I hope german HNF museum will get it's hands on at least some of this stuff
Living Computers Museum to permanently close, auction vintage items
251–260 of 268 posts
Re: Living Computers Museum to permanently close, auction vintage items
#252Earlier quoted context omitted.
If the museum was open I'm sure it would have plenty of visitors and support. Can't visit a museum that isn't open. But the fact is that most museums rely, in least in part, on grants and benefactors in addition to visitors.
Except it apparently didn't have sufficient donors and benefactors--or vistors.
What are you basing this assertion on? It was closed because of the pandemic. When that was over Allen had been dead for several years, his instructions had been to sell everything and give it to charity so that's what his sister has been doing. No one attempted to reopen with alternative benefactors or see if visitors would come.
I was there right before the pandemic and there were a decent number of visitors (given that it was a weekday afternoon).
Re: Living Computers Museum to permanently close, auction vintage items
#253Earlier quoted context omitted.
Have you sued DHHS / CMS?
No; It is my understanding you cannot sue the federal government or its constituent parts, they have sovereign immunity.
You need to talk to an attorney, as this understanding is incomplete. Parties can and do sue the federal government all the time. Look at the Supreme Court decisions this week alone which include several cases against the United States.
But I also suggest physically going to your congressperson’s office (the local one in your district, not DC) and explaining the situation. Instead of calling/waiting for a response.
Good luck.
Re: Living Computers Museum to permanently close, auction vintage items
#254[dead]
Re: Living Computers Museum to permanently close, auction vintage items
#255The sad reality is that you can spend a lifetime collecting something, the but likelihood that any of your potential heirs is also interested in it, is pretty close to zero. That's true of multi-million dollar vintage computers, or your childhood stamp collection that's mostly worthless. Paul's mistake was not properly establishing a foundation & endowment to maintain this musuem, which almost certainly leaks lots of…
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Re: Living Computers Museum to permanently close, auction vintage items
#256I adored the Living Computers Museum. Being able to just sit down and use an Apple 1, Xerox Alto, Altair 8800, and so many more in the same place was incredible. And then, a friendly museum employee being there to show you how to use it, tell you about what made it unique, etc. was even better. It was so much better than most look-but-don’t-touch museums. It’s really a travesty that Paul Allen’s sister seems bent on…
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Re: Living Computers Museum to permanently close, auction vintage items
#257Earlier quoted context omitted.
Computer prices are a bathtub curve for interesting computers. Very expensive at the start, then they're worthless garbage for 10-40 years, then prices start to rise. If it's not interesting, then they just stay worthless. Examples: - Supercomputer parts - SGI, HP 9000, Sun SPARC machines and parts - More esoteric UNIX workstations - PDPs - VAXen (how many complete cabinet-style VAXen still exist?) - Apples - Termina…
And probably need to be in pretty mint condition and find the right buyers. Nothing I have is mint and I wouldn't even try to sell it. The minicomputer boards are from a once major minicomputer maker but very few people have probably even heard of them today.
Yes, I have a number of things on the parent list (e.g. UNIX workstations, deskside and rackmount VAXen, terminals) and I can't give them away.
Re: Living Computers Museum to permanently close, auction vintage items
#258Earlier quoted context omitted.
I would. The new building is huge and tickets are $30 for kids and $40 for adults (though I suspect that many of the visitors get discounted or free admission because their employers are corporate sponsors). It's still one of the most wonderful places in the world but it's a world away from the hundreds of small local museums in the UK which might charge as little as £2 to visit a handful of rooms displaying e.g. art…
Is there any good uk computer museum, other than the cambridge one I am planning to visit? Just hope the brits is better in maintaining its legacy. I saw at least 2 European museum mentioned here.
The National Museum of Computing at Bletchley Park
https://www.tnmoc.org/
The Science Museum in London has some pieces, such as Babbage’s first Difference Engine and a PDP-8. https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/search/categori...
Re: Living Computers Museum to permanently close, auction vintage items
#259Earlier quoted context omitted.
And probably need to be in pretty mint condition and find the right buyers. Nothing I have is mint and I wouldn't even try to sell it. The minicomputer boards are from a once major minicomputer maker but very few people have probably even heard of them today.
Yes, I have a number of things on the parent list (e.g. UNIX workstations, deskside and rackmount VAXen, terminals) and I can't give them away.
Really? Looking at the asking prices on eBay, a VT100 terminal seems to go for many hundreds of dollars even in poor condition?
You wouldn't happen to have SUN 3 workstations?
Re: Living Computers Museum to permanently close, auction vintage items
#260Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yes, I have a number of things on the parent list (e.g. UNIX workstations, deskside and rackmount VAXen, terminals) and I can't give them away.
Really? Looking at the asking prices on eBay, a VT100 terminal seems to go for many hundreds of dollars even in poor condition? You wouldn't happen to have SUN 3 workstations?
VT100 has some demand; not later less iconic terminals. (Personally, I think I still have a few V2xx and a Wyse or two.) Many of these eBay listings are effectively permanent, from commercial resellers who are waiting for the rare case that some business somewhere really wants an exact replacement for an old system component that no one wants to risk changing.
I may still have a Sun 3/60 pizza box (as well as a Sparc or two), and maybe even keyboard and cables (one of the common problems — I've had people excited about a ‘free’ SGI Indy but they come to their senses when they realize it's a blue paperweight without time, money, and luck finding the ancillaries). Fortunately I found takers for my (three!) deskside Sun 3/160s about a decade ago. But even for a single pizza box, shipping has become a killer for non-local transfers (I'm outside US; SW Ontario).