A quick journey: The Compaq Deskpro PD1005

This is one of those posts I'm writing down more for my reference, but hey, you might get some enjoyment out of it, too.

I wanted to make note of this because, well, Compaq wasn't super great at differentiating their Deskpro line, at least from the front. There were so. many. computers. that only said "Compaq Deskpro" if you looked at the front. The only time you'd get a model number is if you looked at the bottom, or the back, and oftentimes photos didn't have this information.

But before we go on, why do this? 

Because the PD1005 was my first "real" computer, so to speak. It was the family computer we had as I was starting the journey into becoming a computer nerd. Sure, I had an old Macintosh LC as my "personal" computer, but that machine couldn't go on the internet or do anything modern by early 00's standards. Or play any "modern" games.

I cut my teeth on it in a LOT of ways. I learned a lot on it. I played a lot of old games I cherish to this day on it. I wouldn't necessarily call it a grail machine (mostly because I'm not actively seeking it out, it's a behemoth of a machine), but it's one I've been wanting to know the exact identity of for a minute due to the aforementioned thing about Compaq being not-so-great at labeling their machines in an easily identifiable way. 

I set out to Google, knowing only the CPU's specs: It was a 450-500MHz Pentium III, Slot I. Desktop form factor (so it lays horizontally, such that a monitor can sit on the chassis). After scrolling through a bunch of models that definitely weren't it (have I mentioned that Compaq called a LOT of computers "Deskpro"?) I eventually landed on something that looked like an exact match on eBay. And there, on the underside, barely readable was the model number I was after: PD1005. 

With that number in hand, I refined my search, and found more pictures. This was it. Everything matched. Including the motherboard, which had a really interesting layout (and the slot 1...slot laid on its side rather than vertically like most motherboards I've seen). 

You might ask why I care so damn much, and yeah, this really is a personal thing. Like I said, this is more for me, not for you. But this Deskpro in particular seems to be one of the less common ones at least, because if you try to look for a Deskpro you're either going to get the tower model, or the SFF model that seems to be extremely common. The big-ass desktop model doesn't seem to come up super often.

The only missing piece of this puzzle was what video card mine had: These Deskpros don't have onboard video, and used this weirdly proprietary AGP slot for video. It used this oddball double-wide half-height slot that I think is very proprietary to these Deskpros: 

 

(Once again, thanks eBay for having this info, somehow!)

And given the timeframe and seemingly relatively few cards made this way, I think this is it: It was this very card, a 3D Rage Pro Turbo.

Interestingly enough, the card still seems standards compliant otherwise, as I've seen (whilst searching) other cards with the same PCB dimensions and Compaq markings but with a standard bracket on them. I do wonder if it would be possible to finagle a standard AGP card in here some way, some how. 

Maybe if I ever stumble into one of these systems. And, y'know, if I had the room for it.

But with all that, I now know the identity of the computer that really got me started out on, well, everything. The computer that saw me through many, many, MANY hours of Diablo II, UT99, The Sims, and Planescape: Torment. That damn Compaq Deskpro PD1005.