IMSAI Score update/Spare BYTEs/Got an Altair too

[Dave Dunfield]

>> >OK, I pulled the front panel appart tonight and I found out that whoever
>> >owned this model colored the silkscreen with magic marker. Bogus!
>> >
>> >Anyway, I can get a new photomask from Todd Fischer for $20. Well worth
>> >it.
>>
>> I was afraid of that ... Although it's good that you can get a replacement,
>> keeping it all original has merit as well - depending on the marker used,
>> you might be able to carefully remove it. Try a Q-tip with some whiteboard
>> cleaner and move up to stronger solutions as required.
>
>Oh for ****'s sake.
>
>How is cleaning off the ink any different from replacing the strip?  You
>just said, "keeping it all original has merit as well".  I guess attacking
>it with whiteboard cleaner is not considered a modification to the
>original?

I don't recall using the verb "attack" ... if he's lucky, the marker used was
a soluable one, and it will clean up nicely with no damage to the original
strip - if you can do that, then why not clean it up and keep it all original.
As Rich noted in a later message, the replacement he can get is not identical
to the original...

Have you never cleaned up a computer that you really wanted to restore to
original condition?


>Like sane people do, note down the modification and keep the note with the
>system (use a tagged string so you can tie the tag internally to keep Dave
>happy).  Put the original in a safe place (which is I'm sure what Rich
>planned to do).

Obviously any cleanup should be attempted with great care, and if it's not
going to work, then by all means get the replacement, and keep the original
in a safe place.... but that doesn't mean you shouldn't at least investigate
restoring the original first.


>Sheesh.

Here we agree (although from different viewpoints :-)

-- 
dave04a (at)    Dave Dunfield
dunfield (dot)  Firmware development services & tools: www.dunfield.com
com             Collector of vintage computing equipment:
                http://www.parse.com/~ddunfield/museum/index.html