Apple ][ wanted

[mrad01]

Hi,

I'm looking for an Apple ][+ or //e with monitor and disk drive. Working or not, but in good condition would be preferred.

Anyone have such a thing, or know of one which is wasting away somewhere...(I'm sure it would have been snapped up by anyone reading this anyway - worth a try)

Thanks for any help/info

Marcus

[tezza]

Marcus, I assume you've seen the one on TradeMe
http://www.trademe.co.nz/computers/vint ... 444079.htm

Not cheap, but it comes with everything and more!

[mrad01]

Thanks for that, yes, I did see that. I'll have a look closer to the close date maybe...

[Gibsaw]

Failing that, I have a platinum IIe that needs fixing. Depends how confident you are with digital electronics, Marcus.

I do actually have a working platinum now, so it's not on my main to-do list right now. I will eventually get around to fixing it myself, but if someone else wanted to take it on.

[Gibsaw]

who's "dukenukem2"? He paid the buy now of $800. Surprised me.

[mrad01]

Hey there Gibsaw,

I would *love* to fix the IIe - would you be keen to sell it and how much would you like for it? (And what does it have with it?)

Marcus

[tezza]

who's "dukenukem2"? He paid the buy now of $800. Surprised me.

Not sure, but I seem to recall seeing that name around the Vintage Computer section of Trade Me in the past.

Yes, it seems quite a high price...but it did come with everything (screen, drives, software) and a Profile Drive? Plus it was working. Plus it was in tidy condition. Plus it was Apple. I guess when you add that all up....? I was expecting more the $500-$600 mark though. Still, the guy obviously wanted it and was prepared to pay.

[falco]

I'd lay money on the buyer assuming the ProFile was working, and on severe disappointment in the very near future. I had a number of ProFiles in the 80s, and they were all dead even then. If the drive was in running order, $800 is probably an OK price I reckon, but if that was the case the seller would have said so.

[tezza]

yes, I wish my Profile was working. Or my Widget for that matter. I have an X/Profile card which is a good substitute, but it's not quite the same as the noisy genuine article. I do know a guy who "thinks" he might have a 10MB Profile just like mine. If he ever gets around to hauling it out from under all the Macs he has stored I'd like to borrow it to do some comparison testing. I might find a clue as to what's wrong with mine.

There is a more than even chance that his won't be working either.

Recently a guy on the Lisa mailing list wrote some software that would allow low level formatting of both Widget and Profile from the Lisa itself. That process didn't work on either of mine so I think the faults are deeper. Looking inside both drives, there is a hell of a lot of circuitry. A lot to go wrong. Then there is the disk itself. It's early HD technology so not really robust.

[falco]

Complex little machines they certainly were. I had a number of 5s and a single 10, all dead. All I have left now is a single interface card. Would have been nice to have the things still, just as artifacts. Sold them with a gigantic pile of Apple ///s in the very early 90s I think. Given the nature of the HDA and the complexity of the electronics, repairing one and keeping it running would probably be a monumental challenge!

[tezza]

Certainly worth keeping as artifacts. Every Lisa 2/5 needs its "hat".

[Carcenomy]

So what is it that packs up in the ProFile? Is it the mechanical components or the controllers?

[Gibsaw]

Responded to Marcus in PM.

[falco]

Re what packs up, it's a good question. My memory's not that great, but I seem to recall that one of them flashed a front LED at me, and another spun up and seemed healthy, but didn't respond to commands from the controller. I think all of them spun up and did a startup head seek, at least.

[tezza]

Re what packs up, it's a good question. My memory's not that great, but I seem to recall that one of them flashed a front LED at me, and another spun up and seemed healthy, but didn't respond to commands from the controller. I think all of them spun up and did a startup head seek, at least.

Same with mine. The Profile spins up and goes through it's autochecks but any attempt to access it (or format it) is met with a blinking red light, strange noises and eventually an unhelpful error message. The Widget seems to release it's break and spin up, but like the Profile, comes up with an error message if you try to access or format it. I've trolled the net, engaged with the Lisa group and read a number of manuals but there appears to be no easy fix or solutions. As I say, these drives are complex and it could be one of many components both electrical or mechanical which have failed.