[jpstewart]

I pull out my systems one at a time.  They're hobby machines for fun stuff rather than for work so most of the time they're unplugged and stored wherever I can find space.  I'll set one up for a weekend or maybe a few consecutive weeknights but they're always unplugged when not in active use. 

I have a couple of different monitors to suit the capabilities of the different systems.  And way too many keyboards and mice.  Most of my systems need proprietary ones so KVM switching isn't really a viable option.  Everything has to get swapped around depending on what I'm using.

I'm lucky to have a large U-shaped desk.  I have my "daily driver" on one side and can just swivel my chair 180 degrees to get to the spot where the vintage systems get set up.

[vishnu]

I live in a 111 year-old five bedroom, three story (four if you count the basement) house all by myself, so no one bitches that I have computers setup and running all over the place, with the meaningless exception of my energy company (Xcel Energy), who keep sending me messages about how my energy consumption is so much higher than any of my neighbors... 😆 😂 😜

[kaigan]

I don't have enough space at the moment to keep literally everything hooked up and ready to go. I don't have quite as many machines as Jan-Jaap, but I have all of the main MIPS workstations from the PI to the Tezro, three Chimera rackmounts, a rackmount Prism setup, a VW320, an O200 w/ gigachannel vault, and an Onyx2 deskside. Not to mention some Commodore, IBM, and Sun gear. All in an office that's maybe 15'x15'.  It's pretty cluttered in here right now.

The rackmount Tezro and Onyx4 are my most-used general-purpose machines, so they're pretty much ready to go all the time. I have a server cart that sits underneath my desk and the servers just sit on top of it. I should get a proper rack for them, but this serves the purpose for now. Everything else is set up as I need it. The Octane2 and the PI have been seeing the most use lately.

Beyond that, my modern gaming machine is at the far right of an L-shaped desk setup and everything else is devoted to vintage machines and parts. It's also scattered with a few little plastic mecha toys - I've been getting into building kits recently.

Here's a picture of the setup just after I moved in, back when everything was fairly clean - https://siliconimage.irixnet.org/index.p...collection

I've actually considered renting some office space and setting up a small by-appointment museum of my gear. It'd also be a nice place to work from when I want to get out of the house, since I work completely remotely. Decently-sized space is expensive enough that I haven't pulled the trigger yet, though.

[vishnu]

That's a great picture Kaigan, your Altair looks mint, does it still run? I know I should already know that, but strangely I don't. 😜 Little known, seldom used fact, that Altair was the first computer Gates and Allen programmed for in their days before Microsoft. Too bad for Altair... 😳 😄 😂

[kaigan]

That's a great picture Kaigan, your Altair looks mint, does it still run? I know I should already know that, but strangely I don't. 😜 Little known, seldom used fact, that Altair was the first computer Gates and Allen programmed for in their days before Microsoft. Too bad for Altair... 😳 😄 😂

The reason the Altair looks mint is because it's a replica using modern parts.  The back is much shorter than an original Altair cabinet and the whole thing is made of acrylic except the front panel. I would love to have an original (or an IMSAI, that'd be cool, too), but given prices for them these days...

If you're interested, the kit can be purchased here: https://adwaterandstir.com/altair/

[vishnu]

The reason the Altair looks mint is because it's a replica using modern parts.  The back is much shorter than an original Altair cabinet and the whole thing is made of acrylic except the front panel. I would love to have an original (or an IMSAI, that'd be cool, too), but given prices for them these days...

If you're interested, the kit can be purchased here: https://adwaterandstir.com/altair/

But... But... It looks so real! 😁

I've had it on my todo list for years to build Steve Ciarcia's Z80 single board computer, I've had the circuit diagram since forever. So much to do, so little time... 😛

[weblacky]

The reason the Altair looks mint is because it's a replica using modern parts.  The back is much shorter than an original Altair cabinet and the whole thing is made of acrylic except the front panel. I would love to have an original (or an IMSAI, that'd be cool, too), but given prices for them these days...

If you're interested, the kit can be purchased here: https://adwaterandstir.com/altair/

But... But... It looks so real! 😁

I've had it on my todo list for years to build Steve Ciarcia's Z80 single board computer, I've had the circuit diagram since forever. So much to do, so little time... 😛

Not to hijack but I friend of mine (and myself as a scavenge team) have come into possession of an ORIGINAL imsai 8080 with two dual floppy controllers and a hayes modem add-on from former FIRST OWNER.  Also it has a lot of memory boards in it.  Unpowered, untested, from a family friend, from the 1970s.  It's missing one blue switch cover but everything else looks great. Also one striped screw on the case (side).  Also a fair amount of printed manuals with it (for one floppy controller and the modem at least, perhaps more).

We've not yet figured out how to pack this beast to make sure its fragile plastic face remains in great shape and then COVID really hit, it's inside my friend's heated garage right now.  

We were hopping a big spender would just like the entire machine with Hayes modem add-on and both floppy enclosures for a single price.

If you guys are interested, I'll get pics together and do a real post in the market place.  Neither of us are from this era of computing and so it's unfamiliar to us...we've not even plugged it in...nor fiddled with anything other than removing the cover for inspection.  No real corrosion, very clean for it's age.

Likely we'll need to professionally pack it unless someone in WA state wants to drive down to get it in person (or fly down if they are serious).

Let me know.

[vishnu]

Not to hijack but I friend of mine (and myself as a scavenge team) have come into possession of an ORIGINAL imsai 8080 with two dual floppy controllers and a hayes modem add-on from former FIRST OWNER.  Also it has a lot of memory boards in it.  Unpowered, untested, from a family friend, from the 1970s.  It's missing one blue switch cover but everything else looks great. Also one striped screw on the case (side).  Also a fair amount of printed manuals with it (for one floppy controller and the modem at least, perhaps more).

We've not yet figured out how to pack this beast to make sure its fragile plastic face remains in great shape and then COVID really hit, it's inside my friend's heated garage right now.  

We were hopping a big spender would just like the entire machine with Hayes modem add-on and both floppy enclosures for a single price.

If you guys are interested, I'll get pics together and do a real post in the market place.  Neither of us are from this era of computing and so it's unfamiliar to us...we've not even plugged it in...nor fiddled with anything other than removing the cover for inspection.  No real corrosion, very clean for it's age.

Likely we'll need to professionally pack it unless someone in WA state wants to drive down to get it in person (or fly down if they are serious).

Let me know.

Dude, seriously. You need to put this into the hands of a professional auctioneer, it could very well bring you guys a small fortune... 😱

[robespierre]

If it has indications of provenance, that could be true. Do keep in mind that S100 systems and parts were made for over a decade, and so what is "original" is a squirrelly concept.

[weblacky]

The family friend was the person who put it together in like 1976, he had the Lear adm-3a terminal and everything.  I’m also like 75% sure we have the original receipt for the system in one of the manuals he printed?  But I’m not sure.  I figured it would be real easy to tell from materials, aging, parts, if a computer this old was build at least within the correct decade. 

It never occurred to me that anyone would care if it was at most eight or nine years from start of production. But I can certainly have my friend look through the binders real quick and see if there’s a slam dunk on the purchase. The guy saved receipts on several other items we had but I am not 100% sure I remember seeing one for this system purchase.