95DosBox wrote:
Well to really resurrect ISA you'd need to a billionaire and buy out some top motherboard manufacturers and update say an intel 800 series chipset that supported ISA and find a way that it could communicate to work alongside a PCIe slot motherboard. If they could still make PCI slots motherboards I can't see why 1 or 2 ISA slots still couldn't exist for legacy applications. I've seen Floppy Drive controllers exist on modern motherboards where they shouldn't have so it's possible if you had enough money it could be done and sell these modern motherboards that are specially geared towards retro enthusiasts.
there are such motherboards with ISA bus made, for industrial use, BUT they have no DMA operation (required for Soundblaster). There are some industrial 486 motherboard remakes too, but those have their VGA compatibility problems.
About that I wonder do that how come that they remove ISA bus, but in the BIOS there still exist 1.2MB 5.25" option for a floppy drive or even 360kB!
There arent so much support for a newcomer electronics enthusiasts.
Trouble is that everything is geared towards money and if something is made for "enthusiasts" then these are also designed just like "barbie dolls for men" to get as much money out as possible and much more expensive than it is worth actually, sometimes misleading to think that you really need this and that option too, while there is no need for that. but it never should be some practical use and god forbid if you can do something with that what M$ latest release cant do... 😉 Anything more serious like CPLD programming or the clone cards remaking with showoff, I am not even sure if some corporations will see it as a some threat. SO, in their eyes -- for a more advanced hardware course man must pay , its just free enough until to get the basic interest started. This is evil enough I see if their ideal would be just like the basic wiring course is for free but soldering the chips to PCB arent.
Also must pay to obtain more information to learn about software, again $$$$ to get the documentation, while it SHOULD be free.
If keeping open then it should establish standard. But companies just earn from this documentation info selling and thus for young engineers all this is rather expensive "investment", which perhaps will be suspended if not having money.
Software companies and corporations with their 20 year neverending work and artificial limits,
What these big corporations do is actually criminal against nature -- the waste of valuable human ressource by having in every product that built-in obsolence.
SO, does man remembers "just solve the problem JUST ONE TIME." ? M$ is still developing a basic word package, still now, after 20 years, while it was time to let go it already 1995 when it got overdeveloped with creeping features. They are doing it on and on and selling the same package to people 20 years and taking it back again. All would be okay if there would be possible to buy STILL THE OLD VERSION TOO! ! WHY NOT? Why not if the very old version would be enough? But no no they want to sell the last one so you must get only that latest thing which requires also extra new computer.
Electronics... from one point there will be a total stop for most hobbists becouse then the price for all tools increase dramatically over just having the basic soldering iron and voltage meter, IF not having access to a) lab equipment with all necessary documentation and the time to spend with it or b) getting the friends in computer or cellphone engineering industry this equipment and/or components for free! Otherwise the hamradio operators cant build very sophisticated transceivers as some of the components are never for sale as in other way that atleast zillion items at once.
Why else only these things are available which are braindead simple, but as it gets more advanced then everything costs a lot money, about information and the more advanced tools suddenly are expensive or hard to get, also classified as "if you have this, then you are professional and MUST pay", or they want to deal only with institutions, while I see no reason why not everyone should have GOOD and affordable SMD-rework station, 4-ray oscilloscope, sweep-generator, complete PCB etching lab kit with CNC, who ever has interest in this area. And also, details, standards, information. Surprised I was while reading the "PCI system architecture" when there was written that the PCI specifications are "for sale" and there must be done extra query , but are not freely available.
But at the same time institutions can get free samples (oh yeah, like they could not afford!), but the small individuals and enthusiasts have to said to go to shop where they have to buy with incredible price.
Incredible that there are zillion chinese salesmen in feebay who are selling for now obsolete components and everything is quite good affordable prices. Otherwise shopping locally would be just nothing, or very expensive. In Estonia we had in Tartu 4 electronics shop but just 2 had some obsolete components, and wide coverage of new details. While in Sweden is just 1 and from there are just some nothing-to-do complete components.
There were more of those interested about software when there was not so much around and the machine was still XT or 286 and programmers month salaries were lower than the cost of new computer system. Not everything is "needed", but pressed upon.
What really helps here is that people should have more time to have for yourself and give a thought what they really want, instead of being occupied with all those artificially created "needs" and "trends" and just shut down the 101 TV channels, which occupy them all the time.
By the way... hey, those fathers who are a computer giant company owners, actually forbids the use of smartphones to own children and must read physical books instead - do the school oldfashioned way!! ... 😉 So this is a double morale sign too, that how come that for everyone it is a must be, but not to their own children.
