ECN Forum Forums Technical Discussion Re: Computers and the Internet Dude, we're gettin' a Dell ...

Bill, Al,
Yes, because I can! The last time I used a CP/M system must have been around 1987, so I thought it would be fun to "play around" with one of these old systems again. For simple accounts, word-processing and so on, these old systems are still very capable.

Trumpy,
Is your system the Osborne 1 ?

The Osborne portable systems were Z80-based running CP/M as well, so they're not limited to just the BASIC language. There is a huge range of old CP/M software available on the internet now for free.

The very small screen is, on my opinion, the biggest problem with the Osborne series. The Heath H89 et al had a decent size screen.


[This message has been edited by pauluk (edited 04-25-2003).]

I have several full-height 20MB drives here from old IBM AT systems. If I could sell them for the original purchase price, I'd be rich!

Paul,
Are you married?, because if my fiancee saw anything in the way of stuff that she didn't know what it was, it would end up in the rubbish.
I lost a 2-metre Transciever(hand-held) and a VOX kit I was working on at the time.
Oh well, I don't suppose that will happen again, considering I am married to a different woman!.

Paul,
You are a Gold Mine, mate, I just saw a pic of my Osborne.
Can't really do a lot with it, these days, although it's good for writing PLC Ladders, I just download it straight into my PC at home via a RS232 link that I fitted to it some years ago.
It's just like a lap-top, but it's not, I can write programs into it and take them out later, if it wasn't for that feature, it would have found the scrap-heap a lot sooner than it has!.

Bill, Paul,

Even as exciting as the ever quickening pace of hard- and soft-ware advancement is, especially as I use it in work and at home, I have been struck repeatedly by nostalgia for old systems.

I visited the Boston Computer Museum back in '92. I stumbled across an IBM card punch machine stuck off in the corner of the second floor. The punch was a hands on display with stacks of cards available to play with. Having spent countless hours at these desk like machines as a college engineering student, I immediately sat to it and ran off a few cards. I was bowled over by the sound the machine made. . .!!! It unlocked a flood of memories.

The closing of the driver's door on a '54 Ford four door sedan (first car I ever drove) ranks in the same league.

Speaking of the Dell Dude...

TG,

I saw something about that on TV.
It looks like He blew a good paying gig.

Nope -- Single & no kids, so stuff pretty much stays where I put it. Well, small parts sometimes disappear off edges thanks
to my cat

Now if you have anyone in mind to rectify the single status, just let me know!

Paul,
Sorry I never saw your question above about the Osborn.
Yes it is the Osborn 1, with it's 4MHz clock and 64KB of RAM.
Haven't wound it up for ages.
I also had an Amiga 500 for a few years,
I used it hooked up to a MIDI keyboard and used it as a sequencer when I was playing in a band.
Ahh, the 80's eh?.
Apparently these computers are still used for this very purpose and they will still run with up-to-the minute Synthesizers.

How fun it is to open a box and pull out a completely new machine (or open many boxes and assemble a new machine)! Haven't done this for so long, I forget what that feels like!

My Wife will be getting a new PC at the end of June, as part of her Voc. Rehab Career Course. It will be a "mid-sized" PIV (Pentium 4) based machine with a few nice bells and whistles attached. 17" monitor, run of the mill keyboard and mouse, but no printer.

Package deal from Gateway (the school switched back to Gateway after experiencing some unsolvable headaches with Dell... so I have heard...).

When we set it up, I'll let everyone know the stats of it (speed, DRAM type and size, peripherals, adapters, etc.).

It will most likely have Windows XP, so now I need to learn all the tweaks and guts of XP!

Does XP work well for anyone here? What incompatabilities have you experienced? What makes it a better O/S than any of the 9X series? Is it more or less stable across multiple machine setups? (how many GPFs, IPFs and lockups are experienced after adding new software or hardware).

Does XP get along well with Windows 2000? I may take off into the Windows 2000 Pro / Server angle sometime soon (before the next ice age to be exact! ...).

Gotta go.

Scott