An 1980’s Amiga ran the heating and ac systems at 19 public schools for 30 years

By contemporary standards, converting your analog home into a smart home is considered cutting-edge; but in the 1980’s, programming a computer to run your heating and air conditioning was considered pure sorcery, at least, as far as the general public was concerned. For over a quarter of a century, a 1985 Commodore Amiga computer has been hard at work controlling the heating and air conditioning of 19 public schools across the Michigan’s Grand Rapids Public School District; 30 years later, the machine is still going strong.

According to the Grand Rapids local news outlet WoodTV, the machine was purchased in 1985 using money from an energy bond to replace a computer that was “about the size of a refrigerator.” The Amiga was programmed by a then high school student to send out commands using a 1200-bit modem and short-wave radio signals, activating the boilers, pumps, and fans in each of the buildings, as well as retrieving temperature reports and status updates on the heating/cooling systems. 

Unfortunately, the short-wave radio frequencies used to send out commands overlapped with those used by maintenance workers’ walkie-talkies, resulting in an awkward interference that required the kind of unofficial solution familiar only to those who have lived or worked in a small town. In this case, that solution was turning off the two-way radio radios for a period of 15 to 20 minutes.

The 30 year journey has not been a smooth ride, with the monitor, mouse, and keyboard all having broken at some point or another, in addition to other, harder to find components. Luckily, eBay proved to be a reliable source of replacement parts; at least for the time being. But in the event of a software glitch, the school must rely on the student who originally programmed the machine in the first place, who, fortunately, still resides in a nearby town.

The school now seeks to retire the ancient behemoth with an associated system that could cost up to $2 million. Should local voters pass a $1.75 million bond proposal this upcoming November, the Amiga may finally wind in some weird person’s basement.

Source: Geek.com