Restoration: how far should it go??

From: Tony Duell <ard_at_p850ug1.demon.co.uk>
Date: Mon Jun 16 17:03:00 2003

> I had my Otrona 8:16 upgraded from 256KB to 640KB RAM, so it now has
> stacked chips. However, that was a mod done at the time (actually,
> Otrona Advanced Systems had gone under by then, but it was a 3rd party
> (Brown Enterprises) mod that was current with the machine. What Tony was
> objecting to is a modern collector hot-rodding an old box by increasing
> the RAM (or processor, or ...) in a way that would not have been done
> contemporaneously with the machine.
  
Related to that is what you should do if you find a modified machine --
do you keep the modification, or return it to factory spec? There are
plenty of arguments either way (e.g. 'The modification is part of the
history of the machine and should be kept' .vs. 'The machine should be
preserved as it was originally'). Personally, I am undecided on this.
Sometimes I keep the modification (particularly if it's useful and
doesn't adversely affect the operation and repairabilty of the machine),
sometimes I remove it.

-tony
Received on Mon Jun 16 2003 - 17:03:00 BST