A warm memory
Nelson: Hey, I’m sure it’s just a phase. Like when I use to stand on the overpass and drop computers on the freeway.
Marge: That’s how we got our Kaypro!
I feel like I’ve had a poke from the past. A warm feeling floods through my fingertips as I remember the best computer in the world: my Kaypro. The warm boot. The three diskette drives, which gave me close to 1 megabyte of online storage. CP/M. Not DOS. No copy… we could PIP.
Back in 1983, I gave up my computer free existence and purchased a Kaypro II. There was no dealer close to the Island, so I purchased the Wednesday copy of the Globe and Mail and shopped, like a true compulsive, until I finally sent a certified cheque to an address in an industrial park near Toronto. My Kaypro, for only $2395 plus shipping.
Here: a picture of my “first”.
I have devoted my working life to the cult of the micro, but the first always holds a special place in the heart. In fact, “she” is still around the house, protected from sudden drafts and untimely dog attacks. Her name is Sassafras (Jerry Pournelle said in a BYTE column that any machine that took up such a place in our lives definitely deserved a name). Her two hundred diskettes (5.25 inch form factor) are stored carefully, and she even did a TELNET session several years ago at 2400 baud. Bliss, if not highly effective. She is not plagued by mice or dongles or any other silliness. Eight inch screens ARE big enough!
I spent a long winter of all night sessions learning to code in that high level language, dBASE II, and the limitations constraints taught me to problem solve in a way that those newfangled languages like Turbo PASCAL never could. The guidance of Adam Green was priceless. I put together a “turnkey package” that we used to control summer student files in Bernadine Hall over a five year period.
I also played Adventure: 550 points of exploration on the Colossal Caves, on the road to Wit’s End.
