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An amazing find. . .
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Mac Elite
Join Date: Mar 2000
Location: Cambridge
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I was working in a workshop/warehouse type space the other day when I noticed a Twentieth Anniversary Mac sitting on a bench while poking around during a break. Collecting dust no less! Lots of it! Excited, I talked to the guy in charge, explaining how this treasure was essentially sitting there going to waste (I think I used the analogy "like a copy of the Constitution rotting in your basement" -- a bit overkill, but it got my point across). I asked him who owned it, with the intention of offering them some money to take it off their hands. He says, "Honestly, I don't know whose it is. It's been there since we've taken over the space. It's yours if you want it."
Needless to say, I was more than a little eager to pick it up. I got it home and started to clean it up, blow the dust out, etc. There's a few scratches on the subwoofer and a few blemishes here and there, but nothing major. I was thinking about taking these two stickers that were on it off -- one on the subwoofer and one on the main unit. Before I did, though, I decided to see if the writing on them stood for anything.
Boy, am I glad I did. The first word, "Spartacus", I knew was the code name. Maybe someone else did, too, and just named the computer that (and put a stupid address label on the front to remember or something). The next two, however, I didn't. "EVT - Final".
Yep, this is not just a regular TAM, it's one of final engineering prototypes. Unreal!
It fires up just fine and even has the original System software on it, 7.6.1. It has the speaker buzz a bit, but if you work the power cable insulation back into the plug, it goes away. It's missing a remote, and the keyboard is an engineering prototype, too, so no leather palm rests. The touchpad is a bit wonky, too, at times. All in all, though, I think I made out OK on this deal.
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Professional Poster
Join Date: Feb 2007
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Professional Poster
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Location: Australia
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Mac Elite
Join Date: Mar 2000
Location: Cambridge
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I'll post some when I get the chance tomorrow -- gotta head to bed right now.
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Professional Poster
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Southern California
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Registered User
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: The Intertube
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nice... have you come across any porn stored in the machine? i guess not, perfection does not exist.
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Mac Elite
Join Date: Mar 2003
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So what are you going to do with it? Wont it just collect dust in your room as well? I've never been much of a collector, so I don't really relate to why people would want something like this.
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Professional Poster
Join Date: Jun 2007
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Hey congrats on your find.
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Addicted to MacNN
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Phoenix, Arizona
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Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Introduced March 20, 1997
Discontinued March 14, 1998
MSRP US $7,499 (!!!!!)
CPU Power PC 603e
CPU speed 250 MHz
L2 Cache 256 KB, max 1 MiB
Bus 50 MHz
RAM 2 slots
32 MB, max 128 MB
Memory Spec 168-pin, 5 V,
60+ ns EDO or FPM DIMMs
VRAM 2 MB
Video 12.1" Active Matrix
800×600 @ 8- or 16-bits
ATI 3D RAGE 2 chip set
Ports 1 ADB
1 Comm Slot 2
2 DIN-8 GeoPorts
DB-25 SCSI
Optical Drive 4× CD-ROM
Hard Drive 2 GB IDE
Initial OS System 7.6.1
Final OS Mac OS 9.1
Weight 6.8 kg (14.9 lb)
Dimensions Metric - 438 × 419 × 254 mm
English - 17.25 × 16.5 × 10 in
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45/47
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Baninated
Join Date: Oct 2002
Location: In yer threads
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Yeah it's pretty much a toy now. But back then it was really something.
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Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2000
Location: Union County, NJ
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What could you even DO with it now? Much like the Newton, the requirements of the world around it make the device pretty much useless.
800x600 @16-bit?
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Clinically Insane
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Iowa, how long can this be? Does it really ruin the left column spacing?
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For what it's worth, that MSRP included a guy in a limo coming to your house and setting it up for you. They actually sold for a lot less.
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Addicted to MacNN
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: Toronto
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Ebay it? There's got to be a collector out there.
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Addicted to MacNN
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: The deep backwoods of the PNW
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Originally Posted by starman
What could you even DO with it now? Much like the Newton, the requirements of the world around it make the device pretty much useless.
800x600 @16-bit?
The requirements of the world really would suffice on any computer that runs a graphical operating system. You don't NEED streaming media or high-end video games or such on your computer. Many home users don't do much more than email, word processing, and the occasional Solitaire game - you could do all that on a 20th Anniversary Mac.
And why not upgrade the LCD? It's been done before on other Macs, so you never know...
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Sell or send me your vintage Mac things if you don't want them.
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Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2000
Location: Union County, NJ
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Originally Posted by shifuimam
The requirements of the world really would suffice on any computer that runs a graphical operating system. You don't NEED streaming media or high-end video games or such on your computer. Many home users don't do much more than email, word processing, and the occasional Solitaire game - you could do all that on a 20th Anniversary Mac.
And why not upgrade the LCD? It's been done before on other Macs, so you never know...
The web sites my kids go to require 1024x768 (webkinz, etc.). It would be impossible to handle today's web sites on a machine like that, not to mention the inability to run Flash properly.
As for the screen, who would do something as silly as that?
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Professional Poster
Join Date: Oct 2004
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Oh man, don't modify anything. It's value is that it is original.
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__________________________________________________
My stupid iPhone game: Nesen Probe, it's rather old, annoying and pointless, but it's free.
Was free. Now it's gone. Never to be seen again.
Off to join its brother and sister apps that could not
keep up with the ever updating iOS. RIP Nesen Probe.
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Moderator
Join Date: Jun 2000
Location: inside 128, north of 90
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Professional Poster
Join Date: Aug 2001
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I think there was a 400(?) G3 upgrade for it at one time made by Sonnet.
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"It's weird the way 'finger puppets' sounds ok as a noun..."
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Mac Elite
Join Date: Mar 2000
Location: Cambridge
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There was a 400 MHz G3 upgrade by Sonnet out there, and ironically enough, I have one. It was laying around at my old job and was going to be thrown out. Thinking I would sell it on Craigslist, I nabbed it but never got around to it. Unfortunately, I don't have all the parts to make it work since the TAM is a prototype (never came with the extra cover to use the expansion slot, etc.). Oh, well.
As for plans, I'm going to hang on to it for now. I've got some old Classic software that I want to run that won't run on my Mac Pro. Sheep Shaver is another solution, but I haven't gotten sound working well. As you all know, the TAM has great sound on the other hand.
Here's another wrinkle -- I think this one was originally in Europe. Under one of the speaker panels it says "Euro-2", and the TV app was set to Ireland instead of USA for the region.
Pics to come.
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Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2000
Location: Union County, NJ
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Dude, put After Dark and Marathon on that puppy.
And maybe Shufflepuck Cafe (if it'll work).
Ha! And maybe MacAmp
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Professional Poster
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: A House of Ill-Repute in the Sky
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After Dark: Star Trek Edition kicks ass.
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Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2000
Location: Union County, NJ
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Originally Posted by Dakarʒ
After Dark: Star Trek Edition kicks ass.
I had that. I still might somewhere.
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Professional Poster
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Pacific Northwest
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Mac Elite
Join Date: Mar 2000
Location: Cambridge
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Oh, man. MacAMP! I actually bought a license of that. What a mistake. One release and it was dead in the water. At least I could install it and be legal!
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Professional Poster
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: Australia
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Everyone from my neighborhood would gather round for shufflepuck, beating the flat headed monster got you a lot of respect in those days.
These young ones don't know they were born.
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Professional Poster
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: eating kernel
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See how much a museum wants for it, you maybe sitting on a gold mine.
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Signature depreciated.
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Clinically Insane
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Iowa, how long can this be? Does it really ruin the left column spacing?
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Originally Posted by moonmonkey
Everyone from my neighborhood would gather round for shufflepuck, beating the flat headed monster got you a lot of respect in those days.
These young ones don't know they were born.
At school, one of the teachers had an LC520 that he let us play with...we played Shufflepuck, Mars Rising, Tetris, and I can't even remember what else. Until one kid that got pissed off grabbed a pair of scissors and cut up the wires inside when we weren't around.
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Professional Poster
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: Northwest Ohio
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Originally Posted by Laminar
Until one kid that got pissed off grabbed a pair of scissors and cut up the wires inside when we weren't around.
I hope he got in trouble for destruction of property.
Even if it was an old computer it wasn't his to destroy.
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Professional Poster
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: A House of Ill-Repute in the Sky
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Originally Posted by Person Man
I hope he got in trouble for destruction of property.
Even if it was an old computer it wasn't his to destroy.
Ok, mom.
I couldn't resist.
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Professional Poster
Join Date: Jun 2007
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Originally Posted by C.A.T.S. CEO
See how much a museum wants for it, you maybe sitting on a gold mine.
Most museums are non-profit especially the computer one and that means cash is tight.
Add in the fact that most computer museums probably already have means that there's little demand.
Look on ebay and there you'll see the potential feeding frenzy.
I saw what was purported to be a sealed/boxed mac512k. I have no idea if that was true but the price for that "pristine/boxed" mac512k was (if memory serves me) more then what you'd pay for a macpro. The same can be said for some auctions for Apple's Macintosh predecessor - Lisa.
If you want to cash in on something a museum is not the place to go. A private collector who lives and breaths the stuff. He's willing to pay top dollar especially if he's competing for it in an auction.
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Baninated
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Capital of the World
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There's probably not much practical use for a toy like that today, try to sell it on ebay to a crazy mac collector or something, if you can get a decent price.
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Professional Poster
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: In the South
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I would just keep it cuz it's cool and neato.
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Posting Junkie
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Colorado
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I agree with KeriVit. I wish I had the OP's luck
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Mac Elite
Join Date: Mar 2000
Location: Cambridge
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I'm leaning towards KeriVit and imitchellg5's position.
Man this thing is cool.
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Professional Poster
Join Date: May 2007
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I just played shufflepuck thanks to this thread. It remains fun to this day, especially when played on a B&W 500mumble pixel screen
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Posting Junkie
Join Date: May 2001
Location: Brisbane, Australia
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Originally Posted by TimmyDee51
Here's another wrinkle -- I think this one was originally in Europe. Under one of the speaker panels it says "Euro-2", and the TV app was set to Ireland instead of USA for the region.
Makes sense considering Apple's factory is in Cork, Ireland.
Awesome find! Very jealous! I've only seen one in person once (when they were new).
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Mac Elite
Join Date: Mar 2000
Location: Cambridge
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Originally Posted by - - e r i k - -
Makes sense considering Apple's factory is in Cork, Ireland.
Awesome find! Very jealous! I've only seen one in person once (when they were new).
Those were my thoughts, too. How it got to the States, though, is beyond me.
As an update to the photos, I didn't get a chance to take them today. I don't have it set up permanently (have to find room amongst my other computers), so it's just hiding out safely in my closet for now. I should be able to get some tomorrow evening, though, at which point I'll post them.
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Mac Elite
Join Date: Mar 2000
Location: Cambridge
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Sorry for the delay. Here's the photo!
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Addicted to MacNN
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: California
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awesome. congrats!
sorta off topic.
I wish that Apple would make a modern trackpad/keyboard combo for those that have less space (with full keyboard of course) The new wireless keyboard reminds me of the one for the TAM - the trackpad of course
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Posting Junkie
Join Date: May 2001
Location: Brisbane, Australia
Status:
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Very cool. A genuine prototype of one of the most expensive home computers ever sold.
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Professional Poster
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: Yamanashi, Japan
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Crazy good find! Break out the battle chess and have at it! When in doubt you could always ebay that puppy.
(Though I, personally, would rathe have a G4 Cube! Just because....)
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Professional Poster
Join Date: Jun 2007
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I have a cube, while I haven't fired it up lately, its was and still is a great computer.
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Registered User
Join Date: Mar 2000
Location: Garden of Paradise Motel, Suite 3D
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Originally Posted by design219
Oh man, don't modify anything. It's value is that it is original.
I agree. Find someone who WANTS to set it up as a display piece. It is a work of art, really. Sell it on Ebay if you must, but please don't mess it up!
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Mac Enthusiast
Join Date: Oct 2003
Status:
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I read the TAM has a different boot chime that's different than the regular mac 'gong' but I couldn't find an audio link.
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2002 Mac Mini i5 8GB 256GB SSD
2013 Macbook Air 4GB/128GB
iPad Mini A7 32GB
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Addicted to MacNN
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: California
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Grizzled Veteran
Join Date: Jan 2001
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Originally Posted by TimmyDee51
Sorry for the delay. Here's the photo!
Better warn the neighbors, you're gona be hella rockin' the bass with that monster of a sub.
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Clinically Insane
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Iowa, how long can this be? Does it really ruin the left column spacing?
Status:
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Originally Posted by brassplayersrock²
I think the sound at 18 seconds is wrong. The iMacs of that generation had the current startup sound, the one they played reminds me of the older Macs for some reason.
Ah...here's a better one: YouTube - Macintosh Startup sounds and death Sounds 2
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Addicted to MacNN
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: California
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yeah, that one is better. good job
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Mac Enthusiast
Join Date: Oct 2003
Status:
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Thanks, I just discovered Mactracker, very cool...
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2002 Mac Mini i5 8GB 256GB SSD
2013 Macbook Air 4GB/128GB
iPad Mini A7 32GB
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Mac Elite
Join Date: Mar 2000
Location: Cambridge
Status:
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Originally Posted by QuadG5Man
I read the TAM has a different boot chime that's different than the regular mac 'gong' but I couldn't find an audio link.
It does. It's one of the most unique startup sounds I've ever heard (I really like it). If you want to hear it, download Mactracker. They've got the startup sounds for just about every Mac (and a number of the death chimes, too).
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