Have a look at this.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Sony-VIW-5600D-View-System-286-Based-Laser-Disc-Laservision-Player-PC-Vintage-/130609302927?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item1e68ebcd8f
Just browsing eBay today and I came across this awesome piece of technology. This old 286 computer has a special LaserDisc drive in it. Although the price is a little out of my league, I hope someone get one of these cheaper and tells us about it and its features. I don't know if the player actually can play movies because DOS does not support it but I was wondering what the use for the machine is. Were there educational titles made on LaserDisc that could be loaded onto a computer?
Interesting but expensive.
BTW, has anybody seen that LD player outside of this machine?

interesting find. I have never seen that before. It would probably be LD-ROM and finding the discs would be harder, even this is hard to find. thank you for posting that.

A surplus-electronics place near me had a couple of those, or some similar Sony model, in the $100 range a while back. I believe that this is what Pioneer referred to as a "level 3" product, but integrated, so that playback of the LD would be controlled by the computer, & computer-generated graphics would be overlaid on the video. Other setups used a separate computer & LD player, connected via RS-232, with a video mixer for overlays. If that's the case, you could indeed use it to play movies, but it seems like a lot of trouble to go to!

I have one laserdisc that is computer encoded on side 2 of it. So that LD computer probably would work for it.

Does it work in a normal player?
I suppose you could emulate one if you had a player that had an rs-232 port then connect that to your IBM 286\386\486 compatible and get generic drivers from somewhere. My old 486 has a lot of drivers on it albeit probably not any compatible with LaserDisc players.

could you emulate it through DOSbox or something if you don't have a 486 anymore? I was wondering if I get an industrial player I could use the RS232 port. I'm guessing that there wasn't anything mac compatible

Depends. I don't know if DOSBOX will work with phyisical computer ports. First player of choice for this would be the Pioneer CLD-V2800. (Drivers for this wouldn't be easy to find though). I had a few LaserDisc things on my 486 that I got from laserdiscarchive.co.uk a while back.
http://www.laserdiscarchive.co.uk/laserdisc_archive/pioneer/pioneer_pc_rs-232_control_software/pioneer_pc_rs-232_control_software.htm
According to this website, the last operating system to be able to support the MCI driver is Win95. However it works best in 3.1.

I just loaded it on to 3.1 (via 5.25 floppy ) to the computer and works fine. ( but no player to test it on)
I don't know if it will work in DOSBOX. If it's connecting to a physical player (e.g. a LD player) I have little hope that a connection will be achieved. ( you proabably can but a lot more work is required) Good luck though.

P.S If your are really desperate in getting a computer controlled LD player, my 486 only cost me $1 and it had loads of "useful" programs on it. Ebay has loads of 486's (386's too) going cheap. One tip is to go generic; branded 486's like IBM and Compaq go for a lot lot more.

I would probably try if I could find the V2800 or had one with the RS232 port. thanks for the info I will look for V2800.

You have to be careful with the old 286 processors. The program to set the CMOS was usually supplied on a 5" floppy and without it, you are screwed. The ebay listing says that the CMOS battery is dead so you definitely would need the floppy.

Not true actually. Most generics don't need a disk to setup CMOS. There is a CMOS battery even on the oldest of computers. The chip that runs the CMOS (forget the model no.) doesn't require a driver. Think about this logically. If you don't have a CMOS, you can't load anything on because your computer is brainless.

I've got my LD-V8000 connected to the computer I am using right now. I had to make my own RS-232 cable, because of the stupid Pioneer 15-pin nonstandard connector, but I can control all the functions using HyperTerminal. Maybe I'll write something to simplify that process.

Part of it will play, and then you get to a course selection. The still/step will let me select one, but I think you need a mouse or joystick to click on it (or a enter button) to access each section.

Here are some scans of the insert that came with my LD. Sorry it's in Japanese. But looks like a Palcom or MSX computer hookup to the LD player.

More scan

Last scan

Very interesting. Shame it's in Jappanese but still very interesting. If I see one of this LD computers go cheap, I'll proabaly get one.

Maybe one of our Japanese members, can detail us just a bit what it says on the insert.

Hello randomtvandmovie,

A Fascinating piece of equipment to say the least.

I am always amazed by the different equipment associated with Laserdisc, of which keep coming out of the wood work.

Thank you for locating this.

Regards

The disc draw is the same colour used on the Sony LaserMax which was like this model only slimmer and had analogue RCA phone no optical digital as they were made in the somewhat early 1990’s.
I believe the players were made for educational schools for learning as the school had at least 5 or 6 of the Sony lasermax before they were all sold off at £100.00 each around late 90’s.
I have learning laserdisc that was used down the school its plastic white on one side and laserdisc CAV on the other side CAV so at the discs can be paused and you the information. I might play the disc and do a short video of it.

ASI laserdic side2

Shame it's got LDrot. That's a let-down. But good find.