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Living Computers: Museum + Labs facts for kids

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Living Computers: Museum + Labs
LCM+L Logo
LCM+L Exterior1.jpg
Exterior of the Museum
Established 25 October 2012 (2012-10-25)
Location 2245 1st Ave S
Seattle, Washington
Type Computer museum
Key holdings PDP-10, IBM Mainframes, Apple 1, PLATO
Founder Paul Allen
Public transit access King County Metro, Link light rail
Nearest car park Onsite and Street Parking

Living Computers: Museum + Labs (LCM+L) is a cool computer and technology museum. You can find it in the SoDo area of Seattle, Washington. This museum is special because it lets you actually use old computers!

LCM+L has many vintage computers. You can sit down and try them out, just like people did when they were new. They also have new technology you can touch and explore. This includes things like self-driving cars and robotics. The museum helps you see how computers have changed and how they solve real-world problems today.

The museum also offers many fun learning programs and events. They have modern classrooms and lab spaces for these activities.

The main goal of LCM+L is to bring old machines back to life. They want people to see, hear, and interact with them. You can visit in person or even connect to some systems over the internet.

As of January 2024, the museum is closed. It first closed on May 27, 2020, because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Museum's History

Harry Garland and Paul Allen
Harry Garland and Paul Allen at an event honoring computer pioneers at the museum in April 2013

Living Computers: Museum + Labs was started by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. It opened on January 9, 2006. Back then, it was called PDPplanet.com. Later, it became the Living Computer Museum.

At first, people could connect to the museum's old computers from anywhere. They used a special internet connection called telnet. This let them experience how people used computers in the past.

The museum opened its doors to the public on October 25, 2012. Now, visitors could come in person. They could interact with a huge collection of old computers. This included mainframes, minicomputers, microcomputers, and other devices.

The museum has different exhibits that change over time. These shows explain how much computers and technology have changed. They also show how they are still changing today.

In 2013, a local newspaper called Seattle Weekly named it the "Best Geeky Museum." They said it was important because it showed Seattle's role in computer history. This included the start of Microsoft.

On November 18, 2016, the museum changed its name. It became Living Computers: Museum + Labs. This new name showed its bigger goals. It wanted to help people learn about both old and new technologies.

Since the museum closed in 2020, there have been no updates about its future.

Amazing Collections and Exhibits

The museum's collection has items given by the public. It also includes many items from Paul Allen's own collection. The museum has working computers you can see and use. These include one supercomputer, seven mainframes, 10 minicomputers, and over three dozen microcomputers.

Some items from the museum have even been used in TV shows. You might have seen them in shows like Mad Men and Halt and Catch Fire.

A roughly 180° panorama of the "conditioned" room at the Living Computer Museum containing mainframes and large minicomputers.

Computers on Display

The museum has a wide range of computers. Some you can use in person, and some you can connect to online. Here is a list of some of the cool computers you can find there:

Manufacturer Model Type Year Introduced Available for public use Telnet access
Amazon Kindle 1 hand-held 2007 Yes No
Amiga 500 microcomputer 1987 Yes No
Apple Apple 1 microcomputer 1976 Yes No
Apple II microcomputer 1977 Yes No
Apple IIe microcomputer 1983 Yes No
Apple III microcomputer 1980 Yes No
Apple Lisa 2 microcomputer 1984 Yes No
Apple iMac G3 microcomputer 1998 Yes No
Apple Macintosh SE microcomputer 1987 Yes No
Apple Power Mac G4 microcomputer 1999 Yes No
AT&T DMD 5620 / 3B2 minicomputer 1983 Yes Yes
Atari 2600 video game console 1977 Yes No
Atari 400 microcomputer 1979 Yes No
Atari 1040 ST microcomputer 1985 Yes No
Columbia Data Products MPC 1600 microcomputer 1982 Yes No
Commodore PET microcomputer 1977 Yes No
Commodore 64 microcomputer 1982 Yes No
Compaq DeskPro 386S microcomputer 1989 Yes No
Compaq Portable microcomputer 1983 Yes No
Control Data CDC 6500 supercomputer 1967 No Yes
Control Data DD60 monitor operator console 1964 No No
Control Data 405 card reader peripheral 1964 No No
Control Data CDC 679-6 magnetic tape transport peripheral 1964 No No
Cray Cray-1 mainframe 1975 No No
Cromemco Z-2D microcomputer 1978 Yes No
Data General Nova minicomputer 1969 Yes No
DEC PDP-7 minicomputer 1964 No No
DEC PDP-8/E minicomputer 1970 Yes No
DEC PDP-10 KA10 (DECsystem-10) mainframe 1968 No No
DEC PDP-10 KI10 (DECsystem-10) mainframe 1971 No No
DEC PDP-10 KL10 (DECSYSTEM-2065) mainframe 1974 Yes Yes
DEC PDP-10 KL10 (DECSYSTEM-1095) mainframe 1974 Yes Yes
DEC PDP-10 KS10 (DECSYSTEM-2020) minicomputer 1979 Yes Yes
DEC PDP-11/70 minicomputer 1975 Yes Yes
DEC PDP-12 minicomputer 1969 No No
DEC VAX-11/780-5 minicomputer 1982 Yes Yes
DEC VT131 terminal 1981 Yes No
Dell Dimension XPS B733 microcomputer 1999 Yes No
E.S.R. Digi-Comp II reproduction toy computer 1965 (original patent); 2012 (reproduction) Yes No
Honeywell 6180 DPS-8/M maintenance panel and Multics emulator peripheral; emulation of mainframe 1973 (mainframe) No No
IBM System/360 Model 30 mainframe mainframe 1964 No No
IBM System/360 Model 91 front panel peripheral 1966 No No
IBM 029 card punch peripheral 1964 Yes No
IBM 4361 mainframe 1983 Yes Yes
IBM Personal Computer 5150 microcomputer 1981 Yes No
IBM PCjr microcomputer 1984 Yes No
IBM PC/AT microcomputer 1984 Yes No
IMLAC Corporation PDS-1 "sImlac" emulator emulation of minicomputer 1970s (minicomputer); 2017 (emulator) Yes No
IMSAI 8080 microcomputer 1975 Yes No
Interdata 7/32 minicomputer 1974 Yes Yes
MITS Altair 8800 microcomputer 1975 Yes No
Microsoft PixelSense microcomputer 2007 Yes No
NeXT NeXTcube microcomputer 1990 Yes No
Nintendo NES-101 video game console 1993 Yes No
Osborne Executive microcomputer 1982 Yes No
PLATO Terminal V microcomputer 1976 Yes No
Processor Technology Sol-20 microcomputer 1976 Yes No
Radio Shack TRS-80 Model 4 microcomputer 1983 Yes No
Sun Microsystems 3/160 microcomputer 1986 Yes No
Tandy 1000 microcomputer 1984 Yes No
Tandy Color Computer 3 microcomputer 1986 Yes No
Teletype Model 33 terminal 1963 No No
Teletype Model 35 terminal 1963 No No
Teletype Model 37 terminal 1968 No No
Texas Instruments Speak & Spell Compact hand-held 1982 Yes No
Texas Instruments TI-99/4A microcomputer 1981 Yes No
Xerox Sigma 9 mainframe 1971 Yes Yes
Xerox Alto minicomputer 1973 Yes No
Xerox Alto "ContrAlto" simulator emulation of minicomputer 1973 (minicomputer); 2016 (emulator) Yes No
XKL TOAD-1 mainframe 1995 Yes No
XKL TOAD-2 mainframe 2005 Yes Yes
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