Apple Network Server 700 exploration! Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-10-08 | #UNIXtober begins with a look outside and inside one of the two Apple Network Server 700 that I recently acquired. This will surely be the first of several videos working on these machines.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Front of system and drives04:41 Side of system05:21 Rear of system06:41 Far side of system06:54 Back to the back08:05 Motherboard examination13:42 Motherboard removal15:17 Inside the back16:27 Bad foam!18:07 Back of the backplane21:39 Power supply top side23:15 Power supply removal26:57 Getting ready for power28:57 No lightspeed?29:52 This time for sure!32:16 Power to the backplane35:34 Try a keyboard36:25 Closing wordsLaughing face emjoi courtesy of Vincent Le Moign under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license.commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:004-rolling-on-the-floor-laughing-1.svg
How to configure a Tandy 1000TL Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-09-23 | Let's setup a bare Tandy 1000TL to be a usable retro computer! I show how to make bootable floppy disks on a modern system and how to get MS-DOS installed on an externa Zip drive on this computer.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro01:42 Exterior04:04 What's inside?20:04 Weird bracket34:37 First boot46:20 Setup boot disk48:08 Installing DOS53:33 Memory upgrade56:07 Advanced setup59:31 Monochrome monitor61:47 Closing wordsFree Geek Fundraiser:secure.givelively.org/donate/free-geek/free-geek-fire-recovery-fund?fbclid=IwY2xjawFeh8tleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHTEfJWSLf0JiJOADvm6xkxYQRCUDFPIzNcMoPQmn9a4VWsEJEgBqRK96Mg_aem_sVJJ90u2xjY8JW7W3LFfYAAmazon affiliate link to the SD card to IDE adapter that I like:amzn.to/4deHjkJTandy 1000 documentation archive:http://www.oldskool.org/guides/tvdog/documents.htmlTandy 1000 setup programs:http://www.oldskool.org/guides/tvdog/setups.htmlMS-DOS 5.0 disk images:winworldpc.com/product/ms-dos/50
New VGM music player for Tandy 1000! Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-09-09 | Kick of #SepTandy with a music player for the TI SN76489 sound chip in Tandy 1000 computers.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro02:57 Tandy sound background05:22 VGM history06:48 Project goals09:25 VGMRips.net10:21 VGM file format11:20 Source code intro14:17 Playback loop17:43 Delay loop woes27:45 Song playback analysis35:22 Closing words37:02 Music without talkingvgmplay 0.1 download link:github.com/ianromanick/vgmplay/releases/tag/vgmplay-0.1GitHub repository for the VGM player:github.com/ianromanick/vgmplayVGMRips:vgmrips.net/packsVGM Specification:vgmrips.net/wiki/VGM_SpecificationMichael Abrash article about run-slice line drawing:phatcode.net/res/224/files/html/ch36/36-01.htmlImage credits:commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SN76489_01.jpgcommons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:AY-3-8910.jpgcommons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ColecoVision-wController-L.jpgcommons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Texas_Instruments_TI-99-4A_at_Computerspielemuseum_(16515751523).jpgcommons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ibm_pcjr_with_display.jpgcommons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Canon_V-20_MSX_computer_(3).jpgcommons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sega-Master-System-Set.pngcommons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tandy_1000_RLX_front_view.jpg
Portland Oregon Free Geek popup sale! #retro Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-09-07 | Free Geek in Portland, Oregon is having a popup sale today until 4pm.
Apple Network Sever 700/150 is finally home! Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-08-31 | The Apple Network Sever 700/150 from the recent rescue in eastern Washington is finally in Tales of Weird Stuff basement. Full videos are expected in October for #UNIXtober.
Dozens of Apple computers rescued! #BarnFind Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-08-22 | Long road trip to for a massive Apple computer barn find in eastern Washington. I'm not exaggerating when I say it was more Apple computers than I have ever seen in one place.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro01:51 The collection overview03:11 Non-Apples03:54 Loading montage, part 106:09 User group footlocker07:06 Loading montage, part 207:29 Hard drive removal08:06 Loading montage, part 310:11 Fully loaded10:21 Voyage home11:17 Spicy weather12:28 Unpacking12:33 Big servers
Fujitsu NFTS SCSI hard disk tester from 1993 Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-08-10 | Fujitsu NFTS SCSI hard drive tester from 1993. I thought this thing was bizarre on the outside, but once I started digging in... it just kept getting more and more weird!Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro00:27 Talking with Isaac07:21 Disassembly begins10:03 Unexpected this is16:37 1st board revealed!18:59 2nd board revealed!21:20 3rd board revealed!26:20 Final big reveal!31:00 Floppy driver is free33:48 Testing floppy drive38:12 Testing boot disk40:05 Reassembly, part 141:18 Reassembly fail43:41 Reassembly finished46:33 Closing wordsMB87030 SCSI protocol controller datasheet:semiconductors.es/pdf-down/M/B/8/MB87030-Fujitsu.pdfMB81C86-55 SRAM datasheet:http://www.bitsavers.org/components/fujitsu/_dataBooks/1990_Fujitsu_Static_RAM_Products.pdfMB8877A floppy disk controller datasheet:archive.org/details/Fujitsu-MB8876a-MB8877-FDC-datasheetMB8863N communications interface adapter datasheet:e-nexty.com/product_files/download?lc_code=ja&maker_code=FML&product_file_id=587918&product_id=2035861&product_part_number=MB8863EMB8464A datasheet:nfggames.com/X68000/Development/datasheets/MB8464A%20-%20SRAM.pdfMB81C1001-12 DRAM datasheet:http://www.bitsavers.org/components/fujitsu/_dataBooks/1991_Fujitsu_Dynamic_RAM_Products.pdfMB8873H datasheet:e-nexty.com/product_files/download?lc_code=ja&maker_code=FML&product_file_id=587929&product_id=2035872&product_part_number=MB8873H&search_log_id=2059435YE Data YD-380 maintenance manual:http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/yeData/FDL-523006_RevC_YD-380_Service_Manual_Feb1985.pdfVogons thread related to the YD380 drive:vogons.org/viewtopic.php?t=88751
3dlabs VP990 Pro versus the world! Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-07-18 | 3dlabs Wildcat VP990 Pro takes on many contemporary GPUs in a variety of game and workstation application benchmarks. How will the 3dlabs architecture fare? Let's find out!Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro01:11 OpenGL 20th Anniversary02:19 3dlabs cards02:33 ATI cards04:01 NVIDIA cards06:04 Matrox cards07:42 Motherboard and CPU09:44 Games12:14 Doom 3 benchmarks14:55 VP990 vs NV20 renderer18:16 NV10 renderer vs NV20 renderer perf21:52 What if... ?23:27 Unreal Tournament 2003 benchmarks25:40 War Craft 3 benchmarks33:50 SPECviewperf Awavds-04 benchmarks35:16 SPECviewperf DRV-07 benchmarks36:23 SPECviewperf DX-06 benchmarks37:30 SPECviewperf Light-04 benchmarks40:39 SPECviewperf MedMCAD-01 benchmarks41:11 SPECviewperf ProCDRS-03 benchmarks42:05 Summary44:41 Doom 3... future?47:45 Closing wordsRaw benchmark data:docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/e/2PACX-1vTbI6OzIDA9SolvdCQq-O862mHNWngesF5s1ujA1BoeGZEkLgsE9h7xsQkzR5BiJLyJXAcAz4SKEbZz/pubhtmlDoom 3 r_renderer cvar information:modwiki.dhewm3.org/R_renderer_(cvar))Unreal Tournament 2003 patches:unrealarchive.org/unreal-tournament-2003/patches-updates/patches/patch-2225/index.htmlWar Craft 3 patches:us.forums.blizzard.com/en/warcraft3/t/classic-warcraft-iii-official-installers-official-patches/21415War Craft 3 demos:warcraft3.info/replays/10348Grandma's walk:youtube.com/watch?v=memQtjPVYUk
EVGA XR1 has tritanomaly? Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-07-10 | Can a video capture device even have blue-green color blindness (tritanomaly)? It seems like my EVGA XR1 Pro has something going on with this particular video signal.
NVIDIA Quadro4 video corruption Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-06-20 | As mentioned in my previous video, I ordered this card for the next video. It arrived quickly, and I put it right to work... but it doesn't work. I've seen this failure mode on other Quadro4 cards. Is there any way to fix it?
$1,200 GPU from 2002 - Can it run Doom 3? Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-06-14 | It's #GPUJune 2024! Released in late 2002 at a similar time as the Radeon 9700 and the Geforce FX, the top of the line 3Dlabs P10 architecture card cost $1,200. Let's compare the architecture of the 3Dlabs parts with its contemporaries, and, naturally, let's see if it can run Doom 3.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro00:44 Previous GPU generation04:20 Shader model 2.0 generation07:38 Visual Processing Unit11:25 VP990 Pro Unboxing13:22 The Good20:46 The Bad26:24 The Ugly31:43 The Weird37:56 WindowsXP39:54 Doom342:29 Closing wordsOpenGL extension registry:registry.khronos.org/OpenGL/index_gl.php3Dlabs P9 / P10 documentation:http://www.vgamuseum.info/images/doc/3dlabs/p10/p9.p10.ao.pdf
NEC PowerMate SX/20 almost broke me Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-05-23 | Troubleshooting this vintage NEC PowerMate SX/20 PC was a bit more than I bargained for. It is so stubborn about not wanting to work, at all, without a working Dallas RTC. I will get it booting from a hard drive... no matter the cost!Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Cold open00:19 Intro02:01 Exterior03:59 Interior05:39 Highly unusual14:15 So many questions16:38 First power on21:09 Signs of life?26:52 Interesting discoveries!34:30 RIP XT-IDE :(38:01 Plan C: SCSI42:13 First boot from Adaptec43:21 Removable SCSI media47:02 Closing wordsNEC PowerMate SX/20 manual:ardent-tool.com/media/PS2_MOST/ACROREAD/TSSFACT/TFSPC/NEC/2012011.PDFNEC PowerMate SX/20 on The Retro Web:theretroweb.com/motherboards/s/nec-powermate-sx-20Necroware nwX287 Dallas RTC replacement:github.com/necroware/nwX287Adaptec 1542CF manual:http://download.adaptec.com/pdfs/installation_guides/aha1540cf_ig.pdf
Installing Solaris 9 on a Sun Ultra 10 Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-05-10 | Revisiting the Sun Ultra 10 from the previous video, let's see if we can get it running and get Solaris installed. Spoiler alert... all attempts at Solaris 10 were thwarted.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro01:32 Review04:58 It's alive!07:03 Tale of woe14:08 Drive configuration16:50 Drive size limitations20:17 NVRAM configuration22:52 Drive configuration (again)25:09 Installation begins!28:12 Disk partitioning29:54 Network, date, and time33:11 Picking software38:43 Disc 341:21 Reboot43:54 Post-install configuration45:14 First login!46:51 Closing wordsSolaris 9 ISOs that I used:https://fsck.technology/software/Sun%20Microsystems/Solaris%20Install%20Media/Sun%20Solaris%209/Sun%20Solaris%209%2012-2002%20%28U2%29/Sun NVRAM FAQ (the "cheat sheet"):http://www.obsolyte.com/sunFAQ/faq_nvram.htmlVCFed forum discussion about the M48T58Y:forum.vcfed.org/index.php?threads/sun-nvram-alternate-battery-clock-chip.76043Solaris 10 release notes for bop_alloc_chunk issue:updates.oracle.com/readme/142909-17Music credits:Kreuzberg Nights by FuturemonoCognative Dissonance - Electronic Medium by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
What do Mortal Kombat and a mass spectrometer have in common? Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-04-26 | The Texas Instruments TMS34010 is considered by many, including myself, to be the first true GPU. I found these boards at a local electronics reseller, and I decided to document them.Github repository with hires pictures and (eventually) ROM dumps:github.com/ianromanick/Oxford-Microanaysis-Group-GSP-boardTwitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuffImage credits:en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hard_Drivin%27#/media/File:Hard_Drivin'_in-game_screenshot_(Arcade).pngen.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steel_Talons#/media/File:ARC_Steel_Talons.pngen.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mortal_Kombat_(1992_video_game)#/media/File:Mortal_Kombat.pngen.wikipedia.org/wiki/NBA_Jam_(1993_video_game)#/media/File:Nba-jam-dunk.png
Sun Ultra 10 and Ultra 60 workstations power on Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-04-19 | Spring means Sun! Three 1998 Sun Ultra workstations recently rescued from e-waste are examined. In this first video I just want to see if they are alive at all. Future videos will have (possibly) further trouble shooting and (possibly) operating system installation.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro02:22 Ultra 10 weigh-in02:47 Ultra 10 externals04:58 Ultra 10 internals10:47 glxgears11:41 Ultra 10 power on15:57 Ultra 60 Mk.1 weigh-in16:27 Ultra 60 Mk.1 externals19:30 Ultra 60 Mk.1 internals24:18 Ultra 60 Mk.1 power on26:11 Ultra 60 Mk.2 externals28:45 Ultra 60 Mk.2 internals34:44 Ultra 60 Mk.2 power on41:36 Ultra 60 Mk.2 is alive!45:04 Closing words
Retro PC repairathon part 2: fixes! Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-04-05 | I'm finally back to do some repairs on these retro PCs! March was a really bad month, so it took quite a long time to get this video finished. After taking a quick look at the K6 and the Pentium II systems that seemed to be just working, I dig into the #BadBattery Compaq and the #BadCapacitor MVP3 K6-2 systems.During the making of this video, I tripped over the cable connecting my main camera to the video capture device, and I had to have a new one sent overnight from Amazon (affiliate link): amzn.to/3VKQhBfTwitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro02:03 Recap from part 102:48 Pentium II03:15 K604:07 Compaq ProLinea11:00 Compaq postmortem12:28 MVP3 K6-2 recap22:30 It's alive!30:12 Vwrop vwrop32:59 SiS rebirth!33:39 What's next?34:38 Closing words
Retro PC repairathon part 1: Triage Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-02-16 | Part 1 (of at least 2) of a retro PC repairathon. I've accumulated a bunch of these things over the last year, and it's about time to sort them out and do something with them! This first step is primarily triage... what's here, what works, and what future repairs are needed.At least some of them will end up for sale at SideQuest Expo (sidequestexpo.com) on March 9th and 10. Stop by and say hi!Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro00:46 Bachelor number 108:54 Bachelor number 214:11 Bachelor number 318:57 Bachelor number 427:21 Bachelor number 542:49 Bachelor number 652:34 Closing words
Why did slot CPUs exist? Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-02-01 | Why did slot-based Pentium II, Pentium III, and Athlon CPUs exist? Why did they disappear? It all has to do with the importance of cache performance and what was possible with the technology of the day. I'll dive really, really deep into many aspect of CPU and cache performance to make a case for why they existed and why they vanished.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro00:30 Data transmission performance00:54 Bandwidth and latency03:32 The Pentiums05:22 The memory speed problem10:34 Bus speed matters12:23 P55C L1 cache advantage13:10 How do we (not actually) go faster?18:29 Direct mapped cache24:11 Set associative cache28:46 Lookin' at you, L232:50 CPU and cache on a board, take 135:33 Pentium Pro43:30 CPU and cache on a board, take 245:23 But why vertical?47:09 Slot B Xeon49:22 A is for Athlon51:03 On-die cache53:43 Off-die cache?55:25 On-die cache!!!57:48 Closing wordsComputer Architecture: A Quantitative Approach (these are Amazon affiliate links)amzn.to/3SePOE9 or amzn.to/3OgYJnnImage and video credits:Drinking glass being filled:youtube.com/watch?v=OhqQrfOiIoUWorst fireman ever:youtube.com/watch?v=P9BXRBcVDHcFlight of Apollo Saturn V:youtube.com/watch?v=iBVjV960PRkIntel Coffee Lake die photo:commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Intel@14nm%2B%2B@CoffeeLake@Coffee_Lake-S@i7-8700K@SR3QR_DSC02911-DSC02973.jpgPentium Pro "de-lidded" CPU:commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CPU_Pentium_Pro.jpgSequent computer room:commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sequent_IS_Computer_Room.jpgSequent TPC benchmark submission info:tpc.org/results/individual_results/sequent/sequent.numa.d.es.pdfCrying face emoji:commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Emojione1_1F62D.svgPentium II Xeon 450MHz:commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pentium_II_Xeon_450_512.jpgPentium II Overdrive "de-lidded" CPU:commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:KL_Intel_PPro_Overdrive_P6T_Top.jpg
Packard Bell Legend 233 non-repair 😭 Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-01-18 | This Packard Bell Legend 233 (486sx 33MHz) is not pretty... inside or out. I'll take a look at it and see what I can do, but thanks to a #BadBattery, I'm pretty sure it's a gonerTwitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:12 Intro01:43 Dirty exterior05:42 Clean interior15:10 The damage18:59 Yeet!20:22 Damage close up23:40 Signs of life?25:23 Component testing28:52 Doom, of course30:13 Closing words
January (technically) mail call! Tales of Weird Stuff 2024-01-04 | I found a bunch of packages hanging around my basement... some quite old... let's look at the stuff that I ordered online!Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:09 Intro01:41 Soldering supplies02:55 More RAM06:21 Commodore 64 stuff09:06 PS1 games11:34 Video cards17:24 Panzer Dragoon 20:05 Closing words
Epson Equity I+ repair for #DOScember 2023! Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-12-29 | Let's see what surprises this Epson Equity I+ turbo XT clone PC has hiding inside! Not only does it have some little surprises, but it has the worst case design I have ever seen on a computer. Clearly, Krampus left this #DOScember present for me!Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:11 Intro02:01 Exterior overview05:32 Initial disassembly12:07 Bad video recording13:00 Nice and clean!17:33 Weird floppy drive18:52 Power on!23:57 Power off?!?27:55 Hard drive testing38:37 Re-assembly56:45 Should I keep it? 01:01:05 Closing wordsChase Pulse Faster by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0Epson Equity I+ User's Guide:dosdays.co.uk/computers/Epson%20Equity/media/equity_1plus/equity_I+_user_manual.pdfSideQuest Expo:sidequestexpo.com/index.html
SGIs first 64-bit workstation: The Indigo Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-12-14 | Examine and troubleshoot an SGI Indigo workstation. Hopefully this is an R4000 based system with graphics from the Elan family. R4000-based Indigos were the first 64-bit CPU workstations shipped by SGI.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:16 Intro01:13 Exterior inspection04:10 Motherboard08:27 Graphics board13:50 Nasty17:31 Less nasty18:47 Power supply pre-testing21:47 Power supply testing23:54 Reassembly27:32 First power-on!29:18 Woe is me36:16 The fine manual38:38 A different result40:20 Guilty party found!41:28 Closing words
#SGI haul from Bellevue Washington! Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-11-26 | I drove up to Bellevue Washington to buy an SGI Octane, but I came home with the Octane, a VisualWorkstation 320, a 1600SW monitor, and a box of accessories! This basically doubles the size of my SGI collection. Not bad at all!
ULTIMATE GameCube setup for Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures! Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-11-22 | My ultimate GameCube setup for playing Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures is here! This is the reason for all the console modding in my previous video, and, as promised, the payoff was HUGE!Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro01:08 2016 Zelda party03:48 Previous setup08:58 The problems10:23 Improvements17:13 Musical chairs18:34 Time investment20:26 Chaos!23:31 Clear path26:16 All the way to 11?28:04 Game play!30:31 Closing wordsHere's what you need to reproduce this setup:- Either 5 GameCubes or 4 GameCubes and a "backwards compatible" Wii (model RVL-001) with all necessary power bricks, video cables, and controllers.- Four Game Boy Players (model DOL-017). You will only need one Game Boy Player disc. Alternately, the GameCubes can be modded to use Swiss and Game Boy Interface.- Four "GameCube - Game Boy Advance link" cables (model DOL-011 or compatible).- Four small displays.- One large display.- One Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures game disc.That's it! :)GameCube Swiss army knife:github.com/emukidid/swiss-gcGame Boy Interface:gc-forever.com/wiki/index.php?title=Game_Boy_InterfaceRetroRGB article about Wii2HDMI used in this project:retrorgb.com/wii2hdmi-plug-play-adapter-back-in-stock.html
Installing PicoBoot on 4 GameCubes! Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-11-19 | Installation of PicoBoot mod in four DOL-001 GameCubes! If I can do this mod... four times... with my meager soldering skills, you can too! At the very least, you can learn from my mistakes and misadventures.My Twitch livestream with all of these GameCubes is Sunday, November 19th, 2023.twitch.tv/talesofweirdTwitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro02:26 Prep the PiZero03:31 Disassembly all the things!04:43 Detailed disassembly12:32 Tales of woe17:06 Removing the heatsink22:25 Soldering GP426:39 Soldering GP6 and GP729:25 Soldering 3v330:43 Soldering GP532:00 Soldering ground34:22 Reinstalling the heatsink40:26 Reinstalling the optical drive41:29 Reassembling the case49:48 Closing wordsPicoBoot installation guide (read ALL OF IT):github.com/webhdx/PicoBoot/wiki/Installation-guideImage showing the correct thicknesses of heat transfer pads for the GameCube:imgur.com/95iGCGe
SGI O2 CD-ROM fix, case fix, and RAM upgrade! Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-11-14 | Time to get this Silicon Graphics O2 from 1997 into tip-top shape! The CD-ROM drive won't stay closed, some of the plastic is broken, and it needs a RAM upgrade. There's more that can be done on this system, but that will come later.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:15 Intro00:24 CD-ROM problems03:20 Weight and measures04:45 Disassembly, part 113:35 Upgrade that won't happen16:58 RAM upgrade22:51 Disassembly, part 230:15 CD-ROM disassembly41:48 CD-ROM repair44:10 AUDIO QUALITY FIXED :(45:45 Case repairs, part 147:55 CD-ROM reassembly and testing57:11 Case repairs, part 21:01:37 Reassembly!1:08:33 Booting into IRIX!1:10:36 Closing wordssgistuff.net page for the O2 (with links to manuals at the bottom):http://www.sgistuff.net/hardware/systems/o2.html
Portland Retro Gaming Expo 2023 Pickups! #PRGE2023 Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-10-17 | No long form #PRGE retrospective this year, but I want to show the things that I got at the show. I also hint at some future projects!Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro01:08 Vendor area overview03:10 Pickups!06:28 Games08:22 ASCII joystick09:44 Saturn video cable10:31 POWER SUPPLIES!15:22 Commodore repairs?!?16:32 GameCube accessories18:30 CTWC19:27 Closing words
TRS-80 beauty and the beast. #SepTandy 2023 Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-10-07 | Finally time to take a look at a really gross TRS-80 Model 4 and a pristine Radio Shack FP-215 plotter.This video would have been released a week ago... just barely making it into #SepTandy, but then tragedy struck. There were significant problems with the audio recorings, and none of the resulting video could be used. Even though we're well into October, I'm still going to call this SepTandy!Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro01:20 Look around the outside04:48 First peek inside11:54 So much bodge!18:50 First power19:35 Smeared display24:15 FP-215 unboxing29:05 Look around the outside33:04 Does it work?!?39:24 First peek inside43:56 Closing words
Stubborn Tandy 1000SX restored to former glory! #SepTandy 2023 Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-09-25 | Tandy 1000SX gets repaired and returned to its former glory. The upgrades finally get installed, and this thing rocks!If you haven't seen part 1, check outyoutu.be/ONK_au8YcdQTwitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro00:12 Retro Chip Tester02:30 A fault found!07:22 Smoke test10:04 A new problem?13:41 Problem solved?16:02 Before upgrades18:19 Upgrades!20:14 Final result21:12 Closing words
#SepTandy comin like a semi truck! Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-09-14 | So many things coming this month in SepTandy on Tales of Weird Stuff! I'll add links to each video here as they are published.Tandy 1000SX repair, part 1:youtu.be/ONK_au8YcdQ
Tricking out a Tandy 1000SX, part 1 #SepTandy Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-09-07 | This Tandy 1000SX needs some cleaning and repairs, and I think it deserves some much needed upgrades. To start #SepTandy 2023, let's take a look inside and see what can be done.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro02:30 Look inside11:42 #DirtyFan13:37 Foreshadowing15:18 First boot20:14 The Upgrades25:56 Installing DOS32:33 The problems35:31 Closing wordsSepTandy Playlist: youtube.com/hashtag/septandy
What is this Intel 8080 thing anyway? Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-08-18 | Intel 8080 CPU, dual Shugart drives, RAM, ROM, and a serial port. It's a computer, right? Well, let's try to figure out what the heck it actually is.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:16 Intro01:45 System overview04:26 External connections07:13 Plan to dump the ROMs09:58 2708 EPROMs are painful12:06 Sketchy 2708 reader15:33 The ROM dumps!19:51 Closing wordsGitHub repository containing the ROM images:github.com/ianromanick/weird-8080-shugart-drive-computerA very sketchy way to dump a 2708:pinwiki.com/wiki/index.php?title=Leon_Borre_Changing_Zaccaria_2708A less sketchy way to dump a 2708:museo.freaknet.org/en/eprom-2708
A box of SWTPC 6800 goodies! Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-08-13 | Check out this SWTPC 6800 find! This is a huge collection of cards, peripherals, documentation, and the computer itself!Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff
Huge Intel memorabilia collection Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-08-05 | Check out this collection of 80s Intel memorabilia! This is a great collection of historically interesting Intel swag and newsletters.I have created the git repository where the newletters will be stored as I get them scanned:github.com/ianromanick/intel-newsletterTwitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro01:00 Tchotchkes09:02 Intel Pacesetter29:48 Merry X-Mas to you too!30:39 Inteleads40:03 Intel on the Space Shuttle41:37 Cosmic Cube47:02 Operation Skywalker49:07 32-bit market52:26 The 38656:28 NEC lawsuit58:25 Intel Scope01:00:12 1983 - 1984 Retrospective01:02:04 Closing wordsPC Magazine, October 1983:books.google.com/books?id=qURs4j9vKn4C&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false
Peek inside a DEC 3000 model 500 Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-07-20 | Look inside this DEC 3000 model 500, one of the first computers to ever use the Alpha processor. With great effort, in more ways than one, I open up this machine to have a look. Can I also try to turn it on?Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro02:00 Brief system overview07:23 88.7 pounds09:19 Digital UNIX10:54 Front panel12:07 Hidden power connector13:55 Read the fine service manual16:29 Motherboard overview22:20 The CPU!23:20 RAM cards27:16 Turn it on?31:27 Closing wordsService manual with disassembly instructions:http://www.zx.net.nz/documentation/mds-199909/cd1/alpha/flamiogc.pdf
$100,000 for RAM? AlphaServer ES47 #shorts Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-07-06 | Full video: youtu.be/z658a8Js5qgNorth Carolina - Government Compaq Branded Alpha Price List Effective 11/22/03:ftp.zx.net.nz/pub/archive/ftp.compaq.com/pub/US/state/ncgovalphalist.pdf
Inside an HP AlphaServer ES47 Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-07-06 | In November 2003, this configuration of HP AlphaServer ES47 would have cost at least $133,000 (see the price sheet below). We'll take a look at the system inside and out, and we'll listen to the loudest system fans I've ever heard on a computer.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro01:27 100 pounds of computer07:07 CPU board revealed11:30 CPU upgrade gone wrong13:50 AGP?!?18:42 Your biggest fan22:09 NUMA and 64 AGP slots25:57 Countdown to leaf blower29:34 Booting to Linux 33:10 CPU info, kernel build, 720 watts36:24 CPU package, bare board, smashed heatsink43:17 Sweet relief of quiet44:25 Closing wordsNorth Carolina - Government Compaq Branded Alpha Price List Effective 11/22/03:ftp.zx.net.nz/pub/archive/ftp.compaq.com/pub/US/state/ncgovalphalist.pdfMatt's web page with additional information about this specific machine:mattst88.com/computers/es47
VCF East 2023 pickups! Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-05-18 | As promised, here are my VCF East 2023 pick ups! It was about as much as I could possibly bring home in my suitcases. Several of these items will appear in future videos. Let me know in the comments which items you are most interested in.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff
VCF East 2023 recap... finally! Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-05-05 | Better late than never, my VCF East 2023 trip report is here! I had intended to edit and post this video while still on my trip, but the laptop I had with me experienced some malfunctions. Alas.The event was a blast, and it was great to meet so many people IRL that I've only known through social media platforms.There will be a follow-up video of all my trip pickups.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro02:03 Room 1 walkthrough02:48 Room 2 walkthrough05:09 Room 3 walkthrough10:32 Museum walkthrough15:37 Motorolal 8800018:01 RISC workstations18:46 WinNT on PowerPC19:24 Altos 586 Xenix system20:25 Televideo Z8021:29 AT&T 730021:53 SGIs, oh my!26:44 Univac27:47 XT-IDE... it's alive!28:37 Consignment room30:14 Closing words
Machintosh IIfx Repair part 2 Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-04-06 | The Macintosh IIfx saga continues! Sadly this is a little late for #MARCHintosh 2023. Watch me remove capacitors in the worst possible way, and don't watch me put new capacitors back on. Lol. Will that fix the problems? Will it power on? Find out!Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro01:09 Removing the board05:26 Removing capacitors and sadness15:07 First power on18:38 Testing with a video card21:40 Closing wordsMacintosh IIfx schematic:github.com/nickpunt/nubus-se30/blob/master/Schematics/bomarc/Macintosh%20IIfx%20Schematic%20(bomarc).pdfMacintosh IIfx recapping guide:https://recapamac.com.au/macintosh-iifx/
Macintosh IIfx Repair #MARCHintosh 2023 Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-03-11 | Continuing with #MARCHintosh 2023, let's replace the ailing power supply in this Macintosh IIfx with a shinny new one. Will that be the only repair necessary? There's only one way to find out!Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro00:49 Opening the machine03:20 Old power supply insides08:42 More system disassembly10:43 Nobody said anything about two batteries14:11 Cleaning connectors21:46 Old power supply testing24:08 Leaky capacitors26:33 New power supply testing27:42 Closing words
Mac IIfx mystery box unboxing #MARCHIntosh 2023 Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-03-02 | New old stock parts are hard to come by, and this is a doozy! Watch me unbox this "mystery" Apple replacement part for my MacIntosh IIfx.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro01:40 Breaking the seal!04:13 Cleanest fan ever!05:10 Goopy capacitors06:17 Next steps06:54 Closing words
Medford estate sale pickups! Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-02-24 | An estate sale ad spotted on a boring Tuesday in mid February sent me on adventure to bring a bunch of weird stuff home. Let's take a look at it all! There are a bunch of S-100 boards, some Heathkit test equipment, a bunch of Motorola 6800 related chips, an Apple IIe full of upgrade cards, and a new-old-stock Acer PC.There is a bunch of this stuff that I have no idea what it is. If you have any information, please leave it in the comments below.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro00:34 Trip to Medford02:28 Mystery box 107:37 Heathkit logic probe10:52 Mystery box 218:27 Stack of S-100 boards26:36 Mystery box 3 - so many chips42:28 Expansion board prototyping kit48:00 Heathkit fault injection devices51:17 Apple IIe1:01:30 Acer PC1:09:00 Closing wordsSideQuest Expo (swap meet):sidequestexpo.comThen & Now Estate Sales:thenandnowsales.com
Intel Above Board vs Doom... we all lose! Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-02-09 | Take a deep dive into the Intel Above Board PS / AT with a 25MHz 486. Is it any good for running Doom? Is it any good as a disk cache? I'll examine using Central Point Software PC-Tool 4.2 disk cache on this system too!Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro01:21 Project background03:36 Above Board overview07:25 Prelude to fail08:10 SpeedSys fail09:02 Second Above Board13:04 SpeedSys for real19:08 It runs Doom26:06 Disk cache instead?28:24 Driver fail32:10 Disk cache fail 33:44 Disk cache success34:27 Benchmark setup39:50 Data analysis42:14 Disk loads during the demo43:23 Should you use one?46:06 Closing wordsDocumentation and drivers for Intel Above Boards (many models):minuszerodegrees.net/manuals.htm#Intel
2023 teaser trailer! Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-01-19 | Teaser trailer for videos coming to the channel in 2023. I thought this would be a fun way to start the year.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro00:12 Weird Computers01:05 Weird Input Devices01:36 More Weird Computers02:05 Weird Processors02:24 Even More Weird Computers02:49 Weird Motherboards03:12 Weird Disk Drives03:33 Weird Processor Upgrades04:15 So Many Weird Computers!04:42 Weird Software05:35 Weird Stuff!05:47 Closing words
Doom benchmark deathmatch, part 2! Tales of Weird Stuff 2023-01-05 | DOS Doom benchmark data deep dive! Finally look at all the data from the hundreds of benchmark runs that I performed in December of 2022. There is a lot of data and a lot of analysis here, but the executive summary is:1. CPU speed is king. 486 66MHz is the minimum for the best Doom experience, and 25MHz will never be very good.2. Get some L2 cache, but amount doesn't matter too much.3. Get a VLB or PCI video card, but it doesn't matter too much which card.4. Avoid "Windows GUI accelerator" cards (e.g., Viper VLB). They tend to have poor DOS VGA performance.5. If you're stuck on ISA, Cirrus Logic GD542x and WDC 90C31 cards were the fastest in my benchmarks.6. Avoid 25MHz bus CPUs (25MHz, DX2 66MHz, DX4 75MHz, etc.).7. Avoid Cyrix 486 CPUs.As a final note... the Tseng Labs ET4000W32 is not a fast card. Don't waste your money on it. Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro03:35 WTF are tics?08:27 OPTi 82C28311:46 ULi M1409A16:57 SIS 85C47121:24 ALi M1429G24:39 Cache and CPU effects on 85C47128:44 Cache and CPU effects on M1429G32:45 UMC UM8868BF41:01 Chipset effects on ISA46:55 Chipset effects on VLB48:33 Final recommendations52:25 Closing wordsSpreadsheet containing all the benchmark data:docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/18wHfsX6a5tIBOPWC1Ij1qJLAjBCpCy2J8LZJmbBlwgg
Has Tales of Weird Stuff been... naughty? Tales of Weird Stuff 2022-12-29 | Is Tales of Weird Stuff on the nice list or naughty list? I guess I won't really know until I open this package left on my front porch. Let's take a look at some unusual controllers, and let's start with the first wireless controller for the Atari 2600!Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro03:42 Is that the door?04:08 What's on my porch?05:04 Unboxing06:14 Hooking it up08:03 Yar's Revenge in deed!09:22 Closing wordsFellowship of the Atari Giant Joystick playlist: youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3PPNTwgmSFnlxHBZWefxZqg_q-SPqXmPSpecial thanks to the Taylor and Amy Show (youtube.com/c/TheTaylorandAmyShowChannel) for starting all of this madness going. :)Door opening sound effect courtesy of:youtube.com/watch?v=Nfg1LS5b5x8Winter storm sounds courtesy of:youtube.com/watch?v=0klq20uJxAU
Doom benchmark deathmatch, part 1! Tales of Weird Stuff 2022-12-23 | Like an angry cacodemon, #DOScember2022 and #DOOMcember strike back! The giant Doom benchmark deathmatch that I've been talking about for several videos is finally here... sort of. This is just part one, and part two will follow in a week or two. In this installment, I will look at all of the hardware that will be benchmarked.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro05:40 8-bit ISA cards10:36 16-bit ISA cards12:21 32-bit VLB cards14:30 Non-functional cards :(16:21 Cards missing from the battle18:24 32-bit PCI cards23:49 CPUs tested27:19 CPUs not tested30:53 ECS 8521 (ALi M1409A chipset)34:35 Motherboards not tested36:15 PCChips M919 (UMC UM8886BF chipset)47:35 486A3GX4 (ALI M1429G chipset)50:00 CH-471/A (SIS 85C471 chipset)53:24 Closing wordsAquarius Systems/BCOM A10001 (not shown in this video):theretroweb.com/motherboards/s/aquarius-systems-a10001-386sx25-20-16ECS 8521 (ALi M1409A chipset):theretroweb.com/motherboards/s/ecs-8521CH-471/A (SIS 85C471 chipset)theretroweb.com/motherboards/s/chicony-ch-471a-ver.-3.0PCChips M919 (UMC UM8886BF chipset)theretroweb.com/motherboards/s/pcchips-m919-ver-3.4bweb.archive.org/web/20010215003115/http://users.aol.com:80/sdnd/vip.htm486A3GX4 (ALI M1429G chipset)theretroweb.com/motherboards/s/unknown-486a3gxxelhvb.com/webhq/models/486vlb3/486a3gx4.html
Rarest PC sound card in the world!!! Tales of Weird Stuff 2022-12-12 | The Mindscape Music Board was cursed by coming out shortly before the much more capable AdLib sound cards. It's basically a Mockingboard for a PC (without the speech synthesizer chips). The only software that I know supports it is the music editing software that came with it.
DOS Doom LAN Party for #DOScember2022! Tales of Weird Stuff 2022-12-10 | Let's roll into #DOOMcember with a legit 1993-esqe Doom deathmatch LAN party! I kind of took over my retro computer club's December meeting with this collection of mid-90s computers. In this video you will learn how to set up IPX networking specifically to play Doom deathmatch.Twitter: twitter.com/TalesOfWeirdInstagram: instagram.com/TalesOfWeirdStuff00:00 Intro02:19 The Mission08:23 The systems08:56 Game play!12:19 Choosing components20:15 Configuring the network31:18 Launching Doom33:11 Closing wordsBase IPX ODI files as for NE2000 cards in DOS Box:github.com/gammy/dos_net_ne2000Archived Intel network drivers. These are the drivers for **both** the Intel ISA card and the Digital PCI cards. In all cases you want DOS ODI drivers. The test software for the Digital PCI cards is pcitst24.zip.web.archive.org/web/20081223060353/http://developer.intel.com/design/network/drivers3Com PCI 3C905B drivers:vogonsdrivers.com/getfile.php?fileid=914In the thumbnail, GamePro rating system faces courtesy of Ryan Quintal, and Santa Hat courtesy of Theresa Knott, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.ryanquintal.com/blog/2018/remember-gamepros-face-based-rating-systemcommons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Santa_hat.svgDoom music as played on a Roland SC-55:archive.org/details/Roland_SC-55_Music_Pack_Doom_Ultimate_Doom_Raw
