Collectables?

[Scott Stevens]

On Sat, 12 Nov 2005 21:30:58 -0500
Allison <ajp166 at bellatlantic.net> wrote:

> >
> >Subject: Re: Collectables?
> >   From: "Chuck Guzis" <cclist at sydex.com>
> >   Date: Sat, 12 Nov 2005 18:07:56 -0800
> >     To: cctalk at classiccmp.org
> >
> >Let me be clear on the IMS backplane--it's not a 12-slot model, but a
> >4-slot version.  It appears to be factory-engineered this way and a glance
> >at the rails in my Altair 8800 appears to say that this was intended for
> >incorporation into a MITS box and not the IMS box.  Connection is obviously
> >the MITS wire-by-wire method, not the IMS edge connector.
> >
> >I hadn't realized that IMS made add-ons for the MITS boxes, but here you
> >have one.
> >
> >Cheers,
> >Chuck
> 
> Ah, IMS and IMSAI are not the same people.  I have a number of IMS boards
> and they were also a s100 systems supplier, decent stuff too. 
> 
> IMS Corp.     >>> IMS
> IMS Asoc Inc  >>> IMSAI
> 
> Two different companies.  IMS was a bit later time frame and did produce 
> upgrades for Altair.  In fact just about everyone produced upgrades of 
> one form or another.  Typically backplanes, power supplies, RAM, CPU and
> of course FDC were often seen. About the only part not commonly upgraded 
> in an Altair was the front pannel though that could be done as well.
> 
> 

One of the things that historical preservationists can easily miss is that the history and pedigree of every single item added to upgrade an old system like an Altair adds rich history and interest to the system.  Every tweaked, hacked, and upgraded (well, some of them anyway) system should have significant merit in and of itself.  In that early era of Personal Computing, everything was always half-homebrew anyway.

Points like that are missed by people of a 'Collectable' mindset who migrate over from different hobbies.

Then again (off-topic drift to illustrate point begins here) there are people like me who sometimes prefer to collect items with a provenance.  For example, I have a marvelous old Spanish 8 Reals coin.  A 'Piece of 8' that is the size of the US Dollar.  It is badly worn, so worn that the date is gone, and it's slightly bent, and was bent early enough in it's life that there are deep wear patterns on one side.  I bought it at a coin show.  I walked up to a dealer table, saw it, and inquired about price.  The dealer threw it onto a scale and sold it to me for bullion value.  In other words, to some collectors, it is worth nothing, as it's not a pristine 'collectable.'

But as that particular coin is what evolved into a 'Siver Dollar' in the US, and because it dates from the early 1800s, it's likely that it circulated in the US as a 'silver dollar' for many years.  It has enough wear that it's been handled by thousands of people.  It has, needless to say, a lot richer history than a similar coin in mint condition that has sat in some rich collector's cabinet for aprox. 200 years.  Yet it has 'melt value' collector's worth according to the established 'dealer' network.

I'm so glad there are people who think differently than me, so I can get stuff like that coin for almost nothing.

(end of off-topic drift)