The Sinclair QL Forum

I was trying to explain this passion to my colleagues, all of whom are at least 10 years younger than me, some of whom were born around the time I started working in IT (NatWest Bank, coding in RPG/400 on an IBM AS/400 minicomputer, since you ask )

They don't get it. The ones closest in age to me might fondly remember an Amiga or a SNES, but if so it's for the games and really mostly it's just blank looks. Or pitying ones

And these colleagues are all developers and devops people!

Anyway, by chance, I stumbled across this article whilst researching how to put CP/M onto a Raspberry Pi Pico (as you do): https://kevinboone.me/retrocomputing.html

I thought it might resonate with a few people here.

Sparrowhawk wrote:I was trying to explain this passion to my colleagues, all of whom are at least 10 years younger than me, some of whom were born around the time I started working in IT (NatWest Bank, coding in RPG/400 on an IBM AS/400 minicomputer, since you ask )

They don't get it. The ones closest in age to me might fondly remember an Amiga or a SNES, but if so it's for the games and really mostly it's just blank looks. Or pitying ones

And these colleagues are all developers and devops people!

Anyway, by chance, I stumbled across this article whilst researching how to put CP/M onto a Raspberry Pi Pico (as you do): https://kevinboone.me/retrocomputing.html

I thought it might resonate with a few people here.

Interesting article.

I largely gave up trying to explain the attractions of retro-computing years ago.

The topic could also be:

Why the love of retro (classic) cars?
Ditto, for motorbikes.
Furniture.
Antiques.
Clothes.
Art.
Etc.

In a few years, these guys and gals will have their own retro stuff to love, I suspect.

Cheers,
Norm.

NormanDunbar wrote:The topic could also be:

Why the love of retro (classic) cars?
Ditto, for motorbikes.
Furniture.
Antiques.
Clothes.
Art.
Etc.

In a few years, these guys and gals will have their own retro stuff to love, I suspect.

Cheers,
Norm.

Don't be so sure - it seems like a society of now - and not wanting to acknowledge, learn from or respect anything from the past.

Talking to a few 'younger' friends - it seems they are more interested in the future and find no value in things gone by, somehow feeling captive to what it represents. I feel we are doomed to repeat several things we should have learnt from in the past.

Sparrowhawk wrote:They don't get it.

Neither do I and I am an oldie. The list Norm gives is understandable in that things are restored to how they were but wasting time developing on old processors seems bizarre to me. I would like to see an efficient old operating system run on modern processors to show how idiotic things have become with modern software. As the article says he only knows a tiny amount of the software out there but what is the point in it all? Most systems run far slower to the point where they are now advertising the virtue that a computer turning on faster than a comedian (bill bailey) can be lowered to the ground from a platform at a very slow rate, it is just ridiculous. A QL would start up before he stepped off. Young people need to see the ludicrous state of commercialism that has destroyed progress by making massive software to slow down millions of transistors so you buy a new computer. We could all have parallel super computers at home if the Transputer idea hadn't been bought up and squashed is my view. I have been dreaming of a simple OS on a GHz processor just imagine the speed. Could it be done?

Ah, but you see, I love the Muppets too !

Sparrowhawk wrote:Ah, but you see, I love the Muppets too !

You have just gone down in my estimation...

dilwyn wrote:

Sparrowhawk wrote:Ah, but you see, I love the Muppets too !

You have just gone down in my estimation...

It was my childhood, what can I say?

Ruptor wrote: need to see the ludicrous state of commercialism that has destroyed progress by making massive software to slow down millions of transistors so you buy a new computer.

So true!