Carboy7 Posted November 28, 2016 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2016 (edited) Does this count as a conquest?? This trackball thingy is pretty big. EDIT: This seems to be a "Mouse Systems" trackball. Not sure when, or what for. My guess is early Microsoft PCs, (Win98) with the DB9/RS232 connector. Edited November 28, 2016 by Carboy7 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
olePigeon Posted November 28, 2016 Report Share Posted November 28, 2016 It could also be for 128K/512K Mac. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
rsolberg Posted November 28, 2016 Report Share Posted November 28, 2016 (edited) AFAIK, Mouse Systems didn't make any mice for the 128/512/Plus. That's a mid-to-late 1990s model based on the logo, anyhow. It's a standard PC DE-9 RS232 interface using the 5-byte Mouse Systems Corporation protocol. (MSC) Confusingly enough, DOS-based applications sometimes referred to it as "PC" protocol, while the alternative was "MS" for the common 3-byte Microsoft serial mouse protocol. IIRC, only two buttons function using the MS driver, but it will otherwise work. In Windows 3.x and later, you can usually specify a Mouse Systems device in Windows Setup or in the Mouse Control Panel. Windows 95 and later will probably be able to probe the device and set the correct protocol if plugged in prior to boot. Edited November 28, 2016 by rsolberg Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mrpippy Posted November 28, 2016 Report Share Posted November 28, 2016 Mouse Systems did make an optical mouse for the Apple IIc, and it's compatible with the pre-ADB Macs as well. I got one with a 512k Mac I bought, unfortunately it didn't come with the metal gridded mouse pad it needs. I picked up a pad at the TRW swap meet but still need to test if it's the right one. http://www.oldmouse.com/mouse/mousesystems/aplus.shtml Quote Link to post Share on other sites
olePigeon Posted November 28, 2016 Report Share Posted November 28, 2016 Also, I just noticed that it's the wrong plug. I think the early Apple stuff had a male adapter. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
olePigeon Posted November 28, 2016 Report Share Posted November 28, 2016 (edited) Oh, I have the ADB version of that optical mouse. Edited November 28, 2016 by olePigeon Quote Link to post Share on other sites
BlueBoy Posted November 28, 2016 Report Share Posted November 28, 2016 My family had one of those optical mice for our Mac Plus when I was a kid. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Huxley Posted November 28, 2016 Report Share Posted November 28, 2016 Congrats on the Flower Power iMac! During my first week working for Apple (early 2004) the store I was assigned still had one old Flower Power iMac in the clearance section. It's been way too long to remember the price or details, but I do remember it sitting there alone and sad for ages before someone finally bought it. I always enjoyed seeing it - the flower pattern has a slight depth to the printing that never translated to print ads, so it's understandable that people who never saw one in person assumed it's totally hideous. Same with the Blue Dalmation machines - they look *way* cooler in person vs. seeing them in print. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
rsolberg Posted November 28, 2016 Report Share Posted November 28, 2016 (edited) Very cool to learn about the MSC stuff for Apple/Mac. I had no idea. I wonder if this trackball is fully optical, or just optomechanical like competitive products. The ball looks smooth with a solid color, so I'd guess optomechanical. As for the as appearance of the iMac Flower Power and Blue Dalmatian graphics, I agree. I think the design was screen printed onto the inside of the case, giving the three dimensional look. I do photo and fine art printing onto acrylic panels at work. It's done onto the "back" of the panels so you view through the acrylic. There's a real sense of depth, particularly with a larger product. I'm experimenting with back and edge lighting. Fun stuff! Edited November 28, 2016 by rsolberg Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Carboy7 Posted November 28, 2016 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2016 I always enjoyed seeing it - the flower pattern has a slight depth to the printing that never translated to print ads, so it's understandable that people who never saw one in person assumed it's totally hideous. Same with the Blue Dalmation machines - they look *way* cooler in person vs. seeing them in print. Yes, I agree. Sorta makes me sad that nobody liked it because of the """ugly""" patterns. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Carboy7 Posted December 25, 2016 Author Report Share Posted December 25, 2016 Merry Christmas! I got "two" macintosh items this year... First up! An American Girl Macintosh. It beeps and stuff... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Carboy7 Posted December 25, 2016 Author Report Share Posted December 25, 2016 And a """"Pre 128k branding Macintosh Apple."""" It's the best, IMO. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Carboy7 Posted December 29, 2016 Author Report Share Posted December 29, 2016 Here's a thing you don't see every day at a thrift store... Apple Wireless Keyboard A1016. $10. I'm going to pop off the keys and get some of the hair out. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
just.in.time Posted December 30, 2016 Report Share Posted December 30, 2016 I saw an American Girl Macintosh just like that one on my local Craigslist a month ago... small world perhaps Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Carboy7 Posted December 30, 2016 Author Report Share Posted December 30, 2016 Small machine for a small world Quote Link to post Share on other sites
CC_333 Posted December 30, 2016 Report Share Posted December 30, 2016 (edited) That's cute! Funny thing though, I thought at first it was a real PowerMac 5x00, except the bezel around the "screen" seemed way too big and the keyboard and mouse looked funny (they could've been aftermarket, though). And that's the original Macintosh! It's even edible That's also a good find re: the keyboard. I got a similar one, at a similar price, at a similar place about 6 years ago. It's still in my closet, unused, since I find wired keyboards to be more reliable (I really do like the looks of those older keyboards, though, and I'd probably use a wired one instead of the thin aluminum one that was stock with my Mac Pro, if I ever came across a good example at a decent price). c Edited December 30, 2016 by CC_333 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bibilit Posted December 30, 2016 Report Share Posted December 30, 2016 I got a similar one, at a similar price, at a similar place about 6 years ago. It's still in my closet, unused, since I find wired keyboards to be more reliable I got a pair of those, one as my dailly one, pretty reliable, a set of batteries from time to time. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Carboy7 Posted January 13, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 13, 2017 Got wires? VGA to Mini-VGA, miniDisplayport to VGA, and dual DVI-D, male to female. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
EvieSigma Posted January 13, 2017 Report Share Posted January 13, 2017 Mini-VGA? That's a thing? And here I thought Mini-DVI was obscure... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Carboy7 Posted January 13, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 13, 2017 Mini-VGA? That's a thing? Yep! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mini-VGA Quote Link to post Share on other sites
EvieSigma Posted January 13, 2017 Report Share Posted January 13, 2017 Wow, I've never seen one of those in my life! Then again, I've never seen a Mini-DVI port on a real laptop either... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
rsolberg Posted January 14, 2017 Report Share Posted January 14, 2017 Mini VGA was present on a plethora of Macs. iBook G3, mid '02 and later, 12" and 14" iBook G4, all models, 12" and 14" eMac, all models iMac G4, all models iMac G5, all models PowerBook G4 12" 867MHz Officially it was for screen mirroring only, but a third party patch enabled use of the port for an extended desktop on many but not all machines: Screen Spanning Doctor. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
NJRoadfan Posted January 15, 2017 Report Share Posted January 15, 2017 I never understood why Apple put Mini-VGA ports on the iMacs, there was plenty of room for a full size port! Another fine NIH Apple port that nobody else used. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Trash80toHP_Mini Posted January 15, 2017 Report Share Posted January 15, 2017 (edited) Yeah maybe, but at least they didn't make one that sticks 4 inches out the friggin' back of the thing again! Edited January 15, 2017 by Trash80toHP_Mini Quote Link to post Share on other sites
EvieSigma Posted January 15, 2017 Report Share Posted January 15, 2017 Sounds like that awful x100 Power Mac video port. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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