Re: What retro computing gadget that doesn't exist would you like to have?

Posted on 2014-09-29, 15:04

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by snorg

in Milliways

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Things we will never see eh? Probably a 4:3 aspect ratio OLED monitor that has perfect CRT emulation. Otherwise I'd love to see a Mini ITX (or smaller) Pentium III mobo (440BX) with integrated Sound Blaster 16 and Roland LAPC-1 chipsets. Extra points for mSATA support as IDE, and a BIOS level .ISO …

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Re: What retro computing gadget that doesn't exist would you like to have?

Posted on 2014-09-29, 14:59

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by snorg

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What retro computing gadget/board that doesn't currently exist would you like to have, if you could have any sort of gadget built? My vote would be for a combo RAM/EMS board or maybe vga/sound combo card that would be 8/16 bit switchable. Switchable 8/16 EMS RAM boards exist. There is an ET4000AX/ …

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Re: Thinking about getting Rocksmith. Guitar suggestions welcome

Posted on 2014-09-29, 03:12

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by snorg

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I wouldn't even bother with pawn shops, TBH. For what you'd spend at a pawn shop, for a bit more you can get an entry level Ibanez or Fender. You can skip the amp or get a $50 practice amp. It will get plenty loud to piss off your neighbors, trust me. You don't need much more than that, unless you …

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What retro computing gadget that doesn't exist would you like to have?

Posted on 2014-09-28, 03:44

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by snorg

in Milliways

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What retro computing gadget/board that doesn't currently exist would you like to have, if you could have any sort of gadget built? My vote would be for a combo RAM/EMS board or maybe vga/sound combo card that would be 8/16 bit switchable.

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Re: [Let's go wild] What is your dream computer speaker setup?

Posted on 2014-09-27, 01:51

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by snorg

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I just found my dream workshop music setup. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ShUVe-dtSM Dear god that setup just looks and sounds amazing. Imagine having all of the old consoles and a DOS rig hooked up to that. As well as laserdisc player, turntable, and of course a mini pc and DAC for FLAC …

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Re: What was the purpose of a 3D-accelerated graphics card on a 486?

Posted on 2014-09-27, 01:24

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by snorg

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

Sorry, didn't mean to derail the thread. As far as games, GL Quake and Tomb Raider are the only ones I can think of off the top of my head that might run acceptably with a 3d accelerator. Someone else mentioned Descent I/II but I thought that used a software renderer. Other stuff I can think of from …

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Re: What was the purpose of a 3D-accelerated graphics card on a 486?

Posted on 2014-09-26, 22:41

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by snorg

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

Haven't been brave enough to put it on the net yet, maybe I will give it a whack. When people say the web is unusable on a P II 300 that gives me pause.

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Re: What was the purpose of a 3D-accelerated graphics card on a 486?

Posted on 2014-09-26, 18:09

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by snorg

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

Others have already pointed this out, but 3D cards weren't widely available until I think '96 or '97 which is outside the 486s prime years. So while you could put one in a PCI based 486 with a high-end 486, the GPU would not be well matched to the CPU. It would be more a "just for giggles" type …

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Re: Virtual machine options for older systems?

Posted on 2014-09-19, 15:51

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by snorg

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Or if it is not possible to do the above, then maybe a way to run Win 95 inside OS/2 Warp, although I doubt this is possible. I think there was something called Soft 95 but I don't think this was ever available for OS/2. Something tells me the best/most realistic option is going to be "just dual …

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Virtual machine options for older systems?

Posted on 2014-09-19, 15:24

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by snorg

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Virtual box often comes in handy for emulating an older OS on newer systems, however what do you do when you want to emulate a complete environment on an older system? Say, 386/486 or Pentium !/II? I figure you won't be able to easily emulate a full graphical OS on a 386/486 system since they just …

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Re: Crazy system requirements for its time

Posted on 2014-09-09, 18:52

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by snorg

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

I think Flight Unlimited needed a pretty beefy system at the time to play. It was supposed to run on a 486 DX2-66 (I think) but needed a P90 to shine. If I recall correctly it had a software renderer and was limited to 1024x768 or 1280x1024. At the time those seemed like impossible resolutions, and …

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Re: Player reaches level 90 in WoW without ever leaving the starting zone

Posted on 2014-09-07, 21:26

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by snorg

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That's the only other reason I can think of.

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Re: Late 90's / early 2000's Cyberpunk asthetic

Posted on 2014-09-07, 18:57

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by snorg

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Forgot these: The old Shadowrun game, and the new ones just released (available on GoG and Steam). I won't mention the Microsoft one, that one doens't count. Neuromancer and Bloodnet are some others. There are some more obscure ones I remember seeing on Home of the Underdogs but can't remember the …

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Atari Transputer

Posted on 2014-09-07, 03:49

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by snorg

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I was looking at retro systems on Ebay which led me to look up the specs of the Atari ST which led me to the wikipedia page for the Atari Transputer: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atari_Transputer_Workstation Based on specs, how is it this didn't dominate the late 80s and early 90s? I don't think PCs …

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Re: 486 VLB UMC-Chipset, what is it?

Posted on 2014-09-07, 01:04

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by snorg

in Marvin \ System Specs

in Marvin \ System Specs

That is a sweet case. I would love to find one like that for my 486 project box but can never find one when I'm looking. They seem to be rarer than hens' teeth these days.

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Re: Player reaches level 90 in WoW without ever leaving the starting zone

Posted on 2014-09-07, 01:00

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by snorg

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That just seems pointless? Unless you're one of the celebrities that are rumored to play WoW and don't have time to grind up that high. Or anyone else with more money than time, I suppose. I used to hate playing UO and AC and always getting spanked by people that seemed to dump their entire life …

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Re: Late 90's / early 2000's Cyberpunk asthetic

Posted on 2014-09-07, 00:43

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by snorg

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Beneath a Steel Sky has a bit of a cyberpunk look in parts. Syndicate, System Shock 2. Those are the only ones I can think of off the top of my head.

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Re: Kiwi, the brand new 8 bit computer from Germany.

Posted on 2014-08-14, 03:40

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by snorg

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Well this is neat and all, but I'm not sure I'd spend $300 on this. I suppose if I was going to do my own homebrew PC I'd rather design it myself.

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Re: Wont it be weird to look back at old photo's? lol

Posted on 2014-08-10, 23:24

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by snorg

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I've fallen off the fitness wagon a bit recently but I'm still in better shape at 39 than I was at 24. I'm trying to get back to lifting weights at the gym at least twice a week and walking for 30 minutes twice a day the rest of the week. I need to do one of the more extreme fitness programs like …

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Re: Wont it be weird to look back at old photo's? lol

Posted on 2014-08-10, 22:08

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by snorg

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I think the maximum annual contribution for a Roth is $5500 now? You could probably make that in side money doing a couple tech support calls on Saturdays over the course of a year. Or tending bar, for that matter. I'm thinking about upping my contribution to 20 or 25 percent of my salary. My …

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