tezza
Veteran Member
Trying to maintain vintage computers is not easy. I booted up my old System 80 (Eaca Video Genie) with expansion unit and disk drive tonight after a LONG rest, only to find that the drive didn't seem to want to read the disk. The drive would activate and spin, but it wouldn't seek. I'm not sure if it's the drive, the expansion unit or the computer itself that's at fault. *sigh*
I guess for some people, most of the fun in vintage computers is finding and fixing faults and keeping the old iron going. For other's it's just using the old stuff. I'm in the latter group, and although I can tell the difference between a capacitor and a resistor, I have no wish to spend countless hours with a multimeter or other equipment trying to track down an elusive problem.
How many here actually enjoy the electronics side of the hobby and who else is like me, just wants to things to work, and looks to replace that which doesn't? Given the scarcity of new parts, perhaps I really need to take that digital electronics course! Has anyone come into the hobby not knowing that much about electronics and been forced to learn about it just to maintain their collection?
I guess for some people, most of the fun in vintage computers is finding and fixing faults and keeping the old iron going. For other's it's just using the old stuff. I'm in the latter group, and although I can tell the difference between a capacitor and a resistor, I have no wish to spend countless hours with a multimeter or other equipment trying to track down an elusive problem.
How many here actually enjoy the electronics side of the hobby and who else is like me, just wants to things to work, and looks to replace that which doesn't? Given the scarcity of new parts, perhaps I really need to take that digital electronics course! Has anyone come into the hobby not knowing that much about electronics and been forced to learn about it just to maintain their collection?