfer button (seen on the right) which is also used to transfer digits from the working register to the store register. For repetitive multiplication by the same factor the multiplier register is provided (on its left) with a locking switch. The large key seen to tthe left of the board is the multiplier control. Whilst addition and subtraction can be in £ s. d., multiplying must be in decimals. Division is done by turning to a printed table of reciprocals and then multiplying. In busy commercial offices where several kinds of computation are done, the use of the Sumlomatic will undoubtedly lead to a daily saving of many thousands of key depressions as compared with previous models. This remarkable new model weighs 341b. and costs £330 [about US$900]."
The Bell Punch company did not manufacture any calculators until the 1930s when in 1936 the parent company, Control Systems, acquired the rights to the adding machines of the Comptometer type manufactured by Petters, Limited, of Yeovil, England and sold under the name "Pettometer".Due in part to the use of the old £sd Sterling currency and imperial units of measurement in Britain and the British Commonwealth, Bell Punch manufactured a greater variety of "Comptometer" type calculators than any other company. Information from http://anita-calculators.info/html/sumlomatic.html
Our machine is in excellent condition and has a model number of 912/S/6a/604.052.A and was very kindl;y donated by Mrs Pauline A Toghill
Click on picture for a larger image
Tektronix Logic Base X-terminals High Resolution - support NC200H series for the color terminal resolution of 1280x1024 at 72 Hz and costing $4,195
Standard features for each member of the XP400 series include a high performance LSILSI: 33120 RISC processor, 8 MB of RAM, expandable to 136MB, 2 MB of VRAM. Twisted pair Ethernet interface, two RS-232C ports, display, integrated power supply, power cord and mouse. Options include an advanced MPEG digital video co-processor, audio co-processor, Thinnet and Thicknet interface, externally accessed dual-slot PCMCIA. PCMCIA interface, flash memory, parallel port, keyboard (as an F-kit) and Sony 20" monitor (for the XP419C). Also available as an option is a Token Ring PCMCIA adapter card. All members of the XP400 series are Energy Star compliant. Volume shipments of the XP400 series
These weres kindly donated by Kevin Martin and are complete with Keyboard and mouse
Two IBM 8363 NetVisa Thin Client - N2200w Ethernet
This IBM 8363 Network Station is a local booting thin client with 16 MB CompactFlash pre-loaded with Windows CE v2.12.
Access to Windows applications on Windows 2000/2003, Window NT 4.0 TSE
Access to applications on AS/400 (5250), Mainframe (3270) and Unix/Linux hosts
10/100 Mbps Ethernet network attachment
RDP 5.0 Client
ICA Citrix Client
Local browser - Internet Explorer 4.0
Local Emulators for: Digital VT-Series , ANSI and Wyse 50/60 , TN5250, TN3270 & NetPrint
233 MHz enhanced processor
96 MB memory (expandable up to 288 MB)
VGA, SVGA, and XGA video support at up to 1024X768 with 16-bit color
16-bit audio and jacks for headphones/speakers and microphone
Two Universal Serial Bus (USB) ports:
One dedicated to keyboard/mouse combination
One available to support a standard parallel or serial device with a third-party cable converter
These weres kindly donated by Kevin Martin and are complete with Keyboard and mouse
SUN 411 SCSI hard-drive case with a Hewlett-Packard HP C1539 with SCSI-2 Internal dds2 Tape Drive
This was kindly donated by Kevin Martin
The base T3100, released in 1986, consisted of an 80286 CPU running at 8MHz, our model the T3100e had a 12MHz 80286 CPU, 1MB RAM and a 20MB hard disk drive.
Storage included a standard 3.5" 720KB floppy diskette drive, and an internal 20MB hard disk drive. An optional external 5.25" floppy diskette drive could also be connected through the parallel/printer port. The T3100 also had a special optional "floppy link" cable, which allowed the T3100 to connect to and use the floppy drive on an IBM desktop system.
The T3100 had an interesting display adapter. It was fully CGA compatible, however it also had a special high-resolution (For the time) 640x400 display mode which is similar to and partially compatible with the Olivetti/AT&T 6300 graphics. The T3100 display was a 9.6" monochrome orange gas plasma panel capable of displaying this special hi-res mode, and other low-res modes. An external monitor could also be connected via a 9-pin RGB port.
Our model compete with mains cable and Toshiba soft carrying case was kindly donated by Neil Campbell
Click on pictures for larger images
Integra Technologies Ltd of Welwyn Garden City UK supplied the Computer-Link Tape Cleaner & Tester.
Although no model number is evident, it appears to be a Computer Link 1022-3. There were three versions of the 1022 and the model 3 was distinguished by the inclusion of an automatic opening door. This information was very kindly supplied by Don Blackburn - Sales Director for for Bow Industries, Inc. - www.bowindustries.com.
As this machine was to handle reel - to reel tapes, we assume that it dates from the late seventies to the early eighties.
Thanks again to Don Blackburn of www.bowindustries.com the following is an extract from a publicity leaflet
MODEL 1022-Fastest Tape Cleaning Time At 2.67 Minutes
• Exclusive Automatic Safety Door assures Operator safety
The operator is completely protected against injury from moving parts.
• Automatic Stacking Wheel eliminates damage to tape edges caused by mishandling
Assures smooth tape winds to avoid handling and shipping damage to tape edges.
• Physical Defect Scanner detects physical damage on tapes without destroy¬ing data
Will find and automatically display errors for the operator; i.e. holes in tape, damaged edges, scal¬loped or folded, nicks, oxide voids, defective splices, scratches, wrinkles or cinches which have damaged the tape.
Scanner will find errors in an area of 0.020 inches (.5 mm) or larger and automatically relocate for
visual inspection.
• Physical Damage Detection eliminates aborts and reruns due to physical damage on tapes
A physical damage detec¬tor with automatic error retrieval enables inspection of tape for physical damage. Models 1022-2 and 3 respond similarly to a certifier by automatically relocating to defective areas for examination or stripping of tape.
• Exclusive LED Damage Location Display allows quick operator analysis of tapes with physical damage
LED graph displays error locations for quick analysis of the tape's condition; e.g. retain, or discard.
• Exclusive Illuminated Viewing Station allows operator to inspect the physical damage
In addition to automatically relocating on defective areas, an inspection light automatically turns on to further aid in seeing the damage.
• Tape Leader Check eliminates tape load malfunctions
Length of tape leader is accurately and auto¬matically measured and displayed to eliminate tape load malfunctions due to short leaders.
• Exclusive Archival Wind assures proper stacking tension for long term storage
Archival wind speed is a standard feature designed for long term stable tape
storage during prolonged reel retention cycles.
• B.O.T. Check identifies those tapes that can cause costly load malfunctions
Model 1022-3 automatically searches for missing or multiple B.O.T. markers and stops for repair.
• Automatic Search saves time in stripping and B.O.T. /E.O.T. replacement
When a length of tape is selected by the operator for cutting or examination, the cleaner automatically advances the tape at maximum speed to the desired area.
• Correct Tension Control
The Model 1022 provides precise independent con¬trol of the cleaning tension and rewinding tension for tape used through 6250 bpi.
Extract from a further leraflet dated September 1983:
MODELS
1022-1 Basic high-speed tape cleaner plus safety cover door, automatic stacking wheel and archival rewind speed. Full, half and multi cycle.
1022-2 Addition of physical damage error detector, and automatic defect viewing station.
1022-3 Addition of automatic length search. Tape leader measurement and display, multiple/missing BOT detector and footage display, plus all the features previously described. Full, half and multi cycle.
SPECIFICATIONS
Tape size: ½” 0 tape on reels up to 101/2”
E.O.T./B.O.T. Sensing: Detects standard industry reflective marks.
Hubs: Industry compatible quick-release hubs.
Cleaning System: 3 continuous advance tissue wiping stations plus 2 gemstone blade stations.
Braking system: Fail-safe dynamic braking.
Controls: Power, half/full cycle, multi-cycle, stop, forward, reverse.
Power: 115 VAC, 60 Hz or 230 VAC, 50 Hz. 390 watts.
Weight: 80 Ibs. (36 Kg.)
Size: 31" (79 cm) wide x 141/4" (36 cm) deep x 17" (43 cm) high.
BENEFITS
Reduce down-time by eliminating error buildup and resultant reruns due to read/write skips.
Save on new tape purchases by insuring maximum life from each tape in your library.
Save hours of rerun time lost to defective tape. No battery to change for blade change indicator.
Computer-Link Corporation, 40 Ray Avenue, Burlington, Massachusetts 01803 Telephone 617-272-7400
Our Dell 316SX has a model no. of SYS316SX 041990 and a serial number of S316SX016379 and waskindly donated by Peter Chandler. This is inxcellent condition and complete with original packaging, software and manuals. The 316SX was introduced in 1988 and sold for $1,699
Microprocessor type 80386SX at 6 or 8 MHz
Math coprocessor speeds 16 MHz
Installed RAM 512 KB
SIMM capacities 64 KB, 256 KB, 1 MB
SIMM type 9 bit, parity
Maximum system board RAM8 MB
Maximum system RAM14/16 MB
Video RAM 256 KB
Video controllerParadise PVGA1A
xtended Video Modes
Text132 columns x 25 rows
132 columns x 43 rows
Graphics 800 x 600 pixels, 16 colors
Height4.0 inches
Width 15.12 inches
Depth 15.63 inches
Weight 21.7 lb
The PowerBook 180 was the first portable Mac with a 4-bit active matrix display. With a 33 MHz CPU and improved screen, it replaced the PB 170 and was in very high demand through its life. Like the PB 160, the 180 has a video out port supporting an external 13" to 16" monitor. With the PB 160, it was the first PowerBook to support more than 8 MB of RAM.
The PB 180 reintroduced SCSI Disk Mode to the PowerBook line, a feature previously found only on the PB 100.
As with all early PowerBooks, when buying used be sure it has all the memory you need (new PB RAM is getting more difficult to locate, especially at reasonable prices).
The PB 180 has a 14 MB memory ceiling, although you can go beyond that by using Virtual Memory (slow and free) or RAM Doubler (faster, not free, and discontinued). Another option is RAM Charger 8.1, which offers better memory management than the Mac OS.
Details
•introduced 19/10/1992.at US$4,110; discontinued 01/05/1994
•requires System 7.1 to 7.6.1, supports Mac OS 8.1 with Born Again
•CPU: 33 MHz 68030
•FPU: 68882
•performance: 4.5, relative to SE; 0.54, Speedometer 4
•ROM: 1 MB
•RAM: 4 MB, expandable to 14 MB using a special 85ns pseudostatic RAM card
•display: 9.8" 4-bit active matrix
•80 MB or 120 MB hard drive standard
•ADB: 1 port for keyboard and mouse
•serial: 2 DIN-8 RS-422 ports on back of computer
•SCSI: HDI30 connector on back of computer
•proprietary modem slot
•Gestalt ID: 33
•Size (HxWxD): 2.25" x 11.25" x 9.3"
•weight: 6.8 pounds
•power supply: M5651 - 19W, 2 amps
Our PowerBook 180 has the model no: M4440 and was introcuced in 19th October 1992
and is complete with mouse, power supply, memory mudules, manuals, software and soft carrying case by Jon Symons
Evesham Micros Vale Voyager 2000
Price: £1516 + VAT
February 1998
Pentium - 200 MHz
Windows 95
Model No: 5026 made in Taiwan
Evesham Micros No. 012161
Serial No: TN7B009339
Our unit was very kindly donated by Digi Europe Limited who purchased this machine on the 26th January 1998
These were very kindly donated by Helen Young who made the following comments regarding the reels
"There are 3 reels, the ends are a bit scruffy, although one (the blue one) has some blank tape at the end so is maybe complete. They have survived because many years ago they were useful for making Christmas decorations, and were at the bottom of our decorations box - which is why they have come to light just now!
I suspect that the tapes are from my days at Chelsea College and the Elliott
503(?) there, but I'm not sure. They look to be 8-track even parity, which is the only type I used apart from 5-track on the Elliott 803 which was in use when I first went to work for the college. They look to be binary dumps rather than code, as I can't see regular carriage return/line feed characters and there are no blank sections which we left between lines for splicing corrections etc."
The Macintosh Quadra 950 was the third desktop computer in Apple Computer's Quadra line. It was based on Motorola's 68040 microprocessor rather than the 68LC040 (which lacked an on-board FPU). It replaced the Quadra 900, increasing the CPU clock rate from 25 MHz to 33 MHz, and improving the graphics support. The two computers were otherwise identical.
Processor: Motorola 68040
Processor Speed: 33 MHz
Processor Cache: 8 KiB L1
Processor Bus Speed: 33 MHz
Hard Drive: 230 MB - 1 GB
Media drives: 2x CD-ROM drive, 1.44 MB floppy drive, optional DDSDC drive
Software: Mac OS 7.1 - 8.1
Logicboard RAM: None
Maximum RAM: 256 MB
Type of RAM Slots 16 - 32 pin SIMM
Minimum RAM Speed: 80 ns
Interleaving Support: No
Display Connection: DB-15
Graphics Card: None
Graphics memory: 1 - 2 MB (four sockets)
Expansion Slots: 5 - NuBus, 1 - PDS
Hard Drive Bus: SCSI
Backup Battery: 3.6 V Lithium
Max Watts: 303 W
Ports: AAUI-15 Ethernet, DB-25, 2 Serial, 3.5-mm mono input jack, 3.5-mm stereo output jack
Introduction Date: May 18, 1992
Discontinued Date: October 14, 1995
According to Apple, the monstrous power supply can support two 25-watt NuBus cards and three of the more typical 15-watt cards.
The internal SCSI bus is terminated on the motherboard, so internal SCSI devices should not be terminated. This is the opposite of all other Macs except the Quadra 900. However, the external SCSI bus works the same as on other Macs.
Although there are two separate SCSI buses, System 7.0-7.1 "folds" them together so the operating system sees a single virtual SCSI bus. Thus, under System 7.0-7.11 (and only under those systems) you must make sure that all devices on both chains have unique IDs.
TrackMan Vista (1994) took trackball ease to new heights. Use just one finger to rotate the trackball. Your other fingers are free to use the top two buttons and the primary side thumb button without causing accidental cursor movement. TrackMan Vista gives you the advantage of three buttons and includes MouseWare software, which lets you assign draglock, double click, or another frequently-used command to one click of the third button. Customize your cursor. The Smart Move TM feature automatically places the cursor on default selection boxes.
An Amazon review states
"I went to the local computer retailer down the street from my house and looked over all the options. They had a thing called a Trackman Vista. It was a rollerball mouse. First I'd seen. And expensive for the time at $50. I walked around the store, talked to a couple of the sales guys. And after thinking about it a bit, I bought one.
It was the best $50 computer item I ever invested in. I'm still using it, and it's now 2008. My current computer is running XP and it works fine with it. In fact, I've bought 3 other Trackman Vista's over the years...all 2nd hand, to be used on my other newer computers. The computers and monitors have died off over the years, but the Vista just keeps a going."
Our mouse is in excellent condition and is with all the original packaging. This was kindly donated by William McDowell
The GRiDPad 1910 is the computer most commonly associated with the words "grid pad", AKA the brand name "GRiDPad", owned by GRiD. The first GRiDPad was introduced in 1989
The GRiDPad 1910 is basically an extremely portable PC-XT. It has a 640x400 backlit Monochrome touchscreen CGA display. It has 2MB of system memory, and often came equipped with a 20 MB 2.5" IDE disk. The pen system is capacitance-based, with a wired stylus. There is a 6-pin micro-DIN XT keyboard interface. Audio is limited to the usual PC Speaker support. There is one serial port expressed on the unit, and expansion for a modem, which came in 2400 and 9600 bps flavors. There are two ATA-FLASH slots on the unit, which are used strictly for storage. There is also an expansion bus connector on the bottom of the system, which includes at least a keyboard connector, a parallel port, and a floppy bus. There are buttons F1 through F5 and a sleep button on the unit, as well as a hard power switch. Power is supplied via Ni-Cad battery packs.
This unit was used primarily for inventory purposes and the like. Apparently it was used within Chrysler for that purpose, and by the United States Army. The military specified more rigidity and durability from the case than the civilian version provided, and so GRiD made the case out of magnesium. They were never sold to the public that way, but occasionally a unit will slide out of the hands of the military.
CPU NEC V20
RAM 2 MB
Graphic modes 640x400
Colors 2
Sound PC speaker
IO Capacitance-based wired pen
Display: 24x80 LCD
Hard Disk: 20mb Internal
Ports:
Serial:
Parallel:
Keyboard:
Joystick:
Expansion: PCMCIA v1.0, Docking Station
The GRiDPad 1910 was manufactured by Samsung for the GRiD Systems Corporation
Our machine with a serial number of GPP05350 was very kindly donated by Andy Taylor. See http://retrocomputers.wordpress.com/
Vintage electrical and scientific test instrument
Please help and provide any information to identify and date this unit.
This was kindly donted by Rosemary Helme
Vintage electrical and scientific test instrument
Please help and provide any information to identify and date this unit.
This was kindly donted by Rosemary Helme
VintageH W Sullivan of London electrical and scientific test instrument
Please help and provide any information to identify and date this unit.
This was kindly donted by Rosemary Helme
Dr. C.V. Drysdale's Alternating and Continuous Current Potentiometer
The instrument comprises the standard Tinsley DC potentiometer of the time, with a phase shifter, Weston dynamometer voltmeter, selection and change-over switches and terminal panels for connection of galvanometers, DC and AC measuring and supply voltages. Measures voltage as magnitude and phase from reference voltage.
Monash University, Department of Electrical and Computer Systems Engineering of Australia describes this machine as “Possibly the most technically significant or the measuring instruments” in their Graham Beard Memorial Collection
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston in its reports of the President and Treasurer dated January 1913 states
“The most important addition to the equipment of the
Standardizing Laboratory made during the past year is
a Drysdale-Tinsley alternating current potentiometer,
with the necessary auxiliary apparatus.”
THE ALTERNATING CURRENT POTENTIOMETER.
The potentiometer, which is the universal instrument by which currents are determined in terms of a difference of potential between the end of a known resistance, has been developed by C. V. Drysdale for the measurement of alternating potentials. The main circuit of the potentiometer must be supplied with alternating current of exactly the same frequency as that in the circuit to be measured, which means in practice that they must be supplied from the same source. Further, the phase relation between the circuit to be measured and that supplying the potentiometer may have any value from to 360. In order to obtain a balance, as
indicated by the detecting instrument, it must be possible to give to the potentiometer current any phase displacement relative to that of the potential supplying it. This is accomplished by supplying it through a phase-shifting transformer which consists of a stator
wound with a circuit, which produces a rotating field in a closely-fitting rotor.
The rotor has a winding on it which supplies the potentiometer current. A rotation of the rotor of the phase-shifting transformer through 360o has the effect of producing a phase shift of the same value, and a pointer on the rotor axis indicates the phase angle on a suitably
divided scale. The "balance" is obtained by successive approximation of the usual adjustment of the potentiometer contacts (dial and slide wire reading) and of the phase-shifting
transformer until the indicator shows no deflection. The indicator for low frequencies is
a vibration galvanometer which must be closely tuned to resonate to the frequency of the circuit. For higher frequencies a telephone may be used. The main potentiometer current must be kept at some known constant value. This is done by switching it over on to a continuous current circuit, which is adjusted until a balance is obtained at the proper setting,
when a Weston cell is connected up in the usual manner. The reading of a sensitive dynamometer type ammeter in the main circuit is noted. This ammeter must read correctly with alternating and continuous currents. The potentiometer - is then thrown on to the A.C.supply, which is adjusted so that the ammeter reads the same value. Arrangements are provided for reversing the ammeter in order to eliminate the effect of stray fields.
The phase-shifting transformer is usually supplied by single-phase current. To obtain the necessary field distribution a split-phase scheme is used, part of the excitation being provided by a circuit containing a condenser and a resistance in series. These are adjusted until the A.C. current in the potentiometer circuit is as nearly constant as possible, when the phase-shifting transformer is rotated to any position. As it is necessary to have the splitphase circuit somewhere near the resonating point, it must be adjusted for changes of frequency. As the vibration galvanometer has also to be adjusted for such changes, it is necessary to have a source of a very steady frequency and voltage for satisfactory working.
From Sir Richard Glazebrook’s 1922 publication see
http://www.archive.org/details/dictionaryofappl02glazrich for details
Further references can be found at:
http://www.archive.org/stream/journalfranklin16pagoog/journalfranklin16pagoog_djvu.txt
http://www.archive.org/details/propagationofele030887mbp
http://www.archive.org/stream/propagationofele030887mbp/propagationofele030887mbp_djvu.txt
We are extremely grateful for the very kind donation from Rosemary Helme of this Drysdale Alternating and Continuous Current Potentiometer
Deep Blue was a chess-playing computer developed by IBM. On May 11, 1997, the machine won a six-game match by two wins to one with three draws against world champion Garry Kasparov.Kasparov accused IBM of cheating and demanded a rematch, but IBM declined and dismantled Deep Blue.Kasparov had beaten a previous version of Deep Blue in 1996.
The project was started as "ChipTest" at Carnegie Mellon University by Feng-hsiung Hsu, followed by its successor, Deep Thought. After their graduation from Carnegie Mellon, Hsu, Thomas Anantharaman, and Murray Campbell from the Deep Thought team were hired by IBM Research to continue their quest to build a chess machine that could defeat the world champion. Hsu and Campbell joined IBM in autumn 1989, with Anantharaman following later. Anantharaman subsequently left IBM for Wall Street and Arthur Joseph Hoane joined the team to perform programming tasks.Jerry Brody, a long-time employee of IBM Research, was recruited for the team in 1990. The team was managed first by Randy Moulic, followed by Chung-Jen (C J) Tan.
After Deep Thought's 1989 match against Kasparov, IBM held a contest to rename the chess machine and it became "Deep Blue", a play on IBM's nickname, Big Blue. After a scaled down version of Deep Blue, Deep Blue Jr., played Grandmaster Joel Benjamin, Hsu and Campbell decided that Benjamin was the expert they were looking for to develop Deep Blue's opening book, and Benjamin was signed by IBM Research to assist with the preparations for Deep Blue's matches against Garry Kasparov.
In 1995 "Deep Blue prototype" (actually Deep Thought II, renamed for PR reasons) played in the 8th World Computer Chess Championship. Deep Blue prototype played the computer program Wchess to a draw while Wchess was running on a personal computer. In round 5 Deep Blue prototype had the white pieces and lost to the computer program Fritz in 39 moves while Fritz was running on personal computer. In the end of the championship Deep Blue prototype was tied for second place with the computer program Junior while Junior was running on personal computer
Deep Blue is a massively parallel system designed for carrying out chess game tree searches. The system is composed of a 30-node (30-processor) IBM RS/6000 SP computer and 480 single-chip chess search engines, with 16 chess chips per SP processor. The SP system consists of 28 nodes with 120 MHz P2SC processors, and 2 nodes with 135 MHz P2SC processors. The nodes communicate with each other via a high speed switch. All nodes have 1GB of RAM, and 4 GB of disk. During the 1997 match with Kasparov, the system ran the AIX r4.2 operating system. The chess chips in Deep Blue are each capable of searching 2 to 2.5 million chess positions per second, and communicate with their host node via a microchannel bus.
Deep Blue is organized in three layers. One of the SP processors is designated as the master, and the remainder as workers. The master searches the top levels of the chess game tree, and then distributes leaf" positions to the workers for further examination. The workers carry out a few levels of additional search, and then distribute their leaf positions to the chess chips, which search the last few levels of the tree.
Overall system speed varied widely, depending on the specic characteristics of the positions being searched. For tactical positions, where long forcing move sequences exist, Deep Blue would average about 100 million positions per second. For quieter positions, speeds close to 200 million positions per second were typical. In the course of the 1997 match with Kasparov, the overall average system speed observed in searches longer than one minute was 126 million positions per second. The maximum sustained speed observed in this match was 330 million positions per second.
This machine type 7025 with a serial number of 3862/414 was very kindly donated by Roman Matiyenko, Support Team Leader, Department of Computer Science, King's College London, Strand
London.
The Magic-Brain Calculator was manufactured in 1955 by the Chadwick Company, this early calculator was operated using a stylus, and could perform addition, subtraction and multiplication calculations.
The instructions quote
"Your Magic Brain Calculator is a technical instrument that solves your math problems with ease. It requires practice to achieve perfection. Practice makes perfect ... in a few weeks you will be doing your mathematical calculations as fast as adding machines many times the cost of this instrument."
They claimed
"Never makes a mistake! Add or subtract, multiply or divide up to 999,999! Easy to use! Saves costly errors! Saves time! Ideal for businessmen, salesmen, houswifes, accountants and students.Comes in the original box and includes original metal stylus with the instructions"
This calculator is in excellent condition and is complete with the original box and instructions. This was very kindly donated by Mike Duffield
BBC Model A Issue 1
Launched in 1981 to coincide with a computer literacy drive by the BBC, the Model A was the cheaper of Acorn's two machines at £299. The machine's high cost was compensated for by very impressive expansion possibilities including disc drives, a second processor and network capabilities (Econet).
Processor 6502A
Speed (MHz) 2
Ram (KB) 16
Ram expandable to (KB) 32
ROM (KB) 32
Sound 3 channels plus noise
Keyboard type Typewriter-style
Number of keys 74
Dimensions (mm) 409 x 358 x 78
Weight (g) 3700
Interfaces Cassette interface(7 pin DIN)
Composite video output(BNC)
The Acorn BBC model A was the successor of the Acorn Atom and its first name was Acorn Proton. It was a very popular computer in the UK and was widely used in schools, but it didn't have great success elsewhere (even though it did have great features, it was too expensive).
This computer got its name because in 1980, the BBC decided to start a computer literacy television series. The network realized that, with more powerful and increasingly inexpensive microcomputers, it would soon be possible to create them with enough computing power to offer their owners personal hands-on experience with microcomputers at an affordable price.
The BBC considered the NewBrain computer and rejected it. Acorn and Sinclair Research, along with other companies, then submitted designs, and Acorn won. The BBC Micro was then used almost universally in British schools from its birth into the 90's.
This model A Issue 1 is a very early machine and has a serial number of 100058
Rank Xerox ‘Telecopier 400’ facsimile machine, 1974.
This ‘Telecopier 400’ facsimile machine was made by Rank Xerox Ltd in England. It is a multi-function device made for office use. In 1971 Rank Xerox introduced the first telecopier using the flat bed method of copying. In this system the paper is electronically scanned line by line on a diode ledge. The received signals are transmitted by telephone and then also transferred line by line onto an electrode comb which charges the paper electrostatically to reproduce the original image.
Product Code XB538
Our units were very kindly donated by Jeremy Wilcox
Exidy Display Disk Unit
Exidy Display/ Dual floppy disk had 616K bytes of formatted data storage on 5 V diskettes. A 12" CRTDisk Unit display with 20MHz bandwidth and P31 phosphor all housed in a swivel-based enclosure that connects directly to the Sorcerer computer keyboard enclosure. CP/M operating system, Z80 assembler, Text Editor, Linking Loader, and Microsoft disk extended BASIC(DP 7200) are included.
Introduced in May 1980 at a cost of £2995
The Exidy System Display Disk Unit Operators manual is also included
The unit has a model number of DP 6300 and a serial number of NG48204038 and was very kindly donated by Steve Shepherd from the City of London
The Newton Connection Kit allows your Macintosh to communicate with your Newton. You can backup and restore Newton data, examine the data on your Macintosh and download Newton software applications to your Newton.
The first time the Newton Connection Kit synchronizes your Newton with your Macintosh, all the information from your Newton will be copied onto your Macintosh's hard drive. After the first time, synchronizing will copy only new or changed information from Newton to your Macintosh or vice versa. When synchronization is completed, the identical information exists both in the Newton folder on your Macintosh's hard drive and in your Newton.
When you synchronize, all information you deleted since the previous synchronization is stored in an Archive file on the Macintosh. The entire file left by the previous synchronization will be stored as a file called "Backup."
Our kit was kindly donated by Bill Henley
The Apple Newton MessagePad 110, codenamed Lindy, features a 20 MHz ARM 610 processor, 4 MB of ROM, 1.O MB of SRAM (480k usable), and infrared-beaming capabilities in a sleek handheld case with a 320x240 pressure-sensitive monochrome display for use with a provided stylus. Compared to earlier models, the Newton MessagePad 110 provides a rubberized housing that is slimmer and more comfortable to hold, more RAM, greater battery life, and an improved version of the NewtonOS (1.3).
This is the Apple machine which launched the "PDA" trend. John Sculley, Apple CEO at the time, invented the "Personnal Digital Assistant" term to name a new breed of products that the Newton would define.
The Newton MessagePad was one of the first series of handheld systems, or PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants), to attempt to recognize natural handwriting and use a basic form of artificial intelligence to 'tie' relevant information together. Newtons are technically not 'Macs', as they do not operate the MacOS, and instead use the NewtonOS (also developed by Apple).
Introduction Date: March 4, 1994 Discontinued Date: April 1, 1995 Processor Type: ARM 610 Processor Speed: 20 MHz Processor Upgrade: N/A FPU (Integrated): N/A System Bus Speed: N/A Lookaside Bus Speed: N/A ROM Size: 4 MB Data Path: N/A Level 1 Cache: None Level 2 Cache: None RAM Type: Built-in VRAM Type: Built-in Standard SRAM: 1.0 MB/480k 1. Maximum SRAM: 1.0 MB/480k 1. Motherboard SRAM: 1.0 MB/480k 1. RAM Slots: None Standard VRAM: N/A Maximum VRAM: N/A Standard Hard Drive: None 2. Int. Hard Drive Type: N/A Standard CD-ROM: None Standard Disk: None 2. Standard Modem: 9.6k (internal) 3. Standard Ethernet: None Case Type: Handheld Form Factor: MessagePad 110 Exp. Slots: 1 PCMCIA (Type II) 4. Exp. Bays (Free): N/A Battery Type: 4 AA/NiCad Recharge Battery Life: 10 Hours Built-in Display: 320x240 B&W 5. Supported NewtonOS: 1.3 Dimensions: 8.0 x 4.0 x 1.25 6. Avg. Weight: 1.28 lbs. Original Price: $600 US Est. Current Price: N/A Notes: 1. 1.0 MB of SRAM, 480k of which can be used for storage. 2. The PCMCIA slot can be used to increase 'storage' space. 3. Optional internal 9600 bps modem. 4. This model also includes a LocalTalk-compatible serial and infrared port. 5. 320x240 pressure-sensitive monochrome display. 6. In inches, height x width x depth (with screen facing up). With thanks to http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/messagepad/stats/newton_mp_110.html for the above inforrmation
The model No: is H0059 with a serial number of 1V42215U and was very kindly donated by Bill Henley
The Apple Newton MessagePad 2000, codenamed Q, features a 162 MHz StrongARM 110 processor, 4 MB or 8 MB of Mask ROM, 1 MB or 5 MB of RAM (1 MB of DRAM, 4 MB of Flash RAM), dual PCMCIA slots, dual-mode IrDA-beaming capabilities, and a Newton InterConnect port for multiple connectivity options, in a sleek handheld case with a 4.9 in. by 3.3 in. 16-level grayscale backlit LCD display (480x320 @ 100 dpi) for use with a provided stylus. The MessagePad 2000 combines a higher-resolution screen with a processor that is ten times faster than previous models to create the ultimate Newton. The Newton MessagePad was one of the first series of handheld systems, or PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants), to attempt to recognize natural handwriting and use a basic form of artificial intelligence to 'tie' relevant information together. Please note that Newtons are technically not 'Macs', as they do not operate the MacOS, and instead use the NewtonOS (also developed by Apple).
Introduction Date: March 21, 1997 Discontinued Date: February 27, 1998
Processor Type: StrongARM 110 Processor Speed: 162 MHz
Processor Upgrade: N/A FPU (Integrated): N/A
System Bus Speed: N/A Lookaside Bus Speed: N/A
ROM Size: 4 MB, 8 MB Data Path: N/A
Level 1 Cache: None Level 2 Cache: None
RAM Type: Built-in VRAM Type: Built-in
Standard RAM: 1 MB, 5 MB 1. Maximum RAM: 5 MB 1.
Motherboard RAM: 1 MB, 5 MB 1. RAM Slots: None
Standard VRAM: N/A Maximum VRAM: N/A
Standard Hard Drive: None 2. Int. Hard Drive Type: N/A
Standard CD-ROM: None Standard Disk: None 2.
Standard Modem: 28.8k (internal) 3. Standard Ethernet: None
Case Type: Handheld Form Factor: MessagePad 2000
Exp. Slots: 2 PCMCIA (Type II) 4. Exp. Bays (Free): N/A
Battery Type: 4 AA/NiMH Batt. Pack Battery Life: 12-36 Hours 5.
Built-in Display: 480x320 Grayscale 6. Supported NewtonOS: 2.1
Dimensions: 8.3 x 4.7 x 1.1 7. Avg. Weight: 1.4 lbs.
Original Price: $950 US Est. Current Price: N/A
Notes: 1. 5 MB of RAM (1 MB of system DRAM/4 MB of Flash RAM for storage).
2. Both PCMCIA slots can be used to increase 'storage' space.
3. Optional internal 28.8k wired or wireless modem.
4. This model also includes the Newton InterConnect port and an IrDA port.
5. Approximately 12-36 hours of continuous use.
6. 4.9x3.3 (in.) 16-level grayscale backlit LCD (480x320 @ 100 dpi).
7. In inches, height x width x depth (with screen facing up).
The above specification was from http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/messagepad/stats/newton_mp_2000.html
Our eMate is in very good condition with the original box and packaging. It is complete with all manaus, software and cable.
The model No: is H0149 with a serial number of JE7253LK98UX and was very kindly donated by Bill Henley
The eMate 300 was a personal digital assistant designed, manufactured and sold by Apple Computer to the education market as a low-cost laptop running the Newton operating system. The eMate was introduced March 7, 1997, for US$800 and was discontinued along with the Apple Newton product line and its operating system on February 27, 1998
The eMate 300 featured a 480x320 resolution 16-shade grayscale display with a backlight, a stylus pen, a full-sized keyboard, an infrared port, and standard Macintosh serial/LocalTalk ports. Power came from built-in rechargeable batteries, which lasted up to 28 hours on full charge. In order to achieve its low price, the eMate 300 did not have all the features of the contemporary Newton equivalent, the MessagePad 2000. The eMate used a 25 MHz ARM 710a RISC processor and had less memory than the MessagePad 2000 which used a StrongARM 110 RISC processor and was more expandable.
The eMate 300 featured a green-colored translucent durable case designed for intense use in classrooms. The eMate 300 featured a dark green-colored keyboard similar to that of PowerBooks of the same era. Purple, red, and orange colored eMate prototypes were produced especially for show only and were never put into mass production
The Apple eMate 300, designed for the education market, features a 25 MHz ARM 710a processor, 8 MB of ROM, 3 MB of RAM (1MB of DRAM, 2 MB of Flash Memory for user storage), a PCMCIA slot, IrDA-beaming capabilities, and a Newton InterConnect port for multiple connectivity options, in a translucent aquamarine and black "clamshell" portable case with a 480x320 16-shade grayscale backlit LCD display for use with either a provided stylus or the built-in keyboard. The eMate is the only Newton model to resemble a traditional laptop rather than a handheld, but had the Newton line continued, additional models would have likely followed. Please note that eMate is technically not a 'Mac', as it does not operate the MacOS, and instead uses the NewtonOS (also developed by Apple).
Introduction Date: March 7, 1997 Discontinued Date: February 27, 1998
Processor Type: ARM 710a Processor Speed: 25 MHz
Processor Upgrade: N/A FPU (Integrated): N/A
System Bus Speed: N/A Lookaside Bus Speed: N/A
ROM Size: 8 MB Data Path: N/A
Level 1 Cache: None Level 2 Cache: None
RAM Type: Built-in VRAM Type: Built-in
Standard RAM: 3 MB 1. Maximum RAM: 3 MB 1.
Motherboard RAM: 3 MB 1. RAM Slots: None
Standard VRAM: N/A Maximum VRAM: N/A
Standard Hard Drive: None 2. Int. Hard Drive Type: N/A
Standard CD-ROM: None Standard Disk: None 2.
Standard Modem: None 3. Standard Ethernet: None
Case Type: Portable Form Factor: eMate 300
Exp. Slots: 1 PCMCIA (II/III) 4. Exp. Bays (Free): N/A
Battery Type: 4 AA/NiMH Batt. Pack Battery Life: 28 Hours
Built-in Display: 480x320 Grayscale 5. Supported NewtonOS: 2.1
Dimensions: 12.0 x 11.4 x 2.1 6. Avg. Weight: 4.0 lbs.
Original Price: $800 US Est. Current Price: N/A
Notes: 1. 3 MB of RAM (1MB of DRAM/2 MB of Flash Memory for user storage).
2. The PCMCIA (Type II/III) slot can be used to increase 'storage' space.
3. Supports internal or external wired and wireless modems.
4. This model also includes the Newton InterConnect port and an IrDA port.
5. 480x320 16-level grayscale backlit LCD display.
6. In inches, height x width x depth (with screen facing up).
The above specification was from http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/messagepad/stats/emate_300.html
Our eMate is in very good condition with the original box and packaging. It is complete with all manaus, software and cable.
The model No: is H0208 with a serial number of 1V71012 T8TD and was very kindly donated by Bill Henley
The Watford electronics bbc speech synthesizer uses an allophone system to give the user an unlimited vocabulary and the capability to speak any english word. The advanced software described in this manual offers the user a built in word library, and a 62 allophone buffer under interrupt control with access from any language via the *TALK command, OSBYTE, OSWORD and *FX25. It has been specially designed so that the user can design his own words to be spoken. Use of a speech buffer means that the computer can carry out the user's programs while the unit is speaking with minimal effect on program speed.
The speech synthesizer consists of a box with a built in speaker and volume control, a lead to connect with the computer and a jack socket for connection to an external amplifier such as your Hi-Fi or personal radio/tape player.
Kindly donated by Tony Young
The AMX mouse was a 3 button mouse which plugged into the BBC Micro's User port. the software to drive it was in a sideways ROM. The AMX mouse came with the AMX Art application.
"The AMX Mouse together with the accompanying ROM and software represent a
major advance in home computing, making the BBC computer much easier to use for the
average person: Together they represent remarkable value for the BBC owner, and
transform the machine into a much more user friendly device, comparable with much more
expensive machines.
The Mouse may be used with any BBC Model B computer with either cassette or disc
filing systems, and draws its power from the User port.
For the more advanced user, routines contained in the ROM allow programs to be
written in Basic or Assembly language which incorporate many of the latest features
including icons, windows and pointers. "
Extract from the AMX Mouse User Guide
Our mouse with its original box and packaging was kindly donated by Tony Young of London
This Microscribe Main Printed Circuit Board was kindly donated by Mike Voss
"Microscribe is a general-purpose, miniature terminal that's equally at home in the office, on site, at home — or on the move. It's stylish, compact and lightweight. Superb ergonomic design makes it very easy to use. And inside that neat exterior, there's a formidable array of powerful features.
This Microscribe Prototype Key Board PCB and unit top was kindly donated by Mike Voss
"Microscribe is a general-purpose, miniature terminal that's equally at home in the office, on site, at home — or on the move. It's stylish, compact and lightweight. Superb ergonomic design makes it very easy to use. And inside that neat exterior, there's a formidable array of powerful features.
"Microscribe is a general-purpose, miniature terminal that's equally at home in the office, on site, at home — or on the move. It's stylish, compact and lightweight. Superb ergonomic design makes it very easy to use. And inside that neat exterior, there's a formidable array of powerful features.
Microscribe works just like any other terminal, with keyboard input and visual display output. The big difference is that where other terminals dominate the work surface, Microscribe is little larger than a textbook. It can even fit easily into a briefcase. Yet it is rugged enough to stand uptoeveryday use in industrial applications. It uses the industry standard RS232 serial interface protocol, so it can communicate with virtually any host computer or periphera either directly or via modems or acoustic couplers. A battery operated version using low-power CMOS technology is ideal for field or mobile use, acting as an electronic notebook or data capture device. For dedicated applications, where the terminal is permanently linked to and powered from a host computer there is a standard low cost NMOS version. An optional AC adapter provides power and can act as a charger for the battery versions.
Microscribe gives a single line display of 16, 32 or 40 alphanumeric characters with true descenders. Special control circuitry in the battery-powered models ensures that the contrast ratio of the display remains constant during the full discharge curve of the battery.
The keyboard is microprocessor controlled, and each key has full travel and tactile response, with selectable audio feedback. It is designed for years of trouble-free operation — the switch pads, for example, are made of pure gold. Setting up the terminal to suit a particular role is carried out interactively via the keyboard, and a range of preprogrammed function keys simplifies frequently-used operations.
Superb styling, careful ergonomics and innovative electronic design makes Microscribe the ideal terminal for today's industrial and commercial computer systems. Its size and power brings new dimensions to applications hitherto considered impractical for reasons of cost, environment or space."
Our usit was very kindly donated by Mike Voss
The acoustic Coupler predated modems. An early example is the Anderson-Jacobsen ADC 212 Acoustic Data Coupler. Our model mounted in a wooden case has a serial numberr of 222 and was designed for use in the UK
It converts data from a form which is compatible with data processing equipment to a form which is compatible with transmission facilities and visa-versa.
The first commercial acoustic coupler was designed by Anderson/Jacobson for Tymshare.
Our coupler was kindly donated by Jeremy Wilcox
Our Xerox TCIII Service Test Box is "probably the last existing TCIII test box around" and was kindly donated by Jeremy Wilcox.
Serial No: 600190450
The Fluke 9010A Micro-System Troubleshooter is self-contained programmable unit designed to locate faults in microprocessor-based systems. The 9010A includes built-in pre-programmed test routines for checking the entire microprocessor kernel including the bus, RAM, ROM, and I/O. The 9010A comes with a troubleshooting probe that can be used to either monitor logic action on a node-by-node basis or to inject stimulus pulses. The 9010A uses microprocessor-specific interface pods to interface to the suspect circuit board. Over 50 different pods are available supportin an extnesive list of microprocessors. The interface pods have extensive protection and self test features ensuring confidence in troubleshooting and testing circuit boards. Each pod contains its own microprocessor, RAM, ROM, and I/O memory space permitting it to test non-functional boards. The 9010A has a mini-cassette for storing and reading programs and memory maps from the unit under test.
This is designed to troubleshoot and test microprocessor based systems with test routines for locating faults related to the microprocessor bus (RAM, ROM, I/O).
The unit includes a probe to monitor logic action on a node by node basis or to inject stimulus pulses.
The unit is a self contained programmable model that lets you develop your own customized programs.
They can use prerecorded cassettes or be programmed from a PC.
It also includes a LEARN algorithm that will generate a memory map form a known good board.
The unit supports a large list of older microprocessors, such as 8086, 8088, Z80A, and many others.
Key Points:
•Micro System Troubleshooter
•Troubleshoot microprocessor based boards with ease
•Microprocessor interface pods for over 50 microprocessors
•Perform BUS, ROM and RAM testing with a few key strokes
One of the benefits of using the 9010A, is that you can create scripting test suites. All Fluke 9010A Troubleshooters have a microcassette tape system. However, this requires that you manually key in programs -- a long and error-prone process.
Further inforamtion can be found at http://tech.quarterarcade.com/tech/Fluke/9010A/
Specifications:
Temperature range 0°C to +50°C
Operating temperature +10°C to +40°C
Non Operating temperature +4°C to +50°C
Weight 6kg
Maximum power 40W
Our machine - serial num,ber: 3380015 was kindly donated by Jeremy Wilcox
Hewlett-Packard 9121 Disc Drive Model D
Serial number: 2341A85642
Introduced: 1982
The 9121D was a dual, 3.5 inch floppy disc drive with an HP-IB interface. It's drives accomodated SS/DD discs (270Kb). The 9121S was the single drive version of the 9121, priced at $1185. The 9121 was the first HP product to come in the new slimline, stackable form factor. HP used this form factor for computers and disc drives for over ten years.
This machine was very kindly donated by Jeremy Wilcox
Microwriter AgendA
The Microwriter AgendA was one of the first PDAs. Released in 1989, it includes a set of small "conventional" keys arranged inside the half circle of a Microwriter chording keyboard with larger keys. It has 32k of storage, pluggable memory modules, a 4-line LCD screen, and advertised excellent build quality and long battery life. It was designed for text-mode note-taking without a conventional desk or keyboard. In 1990 it was awarded the British Design Award.
Microwriting is the leading system of chord keying and is based on a set of mnemonics, it was developed by Cy Endfield and Chris Rainey in the 1970s. The system was used in the Microwriter and the Microwriter Agenda, which was one of the first PDA (personal digital assistant). The AgendA was awarded the British Design Award in 1990. Thousands of people have acquired the ability to use the system. Most people can touch type in less than 1 hour but many in 30minutes. Then typing speed and accuracy will build up as experience is gained.
The Microwriter codes can be seen at http://www.bellaire.demon.co.uk/bellaire_cykey_codes.html
Released 1989 at £199
6303 Microprocessor at 4.9MHz
32kB RAM expandable to 128KB
Alpha-numeric keyboard, plus "Microwriter" keyboard designed for one handed "blind" operation
Serial and parallel interfaces to printers and PCs
ABC programming language (BASIC/Pascal hybrid)
Built in word processor, calculator, to-do list, organiser, database and alarm clock
Additional software available on memory cards - spreadsheet, language translators, finance & maths
We are lucky to have both the 32K and the 128K models - both in soft cases
The Compaq SLT/286 (1988), prices starts at $5,399.
The machine offers a bright high-resolution display that supports the VGA video standard, the first laptop with that feature. It has a 12-megahertz 80C286 processor, a new low-power chip that is among the faster 80286 microprocessors, and it is certainly capable of handling most applications. And it has a detachable keyboard, another first among laptops.
It is 8 1/2 inches deep - 2 to 3 inches less than the other leading laptops at the time
The SLT/286 provides mass storage in the form of a 20-megabyte or 40-megabyte hard disk drive. The shock-mounted drive is a new design that can withstand up to 80 G's of impact, or a ride in the trunk of a New York City taxi, whichever comes first. Data is transferred through a high-capacity (1.44 megabyte) 3.5-inch diskette drive. An optional 2,400-baud internal modem is $599.
At 14 pounds, including the battery and the hard disk, the SLT/286 strains the definition of laptop. Still, it is five pounds lighter than Compaq's lunchpail-shaped Portable III, a significant difference among portables. Most important, it runs for three hours on one battery charge. An optional backup battery pack ($129) weighs two pounds.
One drawback of the machine is that it does not support color, but then neither does any other laptop. (High-resolution flat-panel color displays will begin arriving next year.) Another surprise is that Compaq, which has forged its reputation for high-performance machines around the 80386 microprocessor from the Intel Corporation, did not introduce an SLT/386. While the 12-megahertz 80C286 is a better-than-average chip, it is no match for the 386 chip. Michael Swavely, Compaq's vice president for marketing, suggested in an interview that the power demands of the 386 chip had reduced the SLT's battery life to unacceptably short periods. The fast 286 chip, he said, offered the best balance of performance and battery life.
Model 2680 SerialNo: 1921HU4H3434
This machine was very Kindly donated by Lesley Moreland to gether with the Power Supply and the following manuals:
Operations Guide - comprehensive manual in original ring folder Memory kit and battery pack installation Guide.
The A305 and A310 were launched in June 1987. It was the first RISC CPU based computer in the world. There were 2 models, the A305 and the A310. The A305 could be upgraded to the A310 specification.
The RISC-based A310 excelled on integer programs, but the lack of FPU showed up in the 'Savage' benchmark, where slow IEEE-754 compatible emulation routines in the C library hurt the performance. Remarkably, the A310 could run Savage in interpreted BASIC in 32.8 seconds, only about 50% slower than the Compaq Deskpro 386 equipped with a 80287 math coprocessor.
The A310 ran an operating system called Arthur. It was based on earlier OS Acorn wrote in 1979 for the BBC Micro, a 6502-based PC. Arthur was quite modern for a PC and included features like modularity between the OS and file system (two different file systems were supported), a graphical user interface (GUI) called Desktop, and a built in scripting language. A310 was installed with an ARM2 processor and 1 MB RAM
From the Archimedes brochure:
"The Archimedes 310 personal workstation - world beating
technology in an affordable microcomputer. The Archimedes
range of microcomputers represents a British breakthrough
in the application of RISC technology to personal
computing. Acorn has designed and developed the RISC
microchip for the Archimedes range to bring practical
benefits to all microcomputer users.
Acclaimed at its launch with the British Microcomputing
Awards 'Micro of the Year' title, the Archimedes system has
also won the 1988 TOBIE award for Best New Technology
Application of the Year. In the words of Personal Computer
World magazine, The fact is that the ARM chip is amazing,
and the Archimedes which uses it is
equally wonderful.
CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT
ARM (Acorn RISC Machine) 32-bit microprocessor using Reduced
Instruction Set Computer technology.
A typical execution rate of 4 MIPS (Million Instructions Per Second) makes the
Archimedes system the world's fastest microcomputer in its class to date.
MEMORY
1 Megabyte of fully addressable built-in RAM.
Complex software applications to run from RAM without frequent delays for
disc reading.
Long documents and large quantities of data to be held in memory for faster
processing.
512 kbytes of ROM store the complete operating system and the BASIC
programming environment, along with the window driven user interface.
The Archimedes system is ready to run as soon as you switch on. You do not
have to load the operating system from disc.
Storing the operating system in ROM makes more RAM available for
applications."
Our model was kindly donated by Roy Childs
With the PC-1251, Sharp started off their product range of really tiny pocket computers. It was the third original design after the PC-121x and PC-1500 series.
Contrary to its predecessors, it was really pocket sized, measuring only 135 x 70 x 9.5 mm. Nevertheless, it featured a 24 character display, and with 4 KB RAM it even outclassed the PC-1500 basic version. The major drawback of the new design was that the tiny keys are only compatible with pointed fingers.
The PC-1251 was based on a new 8-bit CMOS micro processor, the SC61860, which was mounted on the main PCB together with the display driver chip SC43536. On an additional small PCB, 24 KB ROM (LH532917) and 4 KB RAM (two HM6116 2k x 8 chips) were located. A new feature was the so-called "reserve memory" which allowed to assign often used BASIC commands or functions to 18 of the alphanumeric keys.
Together with the PC-1251, the CE-125 thermal printer and micro cassette recorder unit was introduced. With integrated NiCd accumulators, it was fully mains independent and made the 1251 into a very compact mobile computing system. The CE-125 also featured an additional tape interface for external tape recorders.
The PC-1250 was the same machine as the PC-1251 but with only 2 KB of RAM.
Our machine with the original rigid case, CE-125 interface, manual and poer supply were all kindly donated by John D'Arcy of Birmingham
Sinclair Cambridge Type 1 Calculator
This we believe is the first model of the Cambridge range 1973.
It had a brown colour and was suppluied with a white hinged polypropylene type protective case.
Ors is complete with the operating Instructions and has a serial number of185607
8 digits, red LED.
4-functions, constant.
Has [C] and [K] (constant) keys.
Batteries: 4x AAA.
Main integrated circuit - General Instruments Microelectronics GI-C550, here date coded mid-1973.
50 mm x 111 mm x 28 mm (2" x 4.4" x 1.1").
Made in England.
The first of the very small Sinclair Cambridge series, introduced in Summer 1973, costing in Britain £43.95 Sterling (US$105).
The case has a glossy finish, with a poorer quality moulding than usual for Sinclair. The main chip is in a more expensive ceramic package.
This was many people's introduction to electronic calcs. It was tiny, affordable, and it outsold just about any other model in the UK. It also had a lifespan of several years during which the price dropped nearly tenfold! A classic, and the product Sinclair is most often remembered for (apart, maybe, for the computers). It was also available as a kit (can you imagine a kit calculator nowadays?!)
Further details can be seen at http://www.vintagecalculators.com/html/cambridge_models.html
Our unit was built from a Kit by John D'Arcy and who kindly donated it to the Centre
The fx-602p released around 1982 is thought by many as the finest calculator casio ever made. An evolution of the fx-502p with more memory and an alpha-numeric display. it was the last of the casio step programmables and alpha was added to compete with the hp41c. hereafter, casio moved onto basic programmable pocket computers like the fx-700p, although for a time, this model was concurrent with the fx-702p which wasn't sure whether it was a pocket computer or a calculator.
the 10+2 display also accommodates 11 alpha characters consisting of upper and lower case letters together with many useful symbols. the display is clear for a dot matrix type. there is no external contrast control, but the display contrast could be adjusted with a potentiometer after opening the unit.
The unit is programmable with constant memory, totalling of 512 steps and 22 memories (M00-M19 plus MF and M1F). this number can be partitioned, trading in steps for more memories. between 22 and 80 memories are allowed corresponding to between 512 and 32 steps. the base memories cannot be converted into more steps than 512. When you altered the memory partition to gain more memory registers (at the cost of 8 program steps for each memory register), you always got an extra F Register for every 10 Memory registers. If you had M20-M29, you also got M2F as a bonus. Where this extra memory space came from, I don't know.
Programmability is the same as the fx-502p with a comprehensive set of instructions including 4 tests, isz & dsz (increment/decrement and jump if zero) for compact loops, labels, subroutines and indirect addressing. The original F Register (located at the EXP key) was used for number comparisons. There were 4 kinds of comparison: x=0, x?0, x=F and x?F. Although the F register played an important role, there was nothing special about the other F Registers.
Our FX-602P was kindly donated by John D'Arcy of Birmingham
Herman Hollerith's Type 001 Mechanical Card Punch, patented in 1901, was the first key punch; that is, the first card punch operated from a keyboard, so that the operator could punch digits 0-9, without knowing the corresponding card codes. Of this device, Hollerith said "My invention ... comprises a traveling carrier for the card, a series of key-operated punches arranged at right angles to the path in which the carrier moves, so that in any position of the card either the cypher or any of the nine digits may be punched by the operation of the proper key
The punch was patented by Herman Hollerith on the 10th September 1901 - see picture
Our example is probably from the 1930's and bears the machine number 1/7/6335 and was very kindly donated by Pam D'Arcy from Birmingham
ICT parts
Many spindles were damaged by clumsy operation. Many more filters were lost because they made fabulous Frisbees which was safer than playing football in the computer room.
The plastic 0 (zero) was used to make up the identifying 4 character mnemonics used on all ICT (ICL) boxes e.g. Line printer LP03, Central processor CP01, and Mag tape deck MT45
Kindly donated by Dave Joyner
The Magnetic tape collection. (from left to right…)
Cambridge Computer Services tape number 10000002 meaning it was almost certainly the second (2400ft) tape to be written to after the ICT 1903 was installed in 1966. (Early tapes were available in 2400ft, 1200ft, and 600ft sizes and most could be recorded at 600 bpi)
A Pericomp Beginning of Tape (BOT) guillotine. The tape leaders got very creased and frayed in constant use and this device (or a pair of scissors) tidied them up (until you ran out of leader.
Write Permit Rings (available in many colours) WPRs were inserted into the back of the tape spool to allow writing or removed to prevent overwriting. (the source of many a tape reload or rerun) If you think about it you only needed one ring per deck, maybe 4 and a couple of spares, but because every tape was supplied with one computer rooms tended to be littered with them.
A later ICL 600ft (Tupperware) mag.tape. The Tupperware nickname came from the semi-opaque plastic case they were supplied in to make transit safer.
Kindly donated by Dave Joyner
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