>>>Greetings, Robert. I see from your e-mail address that you're
likely
a member of US Mensa. When I was subscribed to CompuServe several
years ago, I hobnobbed among the Mensa Forum members (although I'm
not a member myself) and had some interesting discussions with those
folks. You'll certainly represent a unique dimension to our list
of folks who delight in old -- yet excellent -- technology that has,
not only a story to tell about the history of software/hardware
development, but also has valuable lessons for us in clarity of
form, practicality and efficiency.<<<
Actually I have been a member of that CompuServe Forum since the late
1980's, with several years timeout while I was recovering from a
stroke. I was active in the forum up until 1994, and rejoined in 2000,
when I came back on-line. I have a lot to learn, but will be happy to
share whatever I pick up along the way. I was pretty much a simple end
user until I came back on line in 2000, and set up a website to
promote my painting and writing. From there, I decided to develop the
skills to handle a virtual server, and as I went in search of those
skills, my questions continually led be back in time, for answers,
since I wanted to know why, and not just how things work.
I am now reading a few books that cover the very basic history of
computing, computers, operating systems, and programming languages,
and I finally feel that I am getting a very basic understanding of
what everything is built on. Most of my early books and software have
been picked up very cheaply on eBay, and at used book stores. At
present I am very interested in the transition from MS DOS 3.x to MS
DOS 5, which was a very critical time in OS history, it seems. DOS 4
was a specialty version, sot of, without a protected mode, if my
understanding is correct. Then OS/2 branched off while DOS 5 was being
developed, and about the same time, Windows was being developed, but
w/o the 32bit multitasking abilities of OS/2. I have already begun
building my own DOS environment using 6.2, where I can learn to manage
batch files, Macros and programming in Basic, while at the same time
working on their Unix equivalents, and programming in Perl, with
Linux. I'm willing to spend a couple years getting the basics down
well, since it is part-time, with painting and graphic art being my
primary career focus. Getting the basics down really well might wind
up being a time saver in the long run, since without a good
understanding of how things work, one just winds up memorizing facts,
which is a lot of work.
>>>At the moment, I'm reading Sherry Turkle's analysis of the
sociological
effects of computers and the Internet in her book "Life on the
Screen --
Identity in the Age of the Internet" (1995). It's still in print, if
you're curious. She delves at length with issues between those of us
who prefer the older, yet clearer forms of computing characterized by
the classic machines/software you'll see discussed here compared to
the
opaque, "simulation" systems that define the Macintosh/Windows view
of computing. When I've finished Ms. Turkle's book, I'll try to
discuss
some of her key observations with the list members, if possible...<<<
I saw another book on the psychosocial aspects of the Internet in a
bookstore I visited today. I might go back tomorrow and pick it up,
it's just a few bucks.
>>>So I'm curious. Would you know whether or not other Mensans are
manifesting a growing interest in "retro-computing"...? And why or
why not?<<<
A lot of the Mensa geeks use old machines and software, but I think it
is more of a practical matter than a retro decision. Also, Unix is the
Operating system of choice, and open source the software of choice,
although a lot of people are probably still running DOS machines who
are not computer geeks, but just using computing for other purposes,
like word processing, database, etc, where they don't need to
interface with other outside machines, and hence have no reason for
upgrading. Also, a lot of machines running scientific programs, that
haven't needed upgrade are still running. I have read that some of the
older scientific software will not run well on newer machines, so as
long as they continues to be able to perform its gruntwork tasks,
machines like this will probably run until they die, for reasons of
economy. Overall, Mensans are a pretty diverse group of individuals,
so I expect that they represent every possible computing demographic.
>>>Watch out... you may find yourself changing your mind after
awhile... ;-)<<<
I don't have a problem with that. I had a very productive weekend at
garage sales, and managed to pick up an IBM VGA or SVGA monitor, about
15", for $2.00, a huge old 7 to 1 peripheral junction box, 5 serial
and 2 with either serial or parallel choices for $1.00, an Intel
external modem for $1.00, and a huge box of books, cables, adapters,
etc for another $2.00. With prices like these, retro computing is
definitely one of the cheapest hobbies one could have, in addition to
being educational.
Still, working in cutting edge graphics is a job that requires a lot
of computer; CPU, RAM, and HD. Older computers would not be adequate
to the task. As Unix and Linux continue to expand into the non-tech
market (I'm running GIMP right now as my primary graphics program),
they will probably become 'user's choice' for me overall, with Windows
gradually losing ground, as Microsoft continues to abuse its public
with offerings like 'Smart Tags' and XP.
thanks,
-wittig
Online Portfolio and Gallery: http://www.robertwittig.com/
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