Old iron redux
My first real computer qualifies as a classic. A true antique. Almost steam punk. And so, today, as part of the decision tree, I lugged it upstairs and plugged it in. Wiggled the wires, a bit. Did a “warm boot”, a couple of times. And booted, from a diskette.
Magic! As in: “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” – Arthur C. Clarke
Back in ’83, when my order was placed from the back pages of the Globe and Mail, I didn’t imagine that the same (expensive) machine might still prove functional (useful is for another debate). After all, the manifest showed a 2 MHz processor, matched with 64 K of RAM. Two floppy drives (to which I added a third; I’m a bear for extra storage capacity). A trendy monochrome display, over 20 cm on the diagonal. A weight that staggers the modern imagination… just less than 13 Kg. Portable, as long as you had nothing else to carry.
The program that I adapted from an Adam Green text, to “run the residence” still works, and the last data set (from the summer of ’88) is still there. Intact. A credit to proper design and a dab of patience. The password (I still remembered!) took my into the maintenance section, just like the good old days. There are a few other diskettes around here; this machine might prove invaluable, should the ultimate virus wipe out our Win and OSX world. Linux…
Seriously, I’m happy to see things like this, still working. In a world of “just throw it away”, at least one device has crossed that Y2K divide.
