VCFB 2017 Exhibitions Presentations and Workshops Stream Floor Plan Association Press Archive

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Vintage Computing Festival Berlin (VCFB) – Call for participation

6th to 8th October 2017, German Museum of Technology, Berlin, Germany

The Vintage Computing Festival Berlin (VCFB) is an event about historical computers and computing technology. The vintage computing hobby is being presented with exhibitions, lectures and workshops. Our goal is to contribute to the preservation of historical computers and other data processing devices, and to foster interest in "superfluous" hard- and software. Our focus does not only include historical computers, but also historical operating systems, software, programming languages, network technology and other devices that compute, like calculators and calculating machines.

The VCFB is located in the historic Ladestraße area of the German Museum of Technology Berlin (accessible from Möckernstr. 26). Buildup begins on Friday, October 6th, and the event is open for visitors on Saturday and Sunday, 7th and 8th of October. Entry is free. Visitors of the VCFB will also get free entry to the Network exhibition of the Museum of Technology located in the same building. This year we welcome the association for the preservation of classic computers to host their annual Classic Computing meeting at the VCFB.

Exhibitions, lectures and workshops

We are looking for people who would like to contribute exhibitions, lectures or workshops about the following topics:

• Historical computers: minicomputers, microcomputers, workstations, vacuum tube computers, … everything that is both interesting and older than 10 years
• Special Exhibition: Computer clubs: This year we invite associations devoted to the history of computing technology and computers to present themselves and their work in a special exhibition. In particular, the association for the preservation of classic computers will hold their annual Classic Computing meeting at the VCFB.
• Historical software: Operating systems, programming environments, games, demos, CAD software, …
• Historical networking technology: acoustic couplers, Token Ring, cheapernet, DECnet, AppleTalk, … we want to set up a working network and connect as many exhibits as possible. We'd like to have services offered on the network, for example mail boxes and video conferences using SGI Indycams.
• Historical computation equipment: calculating machines, slide rules, disk calculators, pocket calculators, …
• Help with repairs of historical computers/pocket calculators/…: We want to offer a repair corner where visitors can bring their own hardware and get help with repairs. Workshops for repairs are also possible, for example a workshop about repairing C64 computers.
• Benchmarks of exhibits: We'd like to host a Benchmarking Competition like at the VCFe.
• Would you like to do an exhibition/lecture/workshop about something that doesn't quite fit these categories? Shoot us an email to info@vcfb.de and we'll talk about it.

The registration will close on August 1st, 2017.

• Register an exhibition
• Register a lecture
• Register a workshop

Organisational information

This info is slightly outdated, please contact us if you have any questions or take a look at the German version of this page.

• The exhibition area is not at ground level, but there is a wheelchair ramp. Delivering exhibits without crossing a height difference will only be possible using a truck with a tail-lift. If you want to bring heavy or big items, feel free to contact us beforehand. Cars can be parked in front of the venue for loading and unloading only, but parking space for exhibitors will be available close by. Exhibition tables are 70cm*70cm in size, at least 250 of these will be available. If you need a special power connection, please tell us beforehand.
• Buildup will start on Thursday. Tables, chairs and power need to be set up before buildup of exhibitions can begin. If you'd like to help with buildup, please send a mail to info@vcfb.de.
• Slots for lectures are 90 minutes long, but your lecture may be shorter than that. All lectures will be recorded and published under a Creative Commons license.
• If you'd like to contribute an exhibition/lecture/workshop, but can't cover your travel expenses, please contact us at info@vcfb.de and we'll look for a solution.