Apple II running for 42 years...

[grandM]

Communism seems to appreciate build quality. Staff members even come out of retirement to maintain them. In 10 to 15 years the Lenin museum might switch tech, probably because they are not sure the engineers will last that long ?

Contraband Apple II computers still power old Soviet museum

The Soviet Union may have collapsed. But Vladimir Lenin, the country's first leader, lives on, thanks to an audiovisual show still running on a small

www.cultofmac.com

 

[MacTech68]

Let's hope somebody grabs these for preservation should the display be re-fitted with modern tech.

 

[sunapple]

Full, original report over here.

The part about replacing them in 10-15 was not really accurate, they will probably just replace the Apple IIs when they eventually die.

There are no plans to update the museum. Instead, it aims to preserve its technological attraction in the way it was first set up. “The cubes were to be replaced in 10 to 15 years,” says Vlasov. They have now lasted more than 30 years. His colleagues even hope to repair the broken one without altering the original artistic work. “It’s going to be the exact same presentation, recreated with modern technology,” he says.

Interesting tidbit of Jobs politics:

IN 1985, WHILE THE MUSEUM was going to get its hands on 8-bit computers, Apple itself was trying to supply the USSR with more powerful Macintoshes. The company sent none other than Steve Jobs to sell Apple computers to the Soviet National Academy of Sciences—and through it, to schools throughout the Soviet Union. (Just a year later, US export restrictions would make such deals impossible.)

The deal never went through, reportedly because of Jobs’ eccentric remarks and public support of Leon Trotsky.

 

[1146331]

Wow very interesting!

 

[velocityg4]

I don't see why they'd replace them now. Even if only after they fail. At this point, in tech terms, they are ancient. The museum should work to keep them running as they are part of the history of the displays.