Cash machine fail

[joebog1]

Well, I started on a PDP11, Then I moved from CSIRO ( excellent job, excellent people bl**dy woeful wages ) to Megadata.
Perkin Elmer 3216's and PE 3205's. I never worked on the 16's. No hard drives "yet ". 64 K core memory. Load OS from tape drive.
Still, it ran over 50 terminals between the software guys and us hardware guys, and never missed a beat.
UNTILL, every lunch hour we crashed the whole 5 racks by everybody playing "Hack ".
When we got the 8080's, we had 5 meg stepper motor hard drives. About as fast as a tape machine, and failed very often.
8" Shugart floppy drives, 180k single sided to start with, later 360 k double sided. I seem to remember that the cost of a floppy drive would buy a nice big I9 today.
I remember pulling the covers off the Shugarts and cleaning the heads with metho and a cotton bud.
Those were the days.

Joe

p.s. thats almost 50 years ago

 

[skotl]

Well, I started on a PDP11, Then I moved from CSIRO ( excellent job, excellent people bl**dy woeful wages ) to Megadata.
Perkin Elmer 3216's and PE 3205's. I never worked on the 16's. No hard drives "yet ". 64 K core memory. Load OS from tape drive.
Still, it ran over 50 terminals between the software guys and us hardware guys, and never missed a beat.
UNTILL, every lunch hour we crashed the whole 5 racks by everybody playing "Hack ".
When we got the 8080's, we had 5 meg stepper motor hard drives. About as fast as a tape machine, and failed very often.
8" Shugart floppy drives, 180k single sided to start with, later 360 k double sided. I seem to remember that the cost of a floppy drive would buy a nice big I9 today.
I remember pulling the covers off the Shugarts and cleaning the heads with metho and a cotton bud.
Those were the days.

Joe

p.s. thats almost 50 years ago

Also PDP11s, with DecWriter IIs (the teletypewriters) and IVs (the new fangled CRT terminals).

Then Cromemcos running CP/M and MP/M on S100 bus cards - all Z80 based - none of yer new-fangled 8080 nonsense! I remember them drives, too. Seagate ST506 5MB drives (and shugarts too, but I can't remember the model designation).

The Cromemco System 1 and 2 had 5" floppy drives, but the System 3 had 8" drives with hydraulic ejects - very cool

 

[skotl]

Lookit all that brown!

 

[Seadog]

I had a great time with Shugarts.
You could often correct read errors by rotating the satin covered button on the bail arm, that is until they wore out and needed to be replaced. My company, CFM, used to send the drives to the company workshop in Trentham, but often they'd come back and when installed, didn't work. I found an alignment kit at work and set about my own refurbishment programme. After we never had any further DOA issues with them.

 

[droopsnoot]

My company, CFM, used to send the drives to the company workshop in Trentham, but often they'd come back and when installed, didn't work. I found an alignment kit at work and set about my own refurbishment programme. After we never had any further DOA issues with them.

I remember hearing of CFM, when I first started work I think they handled the on-site maintenance (and maybe supplied) the Onyx Z80 machines that we were selling running Oasis. I wasn't involved with the hardware side of it much, so it's only a passing memory along with Thame Systems and Scan.

 

[Seadog]

CFM, Computer Field Maintenance, was the first UK maintenance company. Founded in 1972, I think. At one time BA owned it and there were discounted flights for everyone. Sadly they sold it just before I joined in 1984
A very successful company. I went through 5 changes of ownership during my 25 years.

 

[Morrisman]

Very rare event, I needed cash

Cash machine crashed as I entered my PIN and kept the card. Luckily I have a modern bank and the card was cancelled, new one ordered before I left the site

I did get a picture of the problem

View attachment 389221

I will stick to transfers in future!

I had a machine do that in Walmart in the US, the guy I was with, computer guru off our ship, started pushing buttons....not sure what he was doing... then the security guard kicked us out.

A card machine inside the bank crashed when I was using it many years ago (20?)

I saw the same Windows logo screen then a message "Your card has been retained - contact your bank" so I went to the counter to report it. The nice lady who had been behind me in the cash machine que called me back to say my card had popped out of the machine. Very concerning that anyone dishonest could have taken my card !


If I'm overseas I try to use the card machines that only take your card part-way in, even if they crash or lock your card they return it to you

Happened to me twice when I first lived in the Philippines, machine told me the bank had retailed the card, go inside and inquire. But it was closed..... which was why I was using the outside machine in a shady neighbourhood.....

Both times I had eventually walked away and some honest local had called out and given me the card.

 

[slim_boy_fat]

Why have some of the contributors to this thread suddenly started posting in double - Dutch?