Hello friends,
I have just purchased and taken delivery of a second-hand ETC/Avab Congo Sr. console. I've yet to open it up, but I just know, due to its age, that I should probably give it some TLC right from the get-go. It's described as working well, but getting a bargain sometimes means stuff needs to be adjusted or fixed.
So, I'm here to ask a few questions. First, I'll say that I am tech savvy and able to troubleshoot some of the more advanced computer issues, especially computers of this era. A lot of my background is in computers and networking. I have been freelancing lighting gigs on the side for many years using mostly software and dongles, or small DMX boards, but this is my first "big" hardware console with screens and programming on-board as opposed to software on a PC (like ShowXpress)..
As much as I'd like to start it up and everything is perfect, I feel that it's unlikely, and even if it starts smoothly, if it's on the original HDD then it could die on me any time. So, I've read the legacy support, and it says if you have hardware issues, to contact tech support for files and such. However, I'm sure most of you know the support cycle stopped years ago.
1) Is there a contact person at ETC where I could try to obtain the Congo CD (or an ISO disk image) and relevant files/flash drives/etc.? This is to reimage the OS. The legacy docs describe a point-person of sorts that you could call for these resources. I assume that's long gone (with support cycle) and the files are archived or someone might have retained a copy they could share when necessary. Perhaps someone out there received these files before and have them sitting around somewhere?
2) I only want to reimage the OS if I really have to. I'd rather just clone the existing HDD onto a new one. But, if the current setup is damaged, can I use the Congo CD and reimaging files to make a fresh install on a new hard drive? I can't tell how in-depth the CD and material are when it comes to recovery or fresh install on new hardware. I guess I need to know if it will actually install Win XP Embedded since my console won't support Win7+.
I plan to start it up in a few days to see what I'm working with. Might have to swap in new RAM and coin cell battery, we'll see 
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