Building Your Own Computer in the Early Days: A Nostalgic Journey

In 1974, while still in college, we constructed a programmable processor using 7400 TTL gates and ALUs, along with strip breadboards. As a team, we designed our own instruction set. This experience was incredibly enlightening and demonstrated the basic workings of computers, igniting a passion for this technology that endures to this day.

From College to Early DIY Computing

In 1976, my journey in building my own computer took a significant step forward. There were no Apple, IBM, or Radio Shack personal computers at the time, and the Apple I had just debuted. Using the S100 bus, I soldered up a 22-slot motherboard and created a custom power supply. The Z80 CPU, purchased from TDL Technical Design Labs, along with comms/Bootloader board, became the core of my machine. I supplemented it with eight 1K x 1 static RAM cards, totaling 64K, and then crafted a 32K dynamic RAM board from my wire-wrap design. Over the years, I added a floating-point math board and a 5-inch disk subsystem with dual operating systems, CPM, and North Star. Additional features such as I/O, D/A, UV PROM programmers, and a video card made this machine more versatile.

Storage and Communication

Initially, I utilized an ASR33 Teletype salvaged from a junkyard, refurbishing it with tape and cassette tapes for storage before upgrading to disk systems. By developing a CRT terminal subsystem, I built another machine based on faster 4 MHz S100 cards from California Computers and 8-inch disk drives, boasting a staggering 1.2 MBytes per disk. From 1980 to 1997, I maintained a computer bulletin board system (BBS) running RCP/M Phoenix in Houston, which featured five to eight 8-inch drives, providing a total of 4.8 MB of online storage.

Community and Development

As a member of the CPM-Houston club, we held monthly meetings where we shared knowledge and experiences with other early personal computer users. The club was a vibrant community of enthusiasts, and we undertook numerous projects, such as a 64 K SRAM printer buffer and speakers. This was a golden era, where working with 2400 baud modems was still considered fast. Reflecting on those days, it's easy to see how they paved the way for the modern personal computing landscape.

Today's DIY Computer Building

Advancements in technology have made building your own computer easier than ever before. The primary challenge now is ensuring that all components work seamlessly together. You can start with a barebones computer where the most basic components are preconfigured, eliminating the need for extensive troubleshooting.

Conclusion

The ingenuity and passion exhibited by enthusiasts in the early days of personal computing are a testament to the revolutionary impact of DIY computer building. Whether past or present, the experience remains a rewarding journey full of learning and excitement. As technology continues to evolve, the spirit of DIY persists, inspiring new generations of tech enthusiasts.