RE: Z80 pods, 2 versions...

Disclaimers:
1. I thought about this overnight in order to compose this reply.
2. I have great respect for John's experience and knowledge.
3. I have received emails on this topic, so am not speaking solely from my
own perspective.

> From: John Robertson[SMTP:jrr@flippers.com]
>
> Well, what would you like me to do? I send out lots of email looking for
> one unit, and several come back with various assortment of units and pods
> that they want to sell as a set.
>
I don't know. I guess I expected something different from this list.
Perhaps I thought it would be similar to the vector and raster list
(from which this list sprung, vaguely) where interesting items are
offered to members before being sent to ebay (a dirty enough word
in itself).

> They do not like breaking up sets. I have
> made private trades with folks for these, plus I have sold some off. We
> have a business here to run, and I need to make money to support it.
>
Sounds exactly what an amateur (we all know the etymology of that word)
would do. Sometimes you have to take in more than you need.

> So I buy them wholesale, then I see that some on eBay went for a fair
> dollar, I
> should give them away?
>
That's where our paths would start to diverge.

> I bought a bunch of damaged probes and am fixing them
> up, should I not profit from this service?
>
Certainly, but why not from some of the very people that joined this list
in order to discuss, discover and collect these same tools?
Or offer some of the broken ones that you don't want to fix.
We know that your time is money. Only you can determine when you
are losing profit by working on a pod vs another game that you should get
out.

I've been attempting to retrieve some of the archives of this list, but off
the
top of my head, I don't think I've ever seen any of your pods for sale or
auction.
I also wish that I could retrieve the charter for this list. It's slipped
my mind what the full intent was.

> I bought a bunch of Z80 pods in
> various states, so I fix them and test them. Again, should I not do what
> my
> skills enable me to do? This is MY livelihood!
>
Once again, no argument. You, Ray Johnson, G. Stair, E. Spain (marginal),
and others
are all invaluable professional resources. Clay Cowgill is on the fence and
he
has his own detractors. Then there are the hobbyists, many with similar and
varied
skills. There just seems to be two separate factions in each of these
lists.
Maybe it's never been spoken out loud, but believe me, I know that they
exist now.

Let me reiterate: You are an exceptional resource. I have been fortunate
enough
to visit your shop. I have seen the voluminous reference materials. I have
discussed
with you some of the rare and obsolete platforms that you still support. I
have
drooled over your drool-worthy racks of PCBs, parts and machines.
And I gladly bought the ESR and FBT tester kits.
But you're not a hobbyist.

I'm not picking up any harsh resentment from others, just a feeling of
dismay.
It's too bad that this "collection of pods" (5, 15, 50?) isn't spread around
the list members.
It also means that they are in the hands of the high bidders and, because
they
were so dearly bought, likely won't come back on the market. Dismaying.

That's all I have to say on this. You're a businessman, I don't think your

feelings will be hurt. I'm a hobbyist, I'll keep pegging away in my little
basement workshop and scrounging for the deals.

Your compatriot, nonetheless,
Brendan Keith
brendan.keith@wilcom.com

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Received on Wed Mar 15 09:45:11 2000