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Old junk or rare and valuable hardware?

Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved The Lounge
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  • J JimmyRopes

    Mike Hankey wrote:

    I had the instruction set memorized

    And thus the whimpering sounds. If you could recite them in hex (or octal) I would be impressed! :-D Not that I knew all the instructions in hex but I did know the more common ones from looking at (core) dumps so often. I had a cheat sheet, which in IBM land was known as a "yellow card", for the rest.

    Simply Elegant Designs JimmyRopes Designs
    Think inside the box! ProActive Secure Systems
    I'm on-line therefore I am. JimmyRopes

    Mike HankeyM Offline
    Mike HankeyM Offline
    Mike Hankey
    wrote on last edited by
    #14

    JimmyRopes wrote:

    If you could recite them in hex (or octal) I would be impressed!

    Back then I could, I knew the instruction set inside and out. When we didn't have a lot of work I would set up work shops for us to learn new things. One of the work shops was on self modifying code. The group said it couldn't be done until I showed them how.

    If you keep doing what you been doing you'll keep getting what you been getting http://www.hq4thmarinescomm.com[^] [My Site]

    J L 2 Replies Last reply
    0
    • Mike HankeyM Mike Hankey

      :laugh: :laugh: I wasn't going to tell anyone. :) I communicated with a guy that used to work on my team back then and he said the thing that impressed him about me was that I had the instruction set memorized.

      Even a blind squirrel gets a nut occasionally. http://www.hq4thmarinescomm.com[^] [My Site]

      M Offline
      M Offline
      Mladen Jankovic
      wrote on last edited by
      #15

      Mike Hankey wrote:

      I had the instruction set memorized

      Whole 56 instructions?! My god, that is insane! ;)

      [Genetic Algorithm Library]

      Mike HankeyM 1 Reply Last reply
      0
      • Mike HankeyM Mike Hankey

        JimmyRopes wrote:

        If you could recite them in hex (or octal) I would be impressed!

        Back then I could, I knew the instruction set inside and out. When we didn't have a lot of work I would set up work shops for us to learn new things. One of the work shops was on self modifying code. The group said it couldn't be done until I showed them how.

        If you keep doing what you been doing you'll keep getting what you been getting http://www.hq4thmarinescomm.com[^] [My Site]

        J Offline
        J Offline
        JimmyRopes
        wrote on last edited by
        #16

        Mike Hankey wrote:

        Back then I could, I knew the instruction set inside and out.

        Very impressive! :thumbsup:

        Mike Hankey wrote:

        One of the work shops was on self modifying code. The group said it couldn't be done until I showed them how.

        Some people can never get how to do that even after being shown how. Things like that are what I miss about coding in assembler the most.

        Simply Elegant Designs JimmyRopes Designs
        Think inside the box! ProActive Secure Systems
        I'm on-line therefore I am. JimmyRopes

        Mike HankeyM R 2 Replies Last reply
        0
        • L Lost User

          What was your first computer?

          "I have what could be described as the most wide-open sense of humor on the site, and if I don't think something is funny, then it really isn't." - JSOC, 2011 -----
          "Friar Modest never was a prior" - Italian proverb

          Mike HankeyM Offline
          Mike HankeyM Offline
          Mike Hankey
          wrote on last edited by
          #17

          No actually this[^] was the college had it down in the basement and loaned it to me (but never asked for it back) From there I went to the C64.

          If you keep doing what you been doing you'll keep getting what you been getting http://www.hq4thmarinescomm.com[^] [My Site]

          L 1 Reply Last reply
          0
          • Mike HankeyM Mike Hankey

            I had a C64 don't remember the C65 but was looking to get a C128, instead landed a job programming Apple IIe using ProDOS and assembler.

            Even a blind squirrel gets a nut occasionally. http://www.hq4thmarinescomm.com[^] [My Site]

            M Offline
            M Offline
            Mladen Jankovic
            wrote on last edited by
            #18

            Mike Hankey wrote:

            don't remember the C65

            Well only few prototypes had been built before the project was canalled, they were sold after Commodore declared bankruptcy, so it's hardly in anyone's memory (except Commodore funboys').

            [Genetic Algorithm Library]

            L 1 Reply Last reply
            0
            • L Lost User

              If you, or anyone else, is willing to pay $6,000 for it then it is worth that price. That is the only criterion on which to base value. Do you really believe that an abstract painting by some old Spanish guy can really be worth $106 million[^]?

              I must get a clever new signature for 2011.

              L Offline
              L Offline
              Lost User
              wrote on last edited by
              #19

              That's an emotional value, and future generations might not share our sentiments.

              I are Troll :suss:

              L 1 Reply Last reply
              0
              • Mike HankeyM Mike Hankey

                JimmyRopes wrote:

                If you could recite them in hex (or octal) I would be impressed!

                Back then I could, I knew the instruction set inside and out. When we didn't have a lot of work I would set up work shops for us to learn new things. One of the work shops was on self modifying code. The group said it couldn't be done until I showed them how.

                If you keep doing what you been doing you'll keep getting what you been getting http://www.hq4thmarinescomm.com[^] [My Site]

                L Offline
                L Offline
                Lost User
                wrote on last edited by
                #20

                Self modifying code was very common, but already then considered a sinister hack :) And don't try it on a more modern CPU with one or more memory cache levels. It will fail miserably or be very inefficient by constantly forcing the caches to be reloaded.

                "I have what could be described as the most wide-open sense of humor on the site, and if I don't think something is funny, then it really isn't." - JSOC, 2011 -----
                "Friar Modest never was a prior" - Italian proverb

                Mike HankeyM J 2 Replies Last reply
                0
                • M Mladen Jankovic

                  Mike Hankey wrote:

                  I had the instruction set memorized

                  Whole 56 instructions?! My god, that is insane! ;)

                  [Genetic Algorithm Library]

                  Mike HankeyM Offline
                  Mike HankeyM Offline
                  Mike Hankey
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #21

                  Yeah I know all 56 even as bad as my memory is I can still remember one. NOP = 0x00 :)

                  If you keep doing what you been doing you'll keep getting what you been getting http://www.hq4thmarinescomm.com[^] [My Site]

                  L M J 3 Replies Last reply
                  0
                  • M Mladen Jankovic

                    Mike Hankey wrote:

                    don't remember the C65

                    Well only few prototypes had been built before the project was canalled, they were sold after Commodore declared bankruptcy, so it's hardly in anyone's memory (except Commodore funboys').

                    [Genetic Algorithm Library]

                    L Offline
                    L Offline
                    Lost User
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #22

                    The same fanboys who usually put up the effort to write emulators? :) But by the way, such ideas were the reason for Commodore's as well as Atari's fall. Both had too little innovation until it was too late. What a chance in hell could a pimped up 8 bit design have had in the early 1990s? Even 16 bit CPUs were on the decline and 32 bit CPUs were already taking over.

                    "I have what could be described as the most wide-open sense of humor on the site, and if I don't think something is funny, then it really isn't." - JSOC, 2011 -----
                    "Friar Modest never was a prior" - Italian proverb

                    M 1 Reply Last reply
                    0
                    • J JimmyRopes

                      Mike Hankey wrote:

                      Back then I could, I knew the instruction set inside and out.

                      Very impressive! :thumbsup:

                      Mike Hankey wrote:

                      One of the work shops was on self modifying code. The group said it couldn't be done until I showed them how.

                      Some people can never get how to do that even after being shown how. Things like that are what I miss about coding in assembler the most.

                      Simply Elegant Designs JimmyRopes Designs
                      Think inside the box! ProActive Secure Systems
                      I'm on-line therefore I am. JimmyRopes

                      Mike HankeyM Offline
                      Mike HankeyM Offline
                      Mike Hankey
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #23

                      JimmyRopes wrote:

                      Some people can never get how to do that even after being shown how. Things like that are what I miss about coding in assembler the most.

                      Yeah back then I didn't have a problem remembering things! That's why I like the uControllers I've been messing with kind of a blast from the past. I tend to use more 'C' than assembler nowadays but it's still fun.

                      If you keep doing what you been doing you'll keep getting what you been getting http://www.hq4thmarinescomm.com[^] [My Site]

                      J 1 Reply Last reply
                      0
                      • L Lost User

                        They are rare prototypes, so they will probably be expensive as well. But why would you pay so much money? It's of little practical use by now and there are probably emulators which can give you a good impression what the machine was about.

                        "I have what could be described as the most wide-open sense of humor on the site, and if I don't think something is funny, then it really isn't." - JSOC, 2011 -----
                        "Friar Modest never was a prior" - Italian proverb

                        M Offline
                        M Offline
                        Mladen Jankovic
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #24

                        Yeah, I heard it's in $8000-9000 range.

                        CDP1802 wrote:

                        But why would you pay so much money?

                        Why people spend fortunes on art?

                        CDP1802 wrote:

                        there are probably emulators

                        For C65? Unfortunately no, there isn't one.

                        [Genetic Algorithm Library]

                        1 Reply Last reply
                        0
                        • L Lost User

                          Self modifying code was very common, but already then considered a sinister hack :) And don't try it on a more modern CPU with one or more memory cache levels. It will fail miserably or be very inefficient by constantly forcing the caches to be reloaded.

                          "I have what could be described as the most wide-open sense of humor on the site, and if I don't think something is funny, then it really isn't." - JSOC, 2011 -----
                          "Friar Modest never was a prior" - Italian proverb

                          Mike HankeyM Offline
                          Mike HankeyM Offline
                          Mike Hankey
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #25

                          CDP1802 wrote:

                          Self modifying code was very common, but already then considered a sinister hack

                          Agreed. I never used it always found other ways to do things but it was something to learn that day and it got us work. One of the EE's came by and saw what we were doing and got us to do a simple job based on it.

                          If you keep doing what you been doing you'll keep getting what you been getting http://www.hq4thmarinescomm.com[^] [My Site]

                          L 1 Reply Last reply
                          0
                          • L Lost User

                            I still have my first computer, a Netronics Elf II from 1978. It was a kit and I had to scrape together my allowance to get parts and components. I did what I could, but I never got all the neat expansions and had to content with 4k RAM and great black and white graphics at a resolution of 64 x 32 pixels or 64 x 64 pixels. Now I came across someone who wants to sell his old computer. Unlike mine it has practically everything the manufacturer had to offer, including several 4k and 16k memory expansion boards. The four 4k cards cost about 110$ each back then. I know. At least I have one of them. And the two 16k cards were extremely expensive. I would be crazy enough to buy it, but it's only sold completely and the seller wants at least 6000$ for it. That price probably would be equivalent to what the entire computer cost back in 1978. I suppose, I will pass on that offer, but what is the right price? The technology is more than obsolete. I could easily get a 64k RAM chip for a few dollars. It would need little additional logic and making the circuit board would be the hardest part. From that perspective, the price is laughable. On the other side it's a rare old machine. I would not hope to find 1000 of them in working condition on the entire planet. But are there really enough people around who are interested enough to pay such a price?

                            "I have what could be described as the most wide-open sense of humor on the site, and if I don't think something is funny, then it really isn't." - JSOC, 2011 -----
                            "Friar Modest never was a prior" - Italian proverb

                            P Offline
                            P Offline
                            PIEBALDconsult
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #26

                            I don't pay more than $100 for a used computer.

                            1 Reply Last reply
                            0
                            • Mike HankeyM Mike Hankey

                              JimmyRopes wrote:

                              Some people can never get how to do that even after being shown how. Things like that are what I miss about coding in assembler the most.

                              Yeah back then I didn't have a problem remembering things! That's why I like the uControllers I've been messing with kind of a blast from the past. I tend to use more 'C' than assembler nowadays but it's still fun.

                              If you keep doing what you been doing you'll keep getting what you been getting http://www.hq4thmarinescomm.com[^] [My Site]

                              J Offline
                              J Offline
                              JimmyRopes
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #27

                              Mike Hankey wrote:

                              Yeah back then I didn't have a problem remembering things!

                              I hear you. :(( These days I am lucky if I remember what I had for lunch. Of course on the weekend it is easy, tiquilla. :-D

                              Simply Elegant Designs JimmyRopes Designs
                              Think inside the box! ProActive Secure Systems
                              I'm on-line therefore I am. JimmyRopes

                              Mike HankeyM 1 Reply Last reply
                              0
                              • Mike HankeyM Mike Hankey

                                Yeah I know all 56 even as bad as my memory is I can still remember one. NOP = 0x00 :)

                                If you keep doing what you been doing you'll keep getting what you been getting http://www.hq4thmarinescomm.com[^] [My Site]

                                L Offline
                                L Offline
                                Lost User
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #28

                                No, you must be mistaken. NOP was C4, at least on my CDP1802. But I liked the SEX instruction (Sets the value of the CPU's X register, designating one of the 16 general purpose registers to be the stack pointer). That would have been EN, with N being the number of the register.

                                "I have what could be described as the most wide-open sense of humor on the site, and if I don't think something is funny, then it really isn't." - JSOC, 2011 -----
                                "Friar Modest never was a prior" - Italian proverb

                                Mike HankeyM 1 Reply Last reply
                                0
                                • Mike HankeyM Mike Hankey

                                  Yeah I know all 56 even as bad as my memory is I can still remember one. NOP = 0x00 :)

                                  If you keep doing what you been doing you'll keep getting what you been getting http://www.hq4thmarinescomm.com[^] [My Site]

                                  M Offline
                                  M Offline
                                  Mladen Jankovic
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #29

                                  Mike Hankey wrote:

                                  NOP = 0x00

                                  Are we still talking about 6502?

                                  [Genetic Algorithm Library]

                                  Mike HankeyM 1 Reply Last reply
                                  0
                                  • L Lost User

                                    Self modifying code was very common, but already then considered a sinister hack :) And don't try it on a more modern CPU with one or more memory cache levels. It will fail miserably or be very inefficient by constantly forcing the caches to be reloaded.

                                    "I have what could be described as the most wide-open sense of humor on the site, and if I don't think something is funny, then it really isn't." - JSOC, 2011 -----
                                    "Friar Modest never was a prior" - Italian proverb

                                    J Offline
                                    J Offline
                                    JimmyRopes
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #30

                                    CDP1802 wrote:

                                    Self modifying code was very common, but already then considered a sinister hack

                                    It is what kept you up at night when you had to modify something you coded six months before. These days I have a rule of thumb; code like the person that is going to maintain your code is a psycopath who knows where you live.

                                    Simply Elegant Designs JimmyRopes Designs
                                    Think inside the box! ProActive Secure Systems
                                    I'm on-line therefore I am. JimmyRopes

                                    Mike HankeyM 1 Reply Last reply
                                    0
                                    • Mike HankeyM Mike Hankey

                                      No actually this[^] was the college had it down in the basement and loaned it to me (but never asked for it back) From there I went to the C64.

                                      If you keep doing what you been doing you'll keep getting what you been getting http://www.hq4thmarinescomm.com[^] [My Site]

                                      L Offline
                                      L Offline
                                      Lost User
                                      wrote on last edited by
                                      #31

                                      An Altair :) Great, they came as kits as well and had no graphics at all.

                                      "I have what could be described as the most wide-open sense of humor on the site, and if I don't think something is funny, then it really isn't." - JSOC, 2011 -----
                                      "Friar Modest never was a prior" - Italian proverb

                                      Mike HankeyM 1 Reply Last reply
                                      0
                                      • L Lost User

                                        The same fanboys who usually put up the effort to write emulators? :) But by the way, such ideas were the reason for Commodore's as well as Atari's fall. Both had too little innovation until it was too late. What a chance in hell could a pimped up 8 bit design have had in the early 1990s? Even 16 bit CPUs were on the decline and 32 bit CPUs were already taking over.

                                        "I have what could be described as the most wide-open sense of humor on the site, and if I don't think something is funny, then it really isn't." - JSOC, 2011 -----
                                        "Friar Modest never was a prior" - Italian proverb

                                        M Offline
                                        M Offline
                                        Mladen Jankovic
                                        wrote on last edited by
                                        #32

                                        CDP1802 wrote:

                                        The same fanboys who usually put up the effort to write emulators?

                                        I promise that I'll try to write one if I ever get in the possesion of working one :)

                                        [Genetic Algorithm Library]

                                        1 Reply Last reply
                                        0
                                        • M Mladen Jankovic

                                          Mike Hankey wrote:

                                          NOP = 0x00

                                          Are we still talking about 6502?

                                          [Genetic Algorithm Library]

                                          Mike HankeyM Offline
                                          Mike HankeyM Offline
                                          Mike Hankey
                                          wrote on last edited by
                                          #33

                                          Sorry lost my head was stuck on the ATMega328p that I've been working with. BRK = 0x00 :-O

                                          If you keep doing what you been doing you'll keep getting what you been getting http://www.hq4thmarinescomm.com[^] [My Site]

                                          M 1 Reply Last reply
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