3 ms·

2 random, unconnected thoughts: 1. I’d kill for a good SE/30. I wonder if I could get it booting off a CF card for better speed/latency… 2. What fails hardest

2 random, unconnected thoughts: 1. I’d kill for a good SE/30. I wonder if I could get it booting off a CF card for better speed/latency… 2. What fails hardest in this old hardware? Hard drives seem the most obvious, but are there issues with capacitors or other electronics that fail over time?

Scoundreller 6y ago
> I wonder if I could get it booting off a CF card for better speed/latency… Depends. CF, electrically, is just PATA IDE. But Apple used SCSI back then. Maybe you can find an SCSI SSD?
- EvanAnderson 6y ago
  The SCSI2SD devices are what you're looking for in the case of SCSI disk replacement: https://store.inertialcomputing.com/SCSI2SD-s/100.htm https://store.inertialcomputing.com/SCSI2SD-s/100.htm
tdeck 6y ago
Capacitors fail frequently. Bit rot corrupts floppy disks. Rubber foam used in various places turns to goo. Also batteries on the motherboard often leak, which can be damaging as you might imagine.
signaru 6y ago
for portables, batteries need to get replaced somehow.
LgWoodenBadger 6y ago
This works but uses a microSD instead. It can emulate a Mac HD in addition to various other drives. https://www.bigmessowires.com/shop/product/floppy-emu-deluxe-bundle/ https://www.bigmessowires.com/shop/product/floppy-emu-deluxe...
DarknessFalls 6y ago
I have a Seagate 40 MB Hard Drive running on a Laser XT, purchased from Sears originally. I've had to low level format it a couple of times as it begins to diminish into the West. When it goes, it's unretrievable. As for capacitors, those are easy to replace and there is a niche market for replacing them in old systems as well as vintage tuners.
Animats 6y ago
Electronics has a short life, especially 1970s electronics. Phenolic boards from the pre-FR4 era were just too fragile. By the 1980s, the PC board manufacturers had that under control. I have five working Teletype machines I've restored, and they were manufactured between 1926 and 1950. All the wiring in the 1920s models had to be replaced, but by 1935, Teletype had that solved, and later Model 15 machines just did not age. Especially the WWII models that not only got the factory Parkerizing for rust prevention, but the Army coating for the tropics. Annual maintenance involves 600 oiling points, though.
buildsjets 6y ago
Lithium BIOS / RTC batteries that have exploded in storage and corroded nearby traces and components. I am become Varta, destroyer of boards. Capacitors are a near second, especially metallized film VIFA caps in the ‘80s.
jamesu 6y ago
One thing which really grinds my gears about old hardware is the commonplace use of brass screws. If you've ever tried to unscrew one that hasn't been turned in decades, it's an utter pain. Sometimes the only recourse is destructive.

Scoundreller 6y ago

> I wonder if I could get it booting off a CF card for better speed/latency… Depends. CF, electrically, is just PATA IDE. But Apple used SCSI back then. Maybe you can find an SCSI SSD?

EvanAnderson 6y ago
The SCSI2SD devices are what you're looking for in the case of SCSI disk replacement: https://store.inertialcomputing.com/SCSI2SD-s/100.htm https://store.inertialcomputing.com/SCSI2SD-s/100.htm

tdeck 6y ago

Capacitors fail frequently. Bit rot corrupts floppy disks. Rubber foam used in various places turns to goo. Also batteries on the motherboard often leak, which can be damaging as you might imagine.

signaru 6y ago

for portables, batteries need to get replaced somehow.

LgWoodenBadger 6y ago

This works but uses a microSD instead. It can emulate a Mac HD in addition to various other drives. https://www.bigmessowires.com/shop/product/floppy-emu-deluxe-bundle/ https://www.bigmessowires.com/shop/product/floppy-emu-deluxe...

DarknessFalls 6y ago

I have a Seagate 40 MB Hard Drive running on a Laser XT, purchased from Sears originally. I've had to low level format it a couple of times as it begins to diminish into the West. When it goes, it's unretrievable. As for capacitors, those are easy to replace and there is a niche market for replacing them in old systems as well as vintage tuners.

Animats 6y ago

Electronics has a short life, especially 1970s electronics. Phenolic boards from the pre-FR4 era were just too fragile. By the 1980s, the PC board manufacturers had that under control. I have five working Teletype machines I've restored, and they were manufactured between 1926 and 1950. All the wiring in the 1920s models had to be replaced, but by 1935, Teletype had that solved, and later Model 15 machines just did not age. Especially the WWII models that not only got the factory Parkerizing for rust prevention, but the Army coating for the tropics. Annual maintenance involves 600 oiling points, though.

buildsjets 6y ago

Lithium BIOS / RTC batteries that have exploded in storage and corroded nearby traces and components. I am become Varta, destroyer of boards. Capacitors are a near second, especially metallized film VIFA caps in the ‘80s.

jamesu 6y ago

One thing which really grinds my gears about old hardware is the commonplace use of brass screws. If you've ever tried to unscrew one that hasn't been turned in decades, it's an utter pain. Sometimes the only recourse is destructive.