tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630Fri, 10 Feb 2012 01:50:35 +0000The Vintage Mac Museum is a working collection of the pre-Intel Apple Macintosh:<br>68k and PowerPC Macinti, old Mac software, and period advertising &amp; memorabilia.http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)Blogger58125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-4751978175676651306Sun, 22 Jan 2012 00:27:00 +00002012-01-21T19:36:20.053-05:00Technology advances at a rapid clip, and what was once new and cutting edge becomes old relatively quickly. Many of us look back at old technologies with nostalgia for simpler times - or relief that they're gone - but for a small group of professionals old software holds much more current interest. Patent lawyers frequently work on cases involving software that is at least one of two decades http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/c9UcHeLy1bc/searching-for-information-about.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)1http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2012/01/searching-for-information-about.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-1598819189204097056Sat, 07 Jan 2012 22:09:00 +00002012-01-07T17:37:35.444-05:00Since buying and acquiring old computers isn't generally something you can do at your local store, shipping is frequently a part of the process. For small items sent domestically, via ground services, this isn't usually a big expense. But for international addresses or heavy items, shipping costs can quickly add up to a large fraction of the purchase or sale price - a key factor for items whichhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/FFg3YW94QR0/shipping-this-thing-costs-how-much.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)2http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2012/01/shipping-this-thing-costs-how-much.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-6994248993456036833Mon, 26 Dec 2011 14:45:00 +00002012-01-08T11:13:43.663-05:00The Vintage Mac Museum tends to get several emails per month from people with older model Macinti, looking to sell their systems and wondering how much they're worth. Being familiar with old Macs and visible on the web, I understand why folks are asking me this question. But the problem is this can be a tough value to determine, especially as a frugal Mac collector and professional Macintosh http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/0_Ro4fIA4jY/how-much-is-my-old-mac-worth.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)1http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2011/12/how-much-is-my-old-mac-worth.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-5932585634890453266Sun, 20 Nov 2011 03:59:00 +00002011-11-20T10:31:34.740-05:00As a potential destination for disposing of old, unwanted Apple crap - err, I mean as Curator of the Vintage Mac Museum - I am contacted fairly regularly by folks who are looking for good homes for their old equipment. A few months ago one such query came from a fellow with a few old Mac drives, several piles of software on floppy disks, and one never-say-die behemoth called the Apple http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/ti7DwSW2Pyw/apple-laserwriter-ii-never-say-die.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)1http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2011/11/apple-laserwriter-ii-never-say-die.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-6503982097365240087Thu, 06 Oct 2011 23:23:00 +00002011-10-06T19:31:23.508-04:00  If I had to name the single person who has had the most impact on both my personal and professional lives (besides my family), it would have to be Steve Jobs. I was wowed by the Macintosh from the first time I saw that 1984 commercial - during the Super Bowl - and became a Mac user soon after. That computer and the company behind it saw me through college, a professional career using Macs, http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/ublgjCjLal8/rip-steve-jobs-1955-2011.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)0http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2011/10/rip-steve-jobs-1955-2011.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-4210608890117468732Mon, 19 Sep 2011 01:03:00 +00002011-09-18T21:03:55.447-04:00Regular readers of this blog know that I've found many of my old Macs at the MIT Flea in Cambridge, MA. This geek flea market happens April through October on the third Sunday of the month in a parking garage on campus. It's not an official MIT sponsored event, started out as a ham radio swapfest decades ago. These days you can find old tech of all kinds and ages, from vacuum tubes to SSD http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/7ffkrY9CkKs/finding-old-macs-at-mit-flea.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)0http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2011/09/finding-old-macs-at-mit-flea.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-8532429096918169838Fri, 16 Sep 2011 01:44:00 +00002011-09-15T21:46:14.784-04:00Back at the turn of the century everyone was worried about the Y2K bug, the potential for our computing infrastructure to go awry and wreak havoc when the year 2000 arrived. Dates coded with only two digits would roll over from 99 to 00, resetting the clock back to the year 1900. Catastrophe did not strike but the problem was a nuisance, requiring updated software to deal with the date change. http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/HTYmrk52ieU/y2k-bug-bites-again.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)0http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2011/09/y2k-bug-bites-again.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-7414101439039693782Sat, 30 Jul 2011 16:00:00 +00002011-07-30T21:42:28.656-04:00Old Macs hold many charms, for both their original owners and Macintosh collectors. However it's risky to run your business on decades old computer technology. A recent combination of a working Mac IIvx, an electrical storm with nearby lightning strikes, and a subsequent flashing question mark at startup were all the ingredients needed for a Vintage Mac Crisis. The IIvx had lovingly been in http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/GpHvZxwfX98/saga-of-mac-iivx-and-miniature-horses.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)0http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2011/07/saga-of-mac-iivx-and-miniature-horses.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-5543709913283424951Fri, 08 Jul 2011 13:24:00 +00002011-07-08T09:35:19.988-04:00Ten years ago back in 2001, Apple released its long-awaited new operating system Mac OS X. That summer I picked up a Mac Plus at the MIT Flea, and downloaded some early Mac system disk images. Soon, across from each other in my small apartment sat the past and present of the Macintosh lineage: a classic Mac running System Software version 1, and a modern Mac running Mac OS X. For a geek, this http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/aEnrXDafLuw/vintage-mac-museum-turns-ten.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)3http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2011/07/vintage-mac-museum-turns-ten.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-835209184688856197Sun, 19 Jun 2011 22:13:00 +00002011-06-19T18:18:54.318-04:00The mid-1990s were low point for Apple. The Mac's market share plummeted, a series of CEOs came and went, and the company was routinely referred to in the press as Beleagured Apple Computer. It was a tough time to be an Apple developer. How quickly things change. By 1998 Steve Jobs was again at the helm, the iMac was released and the Mac was Back! Apple wanted to promote its developer http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/pWsRBQ_PF7c/way-it-was-apple-1998-developer.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)0http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2011/06/way-it-was-apple-1998-developer.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-5753339603535255173Thu, 19 May 2011 01:00:00 +00002011-05-18T22:29:10.666-04:00At the dawn of the Age of Macintosh, several groundbreaking pieces of software were released into the wild along with the computer itself. MacPaint and MacWrite harnessed the power of the Graphical User Interface (GUI) and that new-fangled input device, the mouse, to bring powerful graphics and publishing capabilities to the nascent platform. These basic but seminal tools set the tone for http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/J4pfDwxXAcM/preserving-old-mac-artwork-at.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)1http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2011/05/preserving-old-mac-artwork-at.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-1660195796287736071Sun, 15 May 2011 22:07:00 +00002011-07-30T21:49:56.377-04:00The final release of Mac OS 9 occurred 10 years ago in 2001. Mac OS X was launched that same year, and Steve Jobs symbolically buried his old nemesis in 2002. The old Mac OS survived for another few years, running on dual-booting G4s or as Classic mode under OS X until the release of Leopard and the Intel Macs. Apple is a very forward thinking company, but sometimes you can't escape your http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/2vvfBacuaps/mac-os-9-isnt-dead-yet.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)12http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2011/05/mac-os-9-isnt-dead-yet.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-6232699418666493722Mon, 04 Apr 2011 01:15:00 +00002011-07-09T07:46:51.139-04:00Reading data from old Mac disks and drives is one of the services I offer at Oakbog, I add new formats to the mix as needs demand (and costs are reasonable). Recently a client asked me what my current list was, so I spent a few hours doing an inventory of formats that I have available in the Vintage Mac Museum. I pulled out all the drives to do a beauty shot. Here's the list as of April 2011:http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/TbO-fwFU8Q0/old-mac-storage-formats-at-vintage-mac.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)4http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2011/04/old-mac-storage-formats-at-vintage-mac.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-5849356713430964457Fri, 18 Mar 2011 22:23:00 +00002011-08-06T07:44:30.694-04:00The PowerMac G4 MDD was Apple's last Mac capable of dual-booting into both Mac OS 9 and OS X. The last of the G4 towers, this model was originally introduced in 2002, briefly evolved into an OS X-only configuration with FireWire 800 in 2003, then returned to the original design for another year. Due to the need for some customers to run Mac OS 9 for several years after the introduction of OS Xhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/CP6CGIjTYDs/reinstalling-mac-os-9-on-powermac-g4.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)4http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2011/03/reinstalling-mac-os-9-on-powermac-g4.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-3800233735155392078Sun, 27 Feb 2011 01:09:00 +00002011-02-27T10:48:39.290-05:00Most of the file transfer work done at the Mac Museum involves fairly common vintage formats - MacWrite, Microsoft Word and Excel, MacDraw, etc.. A recent request for assistance involved bringing some old music files back to life in a variety of ways. My client was a classical music composer who had his body of work in an old format called Professional Composer running on a Mac IIsi with System http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/tCxoDN1tnZU/bringing-old-music-files-back-to-life.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)0http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2011/02/bringing-old-music-files-back-to-life.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-5630911916560648199Sat, 05 Feb 2011 23:20:00 +00002011-02-05T19:54:22.406-05:00 The PowerMac G4 is one of Apple's most successful and longest-running series of machines. Spanning the transition from Mac OS 9 to Mac OS X and providing good value for the money, G4-based systems are still in use more than 10 years after the architecture debuted. Yet not all models were smash hits on arrival. Rounding out the set of VMM Workhorses is one of the most iconic designs, and flops,http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/FI94qatuWno/vintage-mac-museum-workhorse-powermac.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)0http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2011/02/vintage-mac-museum-workhorse-powermac.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-7311575185822609598Sun, 09 Jan 2011 21:48:00 +00002011-01-09T17:00:13.530-05:00The PowerPC G3 CPU is ideal to run software from the final years of the Classic Mac OS era. Its design is optimized for the core assembly language routines of the Blue Box (aka System 7, Mac OS 8 and 9) and it spans a wide variety of Old World (beige) and New World (colored) Macs. Perhaps not surprisingly, one of the most used machines in the Vintage Mac Museum is a PowerBook G3.VMM Workhorse -http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/IPZIIGubdr0/vintage-mac-museum-workhorse-wallstreet_09.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)1http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2011/01/vintage-mac-museum-workhorse-wallstreet_09.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-5218495001300957504Wed, 05 Jan 2011 03:40:00 +00002011-01-04T23:15:28.721-05:00With the recent sale of an Apple 1 computer at a Christie's auction for $213,600 (after taxes), and the (former) Mac Museum of Franklin Park NJ selling on eBay for $10,000, there's been some interest from the antiques marketplace in ancient Apples. Are old Macs becoming valuable investments yet? Antique Week contacted me last month while researching this question. Short answer: not yet. Few http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/h3T2oj9pRVw/antique-macs-and-antiques-week.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)2http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2011/01/antique-macs-and-antiques-week.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-7791739722014167553Fri, 10 Dec 2010 22:38:00 +00002010-12-10T18:54:18.405-05:00The 68k Macintosh era spanned over a decade and four generations of Motorola processors. The first VMM Workhorse, the Mac Plus, used an 8MHz 68000 CPU as found in the original 128k Mac. At the other end of the spectrum is the Motorola 68040 CPU and the Macintosh Quadra line. These speedy machines (for their day) remain useful today as bridge machines between the very old and the less old amonghttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/vd3-MIH1i38/vintage-mac-museum-workhorse-quadra.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)1http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2010/12/vintage-mac-museum-workhorse-quadra.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-3265508254031776509Tue, 30 Nov 2010 22:04:00 +00002010-11-30T19:16:51.550-05:00The Vintage Mac Museum contains several dozen models of Macs, but most only get used occasionally. A few carefully chosen machines are all that are really needed to bridge the generations and provide access to the vast majority of Macintosh software and files. With the arrival of a few large file transfer jobs at Oakbog - one contained 111 floppy disks worth of archives - I thought I'd devote ahttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/q70YeXebxuc/vintage-mac-museum-workhorse-mac-plus.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)0http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2010/11/vintage-mac-museum-workhorse-mac-plus.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-6820469571285807172Mon, 18 Oct 2010 00:28:00 +00002010-10-20T20:07:51.667-04:00A few weeks ago I was talking with a couple Geniuses at my local Apple Store, and the subject of Vintage Macs came up. Apple has been around long enough that it's not uncommon for some store employees not to have been born when I started using the Mac, but these guys were pretty knowledgeable. After some discussion about SE/30s and Mac LCs, one of them mentioned an old animation called Pencil http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/xGymcCcVdmA/look-back-at-pencil-test.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)0http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2010/10/look-back-at-pencil-test.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-1895258593576376148Sun, 29 Aug 2010 05:32:00 +00002010-08-29T09:21:11.975-04:00Summer's winding down, and with the change in season come migrations of various sorts. One this year involves a friend and fellow Mac consultant who is moving out of state. He is heading West, and a few of his old Macs have migrated to the Vintage Mac Museum.The first is a Macintosh Portable, Apple's initial attempt at freeing your Mac from your desk. At 16 pounds with included lead-acid http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/joOOjIUf8bo/portable-portable-not-portable.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)0http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2010/08/portable-portable-not-portable.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-5729324609731550345Sun, 15 Aug 2010 13:48:00 +00002010-08-15T12:03:31.491-04:00The iPad is all the rage today, but Apple's been working on tablet computers for a long time. The Newton is the obvious example of an ancestral form of iDevice, but it was far from the only (or oldest) concept Apple dallied with. While doing some research online I came across these photos of early Apple prototype tablet. Designed as concept pieces in 1983 (pre-Macintosh) by the legendary Frog http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/wOq_joqBlRE/meet-ipad-circa-1983.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)0http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2010/08/meet-ipad-circa-1983.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-5648601414090664856Sat, 31 Jul 2010 23:38:00 +00002012-01-03T10:39:43.526-05:00I got the email on a Wednesday afternoon: Guy Kawasaki was releasing his work The Macintosh Way as a free eBook, and was looking for help to promote the effort. A group of local companies in Cambridge MA had volunteered to digitize the book and produce a promotional video, and they in turn were looking for some old working Macs on short notice. A few tweets later they learned of my old Mac http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/-en0TF6N4M8/vintage-macs-live-again-for-macintosh.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)8http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2010/07/vintage-macs-live-again-for-macintosh.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049759284103251630.post-2990548550172079913Sun, 18 Jul 2010 23:18:00 +00002011-07-30T21:53:20.269-04:00Back in the 68k era Apple used small form factor 2.5" SCSI hard drives in the PowerBook 100, 500 and Duo lines of notebooks. Use of the SCSI format provided compatibility with desktop Macs of the same era and permitted the use of external SCSI Disk Mode - the precursor to today's Target Disk Mode. The 2.5" SCSI form factor was not widely used throughout the industry, however. Most vendors (andhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/VintageMacMuseumBlog/~3/1RW-2n1iJV0/reading-powerbook-25-scsi-hard-drives.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (<b>Adam Rosen</b>)15http://vintagemacmuseum.blogspot.com/2010/07/reading-powerbook-25-scsi-hard-drives.html