Does the BetaArchive care about GDR-EEPROM software?

[TinaMeineKatze]

I do have RFT-HMK-devices here. They're old, but really good speakers from the "Deutsche Demokratische Republik" (GDR).

A friend of mine told me that it's possible to read out the EPROM ( https://s-huehn.de/elektronik/epromprog/epromprog.htm ) and, as such, the software that's running the audio-system.

Would it be worth it to build the device linked up above, read out the EPROM and upload it to BetaArchive?

Maybe, internationally, few people would care. But in the german audio-system-scene, I believe, many people would be willing and able to understand their device better when the software is available.

So, my question: should my friend and I build this device, read out the hardware's EPROM and upload it to BetaArchive? Would anyone care? Would it even be considered "ok" as abandonware?

Or is the market too small for such a thing to matter?

[mrpijey]

It's not something that we would carry no. I think these EEPROM dumps would be of better use in a community centered around HIFI-systems as they would understand it better.

[TinaMeineKatze]

It's not something that we would carry no. I think these EEPROM dumps would be of better use in a community centered around HIFI-systems as they would understand it better.

Ok, that's a good point, thanks.

But when we build this device somewhen and the upload is just a few kilobytes, would it get accepted to the FTP anyways, even if I it upload to a hifi-community? Or is this a definite "no" (you're the authority here, so you'd probably know)?

[mrpijey]

I don't see any place for it here as it has no practical interest in this community. The software is extremely specific, no use whatsoever to run separately from the hardware (as opposite to console and computer ROMs which usually consists of applications, games or operating systems with a UI etc) and its only use would be for that specific hardware. It's extremely niche and 99.999% of all our users would not know what to do with it, or even know what it's for. So I would not see any reason to include it in our libraries.

As I said, a more HIFI oriented community with knowledge and interest in these products would see an interest, but we don't focus on HIFI products but computers in general. So these ROMs would have as much use here as a ROM dump from a Electrolux fridge or Audi control box.