@@LurchTroll CRT? What CRT, what I was talking about was the front panel. My first display was a TV with an input from a VDM-1; S-100 display card. No RF modulator, just a direct tap into the video section of the old TV, the hard way. The computer terminal, with a CRT, came later. Soroc IQ 120 We will talk about Keyboards later
@wrongmouse1658 😆 yeah that works i use modern LED and plasma TVs with PCs I had thought that you might have used a Vaccume tube TV I'm only 32 However I just assumed you built a CRT.
@wrongmouse1658 Did TVs not have AV cables or RCA ? Apparently RCA cables have been around since the 50s but that doesn't mean people had them, so just asking.
Point of pedantry: What you're calling a "DB-9" connector is actually a "DE-9". D-sub connectors are identified by size and number of pins. The shell sizes range from A to F and can have anywhere from 2 to 4 rows of pins or sockets. For example, a "DB-25P" is a D-sub connector with a B size shell and 25 Pins. A "DE-9S" is a D-sub connector with an E size shell and 9 sockets.
Yeah mate, it's like saying RJ45 vs 8P8C. Years of working in the industry in my neck of the woods. You are right, but go Google DB9 Serial, despite being technically correct the misnomer is deeply ingrained in the industry so many products are sold as 'DB9'. Insert Futurama beraucrat meme here :-) Good editorial note for the viewers.
Very good review. I bought the Altair Duno from Chris last year and I agree he did an OUTSTANDING job with the kit from the docs the build and he's there if you have a serious Q. I just found out about his Altair experimenter unit and the Floppy drive mounts. They have been ordered and looking forward to another build. Thanks for your very well done video !!
Try heating the solder joints on the switches (during or after assembly). This will relieve the stress on the switches that are binding. Depending on how far off the switch is, this may or may not help, but it's worth a try. Also, when solder joints are under mechanical stress, it may result in later cracking, or pulling the trace off the board. Looks like you did a great job on this btw.
Can you write a program in BASIC that will display random numbers in binary on the front panel LEDs...?? Make it look like all of those computers from the 60's TV shows: Batman, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Time Tunnel, etc...
There is actually a LED version of pong that I leave running in the background because you can make some pretty cool LED patterns with it. Makes a very nice background device for my video calls. ;-)
Would not really be possible with basic as far as I know, however there is an add-on card you can use that supplies multiple digital outputs you can use to drive LEDs or other things. As I mentioned with the pong program however, you could definitely write software with something lower level than basic to interact with those LEDs. I'm also not an ancient micro computer expert. I'm sure someone will chime in and add their two cents if they have example code they could share with you.
@@burntsemiconductor Does the BASIC support PEEK and POKE commands? Do the front panel LEDs correspond to a RAM address? If so, you could poke the bits high or low that control the LED.. I hope the following code doesn't write into the area where the OS is stored, if it stores code the same way a real computer does. 10 FOR X = 0 TO 65535 20 POKE X, 0 30 NEXT X 40 FOR X = 0 TO 65535 50 POKE X, 255 60 NEXT X
@@WagonLoads At least on the original Altair, no, the LEDs are not addressable at all. They're just showing what's on the address and data buses. Because of this, the LEDs will blink like a '60s computer when you run any program.
![Lp. Сердце Вселенной #60 РОЖДЕНИЕ ЛОЛОЛОШКИ [Финал] • Майнкрафт](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/YoR0pAV9FVQ/mqdefault.jpg)
Your display panel looks cleaner than my original. Built mine in the summer of 1975.
Well yeah it would have been harder to find that quality of CRT.
@@LurchTroll
CRT? What CRT, what I was talking about was the front panel. My first display was a TV with an input from a VDM-1; S-100 display card. No RF modulator, just a direct tap into the video section of the old TV, the hard way. The computer terminal, with a CRT, came later. Soroc IQ 120
We will talk about Keyboards later
@wrongmouse1658 😆 yeah that works i use modern LED and plasma TVs with PCs I had thought that you might have used a Vaccume tube TV I'm only 32 However I just assumed you built a CRT.
Well, this was around 1976, and I did not have as many options as we do now. A bit a wee bit before your time. LOL
@wrongmouse1658 Did TVs not have AV cables or RCA ? Apparently RCA cables have been around since the 50s but that doesn't mean people had them, so just asking.
Point of pedantry: What you're calling a "DB-9" connector is actually a "DE-9". D-sub connectors are identified by size and number of pins. The shell sizes range from A to F and can have anywhere from 2 to 4 rows of pins or sockets. For example, a "DB-25P" is a D-sub connector with a B size shell and 25 Pins. A "DE-9S" is a D-sub connector with an E size shell and 9 sockets.
Yeah mate, it's like saying RJ45 vs 8P8C. Years of working in the industry in my neck of the woods. You are right, but go Google DB9 Serial, despite being technically correct the misnomer is deeply ingrained in the industry so many products are sold as 'DB9'. Insert Futurama beraucrat meme here :-) Good editorial note for the viewers.
I like the Back To The Future license plates!
I got one a few weeks ago pre-built, I love it.
You should use a piece of tape to hold those two top nuts in the plastic. One piece on either side will center the nut so it doesn't go anywhere.
It's a fun little kit! Finishing up mine now. I bet you'd really like the new PDP-11 kit from Obsolescence Guaranteed!
Very good review. I bought the Altair Duno from Chris last year and I agree he did an OUTSTANDING job with the kit from the docs the build and he's there if you have a serious Q.
I just found out about his Altair experimenter unit and the Floppy drive mounts. They have been ordered and looking forward to another build.
Thanks for your very well done video !!
I love my Altair-Duino!
Try heating the solder joints on the switches (during or after assembly). This will relieve the stress on the switches that are binding.
Depending on how far off the switch is, this may or may not help, but it's worth a try. Also, when solder joints are under mechanical stress, it may result in later cracking, or pulling the trace off the board. Looks like you did a great job on this btw.
You could use a dab of hot melt glue or CA glue on each side to hold those top panel nuts.
Can you write a program in BASIC that will display random numbers
in binary on the front panel LEDs...??
Make it look like all of those computers from the 60's TV shows:
Batman, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Time Tunnel, etc...
There is actually a LED version of pong that I leave running in the background because you can make some pretty cool LED patterns with it. Makes a very nice background device for my video calls. ;-)
@@burntsemiconductor Are the front panel LEDs directly addressable? Can you make a video demonstrating how to turn LEDs on/off from BASIC?
Would not really be possible with basic as far as I know, however there is an add-on card you can use that supplies multiple digital outputs you can use to drive LEDs or other things. As I mentioned with the pong program however, you could definitely write software with something lower level than basic to interact with those LEDs. I'm also not an ancient micro computer expert. I'm sure someone will chime in and add their two cents if they have example code they could share with you.
@@burntsemiconductor Does the BASIC support PEEK and POKE commands? Do the front panel LEDs correspond to a RAM address? If so, you could poke the bits high or low that control the LED..
I hope the following code doesn't write into the area where the OS is stored, if it stores code the same way a real computer does.
10 FOR X = 0 TO 65535
20 POKE X, 0
30 NEXT X
40 FOR X = 0 TO 65535
50 POKE X, 255
60 NEXT X
@@WagonLoads At least on the original Altair, no, the LEDs are not addressable at all. They're just showing what's on the address and data buses. Because of this, the LEDs will blink like a '60s computer when you run any program.
What is the execution speed like compared to the real Altair?
High quality content for 264 subs!
Nice video, thanks :)
What can it do tho
How much ? I need one !!!! 😂
do a 2/0