List charter mods & headcount... ;-)

From: Tony Duell <ard_at_p850ug1.demon.co.uk>
Date: Wed Jun 16 17:32:56 2004

> about Windows and PCs of the 1990s. For example, see any Vesa Local Bus
> motherboards or interface cards around anymore?

There is another issue here. Many of the machines that we currently consider
to be classices -- The 8 bit micros, PDP11s, PPD8s, HP9100s, etc -- are
repairable. Scheamtics exist, they were built from mostly standard parts
that are still easy to get. If I need a chip for the I/O interface card
in my HP9830 then most likely I can still get one.

This, alas, doesn't apply to commodity PCs. Custom chips abound,
schematics don't exist (and probably wouldn't be a lot of use if the
did). I suspect that such machines will never really be repairable.

A few years ago I gave a talk to HPCC on the internals of the HP9100.
This was shortly after the HP49G had been announced. And I ended my talk
by saying 'In 30 years time the HP49G will probably be unrepairable, but
people will still be able to fix their 9100s using the information I've
given here'.

-tony
Received on Wed Jun 16 2004 - 17:32:56 BST