The IBM Palm Top PC 110 (commonly just “PC110”) is, as its name suggests, a palmtop PC intended for sale exclusively in Japan. It was produced by a joint venture between IBM Japan and Ricoh, known as RIOS.
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I have recently achieved something I previously thought to be impossible: connecting a Windows 98 notebook PC to a modern network secured with WPA-PSK. Here, I’ll discuss the specifics of this configuration and the high-level steps to take to achieve the same. Continue reading
The PAC 64 is a somewhat ubiquitous luggable, built in the same chassis as other Dolch products and some lesser known brands. The PAC 64 is a baby-AT system with a Pentium CPU. Continue reading
A friend of mine has a handful of Librettos (Models 70 and 100, several of each), and we found that one of the 100s has its original OS install, as-shipped from Toshiba. As we continue to evaluate what is worth archiving from this hard drive (e.g. what cannot be re-downloaded from elsewhere), I’m uploading the desktop wallpaper images here. Continue reading
After several years of being somewhat passively aware of the “subnotebook”, I actively began searching for one to call my own. I came across this stunning example on eBay complete with several key accessories and decided to make it mine. Continue reading
In addition to simple AC adapters, I have a few external accessories to complement the models of ThinkPad that I showcase on my site. This post outlines those devices. Continue reading
This is the second 760E I’ve picked up, somewhat different from the first in that it’s the XGA model which has an integral CD-ROM drive. It is otherwise very similar to my SVGA 760E. I bought it in August 2017 from eBay, quite cheaply due to a display issue which I’ve since fixed. Continue reading
The 760E is a fairly common model of early ThinkPad which closely fits in with the oldest models of the series. It has the design and the type of engineered features that set early ThinkPads apart from other market offerings. I was quite pleased to add this to my collection in July 2017 from eBay. Continue reading
Like the 600, the ThinkPad T21 is not really what I’d call vintage or retro. This machine is capable of being used for modern day-to-day computing, if the user has a little patience. Nonetheless, it isn’t exactly a modern computer, so I’ve opted to describe it here. Continue reading
The ThinkPad 600 is just on the edge of what I consider vintage or retro; although it’s perfectly at home running Win98 or older, it can also comfortably accommodate XP, which from a functionality standpoint is practically modern. Continue reading
I have been unable to confirm it as such, but I’m reasonably confident that this is the PS/2-compatible 4704 emulation keyboard used on various period IBM personal computers when acting as a 4704. Continue reading
In late 2012 I noticed some “parts” for an IBM AT keyboard being sold and upon further investigation found it was a whole keyboard, but in non-operational condition (poor condition cord and at least one stuck key). I bought it and had it shipped halfway across the globe for less than half what it could have cost to buy one without those issues, and was able to fix it with less than an hour of work and replacing two capacitive key switch components that I already had spares of. Continue reading
This is a 122-key IBM 3180 terminal keyboard.
I obtained this keyboard in March of 2012 as part of a trade. Continue reading
What do you get when you cross a 122-key terminal keyboard with a ‘tenkeyless’ space saver? Continue reading
This is the keyboard which came with the IBM 5150: the original IBM PC. Continue reading
This is an “industrial” IBM keyboard. That means nothing about its construction; it is very much the same thing as a 1391401 or other 101-key Model M, but has unique colouring to match IBM industrial computers. Continue reading
This is an “IBM Enhanced Trackpoint II Keyboard”, or something to that effect. It is the only “old” buckling spring board that was available in black as far as I am aware, and has a real IBM TrackPoint II pointing stick embedded within it. Continue reading
1386887 is a 122-key membrane buckling spring (Model M) keyboard, for the IBM 3179 display station (a type of dumb terminal). Continue reading
Here we find what seems to be a relatively common example of ISA PS/2s: the Model 30 286. Continue reading
Whether you operate Win98 boxes in 2018 as a hobbyist or as an IT provider (oh, how I pity you in that case), you have undoubtedly discovered at some point in Win98’s impressive tenure that sharing files across a network is by far the fastest and easiest way to get new drivers and software onto such a machine, and files such as work product, screenshots and more back off such a machine. If you happen to do any of that interfacing from a Windows 10 computer, you have likely found that your ability to talk to your Win98 box mysteriously disappeared. I did, and here’s what I did to fix it. Continue reading
Ah, nostalgia…
Based on ‘date created’ metadata for some files I’ve dug up, around the year 2002 I was first introduced to two PC games: Microsoft Midtown Madness, and Midtown Madness 2. I was 12 at the time. Continue reading
This is potentially the ‘cutest’ desktop computer IBM made: the Personal System/2 Model 25. It is, in effect, a faster XT in a somewhat more efficient form factor. Continue reading
The IBM 4704 (further details here) uses application-specific buckling spring keyboards of relatively unique layouts. This page details the examples that I’ve come across personally. Continue reading
When someone says ‘Model M’ without further details, this is the keyboard they are talking about: the 1391401. This was my first buckling spring keyboard and it has served well since. It was definitely responsible for a lot of my interest in buckling spring keyboards. Continue reading
In 2011, while consulting with fellow enthusiasts of IBM keyboards, I was introduced to the keyboards for the IBM 4704 display terminal. This is the terminal for the IBM 4700 Finance Communication System, introduced at the beginning of the 1980s. This page details the information and resources I have been able to find about this system, notably surrounding 4704 terminals for this system and repurposing 4704 input peripherals for modern computers. Continue reading
After finding there is not much information about the CF-25 online, I decided to put as much information together as I could and make it available online. This page is the result of those efforts. Continue reading
This post exists to document the possibility for re-using the VEN401 as a traditional access point for other applications. Continue reading
This is a portable 286 IBM-compatible, featuring a mechanical (Cherry MX) keyboard and blue monochrome LCD panel. Continue reading
Dolch network analyzers and related portable computers gained popularity on Geekhack for the use of Cherry MX switches in the keyboards of some models. Personally, I didn’t care about the keyboard but found the computer more intriguing, so I picked this up. Eventual goals involve newer internals. Continue reading
This is my Wyse Winterm S30, which despite being a thin ‘client’, has actually spent a fair amount of time serving my website before I moved on to other options. Continue reading