Notices by Ian Scott :apple_inc: 🐙 (polpo@bitbang.social), page 2

On the way down to #VCFEast from the airport I stopped at the old Bell Labs building designed by Eero Saarinen. It’s been repurposed as a work/play/shop space and it’s really nice. It’s great that this amazing space is open to the public. As a design/architecture nerd and fan of the show Severance which is filmed here, I’m totally geeking out.

Speaking of Saarinen… I had to stop at the TWA Hotel because I’m flying JetBlue out of JFK. This building surprises you at every turn. It changes shape constantly as you move through it.

We now have WiFi on the #PicoGUS emulating an ne2000 card! yyzkevin (who did the SB DSP work released a while ago) was responsible for this with a bit of help from me between days here at #VCFEast. Awesome!

Just put 25 PicoGUSes in consignment at #VCFEast. Come and get ‘em tomorrow!

This is one of my favorite weird mice: a Bluetooth combo mouse and number pad with built in calculator, made by Canon. There’s a button you can use to send the result of your calculations to the computer.

My favorite e-waste place (Earthbound Recycling in Eureka MO - I don’t even live in the state but I go when visiting family) has an in-box IBM 5150 with MDA monitor and keyboard. It looks like the bottom tier spec one that doesn’t even have floppy drives.

Kevin Moonlight just released a video demonstrating his Pi Pico-based PCMCIA card that can emulate NE2000 over Wi-Fi, serial port, and Sound Blaster for retro laptops, handhelds, and other computers. He's gauging interest in the project for a future build, so if you're interested in one there's a link in the description to a form.
Kevin is great, he was responsible for the bulk of the SoundBlaster DSP support that was just released on #PicoGUS! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YoJ12leojwo
#retrocomputing #pcmcia

@thomasfuchs There's not much about these cases out on the net but I did find this vcfed forum post about them (including some posts by @vwestlife ): https://forum.vcfed.org/index.php?threads/looking-for-very-special-portable-pc-with-color-monitor.80071/ It looks like they were sold as standalone cases or used in white label builds. This one has a logo saying APR and a manufacturer label saying "America Portable Research". The CRT looks original, no idea about the motherboard until I figure a way inside without breaking any plastics. There are no external screws...

I went to buy this weird luggable 486 PC with Trinitron monitor and the seller also had a Compaq Portable so I had to just get it too. As soon as I opened each one up to take photos, my cat Oscar decided they were his and jumped on top of them.

The "Book386" (a Hand386 in the Book8088 case) that I've long wanted was just released (called the Pocket 386)! https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256805356267711.html

@mac84tv sigh, I need to go there…!

It amazes me that in the year 2024, you can still buy brand new sockets for a Socket 7 CPU or 68030, 30-pin SIMM sockets, or the 64-pin SIMM socket that the SE/30 used for its ROM

Today I retooted a post saying the largest possible pdf is 381km x 381km. Apparently it's a bit more complicated than that. In this article the author creates a PDF larger than the known universe: https://alexwlchan.net/2024/big-pdf/

Happy 40th anniversary, Macintosh! I just tried getting mine out of its carrying bag but it has really sharp teeth and claws... #macintosh #catsofmastodon

Coming soon to #PicoGUS: Sound Blaster support. Massive thanks to yyzkevin for writing and contributing the SB DSP and mixing code! Now you'll be able to play Doom with FM synth + SB sound effects, or play earlier SB games that don't support the GUS.

@thomasfuchs Atom? A coworker was really into it

@MishaVanMollusq @foone oh yes I sure am!

Alright, who’s gonna dare me to install Windows 95 from 22 floppies?

When your sound card is bigger than your computer

I’m taking parts off the board to test them. I’m using a trick I saw on @BigBadBiologist’s streams to use utility knife blades as easily repositionable heat shields. Much faster than cutting and sticking aluminum tape!