Re: Then and Now

["Bob La Londe" <none@xxxxxxxxxx>]

"ABLE1" <someone@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:9v1ty.326537$QG6.216776@xxxxxxxxxxx
> On 2/4/2016 3:08 PM, Bob La Londe wrote:
>>> Customer of mine has n his keychain a memory chip that one time costs
>>> $25,000 for a main frame computer of course worth nothing now
>>
>> I remember back in my early PC days when I was just a computer geek and
>> computer geeks weren't cool...  The owner of a local computer store used
>> to
>> keep all his latest generation loose computer memory in a large fanny
>> pack
>> on his body at all times in the store.  Now I have single memory chips
>> laying on shelves and falling on the floor that are larger than every
>> piece
>> of memory he owned combined back then.
>>
>>
>>
>
> LOL You guys are really messing around with some antique memories.
>
> When I bought my first "computer" I got it on a 30 day trial period.  It
> was called the "Timex Sinclair 1000" and it had on board 2k of that memory
> stuff.  Price tag was $99 as I remember.  I opted to get the extra 16K
> added memory module for an additional $39.00.  What a bargain that
> was..................
>
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timex_Sinclair_1000


Way back when I wanted a Timex Sincalir 1000.  It was one of the first
portables.  It wouldn't have been my first though.  I started with a
Commodore Pet 2001.  I learned BASIC and file handling on that machine with
its manually started and stopped onboard cassette deck.  Do you remember
Squiggle?  I copied the program out of the manual and studied how it worked
to learn to write BASIC.  Then we moved on to a Heathkit H89a with a Z80
micro processor and actualy floppy drives.  We thought we were the kings of
computing when we got a double sided floppy.  We talked about getting a
Winchester drive like it was the Holy Grail.  I wrote some simple game
program on that computer.  A numeric version of Mastermind.  Black jack
against the computer based on a single deck.  Strictly text based.

In 1980 I got to play with an HP9825a.  It was the first time I got to play
with anything that had real math functions and A PLOTTER.  I made tons of
pretty graphs with it, and wrote a simple high speed memory game.  That was
a stretch with its single line text display.

I didn't get into video game writing until 1981 when I got access to some
Apple II+ computers in my senior year in high school.  I think every guy in
the class wrote his own version of Space Invaders or Pong.  I wrote a text
based DND style game on it too.  I used a array storage file on a floppy to
mimic a map, and got it stuck in a loop doing random disc access.  Smoke
poured out of that one.  It was the first time I managed to damage hardware
with software, but it wasn't the first time I saw smoke in conjunction with
computing.

In 197X I was coding madly on the H89a to write a poker game.  Back then I
could holds all the variables in my head.  I'ld been writing code for about
9 hours straight when I heard this huge pop and flames shot up the wall in
my folks kitchen.  My dad said I did a back flip out of my chair, but I
don't believe it.  APS had dropped a leg across a wire somewhere and we were
taking a few hundred more volts into the house than we should have.  The
surge suppressor plugged into the wall exploded and burst into flames.





> Just checked on eBay and there are a bunch up for auction or buy it now.
> Amazing!!
>
> Ended up returning it and got my money back.
> Then I went out and bought a real computer...... the Atari 400. LOL
>
> Adding to my memoirs, I had taught myself on the Timex how to write a
> basic language program to generate a 3 digit random number.  On a Thursday
> night I was on the phone with my Dad and explaining about this "computer"
> thing I had.  He said, what does that thing do??
> I tried to explain but he was not getting it.  I said that I wrote this
> program that can generate a 3 digit number............. you know Dad, like
> the lottery.  I will run it and will see what comes up.  I did and the
> number was 272.  I said, the computer says 272, so when you buy your
> lottery tickets(which was every week) play 272.  He said, OK and we
> shortly hung up the phone.
>
> Needless to say on Saturday night at 7pm I decided to watch the Lottery
> drawing on TV.
> The machine was running then the balls came up......... 2  .......  7
> ....... 2
> I freaked out and called by Dad right away.  I said, YOU WON!!  The number
> came up.




>
> There was a long silence......................
> He said, "I didn't buy any tickets, I forgot".
>
> WHAT?!?!?!
>
> He was kicking himself for a long time after that.
>
> BTW if you feel that this is a fabricated story you would be wrong.
> Totally true.
>
> Dang it, the memories are still in the gray matter.  SCARY, very Scary.
>
> Later,
>
> Les
>
>
>