Origin of Remote Control by Phone

Today, we take for granted the ability to use our cell phones to turn off the lights or monitor a security system. Industry has used similar technology for decades to monitor machinery at remote locations over land line phones.

By chance, I recently saw a reference to an old magazine article about the first device to allow remote monitoring and control by phone. It was invented at Westinghouse by R.J. Wensley, and it was called the Westinghouse Televocal Supervisory Control System.

Westinghouse had a remarkably accurate vision for where this technology could lead–everything from automated sentry tasks for the military to turning on an oven remotely.

What surprised me the most about the article was when it was published. You can find it in the November 12, 1927, edition of The Literary Digest.

R.J. Wensley and the Westinghouse Televocal Supervisory Control System

Apple 1 Escapee Listed on eBay

According to the description of an auction listing on eBay, at least two of the Apple 1′s traded in for Apple II’s escaped destruction. An Apple employee snagged them from Steve Wozniak’s office. Here’s an excerpt from the listing:

“Cliff dropped into Steve Jobs’ office one day and couldn’t help but notice the huge pile of Apple 1 boards – those that had been traded-in for the Apple II.  “What are you going to do with those?”, Cliff asked.  Steve told him that they were to be destroyed.  “Mind if I take one…  Oh!   And one for my brother?”, Cliff asked.  Steve reached into the pile and pulled out two boards and handed them to Cliff.  Many people around Apple were amused and asked, “Why would you want one of those?”  “It’s history,” was the reply, “just history.”‘

Starting bid is $30,000. With three days left at this writing, no one has bid.

The seller goes by “earlyapple,” and has a number of interesting Apple historical artifacts for sale, including an Apple Mouse prototype, an Apple Newton BIC prototype, and a pair of Apple logo sunglasses made for Steve Wozniak.

Forgotten Classic: The Poqet PC

The recent sale of a Poqet PC for $500 on eBay got my attention. I was part of an informal advisory board to the company shortly after it launched in 1988. The Poqet PC was significant because it was the first MS-DOS-based handheld computer. You could run the same apps as your desktop PC with true file compatibility.

The Poqet PC had its shortcomings–a nearly unreadable screen in less-than-ideal lighting conditions and a tiny QWERTY keyboard clearly not for use by anyone with adult hands. However, it showed what was possible.

Fujitsu bought the company in the 1991 and kept the Poqet brand alive for a few years before incorporating its technology into Fujitsu-branded products.

One comment on that $500 price: It was for an unused, mint in box example. A used, boxless example in working order would likely sell for a fraction of that price.

If you want to learn more about the Poqet PC, go to Bryan Mason’s Poqet PC Web site.

Computer-Related Literature Bringing Big Bucks

An original binding of a lecture series given at the University of Pennsylvania Moore School of Electrical Engineering in 1946 sold last week on eBay for $1728. The price is understandable when you consider that the lecturers included Howard Aiken, designer of the Harvard Mark I, and J. Presper Eckert, designer of the ENIAC and UNIVAC.

Eckert’s presentation came shortly after the ENIAC was announced, so this historically significant document represents one of the first public descriptions of the project.

Less understandable is the sale of the January and February 1975 issues of Popular Electronics earlier this year. These were the issues that contained the 2-part series on building the MITS Altair 8800. Copies of the January issue had typically sold for $200-$300, and the February issue, which did not have the Altair on the cover, typically sold for under $100. In fact, the latest eBay sale price for the January issue was $172, and for the February issue the price was $63.

Clearly, several bidders decided they had to have that particular pair of issues and drove up the price. These issues, while in demand by collectors, are not particularly rare.

When a truly rare and important document like the Moore School lecture series goes on the market, you have to expect to pay whatever your desire and wallet allows. For items like the two issues of Popular Electronics, a little patience will be rewarded.

IBM’s Art Collection

While going through my bookshelves recently, I came across a book called Contemporary Art of 79 Countries. What makes the book relevant to this blog is that it was produced by IBM, and it essentially is a catalog of the art collection Tom Watson put together for the 1939 New York World’s Fair. IBM commissioned one work of art for each country it operated in at the time.

After the fair, IBM displayed the collection in its headquarters and continued to add to it. When IBM hit the skids in 1995, it auctioned off the collection, which by then totaled about 300 pieces.

For the art aficionados, here is a list of the works in the book along with the countries represented. I was surprised by some of the countries where IBM had a presence in 1939. The Azores?:

Algeria: Paysage de Sidi-bou-Said, by Lucien Mainssieux
Australia: A Bathing Party, Sydney Harbor, by Fred Leist
Azores: Prayers, by Domingos Rebelo
Bahamas: St. Ames Church, Nassau, by Helena Stutevant
Belgian Congo: The Market of Matadi, by Alfred Bastien
Belgium: Blast Furnaces at Charleroi, by Pierre Paulus
Bermuda: Flowers in Color, by May Middleton
Bolivia: Indian Dance, by Victor Cuevas Pabon
Brazil: Pontao da Bandeira, by Funchal Garcia
British India: Village Kali Puja by P. Karmokar
British Malaya: Malayan Chieftain in the Jungle, by Franciscus Hermanus van Haelen
Bulgaria: Tirnovo, by Boris Deneff
Canada: Canada’s Regional Northland, by Alexander Young Jackson
Ceylon: Portrait of the Poet Tagore, by Mudaliyar A.C.G.S. Amarasekara
Chile: Sunset in the Cajon de Maipo, by Luis Strozzi
China: Flowers, by Shang Sheng-Po
Colombia: El Poeta Del Campo, by Ignacio Gomez Jaramillo
Costa Rica: Coffee Picker, by Esmeralda Lorin de Povedano
Cuba: Summer Squall, by Antonio Rodriguez Morey
Czechoslovakia: Prague in the Spring, by Vincenc Benes
Denmark: Autumn Morning, by Niels Bjerre
Dominican Republic: At the Market, by Jorge O. Morel
Ecuador: The Funeral, by Antonio Bellolio
Egypt: Happy Life of the Egyptian Peasant, by H. Banani
England: The White Cliffs of Dover, by Frank Graham Bell
Estonia: Estonian Landscape, by Alexander Kulkoff
Finland: Cutter’s Hat, by Tyko K. Sallinen
France: Church of St. Aigman at Chartres, by Maurice Utrillo
French Indo-China: The Tonkinese Delta, by Joseph Marie Inguimberty
Germany: Thuringian Glass Blower, by Rudolf G. Werner
Greece: Peasant Woman, by Demetre Vitsoris
Guatemala: Projections of a Hunt, by Carlos Merida
Haiti: Market on the Hill, by Petion Savain
Hawaii: Island of Oahu, Hawaii, by Henry Bernard Christian
Honduras: Quincho, by Maximiliano Euceda
Hungary: Harvest, by Istvan Szonyi
Ireland: A Flower Girl in Dublin, by Jack Butler Yeats
Italy: Romanticism, by Guiseppe Amisani
Jamaica: A Landscape, by John Dunkley
Japan: Twilight, by Shunzan Yagioka
Kenya: In Kikuyu, by Carrie Solomon
Latvia: Landscape in Latvia, by Ary Skride
Libya: Tomb of the Caramanlis, by Domenico de Bernardi
Luxemburg: Castle of Clervaux, by Joseph Kutter
Mexico: Spring Begins, by Doctor Atl
Morocco: Ben Djeloud Gate, Fez, by Emile Bouneau
Netherland India, Javanese Landscape, by Ernest Dezentje
Netherlands: Winter Landscape, by Hendrik Chabot
Netherlands West Indies: Hooiberg Aruba, by J.C. Pietersz
Newfoundland: Drying Cod, by Robert W. Pilot
New Zealand: On the Shores of Kawhia Harbour, by Edith M. Collier
Nigeria: Umu Ahia College Dining Hall, by B.C. Enwonwu
Northern Ireland: Irish Horse Parade, by William Conor
Norway: Summer Scene off the Oslofjord, by Per Deberitz
Palestine: In the Midst of Jerusalem, by Joseph Budko
Panama: Anayansi’s Dance of Love, by Roberto Lewis
Peru: The Flute Player, by Julia Codesido
Philippine Islands: After the Day’s Toil, by Vicente Alvarez Dizon
Poland: Fete of St. John, by Sophie Stryjenska
Portugal: View of Lisbon, by Carlos Botelho
Puerto Rico: Man of the Mountain, by Miguel Pou
Rumania: Carpet Seller, by Francis Sirato
Scotland: Isobel, by Robert Sivell
Siam: Siamese Women Preparing Flowers Before Worship, by Georges Barriere
Southern Rhodesia: The Crocodile Zareba, by Colonel A. Essex Capell
Spain: Enigmatic Elements in Landscape, by Salvador Dali
Sweden: Spring Day at Orretorp, by Rolf Mellstrom
Switzerland: Sunshine on the Swiss Alps, by Paul Emil Wyss
Trinidad: The Moulder and His Patterns, by Alice Pashley
Turkey: Return from the Market, by Mehmet Seref Akdik
Union of South Africa: Portrait of the Right Reverend Bishop Henneman of Capetown, by Edward Roworth
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics: At the Horse Pond, by Alexander Grigorievitch Tyshler
United States of America: Central Park, by Robert Philipp
Uruguay: Typical Uruguayan Landscape, by Cesar A. Pesce Castro
Venezuela: Vista del Avila, by Manuel Cabre
Wales: Welsh Coast and Hills, by Morland Lewis
Yugoslavia: Scene Near Belgrade, by Milo Milunovic

Auction Report

An Intel Intellec 4 sold for $2550 on eBay Feb. 28. See listing here.

Rare Atari 2600 Space Invaders customized for a Coca-Cola promotion sold for $2125 on eBay March 6. See listing here.

IMSAI 8080 in good working order sold for $2000 on eBay March 2. See listing here.

MITS Altair 8800B turnkey system sold for $1799 on eBay Feb. 23. See listing here. Includes an 8-inch floppy drive and manuals. Not known if it is working.

Macintosh 128K M0001, very complete and working with tote bag, sold for $1000 on eBay March 5. See listing here.

Company Profile: Zenith Data Systems (Glenview, Ill.)

Zenith first made a name for itself in the 1920s as a maker of radios, when it was called Zenith Radio Corp. Later, it would be a major producer of televisions and other consumer electronics. In 1979, it entered the computer business with the purchase of Heath Company from Schlumberger.

Heath produced several computers that were popular with engineers and hobbyists, and Zenith began selling one of them, the H-89, under its own brand as the Z-90. Zenith-branded systems were sold through retailers and value-added resellers, while Heath systems were sold via mail-order. This practice would continue through the 1980s. While Heath usually offered kit versions of its computers, all Zenith systems were sold already assembled.

The Z-100 was an appealing bridge system for developers and businesses transitioning from CP/M to MS-DOS. Its dual processors supported both operating systems (MS-DOS in the form of Zenith’s licensed version, ZDOS).

A high level of PC compatibility and sold construction were the Z-150’s main selling points. Zenith introduced the Z-159, a lower-priced version of the Z-158, in February 1987. It offered EGA video standard and accepted EMS memory chips to boost on-board capacity to 1.25MB.

In terms of technical specs, the Z-200 was typical of many PC AT-compatibles. However, Zenith had a deserved reputation for well-engineered and well-built systems.

Zenith’s first portable was the Z-138 PC transportable, followed shortly by the Z-160. The disk drive bays on the Z-160 pop up from the top. The Z-171 had a “lunchbox” form factor and was the same system, with minor differences, as the Morrow Pivot and Osborne Encore. A Z-175 model featured a backlit LCD.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Zenith produced some of the best laptop and notebook computers available, including the SupersPort and MinisPort series. They have minimal collector value today, but are bound to be of interest in the future.

Zenith Z-90 (desktop)
Base Configuration: 64K RAM, integral monochrome CRT, integral keyboard/keypad

Zenith Z-100 All-In-One/Z-100 Low Profile (1983, desktop)
Original Retail Price: $2,199 (kit), $3,499 to $5,599 (assembled)
Base Configuration: 5MHz 8085 and 5MHz 8088 CPUs, CP/M-85, five S-100 slots, 128K RAM (768K max), two 5.25-inch floppy disk drives, integral 12-inch monochrome CRT display (All-In-One), integral keyboard/keypad, two RS-232C and one parallel port, user manual
Video: 24-line x 80-column text, 640 x 225 graphics
Size/Weight: 13.5 x 19.5 x 19.5 inches, 50 lbs. (All-In-One)/7.25 x 19 x 19.25 inches, 40 lbs. (Low Profile)
Important Options: ZDOS, 8-inch floppy disk drive, 5MB or 11MB hard disk drive, RGB CRT display (All-In-One), monochrome ZVM-121 or color ZVM-134 monitor (Low Profile), ZBASIC, Z-25 or Z-125 printer

Zenith Z-148 (desktop PC)
Base Configuration: 8MHz 8088 CPU, MS-DOS 2.11 and 1.25, 128K RAM (640K max), 5.25-inch floppy disk drive, RGB and composite video ports, keyboard/keypad, RS-232C and parallel ports
Video: 640 x 200 graphics
Size/Weight: 16 x 4.8 x 16.1 inches, 22.5 lbs.
Important Options: one-slot daughtercard, expansion box, second 5.25-inch floppy disk drive, Z-125 printer

Zenith Z-150 (Feb. 1984, desktop PC)
Original Retail Price: $2,699 to $4,799
Base Configuration: 8088 CPU, MS-DOS 2.11 and 1.25, four ISA slots, 128K RAM (640K max), 5.25-inch floppy disk drive, RGB and composite video ports, keyboard/keypad, two RS-232 and one parallel port
Video: 640 x 200 graphics
Size/Weight: 16 x 6.25 x 16.5 inches, 42 lbs.
Important Options: second 5.25-inch floppy disk drive, 10.6MB hard disk drive, Z-125 printer

Zenith Z-158 (desktop PC)
Base Configuration: 8MHz 8088 CPU, four ISA slots, 128K RAM (640K max), 5.25-inch floppy disk drive, RGB and composite video ports, keyboard/keypad, RS-232 and parallel ports
Video: 640 x 200 graphics
Size/Weight: 16 x 6.5 x 16.5 inches, 42 lbs.
Important Options: second 5.25-inch floppy disk drive, 10.6MB hard disk drive, Z-125 printer

Zenith Z-200 (1985, desktop PC)
Original Retail Price: $3,999 to $5,599
Base Configuration: 80286 CPU, MS-DOS 3.1, six ISA slots, 512K RAM, 64K ROM, 5.25-inch floppy disk drive, RGB and composite video ports, keyboard/keypad, RS-232C and parallel ports
Video: CGA
Size/Weight: 21 x 16.5 x 6.5, 38 lbs.
Important Options: Xenix, one-slot daughtercard, expansion box, 20MB hard disk drive

Zenith Z-138 (transportable PC)
Base Configuration: 8MHz 8088 CPU, MS-DOS 2.11 and 1.25, ISA slot, 256K RAM (640K max), 5.25-inch floppy disk drive, RGB and composite video ports, integral 7-inch monochrome CRT, keyboard/keypad, two RS-232C and on parallel port
Video: 25-line x 80-column text
Size/Weight: 8.5 x 18 x 17 inches, 24.2 lbs.
Important Options: Z-125 printer, carrying case

Zenith Z-160 (Feb. 1984, transportable PC)
Original Retail Price: $2,799 to $3,199
Base Configuration: 8088 CPU, MS-DOS, four ISA slots, 320K RAM (640K max), 5.25-inch floppy disk drive, integral monochrome CRT, RGB and composite video ports, keyboard/keypad, RS-232 and parallel ports
Video: 25-line x 80-column text
Size/Weight: 19.5 x 8.38 x 19.13 inches, 38.6 lbs.
Important Options: second 5.25-inch floppy disk drive, Z-25 or Z-125 printer

Zenith Z-171 (April 1985, transportable PC)
Original Retail Price: $2,699
Base Configuration: 4.77MHz 80C88 CPU, MS-DOS 2.11 and 1.25, 256K RAM (640K max), two 5.25-inch floppy disk drives, 10-inch monochrome LCD, keyboard, RS-232C and parallel ports, productivity software suite, AC adapter
Video: 25-line x 80-column text, 240 x 200 graphics
Size/Weight: 9.5 x 13 x 6.6 inches, 14.3 lbs.
Important Options: expansion chassis, video board with RGB port, carrying case, battery pack

Zenith Z-181 (1986, laptop PC)
Original Retail Price: $2,399
Base Configuration: 4.77MHz 80C88 CPU, MS-DOS 3.2, 640K RAM, 3.5-inch floppy disk drive, monochrome LCD, RGB and composite video ports, integral keyboard. serial and parallel ports, NiCad battery pack, AC adapter
Size/Weight: 11.8 lbs.
Important Options: external 5.25-inch floppy disk drive, BASIC, internal modem, bar-code reader

Company Profile: Zeda Computer Systems (Provo, Utah)

The Zeda could function as a terminal or as a standalone computer. Its all-in-one design featured wooden sides.

Zeda Video Computer (desktop)
Original Retail Price: $4,500
Base Configuration: Z80A CPU; 48K RAM (58K max); 5.25-inch floppy disk drive; integral monochrome CRT; integral keyboard; two serial, parallel, and light-pen ports
Video: 25-line x 80-column text
Size/Weight: 12 x 15 x 18 inches
Important Options: 5.25- or 8-inch floppy disk drive, keypad, light pen

Zeda 520/580 (desktop)
Original Retail Price: $3,995 (520)/$5,938 (580)
Base Configuration: Z80A CPU, Zedos, 64K RAM (520)/65K RAM (580), integral monochrome CRT, integral keyboard/keypad, RS-232C and parallel ports, BASIC
Video: 25-line x 81-column text

Company Profile: Yamaha International Corp. (Buena Park, Calif.)

A YIS303 model had only 16K RAM and no parallel port. The CX5M could do everything that other MSX systems could, but had added features for composing and playing music.

Yamaha YIS503 (1984, MSX home computer)
Original Retail Price: $270
Base Configuration: Z80 CPU, two ROM cartridge slots, 32K RAM, composite video port, integral keyboard, parallel port, music synthesizer, MSX BASIC
Video: 24-line x 40-column text, 256 x 192 graphics

Yamaha CX5M (1985, MSX home computer)
Original Retail Price: $469
Base Configuration: Z80A CPU, ROM cartridge slot, 32K RAM, 32K ROM, integral keyboard, cassette portFM digital tone generator, MSX BASIC, MIDI port
Video: 32-line x 24-column text, 256 x 192 graphics, 16 colors
Important Options: music software, DX7 Voicing Porgram, mini and full-size piano keyboards

Company Profile: Xerox Corp. (Rochester, N.Y.)

Given Xerox’s reputation earned with the development of the Alto, the 820 was a disappointment. Not that it was a bad computer; it was just a rather ordinary CP/M system that lacked the innovation found in Xerox’s earlier systems. Xerox’s code name for the 820 during development was WORM (Wonderful Office Revolutionary Machine).

Xerox sold the 6085 in standalone and network configurations.

The Xerox 1810 was developed by Sunrise Systems, a company founded with the help of Xerox. The full system was in two parts. The keyboard unit could be used by itself and had its own processor and a small LCD. A processor unit contained the Z80A-class and 8088 CPUs, as well as the floppy drives.

Xerox 820 (1981, desktop)
Original Retail Price: $2,995
Base Configuration: 2.5MHz Z80 CPU, CP/M, 64K RAM, 4K ROM, two external 5.25-inch floppy disk drives, integral 12-inch monochrome CRT, keyboard/keypad, two RS-232C and two parallel ports, BASIC-80
Video: 24-line x 80-column text
Size/Weight: 12.88 x 13.5 x 15 inches, 30 lbs.
Important Options: dual external 8-inch floppy disk drives, 630 printer

Xerox 16/8 (desktop)
Original Retail Price: $3,395 to $5,295
Base Configuration: dual processors (16- and 8-bit); CP/M, CP/M-86, and MS-DOS; 128K RAM (256K max, 16-bit), 64K RAM (8-bit), 5.25- or 8-inch floppy disk drive, integral 12-inch monochrome CRT, keyboard/keypad
Video: 24-line x 80-column text
Important Options: second floppy disk drive, 10MB hard disk drive, daisy-wheel printer

Xerox 6085 (1985, desktop)
Original Retail Price: $4,995
Base Configuration: 8MHz Mesa CPU, 80186 coprocessor, ViewPoint, 1.1MB RAM (3.7MB max), 10MB hard disk drive, 15-inch monochrome monitor, keyboard/keypad, mouse, two serial ports
Video: 880 x 697 graphics
Important Options: 5.25-inch floppy disk drive, 20MB to 80MB hard disk drive, PC-compatibility board

Xerox 1810 (1984, notebook)
Original Retail Price: $2,195 to $2,495
Base Configuration: NSC800 CPU; MS-DOS, CP/M-80, or CP/M-86; ROM cartridge slot, 64K RAM (256K max), 16K ROM, integral microcassette drive, monochrome LCD, RGB and TV video ports, integral keyboard, RS-232C and parallel ports, Microsoft BASIC, internal modem, NiCad battery pack, AC adapter
Video: 3-line x 80-column text
Size/Weight: 16 x 9 x 2 inches, 5 lbs.
Important Options: 8088 coprocessor, 1850 expansion unit, external dual 5.25-inch floppy disk drives, integral printer