First post, by jxalex
I mean that do you do anything else than games? How are you trying to have more applications to run on the retro machines thus getting more use of them.
DOS 7.1 on the 486DX-4 100MHz:
TCP-IP stack - ftp, ssh, telnet, lynx
cd-burning cdripping and mkisofs tools
EPROM programmer, SRAM dump-reader, reverse engineering other hardware
Fasttracker 2.08 and 2.09, using it for arranging with hardware synths via midi port.
and several module players and demoscene musicdiscs
viewer player programs: mpxplay, qview, cubic player (thus missing the recording programs)
also the drive mapping is with the NFS to linux machine
the only things which scream for a more sophisticated www browsers are the pseudosocial networks which render the web-browsers useless which were perfect for a times back then.
Also perhaps it is my age --- 39
And some thoughts...
0. all the trouble with current systems is that it is after couple years obsolete and there will be a force for upgrade/abandon. But obsolete systems have benefit as they are constantly the same!
All becouse those are big corporations with many many programmers. They do it for the money, not becouse of passion. They do not use it. If they would rent the system, then it is not developed such buy-and-abandon way. They rather make the resistance for compatibility instead of encouraging it. It is ridiculous and very user violent.
Becouse just if YOU, as a person, make programs or hardware for YOURSELF, then you do make it in the thought that you use it so long as you can. Never in a thought that it should be "updated" after a year or abandoned and such, becouse it is waste of time and impractical. Right? But how much of the consumers ever ever think about it while just buying and throwing away, but never ever programming any line or soldering a wire?
Also the hardware of the modern current PCs are much more not so easily accessible for development as a private person with limited ressources even for the small project!
So, it is certainly beneficial to develop the things in focus for OLD systems, not for a contemporary ones.
Usually the "do-it-yourself" things on some countries (sweden) is rendered to be like a parody, very limited, expensive, impractical and mighty-one-forbid-that if it can be practical for you or you should get any money for it... 😁
In fact I had in the past dream that I just buy computer once in a lifetime, just like on those days it was the trendy thing to build yourself a homecomputer from discrete components and FDD disc controllers too! Of course it takes time, and the attitude is different then...
1. why to have on the messy webpages, while on the oldfashioned ftp should be more than enough? NO need to design and design again the same webpage while the contents is the same messy. Also the same websites just render their webpages much clumsier which require newer and newer browser.
2. also why people go to the fuckbooks and 1001 pseudosocial networks to write the same things which were done the same way on mail listings?
3. what for all such race for newer versions while it is clear that the main function does not change, but the compatibility is sacrificed instead? (well for example the skype worked on the win98se until 2013 after the M$ bought it. then it was screwed).
4. at the work on ancient times .... It can be compatible for old hardware, however I was resisted for this. mostly I heard -- the PHB says "no. do not compile this for to run on older systems".
5. despite the big corporations scream that this and that is obsolete, just after the time the software for DOS came too. Like CD writing for dos. Video players for dos. etc. So there is no problem. We all should ignore the corporations hype about being "newer".
There are still zillions of the programs which are the same but they are compiled with requirement for the latest M$ platform only, while there is no point for that. Also hey... how many years THEY can come to the market with the "new" version of the shitty text editor software? 25 years should be ridiculously long time while there is not so much point to open that m$ word to write down couple notes, as dos EDIT should be more than enough.
While in the university I was still keen on sticking on the old system (dos and win3x), while the win98se was out (the processors were 300Mhz), also the main question to me was "what games you have?", But, rather than just games, I used my computer for anything other usual tasks (under the dos and win3x) what the other people did the exactly the same way under win98se instead, except the some uncommon things, which required Sun Sparcstation anyway. 😉
Actually I managed to do that -- to keep running only using win3x and DOS on the 450MHz pentium -- until 2003 becouse there was always ONLY ONE PROGRAM in a time which screamed for a "newer" windows version or hardware or its drivers were requiring that, but in time I always happened to find a alternative program versions and hardware models which worked to my system for win3x, run on the dos. At the same time on the 486 there were some older stuff. The "upgrade" would meant the compatibility programs with other DOS programs, clumsier slower interface on whatever CPU it was. In fact the all the huge number windows versions from win95 and win98 has always been in my eyes very clumsy and they are still clumsy on the GHz cpu systems.
Also I could not run everything on the Pentium, becouse some programs complained about problems, thus the need for 2 machines -- 486 and Pentium III.
So far I have also kept the habit of keeping the same old computers such way, but also the new ones have been added, but in a fashion that the youngest one is 10 years old among the 9 PCs and have managed to get along with necessities and to avoid those forced upgrades.
For music making I still do use now the Pentium IV with win98se, and the last thing is on the Mandriva 2009 . however sometimes I kickstart that winxp machine too as a last resort. Its painfully uncomfortable system. But the last thing in the world we require is that something which is needed to do can be done ONLY through internet, which requires this latest browser, which requires this M$ thing, which requires even newest computer.
In a one way it is pretty relaxing -- I never have troublesome thoughts about being compatible or something is out of date or whatever.. becouse I prefer old hardware and programs already and avoid those new "trends" and "surveys" which try to establish and leech themself. 😁 😁
I do create blogs, but instead of putting up them in a fuckbook and other pseudosocial networks like the people do, I write to myself in a computer.
Also I do music, but with a hardware which I can touch, not just a one program in computer.
... and so on.
well it is not "trendy", but all those "trends" and "mainstream" are pressurized by corporations with huge $$$ and £££ and it is THEIR decision what is trendy and what is not, what is mainstream and what is obsolete. And if thats so then flush that!
It is better to do things of my own, not "trendy" things are these activities, but it is something what is ME MYSELF , personally LIKE it. It is MY decision, it makes me feel alright and I am lucky with this. It is freedom. Then THIS is all what counts. fuck that win10 and all newer versions!
However, we all here do the thing like that and not just me myself I suppose. Quite a long time by now You too. Right?
so go go go on retro computer fans! 😀
So, your manifestation about retro computers and how and what for you use them?
Current project: DOS ISA soundcard with 24bit/96Khz digital I/O, SB16 compatible switchable.
newly made SB-clone ...with 24bit and AES/EBU... join in development!