Upon the date 10:47 AM 11/25/99 -0500, Allison J Parent said something like:
><That's life. I *really* find it hard to understand why scrapping a Vax
><11/780 would break your heart when there are probably at least 100,000 lef
><in mills out there... and no one wants them!
>
>As a collector I'd think you'd at least know the numbers produced and the
>current population. 11/780s have actually become quite scarce being 20
>years old, slow by even microvax standards and power hungry. I'd bet
>finding more than one or two would be less than easy.
>
>The question is, do you know if it's common or scarce?
>
>Allison
Allison has hit right on the mark in reply to your suggestion there's 100k
or so 11/780's still out there, John B. How can you say there are that many
when we hear of only even a few more recent vintage 11/750's coming
available for example?? I would wager 750's had been more common in their
day than 780's were for various reasons. Were there even 100k 11/750's made???
We've got quite a few sets of eyes and ears sensitive to looking for minis
on this list, not just micros --including folks with close connections to
scrappers-- and there are relatively few alerts raised as to 780 or 750
(and other big iron mini) availabilities vs. your contention many types are
common.
Case in point: at present I have up for adoption a VAX 11/750 which is the
first one of these in months that I really recall seeing available. A
fellow presently is interested but timing and distance for him to come get
it is presently an issue and storage co$ts related to it are becoming an
issue for me. I do *not* want to scrap it and part it out as it was a
*running* system when I bought it amongst a truckload of other DEC gear.
I'm a preservationist and really want to see it go to a collector who can
have a running system. However, I'm off the beaten path for big iron
collectors to readily come for it and there is a risk nobody can get it
whole. Therefore there's a risk that a big iron VAX may die as a system.
With that, it makes me seem like the "heartless" type who would scrap a
working machine just to make room around here and I *don't* like that
feeling one bit. Then I recall with shivers up my spine that if I had not
discovered the availability of the truckload of DEC gear I bought, the
original owner who had it would have proceeded to call a trash hauling
company the next day to take it all away so he could clear out his
ex-company office ASAP and fly back to his home in California. So at least
I am able to have offered it plus other surplus DEC gear to everybody here
plus save out a big batch of stuff which gives me a rather decent DEC
collection.
Yeah, well I see John B's point in simply scrapping a machine to a
_limited_ extent. In my mind that doesn't quite forgive unilaterally
deciding to scrap a collectable machine, or even a more modern interesting
machine like the Fujitsu, just because "they are common" or "too big", etc.
Just let us know and and encourage us to pass the word around. There may be
potential computer homes out there we don't know of. But if not, at least
the thing has been given a chance to live.
I guess collectors have to try to keep doing the best they can in spite of
logistics . . .
Regards, Chris
-- --
Christian Fandt, Electronic/Electrical Historian
Jamestown, NY USA cfandt_at_netsync.net
Member of Antique Wireless Association
URL:
http://www.antiquewireless.org/
Received on Thu Nov 25 1999 - 11:15:48 GMT