Antiques

[i]

I'm not dead ... I'm just resting.

I don't know which forum this really falls under. Sorry!

A friend of mine works for a museum that has just started a search for some computer-related "artifacts". She's looking for an original Macintosh computer, circa 1984.

Umm ... help?

Does anyone happen to have one of these stowed in a closet somewhere? Or know someone that might?

She's hoping that someone out there will have one, and that they'd be willing to donate such a system to a good home. Shipping costs would be covered. The contributor would get their name displayed with the item as the source of the donation. Plus, depending on what you think the IRS would accept as the value, as the museum is run by a non-profit organization, a receipt can be issued for tax credit purposes.

Oh, and she may also be looking for an external modem, possibly 300 baud, and perhaps with an acoustic coupler (Did they ever make 300 baud modems without acoustic couplers, i.e. with direct phone cable connections? I'm actually curious about that.) Anyway, the details are (obviously) still hazy on that one, but I'll post more information about that one as I get them.

Can anyone help me out here?

Do I win the "most bizarre hardware request" award?

 

[Mercutio]

Er, no, you don't. There was someone here some years ago asking questions about MFM drive settings. Yeesh. That stuff was a memory when I started as a tech, and that was, er, 14 years ago I think.

Anyway, I've got a MODIFIED original Mac out in my garage. Modified as in "I threw out all the guts and put in a board with a 68040 and a respectable amount of RAM"

But the case, keyboard, mouse and antique Sony hard disk are still intact. The picture tube still works too, of course.

 

[Fushigi]

My best antiques would be an IBM PC-XT motherboard with CPU & RAM. I think it even has the Cassette adapter/connector.

That and a copy of Microsoft OS/2 (by HP). The irony of MS OS/2 is just too good, so I can't throw that out.

Most everything else I've junked or otherwise divested myself of at some point or other.

 

[jtr1962]

I have an XT with 640KB RAM, 2 MFM 20 MB hard drives (I found one in a machine by the curb and installed it along with the original), original keyboard and original VGA monitor. I got it from one of my neighbors who claims he paid over $3000. It was made c. 1986. I also had an Amstrad PCW8256, which had the CPU and floppy drive integrated into the monitor case. No hard drive, and the monitor was monochrome green. It stopped working and I threw most of it away. I still have the 360KB floppy drive somewhere and the logic board, as well as the software disks, printer, and manuals, even though it's all useless to me (the floppies look completely different than the usually 1.44 MB). It was my first computer. I picked it up second hand from one of my mother's friends in 1988 and used it until it broke in 1995. I was computerless until I got a 386-33MHz with 8MB RAM from a friend in late 1998. I used that for a few months until another friend gave me his 386-40MHz (which I maxed out at 32MB RAM and bought an 8.4GB hard drive for). I used that system for about a year until I fixed up a Pentium machine my mom picked up for $5. In early 2000 I got a PII-450 which became my primary machine after I upgraded it to 768MB RAM. About a year and half ago I upgraded the PII with a 1.4GHz Powerleap adaptor. I recently maxed out the RAM at 1GB. Sorry about the history lesson but I still have all these machines (and a few others I found), and compared to almost everyone else's equipment even my newest machine (i440BX M/B c. 1998) is ancient. Everything still works, too.

I also have a 386SX-25MHz in working order with a 40MB IDE drive, an IBM 386 (25MHz?) in non-working order, two Pentium MMX machines and a PII-450 (I reused my old processor in a system I found), and an old 386-40MHz from one of my brother's friends. The Pentium and newer systems are still useful for a variety of tasks but the other machines really serve no purpose. I hope one day all this crap will actually worth something as earlier vintage machines gradually get recycled. They were all "finds" which I put a minimal amount of money (<$25) to get into working order. As of late I pass by anything thrown by the curb unless it's of PII vintage or later, although I'll pull the RAM out of any older machines I find unless it's useless 30-pin RAM. In fact, I found a working 64MB PC100 stick about a week ago. The machine had nothing else worth taking.

 

[P5-133XL]

I still want a working DEC PDP-8/L -- The first computer I played with and one that I have very fond memories of. I've been looking for years and have yet to find anything more than pieces.

 

[i]

Thanks Mercutio ... I'm checking to see if they would accept a computer that's externally an original Macintosh, but internally something else. They are probably going to have to contemplate that one.

 

[Mercutio]

Original Macs shouldn't be THAT hard to find.

 

[i]

Original Macs shouldn't be THAT hard to find.

Are you sure? That was what I thought originally. I'm sure they are still out there ... but finding them? It's not like they are hot sellers on E-bay (they've been checking).

I suspect most people that have them are in their fifties, and would have to be outright asked about one before they even remembered that they might still have theirs in the attic somewhere.

I can't believe 1984 was 20 years ago.

 

[Will Rickards WT]

Does an apple IIe qualify? I might be able to get my hands on one of those.

 

[Mercutio]

Best place to ask is probably schools. Lots of teachers have them.

 

[Jimshady]

Couple of 2400bps modems, a C64+tapes, a VIC20, some PS/2s, uhh, heaps more junk.

A relitive of mine is the president of the Australian Apple Users Group, and he has piles of rotten apples. :lol: I'll ask him for you.

 

[Jimshady]

...oh and I have a 10 megabyte hdd.

 

[Jimshady]

Couple of 2400bps modems, a C64+tapes, a VIC20, some PS/2s, uhh, heaps more junk.

A relitive of mine is the president of the Australian Apple Users Group, and he has piles of rotten apples. :lol: I'll ask him for you.

AN Aussie AUG, not THE. There are too many of them.

 

[i]

A relitive of mine is the president of the Australian Apple Users Group, and he has piles of rotten apples. :lol: I'll ask him for you.

Thanks Jimshady, Mercutio, Will R., P5-133XL, jtr1962, Fushigi, etc (I wonder if you and etc will set up accounts here on StorageForum someday).

I think I have located a potential donor of one original Macintosh.

Still could use a 300 baud modem though. Preferably acoustically coupled.

 

[Santilli]

We had/have a store in Berkeley that supported old macs on Shattuck, and still charged outrageous prices for them.

S

 

[blakerwry]

I have a Kurta IS/one Graphing tablet... still works... if anyone wants it.. just pay shipping...