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North Dallas Area Retro Computing Group (Organization) Discussions

J

JDallas

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Jul 21, 2014
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I thought we better open a proper thread for this organization.

I'll open with a suggestion VCF member "68K" and I discussed last night in IRC chat. On August 1-2, (Saturday and Sunday) from 9AM to 6PM there is a "retro-gamer" event in Plano TX; it might be a good event for the North Dallas Area Retro Computing Group to form a meeting+trip around.

"68K" will be taking about five or six of his systems to the event and it would be a good opportunity to see his collection and have him talk about them. There is more information about that event at the URL below. Tickets are $15 in advance or $20 at the door. We might be able to arrange a discount for our group.
http://letsplaygamingexpo.com/about/
 
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It's been a while. I'd like to get the next meetup planned. I'm thinking the 1st or 3rd Saturday in October (I'm working the 2nd Saturday). I'd like to have a little bit of "runway" to make sure we have time to spread the word and give folks a chance to plan to attend.

Thoughts?
 
RE: Dallas Retro Group: Saturday or Sunday works for me, I'd just prefer to be done driving home before it gets dark.
 
OK, The next meetup will be Saturday December 3, at the Dallas Makerspace interactive classroom, at 3:00 P.M. Hopefully, that will give sufficient berth to the holidays and is far enough advance notice to give everyone a good chance to attend.

It would be awesome if a few members bring systems to show off.

Dave
 
Not to steal Dave's thunder, but we will be having another NDARC meeting on Saturday, April 2, from 3-6 PM. This one will have especially interesting significance because many of us have spent the past couple months raiding the warehouse of a guy who formerly ran an IC testing business and needs to move out of the space yesterday. As such, we'll have enough amazing finds to show off for the next several meetings! Trades/giveaways are not out of the question as I'm sure some of us picked up stuff our wives want out of the house... :p

The Meetup link is here: http://www.meetup.com/North-Dallas-Area-Retro-Computing/events/228726055/

Hope to see you there,
Stephen
 
mrcity said:
Not to steal Dave's thunder, but we will be having another NDARC meeting on Saturday, April 2, from 3-6 PM. This one will have especially interesting significance because many of us have spent the past couple months raiding the warehouse of a guy who formerly ran an IC testing business and needs to move out of the space yesterday. As such, we'll have enough amazing finds to show off for the next several meetings! Trades/giveaways are not out of the question as I'm sure some of us picked up stuff our wives want out of the house... :p

The Meetup link is here: http://www.meetup.com/North-Dallas-Area-Retro-Computing/events/228726055/

Hope to see you there,
Stephen
Click to expand...

Not stealing my thunder at all. Thanks for posting here--I had been so busy I forgot to do it.

I missed out on the warehouse raiding. Anything left, or did he really move out yesterday? Can't wait to see those amazing finds!

Dave
 
curtis said:
Why not pop over to Hurst Convention Center on 19 March for the Retro Electronics show?
Click to expand...

It looked cool, but was unfortunately simultaneous with the Texas Pinball Fest right up the road. I was exhibiting two unique pins, and schmoozing with enthusiasts, vendors, and industry pros alike. Hopefully they won't fall at the same time next year, or else let me know next time you're in DFW for such an event! Maybe Dave made it out though.

dfnr2 said:
I missed out on the warehouse raiding. Anything left, or did he really move out yesterday?
Click to expand...

Ah bummer. I went on 2/29 and the scrapper was already coming to grab most of the stuff with gold & valuable metals in it. Then I went about a week or so later & it seemed like he was about to grab plastics & common sheet metal. So yeah, most everything interesting was already gone by 2/29, but I'm sure those of us who went prior be spending all day this Saturday setting up all our glorious finds in advance of the 3:00 show & tell. :p
 
The next meetup will be Saturday July 9, 2016, 4-7pm, at the Dallas Makerspace. The last few have been really good. If you're in the area, I hope you show up. Bring your vintage system if you can. Otherwise, bring yourself, have a slice of pizza, and enjoy!

Dave
 
The turnout for the last meetup on July 9 was great. We had lots of interesting displays, including (from memory)

  • A mint-condition Altair 680b, with a beautifully restored ASR33 and high-speed paper tape reader running BASIC and other software from tape.
  • A demo of rare 1980's Japanese computers (including an X68000, the "Japanese Amiga") running some amazing games
  • An array of SBC's including KIM-1, AIM-65, and more
  • A Commodore 64 emulation
  • An HP9835A running BASIC
  • A demo of some rare cassette-based educational software for the Atari 800 using both data and sound channels
  • An HP01 watch and an IBM 5150
  • A set of TI Speak-n-spell and friends, and a MIDI demo
  • And more. . .

We hope the next one will be even better. The plan is to host the next one at the National Video Game Museum in Frisco. A tentative date is Oct 15, but that's still fluid.

Dave
 
The North Dallas Area Retrocomputing Meetup is this Saturday, Oct. 15.

We are changing our routine this time. The meetup will be at the National Videogame Museum in Frisco, TX., from 3:00pm to 6:00pm. You will have to buy a ticket or have a membership to enter the museum. At the entrance, mention you are with the meetup and you will get an arm band. The wristband will allow you to mooch the pizza. The meeting room and exhibits will be open to any interested individuals who wander in.

If you have a machine to bring, please do!

If you are planning on coming and have not already RSVP's via the meetup group, post here. That way I will have a clue how much pizza to order.

Dave
 
I will be bringing a Mimeo 1 and a Replica 1, each fitted with a CFFA1 card, and running a variety of software including programming languages, games, and Zork 1, 2, and 3. I will also be bringing a work-in-progress wooden case w/keyboard, and books and Apple 1 reference materials.

Dave
 
We have a date for the next North Dallas Area Retrocomputing Meetup: Saturday, July 29.

It will be in the usual location: The Dallas Makerspace Interactive Classroom, and will go from 3pm - 6pm, with 30 minutes alloted for setup from 2:30-3:00pm, and 30 minutes alloted for breakdown, from 6:00-6:30pm.

I think the turnout suffered a bit when we hosted the meetup at the National Video Game Museum. Hopefully the turnout will pick up again at this location.

There have been calls for a more central location in the DFW area, and a venue without access controlled doors, to allow easier entry for all. Any suggestions would be welcome. Something like a tech company centrally located in the Metroplex, with a large common area would be perfect.

Dave
 
The turnout was the largest yet. Lots of great systems including

  • a poly 88 with two working disk drives
  • a Nextstation (pizza box, color)
  • an original PET 2001, with calculator/cash register style keyboard
  • a couple of C64's and Apples
  • a COSMAC VIP
  • a remarkable pair of Tandy Model 100's with disk and video interfaces
  • C64 emulation with a ton of freshly created disk images
  • a Superboard II and Briel Superboard III
  • a nice working HP Vectra portable.
  • and more.


Thanks to all who came. The next meetup is targeted for late October / early November, before Thanksgiving.

Dave
 
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