On 2012-02-14, wrote:
On Mon, 13 Feb 2012 20:46:45 -0600, "Snag" wrote:

[ ... ]

You owe me a keyboard . The old one quit after I spewed beer all over it .
Shoulda swallowed before I clicked ...

Best way to remove beer from a keyboard is with copious application of
isopropyl alcohol followed by compressed air under moderate pressure,
repeated several times.

Put the keyboard on the Xerox (or other photocopy) machine first,
because compressed air is likely to pop the keycaps off the keys, and
you want to have the full layout in front of you before you start
sticking them back on. Yes, the letters are pretty predictable if you
start at the right place, but function keys and even things like
"Control" and "Caps Lock" migrate between keyboards, let alone things
like '~'.

If it is a cordless keyboard, don't forget to
either take the battery out or turn off the computer before you start
DAMHIKT.

Absolutely! The first step when a spill gets into a keyboard or
something similar is to remove *all* sources of power.

Simpler solution is to open the wallet.

I had a keyboard (originally from a Tektronix Silent-700
terminal, and acquired from a hamfest) which got urinated on by a pet
squirrel. The solution there was to run it under the shower in the tub
for a while, then stand it on edge for a couple of days, but that was
built differently from the current run of keyboards. The squirrel
finally decided that outdoors was where he wanted to be. :-)

For the Sun keyboards which I like, every once in a while too
much cat hair gets in and first starts padding the keys so you have to
hit them a little harder. Then later, it works between the layers of
flexible printed circuit boards (all on transparent mylar or the like).
The first and third layers have crossover areas which when pushed
together conduct. The middle layer has a series of holes under the
keys, so it holds the first and third layers apart until you get enough
pressure to bend the layers together. The keycaps have little rubber
falsies to hold them up and serve as springs.

For these, a full disassembly is necessary -- the keycaps in a
container, the layer of falsies (some versions are individual, others
are a sheet of falsies in the right positions) needs to be hit with
compressed air to carry off the cat hair there. The top plate needs it
as well, to get the hair out of the key guides, then the individual
layers go down to the shop and are individually hit with compressed air
to carry off the cat hair, Then it all goes back upstairs and gets
reassembled and is good for a few more years.

If beer is involved. each layer needs to be washed by
clean water first, then dried with compressed air and reassembled.

Enjoy,
DoN.

--
Remove oil spill source from e-mail
Email: | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564
(too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html
--- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero ---

"DoN. Nichols" wrote:


I had a keyboard (originally from a Tektronix Silent-700 terminal


Texas Instruments made the Silent-700 line of terminals. I think I
still have one around here.


--
You can't have a sense of humor, if you have no sense.

Ok - I took delivery from dear Dad of my Freshman and Sophomore year in
High School - my 900 gate Game system - plays NIM against you on a light
display (15 bulbs) and a switch button box as the control box. Each
gate is a potted RTL gate that is RAD hard and still works. I'm fixing
it up and checking it out - maybe I can get it into some history place.
Game machine like that in the early 60's.
It was a 3th generation with me. Switches, tubes, RTL logic.

Martin

On 2/15/2012 12:14 AM, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

"DoN. Nichols" wrote:


I had a keyboard (originally from a Tektronix Silent-700 terminal


Texas Instruments made the Silent-700 line of terminals. I think I
still have one around here.

Martin Eastburn wrote:

Ok - I took delivery from dear Dad of my Freshman and Sophomore year in
High School - my 900 gate Game system - plays NIM against you on a light
display (15 bulbs) and a switch button box as the control box. Each
gate is a potted RTL gate that is RAD hard and still works. I'm fixing
it up and checking it out - maybe I can get it into some history place.
Game machine like that in the early 60's.
It was a 3th generation with me. Switches, tubes, RTL logic.


I still have a few new RTL ICs. Some are early flatpak, and were
surplus made for NASA. Others are DIP left over from trying to repair a
Philco Seirra Frequency Selective Voltmeter. I needed two types I never
did find.


--
You can't have a sense of humor, if you have no sense.

On 2/15/2012 11:05 PM, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

Martin Eastburn wrote:

Ok - I took delivery from dear Dad of my Freshman and Sophomore year in
High School - my 900 gate Game system - plays NIM against you on a light
display (15 bulbs) and a switch button box as the control box. Each
gate is a potted RTL gate that is RAD hard and still works. I'm fixing
it up and checking it out - maybe I can get it into some history place.
Game machine like that in the early 60's.
It was a 3th generation with me. Switches, tubes, RTL logic.


I still have a few new RTL ICs. Some are early flatpak, and were
surplus made for NASA. Others are DIP left over from trying to repair a
Philco Seirra Frequency Selective Voltmeter. I needed two types I never
did find.




I remember those days.
I took one look at RTL and RAN to TTL.
And never regretted it.

Richard wrote:

I remember those days.
I took one look at RTL and RAN to TTL.
And never regretted it.


I did a lot of work with TTL, but I've used RTL and DTL when I had
to. Then there was NMOS PMOS and finally CMOS which is the most used
right now. There are some interesting Silicon/Germanium high speed
semiconductors being manufactured these days.


--
You can't have a sense of humor, if you have no sense.

On 2012-02-16, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

Martin Eastburn wrote:

Ok - I took delivery from dear Dad of my Freshman and Sophomore year in
High School - my 900 gate Game system - plays NIM against you on a light
display (15 bulbs) and a switch button box as the control box. Each
gate is a potted RTL gate that is RAD hard and still works. I'm fixing
it up and checking it out - maybe I can get it into some history place.
Game machine like that in the early 60's.
It was a 3th generation with me. Switches, tubes, RTL logic.


I still have a few new RTL ICs. Some are early flatpak, and were
surplus made for NASA. Others are DIP left over from trying to repair a
Philco Seirra Frequency Selective Voltmeter. I needed two types I never
did find.

I remember when Popular Electronics gave a NIM playing computer
built purely with rotary switches and lamps. :-)

Enjoy,
DoN.

--
Remove oil spill source from e-mail
Email: | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564
(too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html
--- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero ---

"DoN. Nichols" wrote:

On 2012-02-16, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

Martin Eastburn wrote:

Ok - I took delivery from dear Dad of my Freshman and Sophomore year in
High School - my 900 gate Game system - plays NIM against you on a light
display (15 bulbs) and a switch button box as the control box. Each
gate is a potted RTL gate that is RAD hard and still works. I'm fixing
it up and checking it out - maybe I can get it into some history place.
Game machine like that in the early 60's.
It was a 3th generation with me. Switches, tubes, RTL logic.


I still have a few new RTL ICs. Some are early flatpak, and were
surplus made for NASA. Others are DIP left over from trying to repair a
Philco Seirra Frequency Selective Voltmeter. I needed two types I never
did find.

I remember when Popular Electronics gave a NIM playing computer
built purely with rotary switches and lamps. :-)


How about their 'calculator' built with NE2 ring counters, and
'programmed' with a rotary switch and a telephone dial?


--
You can't have a sense of humor, if you have no sense.

On Wed, 15 Feb 2012 22:35:38 -0600, Martin Eastburn
wrote:

Ok - I took delivery from dear Dad of my Freshman and Sophomore year in
High School - my 900 gate Game system - plays NIM against you on a light
display (15 bulbs) and a switch button box as the control box. Each
gate is a potted RTL gate that is RAD hard and still works. I'm fixing
it up and checking it out - maybe I can get it into some history place.
Game machine like that in the early 60's.

Sounds like a fun project. What's NIM?


It was a 3th generation with me. Switches, tubes, RTL logic.

And, um, what's "threeth"?


--
Fear not those who argue but those who dodge.
-- Marie Ebner von Eschenbach

On 2012-02-15, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

"DoN. Nichols" wrote:


I had a keyboard (originally from a Tektronix Silent-700 terminal


Texas Instruments made the Silent-700 line of terminals. I think I
still have one around here.

You're right. I've been working on some Tektronix 'scopes and
plugins recently, and every time I start to type something electronic
which starts with 'T', it comes out "Tektronix" -- even if it isn't. :-)

And to add to the problems, if I tried to type the abbreviation
of Texas Instruments, my spelling correction would change it to "IT". :-)

Thanks for the correction.
DoN.

--
Remove oil spill source from e-mail
Email: | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564
(too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html
--- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero ---

"DoN. Nichols" wrote:

On 2012-02-15, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

"DoN. Nichols" wrote:


I had a keyboard (originally from a Tektronix Silent-700 terminal


Texas Instruments made the Silent-700 line of terminals. I think I
still have one around here.

You're right. I've been working on some Tektronix 'scopes and
plugins recently, and every time I start to type something electronic
which starts with 'T', it comes out "Tektronix" -- even if it isn't. :-)

And to add to the problems, if I tried to type the abbreviation
of Texas Instruments, my spelling correction would change it to "IT". :-)

Thanks for the correction.


No problem. I knew that you knew who really made it.


--
You can't have a sense of humor, if you have no sense.

On 02/14/2012 10:14 PM, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

"DoN. Nichols" wrote:


I had a keyboard (originally from a Tektronix Silent-700 terminal


Texas Instruments made the Silent-700 line of terminals. I think I
still have one around here.


I have 2 rolls of paper for Silent-700, still in the black
plastic bags.

--
Gary A. Gorgen | "From ideas to PRODUCTS"
| Tunxis Design Inc.
| Cupertino, Ca. 95014

"Gary A. Gorgen" wrote:

On 02/14/2012 10:14 PM, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

"DoN. Nichols" wrote:


I had a keyboard (originally from a Tektronix Silent-700 terminal


Texas Instruments made the Silent-700 line of terminals. I think I
still have one around here.


I have 2 rolls of paper for Silent-700, still in the black
plastic bags.


I had a whole case, but I think it was in the warehouse I lost when I
got sick. I bet someone would buy that paper on Ebay.


--
You can't have a sense of humor, if you have no sense.

On 2012-02-20, Gary A. Gorgen wrote:
On 02/14/2012 10:14 PM, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

"DoN. Nichols" wrote:


I had a keyboard (originally from a Tektronix Silent-700 terminal


Texas Instruments made the Silent-700 line of terminals. I think I
still have one around here.


I have 2 rolls of paper for Silent-700, still in the black
plastic bags.

And what color is the paper by now? :-) Unless it was stored in
a cool environment the whole time, it is likely too dark to use. :-)
After all, the printing was done by flashing it with heat. That is what
made it "silent" compared to the mechanical marvel which was the ASR-33
Teletype. :-)

Enjoy,
DoN.

--
Remove oil spill source from e-mail
Email: | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564
(too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html
--- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero ---

On 02/20/2012 05:52 PM, DoN. Nichols wrote:
On 2012-02-20, Gary A. wrote:
On 02/14/2012 10:14 PM, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

"DoN. Nichols" wrote:


I had a keyboard (originally from a Tektronix Silent-700 terminal


Texas Instruments made the Silent-700 line of terminals. I think I
still have one around here.


I have 2 rolls of paper for Silent-700, still in the black
plastic bags.

And what color is the paper by now? :-) Unless it was stored in
a cool environment the whole time, it is likely too dark to use. :-)
After all, the printing was done by flashing it with heat. That is what
made it "silent" compared to the mechanical marvel which was the ASR-33
Teletype. :-)

Enjoy,
DoN.

I'm sure they have deteriorated, by now. ( 40 yrs. )
I think the mechanical marvel is the model 35 Teletype.

One of the jobs I had at Tymshare, was evaluating terminals.
I had just about everything that could put characters on paper. :-)
Most were preproduction or prototypes.
There was a lot of strange terminals in the late 60's, early 70's.

--
Gary A. Gorgen | "From ideas to PRODUCTS"
| Tunxis Design Inc.
| Cupertino, Ca. 95014