This set includes the circuit boards reproduced (actually produced-retro)
from the original plans, and the front panel with lettering, and the red
lens. I purchased these directly from the man who produces them and he has
assembled a number of Mark-8's in the past and is very knowledgeable on their
assembly. He includes an excellent CD with reprints of the original Radio
Electronics articles and his own very helpful notes. Here are a couple of
pictures:
http://www.classiccomputing.com/mark8.html
Here is more info:
The First Hobbyist Computer!
The remarkable Mark-8 computer was described in the July 1974 issue of Radio
Electronics. A landmark in computer history, it was the first hobbyist
computer. At this point in time, most engineers didn't, or couldn't believe
that a real computer could be constructed with the new fangle Intel chips.
But Jon Titus proved them wrong with the affordable Mark-8 computer. The
Mark-8 is a .5 Mhz 8008 based computer that preceded the Altair 8800 by about
6 months. The 8008 was Intel's first 8 bit processor and was developed along
with the world's first processor, the 4004. Only plans and pcb boards were
available from the creator, Jon Titus, everything else had to be provided by
the builder.
More on the CD from the creator:
Also included is a CD that I put together containing a copy of the original
Radio Electronics article and supplemental 47 page construction article; a 50
page manual I created detailing my experience and hints debugging this
computer (with many photos and full scans of completed boards); aboueers
informed before Byte came out, its a treasure chest of historical information
about the Mark-8 and other early computers, the January 1975 issue is
especially interesting, this is when the Altair was introduced)
I paid $180 for this set and I have come to realize that I do not have the
talent needed to do the precise soldering, testing, etc. and there is the
task of locating the remaining parts for the computer. This is over my head I
believe, so I want to pass these on to someone else. $150 plus shipping, an
excellent deal. Don't miss your chance to build this classic kit.
Best,
David Greelish
Classic Computing
www.classiccomputing.com
"classiccomputing" on eBay
Received on Thu Apr 25 2002 - 21:18:16 BST