Computer History

[GreenWeenie]

From a discussion in Hot Deals I realized many people don't have an appreciation of PC history ... so I've dug through some ads I have and have found. Should be good for a few laughs.

[GreenWeenie]

1983 Compaq unit. Couldn't find a price but I'm would guess it was around $8,000. "Designed to fit under a standard airline seat". I dragged around similar units to this... my shoulders ache just thinking about it.

http://www.asktech.ca/Compaq1983Portable.jpg

[Montague]

I played around with my dads old commodore 64 when I was little.

Loderunner and Jumpman.

Great games. :)

Got any old ads for this machine?

[willy]

I had used one of those 'portables' too ... Probably ~ 15-20 years ago ... It was basically a *full-size* IBM-XT with an integrated amber 7" or 8" CRT monitor !!! Veryyyyyyyyyyy heavy ...

[GreenWeenie]

http://asktech.ca/percon8309.big.jpg

[Firestorm ZERO]

http://s94919826.onlinehome.us/Expensive%20Computer.jpg

It's "lightning fast"!!! (Monitor and mouse not included)

[Gee]

1983 Compaq unit. Couldn't find a price but I'm would guess it was around $8,000. "Designed to fit under a standard airline seat". I dragged around similar units to this... my shoulders ache just thinking about it.

http://www.asktech.ca/Compaq1983Portable.jpg

The sad thing is, I remember those units. They had a 6" green monochrome screen, the keyboard folds down and there was two large shugart drives.

The luggable, $8000 sounds about right. I think I had 512k RAM on mine.

[Montague]

The real funny thing is that even after over twenty years it STILL works! :lol:

[CodecX81]

Ahh 1983 marketing ploys..

anyone else think they wrongly used the word 'persons' ? and then did it over-and over again.

[willy]

Oh, everybody loves that "Reset" button on the upper right corner of the Apple ][ computers. I personally think it plays a major role to the existence of our current "Ctrl-Alt-Del" magic combination !!

[willy]

History of Intel's CPU .... http://cpu-museum.de/?m=Intel

[GreenWeenie]

Wonder if we can get a PM on the US$180 HiRez 300dpi mouse?
http://asktech.ca/logitechhirezmouse-byte8807b.jpg

[Montague]

Oh, everybody loves that "Reset" button on the upper right corner of the Apple ][ computers. I personally think it plays a major role to the existence of our current "Ctrl-Alt-Del" magic combination !!
That is what I hated about the C64.

No reset button.

Too cheap to put one in!

Still apparently Commodore sold a ***load of these machines.

[GreenWeenie]

The sad thing is, I remember those units. They had a 6" green monochrome screen, the keyboard folds down and there was two large shugart drives.

The luggable, $8000 sounds about right. I think I had 512k RAM on mine.Nightmares for us both!
http://asktech.ca/Compaq1983Portable2.jpg

[willy]

Please post pics of :

1. MS Word v1.x
2. Lotus 1-2-3
3. dBase
4. MS Windows v1.x (Man, I remember I used my joystick as a mouse, it fitted on 5 floppies !)

[Gee]

IBM definitely borrowed a page from Wozniak when they came up with CTRL-ALT-Del

Apple used Ctrl-Reset

I paid $3600 for my first Apple ][ Plus, it had 64k, I then spent an additional

$300 - 300 Baud Internal Modem
$80 - Z80 Card (CP/M Emulator)
$80 - Hayes Joystick

Ah, the good old days.

Spent hours playing Miner 2049er, Lode Runner, Jumpman and who can forget classics like Dung Beetles, Zaxxon, Choplifter, Karateka.

Anyone one remember WordStar or Magic Windows?

[willy]

Apple used Ctrl-Reset
Hee hee ... that's already the 'improved' version ... It was originally just "Reset" ... People hit it 3 times a day 'by accident' ...


Anyone one remember WordStar or Magic Windows?
Believe it or not, I am still customizing my text editor with the WordStar keystrokes .... Ctrl-K D, Ctrl-K Q ....

[Montague]

Spent hours playing Miner 2049er, Lode Runner, Jumpman and who can forget classics like Dung Beetles, Zaxxon, Choplifter, Karateka.

Anyone one remember WordStar or Magic Windows?

Yeah real classics.

Remember Archon or or Bards Tale or Ultima I or II or III or....

[mahjongmaniac]

Wonder if we can get a PM on the US$180 HiRez 300dpi mouse?
http://asktech.ca/logitechhirezmouse-byte8807b.jpg

lol.. i remember these mouses....

they sure are ancient.... lol

[GreenWeenie]

Hee hee ... that's already the 'improved' version ... It was originally just "Reset" ... People hit it 3 times a day 'by accident' ...


Believe it or not, I am still customizing my text editor with the WordStar keystrokes .... Ctrl-K D, Ctrl-K Q ....XyWrite put them all to shame...

[Gee]

Please post pics of :

1. MS Word v1.x
2. Lotus 1-2-3
3. dBase
4. MS Windows v1.x (Man, I remember I used my joystick as a mouse, it fitted on 5 floppies !)

Forget Pictures. I still have original copies of

IBM DOS 3.3
MS DOS 2.0
MS DOS 5.0
MS DOS 6.0
Windows 1.0 on five 5.25 Floppies

I paid $110 for a Genius 3 button mouse just to use Windows 1.0. This mouse had four ball bearings on each corner of the mouse to help the track ball.

The mouse lasted less than 3 months and then I had to get a new one. I actually bought a LogiTech Hi-Res Mouse. 300 DPI. It was the greatest.

[GreenWeenie]

Sooooo many wasted hours ....
http://www.asktech.ca/flightsimulator3-byte8812.jpg

[willy]

MS Windows v1.x brought back some good memories .... I was one of the first students in my class to hand in homework in non fixed-size 9-pin printer 'font'. I managed to type it in "Write" (WYSIWYG, baby !!) and printed it out in proportional fonts (as graphics) with my sloooooooowwwww 9-pin printer !

[Gee]

Hee hee ... that's already the 'improved' version ... It was originally just "Reset" ... People hit it 3 times a day 'by accident' ...


Believe it or not, I am still customizing my text editor with the WordStar keystrokes .... Ctrl-K D, Ctrl-K Q ....

Which Text Editor are you using that allows you to customize keys?

Has anyone heard of PTE (Professional Text Engine). This was an editor on an Amiga. It was never sold on the PC, but I knew the author and he made a special port for me. Probably the best text editor in existance. Fully customizable. It allows you to highlight a block of text (even if it is in the middle of the screen) and then edit just the block. I have yet to see any modern text editor that allows such a feature.

[GreenWeenie]

MS Windows v1.x brought back some good memories .... I was one of the first students in my class to hand in homework in non fixed-size 9-pin printer 'font'. I managed to type it in "Write" (WYSIWYG, baby !!) and printed it out in proportional fonts (as graphics) with my sloooooooowwwww 9-pin printer !hehehehe pretty sure I still have my epson 9pin kicking around. Put it into HQ mode and get 1 page per 10 minutes LOL
BBzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz..... Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.... drove my wife crazy as I printed out assignments LOL

I still have an original LaserJet (not a III ... or a II... or a Plus.... just ... LaserJet). Plugged it in and watched all the house lights go diiiiiiiiim. Could heat a small apartment with it :D

[willy]

Which Text Editor are you using that allows you to customize keys?
I am still using it everyday for DOS-mode editing .... Qedit Advance v2.15 (by SemWare - August 1991, 46KB in size) http://www.dolnetwork.com/RFD/smilies/embarass.gif


Has anyone heard of PTE (Professional Text Engine). This was an editor on an Amiga. It was never sold on the PC, but I knew the author and he made a special port for me. Probably the best text editor in existance. Fully customizable. It allows you to highlight a block of text (even if it is in the middle of the screen) and then edit just the block. I have yet to see any modern text editor that allows such a feature.
I think 'block edit' is possible in TextPad ...

[Gee]

hehehehe pretty sure I still have my epson 9pin kicking around. Put it into HQ mode and get 1 page per 10 minutes LOL
BBzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz..... Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.... drove my wife crazy as I printed out assignments LOL

I still have an original LaserJet (not a III ... or a II... or a Plus.... just ... LaserJet). Plugged it in and watched all the house lights go diiiiiiiiim. Could heat a small apartment with it :D

I couldn't afford an Epson. I had to get the Roland 1010. My first printer, 9 pin no LQ mode. Great printer, got me thru high school.

My first laser was a LaserJet II, solid printer. Still kicking. I have had almost every laser HP released. But the original Laserjet and the Laserjet II were built like a tank. The Laserjet III started using cheaper plastics.

My Laser Printer Includes

Laserjet II
Laserjet III
Laserjet 4M
Laserjet 4050 (my current printer)

[GreenWeenie]

Please post pics of :

1. MS Word v1.x
2. Lotus 1-2-3
3. dBase
4. MS Windows v1.x (Man, I remember I used my joystick as a mouse, it fitted on 5 floppies !)Oh man ... I'm in heaven ... this is a swweeett site!! The 20th Century Software Preservation Archive (http://www.tspa.org/archives.html)
It has them all !!!

Lotus v2...
http://www.tspa.org/images/ss/dos/lotus-123-r2.gif

dBase iii
http://www.tspa.org/images/ss/dos/dbase-iii-plus10.gif

[willy]

http://www.tspa.org/images/ss/win1x2x3x/ms-windows101.gif

http://www.dolnetwork.com/RFD/smilies/love1.gif

[Gee]

I am still using it everyday for DOS-mode editing .... Qedit Advance v2.15 (by SemWare - August 1991, 46KB in size) http://www.dolnetwork.com/RFD/smilies/embarass.gif


I think 'block edit' is possible in TextPad ...

I remember Qedit. I never liked that editor, I still use Norton Commander as my DOS Shell and the build in editor in DOS. There is a clone of Norton Commander called Far, in fact it looks identical.

But Qedit reminds me of Procomm Plus and Telix.

[GreenWeenie]

But Qedit reminds me of Procomm Plus and Telix.LMAO ... some of the earliest BBS arguments I remember were centered on the merits and problems of those two! (Everyone knew Telix rocked, and Procomm sucked)

[willy]

I remember Qedit. I never liked that editor, I still use Norton Commander as my DOS Shell and the build in editor in DOS. There is a clone of Norton Commander called Far, in fact it looks identical.

But Qedit reminds me of Procomm Plus and Telix.
Procomm Plus was excellent .... I used it for all the BBSing, with the exception of dialing in to school (due to its horrible VT100 emulation) ...

Who cares about BT http://www.dolnetwork.com/RFD/smilies/hehehe.gif ... Downloaded stuff via Xmodem, Ymodem, Kermit, Zmodem (outstanding "sliding windows" technology) .....

[Gee]

LMAO ... some of the earliest BBS arguments I remember were centered on the merits and problems of those two! (Everyone knew Telix rocked, and Procomm sucked)

Everyone used Procomm, because it was the only one available. Then some Canadian from Scarborough came out with Telix and it blew it away. I still have a copy of Telix on my current computer just in case I need a DOS terminal emulator. Telix 3.12 the last released version.

Procomm is still a commercial product being sold today. But for my money, I would rather use SecureCRT.

[GreenWeenie]

Ahhhh memories. You want me to buy terminal software AND then license the download protocol????? But the resume and CRC features were worth it...

http://www.telix.com/delta/deltacom/tfd/tfdcap1.gif

[Gee]

Ahhhh memories. You want me to buy terminal software AND then license the download protocol????? But the resume and CRC features were worth it...

http://www.telix.com/delta/deltacom/tfd/tfdcap1.gif

I don't recall my Telix screen being in colour. I remember, I was still using a monochrome screen with an ATI card to emulate CGA.

I though I was old. But I am glad to see there are a few of us that remember the early days, when there was no Windows and DOS ruled the world.

[AudiDude]

If you love old computers or are just curious go here: http://old-computers.com/news/default.asp

[Gee]

If you love old computers or are just curious go here: http://old-computers.com/news/default.asp

I don't think that any of us like old computers. We are just being nostalgic.

[GreenWeenie]

I don't recall my Telix screen being in colour. I remember, I was still using a monochrome screen with an ATI card to emulate CGA.

I though I was old. But I am glad to see there are a few of us that remember the early days, when there was no Windows and DOS ruled the world.I'm still in denial... the calendar says soon to be 40, but I'm still feeling 29.... ok ... and acting that way too :)

Then I look at my 14 year old daughter and friends and realize ... ... oohhh geeezzz.

One of the things that still bugs me ... version numbering.
(old man mode on) I Remember When version numbers meant something!! Major updates incremented the units digit... minor updates got a .1 update ... bug fixes got .01 ... .. . Microsoft Marketing put that ta hell :(
That was the way it was And We Liked It!

[manixc]

I didn't realize there are so many old people on RFD
I'm as old as the COMPAQ in the first ad :D

[Gee]

I'm still in denial... the calendar says soon to be 40, but I'm still feeling 29.... ok ... and acting that way too :)

Then I look at my 14 year old daughter and friends and realize ... ... oohhh geeezzz.

One of the things that still bugs me ... version numbering.
(old man mode on) I Remember When version numbers meant something!! Major updates incremented the units digit... minor updates got a .1 update ... bug fixes got .01 ... .. . Microsoft Marketing put that ta hell :(
That was the way it was And We Liked It!

Microsoft put it to hell alright. The did away with the version number completely. Now they just use a code name. ie. Longhorn

Minor updates are called service packs
bug fixes are called security patches

Go figure.

[GreenWeenie]

I dragged one of these back and forth on the GO Train for a year ...
25lbs super lightweight.
386/20 with 2mb RAM 40mb HD
$12,000 - $14,000 US in 1987
http://old-computers.com/museum/photos/Compaq_Portable386_Running_s1.jpg

[Gee]

I dragged one of these back and forth on the GO Train for a year ...
25lbs super lightweight.
386/20 with 2mb RAM 40mb HD
$12,000 - $14,000 US in 1987
http://old-computers.com/museum/photos/Compaq_Portable386_Running_s1.jpg

I am still using the original keyboard that came with my IBM AT, that I purchased in 1985. I have not found a keyboard that comes close to the feel of the original IBM keyboard. Works great use an AT to PS2 adapter to connect to current generation of computers. Who needs a Windows Key?

Tried the Northgate (Focus) Keyboards and they are not even close.

[GreenWeenie]

I am still using the original keyboard that came with my IBM AT, that I purchased in 1985. I have not found a keyboard that comes close to the feel of the original IBM keyboard. Works great use an AT to PS2 adapter to connect to current generation of computers. Who needs a Windows Key?

Tried the Northgate (Focus) Keyboards and they are not even close.Those were absolute workhorses. And ... who needed a gym to workout? I swear I could get my heartrate into it's target zone just from effort required to pound on that keyboard LOL

A misplaced cup of coffee killed mine way back in the days of Wolfenstien

[P__S__2]

wow...makes me really think how we've changed so much and only in the timeline of 20-25 years. wow is all i gotta say.

[GreenWeenie]

wow...makes me really think how we've changed so much and only in the timeline of 20-25 years. wow is all i gotta say.The trend was the same for the 20-25 years before 1980. We had more power in the desktop computers of the 80s than NASA had in the 60s to send Apollo missions to the moon. And what has NASA done with it?? :mad: Looped and looped and loooped around earth. But that is another thread for another forum....

[computer01]

The trend was the same for the 20-25 years before 1980. We had more power in the desktop computers of the 80s than NASA had in the 60s to send Apollo missions to the moon. And what has NASA done with it?? :mad: Looped and looped and loooped around earth. But that is another thread for another forum....

That has more to do with determination than computing power though.

[Daboss]

http://s94919826.onlinehome.us/Expensive%20Computer.jpg

It's "lightning fast"!!! (Monitor and mouse not included)

I actually owned this computer. I remember I paid like $1000 for a 5MB harddrive (or something like that) upgrade when they came out as well.

[Gee]

Those were absolute workhorses. And ... who needed a gym to workout? I swear I could get my heartrate into it's target zone just from effort required to pound on that keyboard LOL

A misplaced cup of coffee killed mine way back in the days of Wolfenstien

I actually stock piled a few of these keyboards. They are still the best. You can remap any key physically by removing the key caps.

Too bad IBM stopped manufacturing these. I would still buy one today if they sold them, but they would probably cost $300.

I remember Wolfenstein. But the version I played was on my Apple ][. It was not the 3D version that was eventually released on the PC. The Apple version was good, it got your heart rate going, especially when the SS appeared. Tick tick tick

[Headhunter]

Wow, I bow to all the masters of computing around me...

Started using an Apple IIe in 1987 or so, haven't looked back since. No interesting stories of old computers or blowing huge dollars on enormous "laptops", just an avid user for nearly 2 decades. :)

[Gee]

Wow, I bow to all the masters of computing around me...

Started using an Apple IIe in 1987 or so, haven't looked back since. No interesting stories of old computers or blowing huge dollars on enormous "laptops", just an avid user for nearly 2 decades. :)

I purchased my Apple ][ Plus back in 81, by 1987, I was using an IBM 8 MHz 286 with 1 Meg RAM, 640 + 384 Extended. That is how I got my IBM Keyboard. I purcahsed an original IBM AT for $8,600. It had a 40 Meg MFM Hard Drive, and back then, you could cheat and get a WD or Adaptec RLL controller and convert the 40 Meg to 60 Meg. Didn't work for every drive. Mainly MiniScribes.

But my first PC was purchased in 84, it was an IBM 4.77 MHz XT.

Now that I think about it, I wished I had saved all the money I wasted on computers. I could probably purchase a small island.

[steve.m]

ancient commodore commercials on the link. I still have my c64 in a closet somewhere. My vic 20 should be somewhere around my house too.

http://www.commodorebillboard.de/Main/Index2.htm

[Gee]

ancient commodore commercials on the link. I still have my c64 in a closet somewhere. My vic 20 should be somewhere around my house too.

http://www.commodorebillboard.de/Main/Index2.htm

I never got into the Commodore 64. Never liked it. Prefered the Apple ][.

However, my first computer ever was a Commodore Pet, Fat 40 with tape drive and I did get a Vic 20. If I recalled, it had 5k total. The Pet had 32k.

Wanted to buy a Timex Sinclair too, but never got around to it.