ian (12/11/82)
Herewith is the complete back-issue file of the Ontario Micros Digest. A collectors' item? I doubt it, but ``of possible interest...'' Enjoy it, Ian >From ontmicro Wed Jun 16 21:22:31 1982 Subject: ontario micros digest Newsgroups: ont.general There is now an irregularly-published ontario microcomputer digest on usenet. To subscribe, please mail your name, uucp-address, and micro interests to utcsstat!ian who will add you to the mailing list. The digest is distributed via mail rather than news since only a few people expressed interest in having a newsgroup for it. The mailing list itself will be mailed to all members on it periodically as well. Micro people unite, you have nothing to lose but your size! Ontario Micro Digest Volume 0 Number -2 Wed Jun 16 20:55:55 1982 Address for articles: utcsstat!ontmicro Address for mail list changes: utcsstat!ian Address for flames to the editor: utcsstat!ian Current Topics: The Ontario Micro Digest -------------------- >From utcsstat!ian Subject: The Ontario Micro Digest This is the first issue of the Ontario Microcomputer Digest. It will be send by mail only to those who so request, until & unless there is enough interest to make it into a newsgroup. Please, mail me anything that you think would be of interest to microcomputer users in Ontario. This includes events, sales, rumors, new Computer Bulletin Board Systems (CBBS, any flavor), new stores (or closings of old ones), projects you are working on/need help on/have help to offer on, reviews of systems/products (like what you have NOW and how you like it!), ideas, trends, or even fantasies. Don't forward stuff from net.micro or related newsgroups, though. And please include a "Subject: " header line for the headlines! My role as moderator will be minimal; usually I will not do anything to the text. It may even get compacted into the digest automatically, in which case the digest will be as democratic as the usenet itself. Please contribute something! Ian Darwin U of Toronto Computing Services --------------------------------------------- -30- >From wagner Wed Jun 16 21:31:38 1982 Nothing to lose but your size? Oh, Ian, how could you say that? To: utzoo!utcsstat!ian Subject: Micro digest I note that was marked vol 0#2. What hapened to vol0#0&1 ? Is the '30' at the bottom the number of pages I was *supposed* to have received ? Ontario Micro Digest Volume 0 Number -1 Fri Jun 18 10:46:19 1982 Address for articles: utcsstat!ontmicro Address for mail list changes: utcsstat!ian Address for flames to the editor: utcsstat!ian Current Topics: Three notes [PET assembler, Victor 8088, PAC-MAN] new store in Toronto -------------------- >From uucp Fri Jun 18 06:34:49 1982 remote from utzoo >From bstempleton Thu Jun 17 12:09:49 1982 remote from watmath To: utzoo!utcsstat!ontmicro Subject: Three notes [PET assembler, Victor 8088, PAC-MAN] 1) For PET owners interested in programming in assembler: TemTech Information Products (that's me) is finally offering the PAL assembler for the PET. It fits in 4K but has just all the features most people want except for a macro processor. Its main feature is convenience, since you use the built in editor and environment of the PET that users are already familiar with. Mail me for details, or see my talk at the Toronto PET User's Group meeting this Saturday at the Casa Loma Campus of George Brown. ------------------------------------------------ 2) Tuesday, some friends of mine and I went out to Victor of Canada in Cambridge to see the new Victor 9000 computer. 8088 processor, two floppies with 600k each on them, 2 rs-232 ports, one paralell right on the back. 128k standard, 4 expansion slots. The best part is the display, which has 800 by 400 bitmap, and you can get 132 columns by 50 lines text quite clearly. Fairly full keyboard that is completely reprogrammable (they even have code for you to do this) Unfortunately, all you can get now is crap like CP/M and MS-DOS. They say unix in 83, but perhaps we will see Coherent even sooner, since that is on the IBM now. The bad news (or perhaps good) is the price is $7300 about in sinking Canadian funds. ------------------------------------------------ 3) Bought the PAC-MAN cartridge for my Atari 800 last weekend. I never played PAC-MAN in the arcades, but it is ok on the 800. The game is very close to the arcade version, unlike the home video computer version which has not the graphics resolution. Brad Templeton --------------------------------------------- >From ian Fri Jun 18 10:25:17 1982 Subject: new store in Toronto There's a new discount parts store just across the road from Exceltronix! It's called Parts Galore, 316 College St, Toronto, 925-8291. Mainly surplus; keyboards, a PDP-8(!), other fun stuff. Give em a week to unpack all their stuff before you go down; they were still unpacking yesterday. Closed mondays, Tues-Fri 10-6, Sat 9-5. --------------------------------------------- -30- Ontario Micro Digest Volume 0 Number 0 Fri Jun 18 15:21:01 1982 == Special Issue == Address for articles: utcsstat!ontmicro Address for mail list changes: utcsstat!ian Address for flames to the editor: utcsstat!ian Current Topics: Terminal inventory sale ** this weekend ** -------------------- >From ian Fri Jun 18 15:15:20 1982 Subject: Terminal inventory sale ** this weekend ** Apologies to those of you reading this on Monday; you missed it. For night and weekend hackers, be advised that there is a Terminal Warehouse Inventory sale at Data Terminal Mart, 70 Gibson Road, Markham Ont (north of Steeles, west off Warden). Saturday, June 19th, 10 AM to 4 PM only. Representative prices: Hazeltine 1552 (w/ vt52 mode) $850, Hazeltine modular one (editing) $750, ADDS Viewpoint $940. Also printers (Centronics 730 $450, 739 $825, TI, LA36, Sanders...) and accoustic couplers (300baud $195; 1200baud $995); 8.5x11 fanfold paper $35/case, etc, etc. ``All sales final. Warranty available at extra cost. Cash, cheque or VISA only''. Caveat emptor. --------------------------------------------- -30- Ontario Micro Digest Volume 0 Number 1 Wed Jun 23 21:45:52 1982 Published irregularly, as news accumulates. Address for articles: utcsstat!ontmicro Address for mail list changes: utcsstat!ian Address for flames to the editor: utcsstat!ian Today's Topics: Compurama '82 June 23-25 Automotive Bldg CNE Toronto -------------------- >From ian Wed Jun 23 21:39:13 1982 Subject: Compurama '82 June 23-25 Automotive Bldg CNE Toronto Here's a brief report on the Show; I didn't hit the tech sessions. A smaller show than most that book the Automotive Building at the CNE, Compurama '82 features very little that is really new. The most-seen computer was the Apple ][, with the IBM PC a close second. Lanpar's booth has a range of terminals and printers, including Okidata printers and a (prototype!) of Northern Technologies' `Vision' terminal. Like the VT100 which it emulates, the Vision is planned to be a family of terminals and micros. Like everyone else, it claims to be `ergonomically designed'. Lanpar also has the Osborne I. Spectra has the Transterm I, a two line x 64 lcd-display portable terminal with rs232 to 9600 baud. It weighs very little but costs $898. The most interesting (to me) exhibit was the speech recognition unit for Apple ][, demonstrated at the Magdata booth. The unit is made by Scott Instruments Systems. It is self-training to your voice in the demo, and learns after a few tries on each of a (rather small) vocabulary. What they've done with it in the demo is rather limiting (i.e., the `Education' demo is a multiple- guess test), but if you concentrate on the technology it's not too bad - a good tool that could be much better used. What is ex- ceptional is that the people in the booth are competent to demon- strate it. $1500 or so complete with microphone. Not cheap but it works - it recognized my voice when I was consistent about in- tonation. Very little UNIX stuff at the show; one company was showing the ONYX; a few others 8086/88 systems which could be made to run XENIX. Waterloo is there pushing their Superpet 6502/6809 systems (one demo has it driving a Telidon display). Some large-systems media suppliers as well as floppy suppliers. If I'd paid to get into the show, I'd have been disappointed. --------------------------------------------- -30- Ontario Micro Digest Volume 0 Number 2 Thu Jul 29 12:54:25 1982 Published irregularly, as news accumulates. Address for articles: utcsstat!ontmicro Address for mail list changes: utcsstat!ian Address for flames to the editor: utcsstat!ian Today's Topics: S-100 for sale demo WICAT single-user systems -------------------- >From ian Thu Jul 29 12:33:40 1982 Subject: S-100 for sale I have an S-100 card set for sale: S.D. Sales SBC-200 4MHz Z80 with serial & parallel ports S.D. Sales Versafloppy 5" or 8" controller 48K of static S-100 ram Asking C$750 for the set, as is, with all manuals. Add backplane, power supply, disk drive and ascii crt for an adequate S-100 starter system. Cheap backplane available locally (Arkon). Also for sale - Intersystems FDC-II IEEE-std DD DMA floppy controller which could be made to work with above cards by simple software change and hardware kludge (included). C$400. Ian Darwin, Toronto 416-534-4510 (tape machine, lv msg if no answer) >From an outsider Thu Jul 29 12:37:02 1982 Subject: demo WICAT single-user systems Used/Demonstrators of the single-user WICAT, multibus (pre-IEEE-796-std), 256KB and up, 68000 CPU, winnie & floppy housed in CRT cabinet. Contact Alison Smith, Cohesive Computer, Ottawa, 613-238-1843. --------------------------------------------- -30- Ontario Micro Digest Volume 0 Number 3 Mon Aug 23 22:57:40 1982 Published irregularly, as news accumulates. Address for articles: utcsstat!ontmicro Address for mail list changes: utcsstat!ian Address for flames to the editor: utcsstat!ian Today's Topics: cheap non-expandable LSI-11 Seeking information on local S-100 systems -------------------- >From south of the border Thu Aug 5 10:02:32 1982 Subject: cheap non-expandable LSI-11 Special for PDP-11 fans: PDT-11/150, a non-Qbus LSI-11, 32kb(kw?), dual floppies, rt-11 subset (RT^2). These beasties used to list for $6600 US, but are being flogged off at $0995 US. Contact Newman Computer, Ann Arbor MI, 313-994-3200, Pat Adams. For $5 more (U$1000) you can buy it (used??) from American Computer, Boston, 617-437-1100. They have 11/150-BA and BE at that price, and 11/150-CA and 11/150-CH at U$1500. Note that the PDT can't be expanded very much; it's not a q-bus and it's an 11/2 not an 11/23. Still, for UCSD or RT-11 this might be a good buy. Price does not include CRT, but both suppliers have deals on those as well. For those of you with real LSI-11's OR OTHER MICROS both these companies have inventories of used disks. You could buy an RK05 from them, and a Q-bus controller, OR the S-100 cartridge disk controller from someone like Processor Interfaces, 414-785-1245, and have cheap, removable 2.5M or fixed 5M hard disk. >From idallen Sun Aug 22 08:08:51 1982 remote from watmath To: utzoo^utcsstat^ontmicro Subject: Seeking information on local S-100 systems I've almost convinced myself that I want to purchase some form of IEEE-696/S-100 system. I'd like to know what people know about such systems. What's available in Canada? If I buy USA and get it shipped, what happens when it dies? Should I go Multibus instead? Address all ramblings to utzoo!watmath!idallen and if the response is wonderful I'll post the bunch to net.micro someday. -IAN! (Allen) --------------------------------------------- -30- Ontario Micro Digest Volume 0 Number 4 Thu Aug 26 15:47:55 1982 Published irregularly, as news accumulates. Address for articles: utcsstat!ontmicro Address for mail list changes: utcsstat!ian Address for flames to the editor: utcsstat!ian Today's Topics: Apple assembler job S-100 memory boards - info wanted -------------------- >From bstempleton Tue Aug 24 12:51:29 1982 remote from watmath To: hcr!utzoo!utcsstat!ontmicro Subject: Apple job somebody got back to me on the Apple assembler job I talked of, and I replied and have as yet received no reply back. I have forgotten the address of the person. Are you out there? >From ontmicro Thu Aug 26 15:36:56 1982 Subject: S-100 memory boards - info wanted I may need to buy some extra IEEE-696 8/16 memory. Does anybody have any experience with any of the current crop? I have a Jade memory bank (don't like) and a Dual Systems DMEM-256KP (like it). Anything else out there? Thanks. --------------------------------------------- -30- Ontario Micro Digest Volume 0 Number 5 Thu Nov 11 11:09:07 1982 Published irregularly, as news accumulates. Address for articles: utcsstat!ontmicro Address for mail list changes: utcsstat!ian Address for flames to the editor: utcsstat!ian Today's Topics: editorial microvox voicespeaks winchester disks Z-80 requeCP/M, Z-80 requests -------------------- F>Fromt the editor: INo editorial this montime. Actually have some news this time, do so I don't need to pad things much. Thanks to those who submitted (both of tyou). If you like this digest, tell your firiednds! >From wagner Mon Oct 4 21:35:21 1982 Is anyone considering getting the Microvox speech synthesizer that has been discussed in the last two issues of BYTE? Does anyone have it already? I would be interested in knowing more about the end-result speech quality. Thanks in advance. Michael Wagner, UTCS (utcsstat!wagner) >From ian Thu Nov 11 10:29:28 1982 Subject: winchester disks Computer Dynamics (Greer, S.C 29651, 803-77-7471) is selling 8" 5MB Shugart winnies for US$600. With the thought in mind that there is only FST (no duty) on disk drives imported into Canada, this seems to come to under $800 per drive. Anybody got a better deal? The price drops to US$500 if you buy 10 of them. Computer Dynamics also have interfaces (S-100, IBMPC, STD bus) and the WD1001 controller boards, power supplies, cabinets, etc. Contact me by mail or by phone to see the price list. Ian Darwin, 978-6134, utcsstat!utcss!ian >From tjiang Thu Nov 11 10:47:26 1982 forwarded >From watmath!idallen Thu Nov 11 00:16:59 1982 remote from utcsrgv Subject: For Ontario Micro Digest Does anyone have: 1) Access to the CP/M User's Group series of disks? [Ed note: UTCS/CSS Micro Services has ordered them, rcvd disks 1-30 so so far. Contact Grant Davis, utcsstat!grant, 416-978-5071] 2) Z-80 software to share? 3) Information on FORTH for either Z-80 stand-alone or Z-80 CP/M? I think I'm getting a Multiflex CP/M system to play with. -IAN! U of Waterloo (watmath!idallen) --------------------------------------------- -30- Ontario Micro Digest Volume 0 Number 5 Thu Nov 11 11:09:07 1982 Published irregularly, as news accumulates. Address for articles: utcsstat!ontmicro Address for mail list changes: utcsstat!ian Address for flames to the editor: utcsstat!ian Today's Topics: editorial microvox voicespeaks winchester disks Z-80 requeCP/M, Z-80 requests -------------------- F>Fromt the editor: INo editorial this montime. Actually have some news this time, do so I don't need to pad things much. Thanks to those who submitted (both of tyou). If you like this digest, tell your firiednds! >From wagner Mon Oct 4 21:35:21 1982 Is anyone considering getting the Microvox speech synthesizer that has been discussed in the last two issues of BYTE? Does anyone have it already? I would be interested in knowing more about the end-result speech quality. Thanks in advance. Michael Wagner, UTCS (utcsstat!wagner) >From ian Thu Nov 11 10:29:28 1982 Subject: winchester disks Computer Dynamics (Greer, S.C 29651, 803-77-7471) is selling 8" 5MB Shugart winnies for US$600. With the thought in mind that there is only FST (no duty) on disk drives imported into Canada, this seems to come to under $800 per drive. Anybody got a better deal? The price drops to US$500 if you buy 10 of them. Computer Dynamics also have interfaces (S-100, IBMPC, STD bus) and the WD1001 controller boards, power supplies, cabinets, etc. Contact me by mail or by phone to see the price list. Ian Darwin, 978-6134, utcsstat!utcss!ian >From tjiang Thu Nov 11 10:47:26 1982 forwarded >From watmath!idallen Thu Nov 11 00:16:59 1982 remote from utcsrgv To: t utcsstat!ian Subject: For Ontario Micro Digest Does anyone have: 1) Access to the CP/M User's Group series of disks? [Ed note: UTCS/CSS Micro Services has ordered them, rcvd disks 1-30 so so far. Contact Grant Davis, utcsstat!grant, 416-978-5071] 2) Z-80 software to share? 3) Information on FORTH for either Z-80 stand-alone or Z-80 CP/M? I think I'm getting a Multiflex CP/M system to play with. -IAN! U of Waterloo (watmath!idallen) --------------------------------------------- -30- Ontario Micro Digest Volume 0 Number 6 Thu Dec 2 11:46:34 1982 Published irregularly, as news accumulates. Address for articles: utcsstat!ontmicro Address for mail list changes: utcsstat!ian Address for flames to the editor: utcsstat!ian Today's Topics: Apologies Votrax Speech Quality Cheap Modems -------------------- >From the editor Apologies to everyone on the mailing list who inadvertantly received a mailing of V0N5 dated 2 Dec 82. I made a change to the makefile and introduced an error. This has been corrected, and the problem should not occur again. >From watmath!padpowell Fri Nov 12 23:36:11 1982 remote from utcsrgv To: utcsstat!ontmicro Subject: Votrax Speech Quality The raw Votrax speech quality closely resembles Donald Duck with a bad head cold. I have been told that adding inflection improves it tremendously. Patrick Powell, CCNG, U.Waterloo >From wagner Tue Nov 30 16:26:18 1982 Subj: cheap modems Excelltronix is selling 300 baud originate-only accoustic modems for $24. You have to supply power, and it comes in a plastic housing that was obviously originally part of a terminal of some sort. [Ed note: I think it's the housing used on the LA36/LA120]. The box it comes in says DIGITAL in big blue letters. They have about 200 of them. You need a little manual dexterity to seperate the circuit board from the housing, throw the housing away, and build a proper box for it. Also a little power supply dexterity to build the supply. But a good price if you can get it to work. It isn't obvious if it speaks rs232 or ttl levels, but Mark bought one, and will probably know shortly. It looked like rs232 from the drawings. Michael --------------------------------------------- -30- ------------ End of Ontario Micros Digest Volume Zero ---------------- Ontario Micro Digest Volume 0 Number 7 Fri Dec 10 19:01:27 1982 Published irregularly, as news accumulates. Address for articles: utcsstat!ontmicro Address for mail list changes: utcsstat!ian Address for flames to the editor: utcsstat!ian Today's Topics: The Last Ontario Micro Digest Exceltronix $24 Modem Votrax Old and New Unable to deliver mail -------------------- >From ian Fri Dec 10 19:00:53 1982 The Ontario Micros Digest is no more. There is now a newsgroup called `ont.micro'. Please do not mail further items to `ontmicro' for inclusion; all sites in Ontario should be able to `postnews' directly to the newsgroup. Thanks for your support of the Ontario Micro Digest in the past! Ian >From idallen Thu Dec 9 05:42:21 1982 remote from watmath Subject: Exceltronix $24 Modem I bought one. It's a Novation modem of some sort, and it outputs TTL RxD and TxD. You'll need RS232C buffer chips to make it speak RS232 (1488,1489 line driver/line receiver). The plastic cover fits a DecWriter. The modem is glued in place -- you have to snap off two small chunks of glued-on plastic to get it out of the hole it's in. (I thought it was just a press-fit, but I was wrong.) There are no control lines (DCD, DTR, etc.), but it may be possible to use the LED output to fake them, if desired. We'll see. -IAN! >From idallen Thu Dec 9 05:47:03 1982 remote from watmath Subject: Votrax Old and New Votrax has a new voice thingy out (Dec BYTE p. 375) that must be the upgrade to the old thingy (Dec BYTE p. 493). The old one is now $249US and the new one is $395US. The new one has music, with three notes in 8 octaves, plus sound effects and downloadable software. It really has a bunch of stuff -- see the advertisement. -IAN! --------------------------------------------- -That's all there is...-