General Stuff(tm)

[rubber_jonnie]

So he took it, but then I didn't see him for a year, maybe more. I eventually got the mug and use it daily, but it took quite a while to arrive.

The wait was worth it though :)

It was and it's in daily use still.

A permanent reminder to make sure the destination address is correct and not to assume. 😁

[stephen_usher]

Picked up the memory from "ex-work" this afternoon on the way to an old school event in Bedford this evening. (Interesting conversations about the failure to hire our replacement.)

Fitted the new chips to the Amiga trap door memory card, put it into the machine, turned on and.... Flashing power light.

So, definitely can't have 1MB of CHIP RAM and extra RAM in the trap door. Never mind.

[stephen_usher]

As an aside from the very retro computing today I played with stuff which is only a little over half the age of the Sinclairs etc., a 2001 vintage motherboard and various ISA, PCI and AGP cards I rescued from the scrap pile just before I left work,

Seeing as all these things were just thrown, bare, upon carts I guessed that most wouldn't still work but I was pleasantly surprised.

Setting the motherboard up and plugging in the CPU fan before fitting the POST card I expected it no to work but... Turning on the ATX power supply and then shorting the power switch jumper caused the machine to spring to life and POST, beeping when it couldn't find a graphics card!

Rummaging in the box I pulled out an unidentified 3DFx AGP graphics card, plugged that in and hooked it up to the telly and that worked too, as did the DVD-ROM drive. Trying more of the PC100 memory I did find one fully dead stick, but the two 256MB PC100 and the one 256MB PC130 memory all worked and passed a few runs of Memtest86.

IMG_4105.jpeg

Amazingly none of the caps on the Jetway 663AS Pro motherboard look to be bulging or leaking at all, especially as this is a 2001 vintage board from the heyday of the bad cap period.

Anyway, I've spent the day testing cards (only a Matrox graphics card seems fully dead. Not sure about the Creative Vibra 16 though) and getting Windows 98SE running to fully test the cards with drivers.

How can Athlon based PCs be 2/3rds as old as the STs and Amigas?! Aaargh! :-)

[stephen_usher]

In non-retro-computing news... Model railways instead...

I've been refurbishing the two Lima HST power cars which have been sitting in boxes for the last 38 years since my teenage layout was dismantled (to sell the house) in 1986.

Stripped and cleaned the motors and bogies and converted them to DCC using my 6 pin decoder interface PCB. Also replaced the dim bulb with some LED lights bought as a kit from eBay a couple of years ago. I may have to get a couple of new wheel sets as the brass ones seem to collect dirt very quickly, causing pick-up issues.

Anyway, here's the first proper run of the full set with the mixed Lima and Hornby coaches. The first time this complete set has rung since '86.

[HigashiJun]

:bravo:

[PhilC]

Looks good Stephen, well done.

Keep thinking I should build one but the Missus would kill me if I did :lol:

[rubber_jonnie]

Reminds me of the days when I had a small set on a plywood base that slid under my bed.

I had one of these:

GWR.jpg

That came as part of a set IIRC, though I remember my loco having a lot more detail than the one in the pic.
I was excited as it was supposed to have a smoke system, but it turned out mine just had a weight there and I just got smoke oil on everything!!!

I also had one of these:

Screenshot 2024-12-13 at 11.18.40.png

I think it came from one of the model shops I frequented as it was 2nd hand, and the 'copter in my case was dark green. you wound it up and placed the copter on the spindle and when it went past a catch at the side of the track it would operate a lever on the carriage that would release the coiled spring and off the 'copter would go.

My friend had a different set to me, he had a system where there was a 3rd track down the middle for power, and I'd swear blind it was Tri-ang, but I can't find it online. The trains had a massive power pickup under the motor for that 3rd rail.

[stephen_usher]

Hehe @PhilC

@rubber_jonnie oh the Triang Battle-X sets from the 1960s.

The three rail stuff would be Hornby Dublo from the 1950s and early 60s.

[rubber_jonnie]

@rubber_jonnie oh the Triang Battle-X sets from the 1960s.

That would make sense, yes. I vaguely remember other wagons and stuff, but the helicopter was the one that I ended up with.

The three rail stuff would be Hornby Dublo from the 1950s and early 60s.

Also makes sense. IIRC the tracks were mounted on a pressed steel base painted to look like the heavy gravel they use between sleepers. Obviously the middle power track was well insulated. Th locos were really quite nice, very solidly built and with a lot of detai.

[stephen_usher]

Hmm... one of those "It's a small world" moments tonight at the model railway club.

It turns out that the chairman of the club was the direct boss of my next door neighbour from 40 years ago, when I lived in N.Bedfordshire, which is about 70 miles from where I live now and about 150 miles from RAF Kemble where they both worked in the air traffic control section. Vicky, my neighbour, did a weekly commute.

Now, that's just spooky.