[Info-vax] Prices of Microvax 3100's

[AEF]

On May 13, 10:17 am, AEF <spamsink2... at yahoo.com> wrote:
> On May 2, 5:14 pm, Arne Vajhøj <a... at vajhoej.dk> wrote:
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> > On 5/2/2012 10:09 AM, AEF wrote:
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> > >> On 05.02.2012 9:21 AM, AEF wrote:
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> > >>> Went toebayto check this out. Entered "Microvax3100" and got some
> > >>> interesting results. A model 90 w/ 64MB for $3183. Is this for real?
> > >>> There's a3100/98 system going for $3950. I see other variations
> > >>> ranging from $49 (1 bid) to $3175. Are these things really worth this
> > >>> much?
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> > > On May 2, 9:44 am, Darren Clark<BiggRan... at tds.net>  wrote:
> > >> Someone thinks it's worth that much, and some people will pay that much
> > >> for it. Surprisingly, I still see MicroVaxen, and PDP's in use to this
> > >> day (Ford, Chrysler, Boeing), and if those systems die, they need
> > >> working replacements for mission critical systems. Sometimes they can
> > >> upgrade, sometime they can use emulators, but sometimes they need an
> > >> original system and they're willing to pay for it.
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> > >> Kinda sucks for us hobbyists looking to get some more old stuff.
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> > > So why not run Charon or SIMH? Speaking of which -- and please pardon
> > > me if this is a stupid question -- do these things run as a separate
> > > process or do they take over the entire machine? I don't see why it
> > > can't be the former. Just making sure.
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> > > I guess some hardware will only work with actual VAX systems, like
> > > certain disks or tape drives. Is there something else?
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> >http://www.stanq.com/Risk%20vs%20Benefits%20of%20VAX-Alpha%20Emulatio...
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> > has some points.
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> > Arne
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> Thanks. Good slide show. (And thanks to everyone else in this thread.)
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> I saw no mention of OS X, Mac, or Apple. Will Charon or SIMH or some
> other emulator run on an iMac?
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> Bonus questions:
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> I might take home maybe 3MicroVAX3100-95 systems with StorageWorks
> towers from work (the bosses don't want to put them oneBay). I have a
> Visual 603 terminal. It functions pretty much like a VT420. So would
> that be useful or perhaps even critical for emergency console work?
> Can I chuck it? Can I put it oneBay? (Well, yes I can put it onebay
> -- I suppose it wouldn't hurt to try). I'm moving real soon, so if I
> can chuck it, now's a good time to do so!
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> If there is an emulator for the Mac, can I set up disks with it and
> place files (no "real" apps, or layered stuff, or anything requiring
> VMSINSTAL ) their via a ZIP file in the Mac file system?
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> Thanks!
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> AEF

Oops, premature post. I have no idea how. Anyway . . .

OK, a quick Google search confirms that there is Charon for Mac. OK.

First of all, thank you everyone for your helpful comments on the
prices of MicroVAX 3100 systems in my last post.

In addition to the iMac, I now have a PC around (vintage 2009,
presently running Vista (!) (O_O) (don't ask), but I also have an XP
install Cd.

To phrase the question differently (perhaps more clearly)

Should I keep the Visual 603 around for emergency console use, or is
it just taking up a lot of space (meaning that I could always find a
way to hook it up to the Mac or a PC).

Speaking of Mac, can anyone here comment on Mac

Thanks!

AEF