Anyone else on here into vintage computing?

[hunterjwizzard]

Just curious, I know a lot of fantasy writers in my vintage computing communities, so I figure it might work both ways.

Also, if anyone is doing a period piece and needs to know about computers from some era, hit me up. I know lots.

 

[pmmg]

I know some do their writing on some ancient rigs. (I think I heard that GRRM uses wordstar of such for his writing.)

I will not say I am into it. I have moved on to new stuff, but that is kind of my profession. Still...I never quite got to prefer Word over Word Perfect. Word Perfect just couldn't keep up.

I don't miss the 80lb monitors.

 

[Karlin]

one of the paddle switches on my PDP11 is cracked. Do you know where I can get a replacement?

 

[Mad Swede]

You realise, don't you, that some of us learnt to program in PL/1 on IBM mainframes running OS/360 and MVS with CICS. Later I used PDP 8s, PDP 11s and VAX 11s, programing in FORTRAN 77 and ALGOL 68. I can remember sitting in front of IBM 3270 terminals and later DEC VT220 and VT241 terminals in darkened rooms in military command and control centers.

No, I'm not into vintage computing, not having lived through it. Give me my nice modern lightweight HP Elite Dragonfly every time.

 

[hunterjwizzard]

one of the paddle switches on my PDP11 is cracked. Do you know where I can get a replacement?

Actually I probably can help with that. Let me ask around. If you're interested, the Vintage Computer Federation has a thriving PDP community.

 

[Karlin]

You realise, don't you, that some of us learnt to program in PL/1 on IBM mainframes running OS/360 and MVS with CICS. Later I used PDP 8s, PDP 11s and VAX 11s, programing in FORTRAN 77 and ALGOL 68. I can remember sitting in front of IBM 3270 terminals and later DEC VT220 and VT241 terminals in darkened rooms in military command and control centers.

No, I'm not into vintage computing, not having lived through it. Give me my nice modern lightweight HP Elite Dragonfly every time.

ALGOL!

There was a guy in my high school class who could whistle and fool the modem, so teh remote "terminal" would print nonsense

 

[A. E. Lowan]

This is brilliant. We've got a dragon in our current book who hordes vintage tech. He can code in Asci and Basic and can tell someone, in no uncertain terms and in great detail, exactly how cassette tapes worked in a TRS80.

 

[A. E. Lowan]

You realise, don't you, that some of us learnt to program in PL/1 on IBM mainframes running OS/360 and MVS with CICS. Later I used PDP 8s, PDP 11s and VAX 11s, programing in FORTRAN 77 and ALGOL 68. I can remember sitting in front of IBM 3270 terminals and later DEC VT220 and VT241 terminals in darkened rooms in military command and control centers.

No, I'm not into vintage computing, not having lived through it. Give me my nice modern lightweight HP Elite Dragonfly every time.

Not afraid to say that's kinda hot.

 

[CupofJoe]

One of the first things I did at work [and accidentally], was blow up a Vax 11.
I learnt to type on a CPM based machine [it was in a wooden case] that ran WordStar.

 

[Prince of Spires]

He can code in Asci

I thought Ascii was just the basic numerical representation of characters (like 65 = A and 90 = Z). Not something you code in as such.

 

[hunterjwizzard]

This is brilliant. We've got a dragon in our current book who hordes vintage tech. He can code in Asci and Basic and can tell someone, in no uncertain terms and in great detail, exactly how cassette tapes worked in a TRS80.

That's an entertaining concept for a dragon.

 

[pmmg]

Yeah, ASCII is just the characters on the screen. Basic is about the only language I regularly use, and I don't code very often. I used Qbasic way back when. It had more commands built in

The only 'newer' language I would have been capable in was ASP, and that one is dead now. I never moved on to .Net. But...I am not a coder. I just write scripts when needed. Basic will suffice.

 

[Mad Swede]

This is brilliant. We've got a dragon in our current book who hordes vintage tech. He can code in Asci and Basic and can tell someone, in no uncertain terms and in great detail, exactly how cassette tapes worked in a TRS80.

And now I'm going to be awkward and ask which version of the TRS 80? Because if the dragon is using a TRS 80 Color Computer then what it really should be using is a Dragon 32 (the Dragon 32/64 a very similar Welsh computer, to the point where the Dragon 32/64 were almost clones of the TRS 80 Color Computer).

 

[A. E. Lowan]

That's an entertaining concept for a dragon.

Avery - and yes, he gets named by a 17 year-old girl - is a real fascinating headspace to be in. This is his first book since he was introduced and has spent the past several months learning to be something other than a dragon guarding a tower, complete with sleeping princess. It's Urban Fantasy and the Books of Binding. So, yes, there's severe trauma. There's also learning how to blow the dust out of a cassette cartridge and chocolate drizzled popcorn and that the blood of the covenant is, indeed, thicker than the water of the womb.

 

[hunterjwizzard]

Well I can't say I know the trash-80 terribly well, but I do know people with working examples if you need details.

then what it really should be using is a Dragon 32 (the Dragon 32/64 a very similar Welsh computer, to the point where the Dragon 32/64 were almost clones of the TRS 80 Color Computer).

...did not know about this variant. I never wanted a TRS-80 and now I must have one of those Dragon 32s. Such is vintage computing.

 

[A. E. Lowan]

And now I'm going to be awkward and ask which version of the TRS 80? Because if the dragon is using a TRS 80 Color Computer then what it really should be using is a Dragon 32 (the Dragon 32/64 a very similar Welsh computer, to the point where the Dragon 32/64 were almost clones of the TRS 80 Color Computer).

Nothing wrong with asking obnoxious questions. It's how I interface with basically everybody. lol

It was Jenny's and dead by the time we met, but I'll ask when she gets home. She really liked that thing.

 

[hunterjwizzard]

It was Jenny's and dead by the time we met

Its fixable if she happens to still have it.

 

[A. E. Lowan]

Its fixable if she happens to still have it.

Not even remotely. But we do have a working Nintendo 64, with games.

 

[A. E. Lowan]

And now I'm going to be awkward and ask which version of the TRS 80? Because if the dragon is using a TRS 80 Color Computer then what it really should be using is a Dragon 32 (the Dragon 32/64 a very similar Welsh computer, to the point where the Dragon 32/64 were almost clones of the TRS 80 Color Computer).

She says it was the Color Computer CoCo2. There's one on Ebay, turns out. lol

 

[Naruzeldamaster]

She says it was the Color Computer CoCo2. There's one on Ebay, turns out. lol

You'd be amused by my L33T Clan mages, they are hyper nerds in the most genuine sense (Though they aren't the pocket protector / bottleneck glasses type of nerd, they just geek out about stuff. Like one of my elves is a carpenter who's perhaps a little too obsessed with wood/trees.) but they're all pretty strong mages. They're a 'found family' kind of group with outcasts from just about every species in my world. Why they're an outcast could just be that they 'think differently' but some of them are just 'different' like my tall dwarf blacksmith.