Richard Thomson's vintage computer collection

[@douro20]

The Aesthedes graphics system is one of the pioneering technologies used by the Dutch state printer SDU, which in the '80s-'90s had the world's most advanced printing technologies, and produced some of the most advanced banknote designs ever produced.

[@aphexteknol]

My favorite was the ADDS Envoy portable terminal. Such a 70s color scheme.

[@LMacNeill]

I had one of those Wang terminals in my house as a kid. My Dad had all Wang equipment at his office - he owned a Wang 2200 minicomputer, and at least half-a-dozen terminals like those there, along with several 8-inch floppy drives and one giant “disk pack” drive that had these huge circular white plastic packs that swapped in and out. Anyway, he brought home one of the terminals, and a modem so we could dial into his big machine at the office. It was incredibly cool! I learned how to program in Wang Basic on that thing.

[@gurujaketube]

We had a system like that at Syracuse U. in the late eighties, leftover from the seventies. But I used it to type all my papers. It was always available, easy to use with great spell checking. And its daisywheel printer gave my papers the appearance of being typewritten, unlike all the dot matrix printouts so common in those days.

[@lawrencedoliveiro9104]

3:57 Back in the 1980s our Geography department had a Summagraphics tablet which I seem to recall was about that size. I wrote a custom driver that worked through the serial port so the cartographer could use it to drive the mouse while running a drawing program (Aldus FreeHand) on an Apple Mac Plus. Later he proudly showed me some of the maps he had managed to produce with the help of my driver. :)

[@gregorymalchuk272]

Did you write it in in assembly or Basic?

[@lawrencedoliveiro9104]

@@gregorymalchuk272 Pascal.

[@Krivulda]

Wow, I would LOVE to see all of them running!

[@Opry99er]

I bet this guy doesn’t even know if they all run

[@NinuRenee]

Krivulda considering most of them have probably been acquired as is without any manuals i dont think that kind of troubleshooting would even be worth ones time.

[@ComputerGraphicsMuseum]

@@Opry99er Most were acquired in a running state, but stuff fails just due to aging of components, so before power-on anything would need to be re-inspected first. Some stuff, like the big SGI machines have power requirements that my current warehouse location doesn't satisfy.

[@ComputerGraphicsMuseum]

@@NinuRenee Except for things like ASICs in an SGI machine, everything is very well documented similar to what Marc shows on his channel w.r.t. his vintage gear.

[@TheUglyGnome]

That pile of SGI stuff made me drool.

[@HomeComputerMuseum]

First time ever I've seen an Aesthedes outside of the Netherlands. In the last few years we did a lot of research on this Dutch brand. What's in his collection is an original Aesthedes (1) featuring (probably) 10 Motorola 68000 CPU's, 1.9MB memory and the entire OS (which is custom made) is ran from ROM. It is the first CAD-computer that supports layers for example. Adobe Illustrator is like the cheap copy of what this thing does. We have a nearly 100% working Aesthedes 2 in the museum in the Netherlands and we're planning to share all the information, so this machine in the video can be started up as well. Soon we'll have a video up on our repair of this machine.

[@olik136]

ok.. I could find literally ONE other video of the Aesthedes on the whole of youtube.. I really would like to see it running!

[@greendryerlint]

So would I. Or maybe it could be leased out to a movie company for background in a sci-fi flick. Most of the Millenials would never know the difference :)

[@gregd6022]

Yeah that unit is what's really notable in this video..

[@allthegearnoidea6752]

At 3:45 I spotted a HP1631D logic analyser on the shelf unit. Sweet. I'm just in the process of restoring one of these on my channel. I think I'm going to to have to buy a vintage computer to test it on. My best regards Chris

[@nealelliott]

I spend many nights in a cold computer room working on a sgi "fridge" challenge, and the challenge L. sgi always had cool looking computers. I miss using IRIX on based mips systems.

[@דובב.א]

WOW !!! AMAZING COLLECTION...

[@depleteduraniumcowboy3516]

My father bought a Kaypro in the early 80s and upgraded it. It was given to when he upgraded I used it forever.

[@Opry99er]

Shame none of these will ever be turned on again.... this guy is a hoarder, not an enthusiast. Bet he hasn’t even fired half of these up.

[@NinuRenee]

The head is so deep in the anus one could actually find new forms of life

[@austinramsay]

Agreed.. it is nice that he probably saved a lot of this stuff but to just store them away for no reason is pointless to me. I use everything I collect ranging from IBM 5155s to Sun 3/80s and SGI Indigo2's.

[@ComputerGraphicsMuseum]

Actually, hoarders have been some of the best places where I've gotten stuff :)

[@scipanda4969]

great video. I used some of the stuff from the 90's. The graphics workstations from back then and a bit earlier were really cool. that huge graphics console is super cool. that portable terminal with orange keys is right out of a Syd Mead painting. Super cool.

[@lawrencedoliveiro9104]

Syd Mead at 10:05?

[@johneygd]

You got awesome stuff there!!!

[@GeigerCounterVirtualMuseum]

Wow, I will have to show my wife this when she says my Geiger counters are taking up to much space :)

[@CuriousMarc]

+Geiger Very cool collection you have!

[@jonathanhendry9759]

Definitely needs to set up a Terminal wall, showing video converted to ASCII. I'd imagine his holy grail might be a Pixar Image Computer.

[@edgeeffect]

An ASCII-art video wall on serial terminals would be SO cool.

[@gregorymalchuk272]

I only just realized from an episode of the Computer Chronicles that "Pixar" was the name of the supercomputer used to render their early computer animation clips in movies.

[@doalwa]

Very cool collection...I'm a sucker for SGI stuff, unfortunately only managed to get my hands on an Octane, O2 and a bunch of 1600 SW displays so far...then again, I guess it's easier to come across this stuff in the states than it is here in Germany. Oh, and that vintage HP equipment is incredible!

[@WhiteRabbitDreams]

Fascinating stuff right there

[@RaymondHng]

10:43 I built one of those Heathkit H9 terminals from a kit. It was very tedious and had hundreds of soldering points to solder and bus cables to assemble.

[@Jeffrey314159]

RaymondHng HEATHKIT had its own line of PC's?

[@ComputerGraphicsMuseum]

@@Jeffrey314159 Heathkit had several terminal kits: H9 and H19. They also had the H89 which was the H19 enclosure with a Z80 processor and floppy drive.

[@Noodleude]

Welcome to salt lake! If I knew about that conference I would have come to say hi!

[@williamstewart1490]

Was that a Sperry+Univac UTS terminal under the ADDS terminal? I thought it would be strange he had no UTS terminals in his SLC collection, considering that was where Univac manufactured them for at least two decades.

[@roybixby6135]

Great - such memories...

[@slippery396]

I love those model 28's

[@edgeeffect]

These other collectors should start youTube channels where they take us through their restorations step-by-step. There's some French guy who already does that and his channel is really cool.

[@Nameit1374]

What are old computer😔

[@matthewghali2987]

Oh my gosh.. so many amazing machines, from the eras where hardware _had_ to have personality to differentiate.. not all homogenous, single-platform drek. Please tell Richard his collection is amazing and I hope he can share some with their stories on KZbin. I'd love to help produce videos if he is interested!

[@QuaaludeCharlie]

Thank you :) QC

[@lawrencedoliveiro9104]

7:10 Tektronix storage-tube graphics terminals. You haven’t suffered until you’ve tried to display graphics on one of those. :)

[@jonathanhendry9759]

Try dialing into Compuserve with one. The text coming in through the modem would print from the top of the screen down then wrap and write over what was already there. Unless you were quick hitting the clear screen button (or whatever it was called). Of course then you couldn't see what had just been printed on screen. I had more success dialing in with a thermal printer / acoustic coupler teletype kind of thing. Used a whole roll of paper playing "Megawars". We had weird computers at home when I was a kid.

[@roachtoasties]

It looks like none of this works, but still fun to look at. Back when this stuff was in use, you would have to be a super-important person to be allowed in the computer room just to touch it.

[@ComputerGraphicsMuseum]

Most works, but I have limited power at the warehouse. The teletypes, being more mechanical than electronic, are the things that need serious work to restore to working order because the lubricants gum up over time.

[@lawrencedoliveiro9104]

3:35 Did they use their fingers on that surface, or a stylus?

[@ComputerGraphicsMuseum]

The whole surface is a essentially giant membrane keypad. You could press the function keys with your fingers. I think they used a stylus in the center mouse area.

[@rty1955]

shame, I tossed out 3 ksr-33's in perfect working order as no one wanted to buy them. them after a while I wanted to give them away, but again I one wanted them, so I had to toss them out, as I was moving. I also got rid of a working Dec writer LA-36 and a 120. sad to see them go. I got rid of two nothstar horizon z80 s100 bus computers and about 40 different boards as well

[@rty1955]

I modified 9 ago crimson computers for a ship simulator for the merchant marine academy for video recording

[@BEdmonson85]

Cameraman, next time you interview sometime, shut up and let them talk!

[@AiOinc1]

3:00 That's very interesting, is there a stylus or something? I see an Apple Computers logo, what's that for? 11:29 This is why they're so goddamn expensive, a few people buy literally all of them and never get rid of them Nevertheless, if such a museum opened I'd pay money to visit it.

[@MaddTheSane]

The Apple logo looks like a sticker.

[@ComputerGraphicsMuseum]

The Apple logo sticker was added by the previous owner as a tongue-in-cheek touch. :)

[@ufoengines]

If you run across an old FLOWDAC, patent 3190554 , be sure to let me know !

[@DandyDon1]

No Xerox CAD?

[@chuckinator13]

CRAY CRAY!

[@OverloadDeepDark]

No computer booted that day!

[@RetroComputingwithMike]

Wow this is old stuff ... totally out of my league ... (and also i wouldn't know where to store it :P)

[@weltfremd]

omg i want a terminal

[@estpst]

that was cool, looks like he has plenty of duplicates, hoarding?

[@ComputerGraphicsMuseum]

The intention is to have a publicly museum where you can have a "period experience" on period equipment, similar to the Living Computer Museum. So duplicates are necessary for spare parts and to have more than one machine functioning in the exhibit at any one time. That's the plan, anyway :)

[@jackkraken3888]

I just came from the Nostalgia Nerd's video on Dutch computers that mentioned the Aesthedes, towards the end. I hope I see a working version soon! Here is the video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nmnHlquIhd2YiNU

[@825Ghost]

Do any of those computers turn on?

[@ComputerGraphicsMuseum]

Most were in working order when acquired, yes.

[@lawrencedoliveiro9104]

3:10 More like Inkscape, perhaps.

[@mglmouser]

It's more hoarding than collecting. They seemed to be kept in less than ideal conditions. :-(

[@jamesross3939]

I've always maintained that if you have a list of what you have, and it's all organized, and you can locate any item w/o searching... it's not hoarding, it's collecting.

[@mikematkovic8733]

I don't watch porn. I watch this

[@kolamik2]

IT BELONGS IN A MUSEUM

[@keithpetrino]

So do you!

[@JerryWalker001]

Computers could be so much better if Microsoft had not got their hands on them. Early computers were true engineering machines with lots of potential. These days they are just software money pits and are rapidly becoming useless for anything but satisfying Microsoft sales.

[@meemee1357]

well, in any case, fuck Microsoft, I use Linux.

[@rty1955]

mee mee I agree!! Microsfot has not invented ONE thing. Windows was STOLEN from APPLE who got permission to use it from Xerox who invented it. Thats why Linux/Unix people us Xwindows. Beciaee Xerox invented it. Bill Gates was not even close to a visionary. He just ripped off other companies or bought other companies just for thier patents. He also couldn't code his way out of a paper bag. He had others do it. His company is just focused on making him huge profits by buying out any competition. He destroyed any innovation by others. He hated any competition. Microsoft is shareware at best. I die laughing when the typical response is "re-install everything" or "please re-boot" I worked on Mainframes and a "re-boot" is never an option. I worked at one company who didn't "re-boot" the mainframe for over 5 years, as there was never any need to. I dont mind upgrades and such, but i DEMAND backward capability like IBM has been doing for decades. Microsoft is JUST a money maker and will do ANYTHING to stop comeption and maintain or increase thier profits. Not a nice company PS I have 12 rack mounted computers, and two laptops at home and only 1 computer(laptop) runs windows, the rest are Linux machines

[@jackkraken3888]

@@rty1955 Oh dear lots of misinformation. Windows was never 'stolen'. And Apple never 'paid' Xerox. What happened is that a number of Apple employees had seen the work that Xerox PARC was doing and knew there was something there. They had to plead with Steve Jobs to let him take a look, because at the time he didn't really care. But once he saw it he knew it was the future. Bill Gates also saw the future in what was shown in PARC. Now Steve never really paid the engineers in PARC instead he gave them stock options in Apple. The other thing that needs to be mentioned is that Steve and Gates had an agreement that Steve would be allowed to launch his GUI version first before Bill's but there was no clause on what happens if there was a delay on Steve's computer and guess what? There was a delay and eventually Bill Gates was able to launch his version and the rest is history. I'm not denying that Windows is bad, but your characterization of Bill Gates is extremely unfair. He was a coder and was involved in creating the BASIC language for the Altair 8800, one of the first commercial personal computers. In fact it was because of that Basic version that he made the infamous ' Open Letter to Hobbyists' where he mentioned that it was stealing for computer hobbyists to use his BASIC interpreter without payment.

[@rty1955]

@@jackkraken3888 gates collaborated with jobs to write software for the apple computer. It was at this point gates stole the code for the gui and decided to publish it for himself. Apple did in fact give stock to xerox, giving legitimacy to the work that jobs was doing, gates just stole the work from apple. As far as gates as a coder. A lot of rhe work was done by paul Allan while gates was hard at work figuring out how he could screw people. Gates was not a bright coder at all. Paul had to correct a lot of code gates wrote. Gates was all about business and how he could make money, no matter who he stepped on. Hardly a nice guy

[@jackkraken3888]

@@rty1955 Gates didn't steal the GUI code from Apple. They were given a licence to use it from Apple. But there was a dispute regarding if these elements were even copyrightable. Also don't forget that Bill Gates also hired Charles Simonyi from Xerox, just like how Steve hired Bob Belville from Xerox..

[@finncattasmr]

I WANT

[@525Lines]

There's a future in supplying props for movies if nothing else!

[@BobCat981]

9:58 a laptop? poor laps of whoever got/had to use it :D lololol

[@michaelarson9616]

Woow

[@MicrobyteAlan]

VT100s LA120s

[@godofcows4649]

5 dollars for a teletype smh, while my wallet burns

[@ComputerGraphicsMuseum]

We had a meetup down at the warehouse before the pandemic and a couple of those Teletypes were transitioned to homes where they could get the attention they deserve :)

[@samuelbanya]

This is where all the eBay hoards are hiding

[@shyleshsrinivasan5092]

SGI ?! Restore Immediately ! All of them !

[@RickBaconsAdventures]

I love the old stuff we normally see on here but S-G-I! S-G-I! S-G-I!

[@H32-u7d]

omg O-O

[@drink__more__water]

Holy crap haha. Thanks Richard for letting us all take a peek!

[@mrlieallways6024]

Ancient computer .

[@raulrrojas]

It's cool, but can't see the point of having more than one of each.

[@Silent700]

5:02 Whatup

[@CuriousMarc]

Silent terminal with tape drive option to record or send prepared offline data (I think). First time I ever saw one of these.

[@Silent700]

Yes it's the TI Silent 700 model 733ASR. The cassettes play the role of the paper tape on a traditional Teletype.

[@matthewghali2987]

@curiousMarc Do you have more footage of the DEC Gigi? I'd love to hear more about it! I remember occasional mentions of it at the time from DEC literature, and it seemed to be a unique evolutionary point between graphics terminal and workstation.. also those Tek terminals with literal 4K screens!!! the whole collection had me 😻😻😻😻😻😻😻😻

[@moow950]

So now he has all this outdated junk in that big hall. So what’s he gonna do with it? If he just collects, I’ll bet that after his passing the majority will end up on the junkyard. 😒

[@soteful9949]

This is hording, but it's still cool.