Unanswered Questions
356 questions with no upvoted or accepted answers
21
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Is an X Window System older than release 10 available online?
I'm looking for any copy of the X Window System older than release 10.
The oldest on x.org is X10R3.
Bob Scheifler doesn't have anything.
Jim Gettys may have something, but has yet to retrieve it ...
- 3,231
20
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Oxford C compiler for Commodore 64
I kept one floppy from my Commodore 128 (which I used mostly in C64 mode), labelled ‘Oxford C compiler’. It is a 5.25″ floppy. Don't ask me why I kept just this one; probably because I thought I ...
19
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376
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Historical use of the SID chip outside Commodore products
The SID chip (originally the MOS Technology 6581) was the sound chip used in the original Commodore 64, and is widely credited with helping make that machine one of the best-selling home computers of ...
- 5,593
16
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957
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Original instruction set for the first ARM processor
I'm studying ISAs and would really like to see the very first ISA that Sophie Wilson chose/put together when designing the very first ARM CPU while at Acorn Computers around 1983 or so.
From what I ...
- 41.2k
16
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0
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908
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Was there a cartoon series in the UK computer press called "Computability Brown"?
My dad was a computing professional in Scotland in the 1970s. He received a couple of industry trade magazines every week, such as Computer Weekly and Computing. In one of them, I remember there being ...
CommunityBot
- 1
16
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0
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658
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Is there a simple BASIC program that demonstrates SID6581 distortion on C64?
Many songs on Commodore 64 use a SID 6581 design "flaw", distortion, as an effect. I tried experimenting with the filter and resonance registers, but was unable to reproduce the sound.
What ...
- 113
15
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335
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Did CompuServe ever define and document any GIF extension blocks?
The GIF file format was introduced by CompuServe in 1987 (version 87a) with an updated version released in 1989 (version 89a). Each version has an official specification:
GIF™ Graphics Interchange ...
- 8,502
14
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576
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Is it possible to trap 387 FPU opcodes on a 287 connected to a 386?
The 8087 and 287 FPUs were designed before the IEEE 754 standard was released. Because of this, they contain some instructions which are not compliant with it. When the 387 was released in 1987, it ...
- 27.3k
14
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272
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68060 CLKEN and CLK pins
Using an 68060 to 68040 Amiga adapter on another brand.
The adapter ties the 68040 BCLK to the 68060 CLKEN. The CLK pin on the adapter is left floating.
To run the CPU with 1/2 bus will I need to ...
- 141
14
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656
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Who owns the intellectual property of Thinking Machines today?
Who owns the intellectual property regarding the Connection Machine and other products from Thinking Machines? I believe the remnants were bought by Sun, so possibly Oracle, but does anyone know?
13
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479
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When was the asterisk first used for "unsaved changes" and why?
The asterisk itself has been around as a symbol since literally (pun intended) before the earliest writing systems. Among its many uses, in some user interfaces it denotes unsaved changes to a file or ...
- 231
13
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489
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Unix on the H11?
I'm curious if anyone is aware of actual uses of Unix on the Heathkit H11? I don't see any technical reason a memory-expanded H11 couldn't run Unix, but can't find any examples of it doing so.
- 22.4k
12
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335
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What do “Cert DX2” strings embedded within some Windows drivers signify?
Executable formats used in Windows – PE, LE and NE – are extended from MS-DOS’s MZ executable format. This means that Windows binaries (including DLLs) can potentially be run as MS-DOS executables, ...
- 27.3k
12
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313
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Do any technical details of Amdahl's Aspen survive?
Aspen was Amdahl's project to build their own clone of IBM's MVS mainframe operating system.
Amdahl cancelled the project at some point in the 1980s (1987?). It was never formally released, but (...
- 3,978
12
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477
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Garbage collection instruction in i386 – which one and why?
In the paper "Symbolics, Inc.: A failure of heterogeneous engineering" by Alvin Graylin, Kari Anne, Hoier Kjolaas, Jonathan Loflin and Jimmie D. Walker III, there's a mention that:
...
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