I've had lots of fun at VCF East so far and thought I'd share some thoughts. I hope this is the appropriate place to post this thread.
It's my second VCF East - I last went a long time ago, I think it was '08. The area isn't the most convenient for me to get to, so I really had to plan this visit out in advance. In some ways, things have really changed. Last time, from what I remember, the consignment area was in Location 2C. It took up around half the room. (I forget if there were any other areas dedicated to it at the time.) Now, the consignment area takes up an entirely separate building. The line at 9:00 felt like the length of a short city block and I was told people had gotten there several hours earlier! It's crazy how things have changed.
Despite the growth, the exhibit areas are just how I remember them. In many regards, things feel pretty much the same: a ton of monitors and systems of all shapes, sizes, and OSs, spread out across tables in the various rooms. Behind those tables were many great people eager to talk about the systems on display. Over the past two days, walking around the campus, I've made some new friends, and I even met a few familiar faces from YouTube.
At consignment, I got my hands on one of the several HP TouchPads that were for sale - there were only a few! Ironically, to get a hold of it I had to miss John Wise's talk on webOS, which was going on while I was waiting in line and browsing. Hopefully it will be uploaded to YouTube and I'll be able to watch it soon. I always wanted to get into webOS but never knew the right place to start... but here I am now!
Also, because of consignment, I ended up missing the soldering class, but I got a little practice in on Friday on a junk board with the help of the folks at the Glitch Works maker space. So that was fun!
I also found this bad boy...
I just need to find an appropriate keyboard and stylus. I'm having trouble finding information on the exact keyboard protocol for the Stylistic 500 - is it PS/2? If anyone knows please tell me... This was quite a weird find; I couldn't find any other early-90s pen-tablets. Maybe someone found one first in the half hour when I was waiting outside in the cold before I finally got into the consignment area. If so, comment here and let me know what I missed!
There was so much tempting stuff I could have bought... what stops me is the limits on my spare-time. As I'm sure many here know, each new system can become a rabbit hole of time and money. Things need to be cleaned and fixed. Additional peripherals need to be purchased. If the platform is relatively new to me, or one I don't use often, I have to familiarize (or re-familiarize) myself with the software library. And then, there's all the weird quirks of a system you need to learn to use it effectively. All part of the hobby, of course, but there's only so much I can do at once!
I also managed to sell most of what I brought with me. Hopefully the rest will sell tomorrow. What matters is things are going in the hands of people who will appreciate them. More importantly, it's less for me to lug home!
Here's hoping Sunday will be a good day!
It's my second VCF East - I last went a long time ago, I think it was '08. The area isn't the most convenient for me to get to, so I really had to plan this visit out in advance. In some ways, things have really changed. Last time, from what I remember, the consignment area was in Location 2C. It took up around half the room. (I forget if there were any other areas dedicated to it at the time.) Now, the consignment area takes up an entirely separate building. The line at 9:00 felt like the length of a short city block and I was told people had gotten there several hours earlier! It's crazy how things have changed.
Despite the growth, the exhibit areas are just how I remember them. In many regards, things feel pretty much the same: a ton of monitors and systems of all shapes, sizes, and OSs, spread out across tables in the various rooms. Behind those tables were many great people eager to talk about the systems on display. Over the past two days, walking around the campus, I've made some new friends, and I even met a few familiar faces from YouTube.
At consignment, I got my hands on one of the several HP TouchPads that were for sale - there were only a few! Ironically, to get a hold of it I had to miss John Wise's talk on webOS, which was going on while I was waiting in line and browsing. Hopefully it will be uploaded to YouTube and I'll be able to watch it soon. I always wanted to get into webOS but never knew the right place to start... but here I am now!
Also, because of consignment, I ended up missing the soldering class, but I got a little practice in on Friday on a junk board with the help of the folks at the Glitch Works maker space. So that was fun!
I also found this bad boy...
I just need to find an appropriate keyboard and stylus. I'm having trouble finding information on the exact keyboard protocol for the Stylistic 500 - is it PS/2? If anyone knows please tell me... This was quite a weird find; I couldn't find any other early-90s pen-tablets. Maybe someone found one first in the half hour when I was waiting outside in the cold before I finally got into the consignment area. If so, comment here and let me know what I missed!
There was so much tempting stuff I could have bought... what stops me is the limits on my spare-time. As I'm sure many here know, each new system can become a rabbit hole of time and money. Things need to be cleaned and fixed. Additional peripherals need to be purchased. If the platform is relatively new to me, or one I don't use often, I have to familiarize (or re-familiarize) myself with the software library. And then, there's all the weird quirks of a system you need to learn to use it effectively. All part of the hobby, of course, but there's only so much I can do at once!
I also managed to sell most of what I brought with me. Hopefully the rest will sell tomorrow. What matters is things are going in the hands of people who will appreciate them. More importantly, it's less for me to lug home!
Here's hoping Sunday will be a good day!