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What are your "Holy Grails?"

A

Al Hartman

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Aug 13, 2013
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Location
Keansburg, New Jersey, United States
What computer systems would you like to own if you had unlimited money, and unlimited space?

Mine are:

- LNW-80 Model II Computer (a TRS-80 Model I clone)
- Apple I
- Apple ][+
- Apple Platinum ][e
- Apple Lisa
- Apple Macintosh Plus
- Apple 20th Anniversary Macintosh
- Apple G4 Cube
- Amiga 2000
- BeBox (Dual 133mhz)
- Franklin ACE 1000
- Franklin ACE 1200
- Laser 128EX
- Mindset
- NeXT Color Cube

Right now, I have more systems than I really should have. I need to sell some of them to pay for what I've recently bought.
 
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The only systems I really want but don't have would be mac: 9150, Color Classic. Maybe a Gateway 6 way PPro (ALR rebranded) and an Atari mega STE.

Most of what I lust after are computer card upgrades and boxed software. There are other systems I wouldn't mind trying out but nothing that I like better then what I have.
 
I have a 20th Anniversary Mac Prototype if that's not too new.

If we need older I have a Compaq Portable I, which isn't all that special as they aren't insanely rare nor insanely common.
 
Yeah, so Bill called out one of mine that I officially would give up on practicality wise is the Honeywell 316 (Kitchen Computer). The others are in mostly in my sig. Altair 8800 (I came close by finding an 8800bt), an IBM 5100 with APL and Basic would be so awesome. Some day I'd give up most my collection to make the dream come true. I'd love a PDP with the front panel. They seem pretty daunting from an outside view though (never worked on one but hope some day one will be close by). I'm sure there are others. All systems are so unique it's hard to curve the "want" desire with practicality. I'd love a Sol-20. Obviously anything that says Cray would be fun but it'd just be a show piece.

In my many years of collecting though (and some poor choices) I do have most of my wants. It's just the high 3 and low 4 digit priced systems that aren't practical to justify.

Should we say how many we have from the general grail consensus? Well ok.. I only have 3 I guess unless the Compaq Portable is really a holy grail then I have 4. Actually my biggest problem is the finding of hardware tends to be incomplete. I have more than I need .. sorta.. of some Amiga models but I lack most accessories like a keyboard that make it difficult for me to justify selling it to someone.
 
The 8/e is the last system on my list of holy grail items. Everything else was ticked off the list in the last twelve years either from buying the systems or spending time with another users system long enough to determine it wasn't all that fun and not worth spending more time trying to find another.
Everything else is either so one-off or so obscure now that I consider " I spent ten minutes oogling it at the museum" good enough. These include the PDP-12, CM-1, IRIS 3000, Apricot Xen and the chiclet PET.

Not bad considering there's people three times my age with a list the size of their arm. ;)
 
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Hardware: Tandy 10, TRS-80 model 16 (the original 16s are quite scarce on the ground).
Software: Tandy Videotext Office Information System

I did finally score one of the TRS-80 model II desks.
 
I don't think I would be comfortable actually owning them (and it would take unlimited times over 9000 dollars), but I would love to get some hands-on time with a Xerox Alto with its smalltalk environment as well as an early Xerox Star.
 
kb2syd said:
Hardware: Tandy 10, TRS-80 model 16 (the original 16s are quite scarce on the ground).
Software: Tandy Videotext Office Information System

I did finally score one of the TRS-80 model II desks.
Click to expand...

Awesome :) I want to find a desk for the model II and for the 880bt. Those are technically on my list but it's been a bear ever finding a useful search term. I came close to finding one desk for the TRS but it was a pretty far drive that was difficult to prove the benefit to the wife :)

The harder to find 16 is the A I guess? (there was an A and B right?). As odd as it sounds I can't remember if I have one or which one I do have. I have a II that worked but scratched up probably my best disk which was a CP/M disk for it then I became paranoid about trying anything else on it, then I found a beaten and battered II at Goodwill a few years back but it really does look like someone from Office Space got to it before I did so I just shelved it as a potential parts unit. I was trying to get all of them for a while, I think I may have a 16 or a 12.. pretty sure I never came across a nice 6000. I have an old printer I'm trying to justify the storage space for which would look badass if it had the full desk setup.

Actually one other question. The Tandy 10? MC-10 or some other model I'm not familiar with?
 
A PDP-12 like one we had in a BioPhysics lab circa early 80s.
 
barythrin said:
an IBM 5100 with APL and Basic would be so awesome
Click to expand...

Yes, that's on my list too. It would nicely compliment my favourite keyboard - IBM 3278 with APL keycaps.

I might also like a VT05 terminal and some kind of thing to connect it to - something with lots of blinking lights and switches like this:

View attachment 14985

I'd also like some kind of high resolution vector graphics terminal from the 70's - but I'm not sure which one yet.
 
This actually got me thinking. Not so rare, har har.
I think were I to get everything I want - but don't yet have - would include the following:

1) TRS-80 Model 4 with both floppies.
2) A PC-compatible (non-Tandy) 80186 motherboard. (Saw one back when they were new, but never since.) Probably 10 or 12MHz.
3) Commodore B-128 with drives and peripherals. But I ain't paying $600 for one. lol

That's about all, really. As I tinker with other different ones, that "unattainable" list may expand, but that's all I'm truly after at the moment.
 
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Here is my complete list of somewhat realistic holy grails. I don't really expect to get anything like a pdp7 or Kitchen computer.

Pentium systems, any one or two of these specific pentium 60 or 66's:
Compaq Deskpro 5/66M
DECpc 560ST
Unisys PW Advantage Plus 5606
Will consider:
IBM Model 95 (66mhz)
Siemens PCE-55
HP Netserver 5/60 LM
Zenith Z-Server LT 466XE Model 500

Computer Data Systems "Versatile 2" s-100 computer 1977 (Newark, Delaware USA computer)

Casio FX-9000P

Canon CX-1 or BX-3

Acorn BBC Model A

Eagle Computer Eagle II E (I have disks, need computer)

Sord SM80X

Oki 1F COM7 laptop

Morrow Decision 1

Microvoice Nugen

Sycor Model 302 Key-Cassette terminal

Any one hit wonder mid 70's micros like the Sphere, Compucolor II, HAL, Jupiter Computers

Commodore 264
 
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My wants were quite modest and I've managed to aquire a few Acorn Risc machines and spares which is really what I wanted when they first came out. Good thing about them is the ability to read ADF, Dos and Atari diskettes for transfering data. I guess I'm living the dream......Quite happy with the late 80s thru mid 90s x86 clone beasties too.

No dought something else will catch my imagination in future but for the life of me I can't imagine what that'll be.
 
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I've been wanting a TRS-80 Model III for the longest time. One showed up on kijiji, but it didn't have any floppy drives (mine MUST have floppy drives). I'd also love to get ahold of a C-64 SX. I'm also wanting the microcassette interface for my pocket computers, or an Epson HX-20.
 
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