homemade computer for fun and experience...

From: Richard Erlacher <edick_at_idcomm.com>
Date: Sun Apr 4 17:23:49 1999

Well, I'm inclined to agree with you. I've long felt that if one needed to
spend time playing games, what was really needed was another job.

What's happened over the years, however, is that people, having seen what a
computer CAN do as shown in games, etc, have actually found ways to make
data easier to interpret, and perhaps to add meaning and emphasis to a
presentation, making it more persuasive, if not more informative, by using
the graphical capabilities of a computer.

As for the terminal vis-a-vie the color graphic display, I find the terminal
quite limiting. However, most of the stuff I do is unaffected by these
limitations. It's just the drafting work that would be limited, and perhaps
the interpretation of the results from the various simulators I use.
However, since I've got a farly hot system with which to do the drafting,
the CP/M box doesn't really need graphics, does it?

If you use a terminal, that's what you've got. There were, for a time,
attempts made at graphic terminals. These failed, however, because there
weren't standards on which they could base their usage. Consequently, if
one didn't have certain hardware, there were limitations on the software he
could use. Today, that's not the case, as EVERYONE has a PC clone with at
least 1Kx768 pixels in 256 or more colors. EVERYONE has fairly ample
resources, comparable, perhaps, to the sum of all the computer resources in
the world when I went to college.

Today, no one would normally consider a CP/M box for "useful" and essential
work. For mental masturbation, speculation about would could, would, or
should (note the subjunctive) have been, CP/M works just fine. If you have
a construction business, or a medical office, there's no reason why CP/M
can't work today every bit as well as it did back 20 or more years ago.
However, aside from the notion of operating on an "antique" there's no
reason to do so. It does serve to keep one grounded in what has changed
over the years and what hasn't.

Dick

-----Original Message-----
From: CLASSICCMP_at_trailing-edge.com <CLASSICCMP_at_trailing-edge.com>
To: Discussion re-collecting of classic computers
<classiccmp_at_u.washington.edu>
Date: Sunday, April 04, 1999 12:58 PM
Subject: Re: homemade computer for fun and experience...


>><ISA cards on a single s-100 board. This would certainly be cheap enough
i
>><most cases, to warrant such an effort. The software might get to be a
>><problem, though.
>
>>Yes, and therein lies the "problem" for the average user.
>
>This is why I prefer simple serial console. No software to write,
>no memory mapped video to take a chunk out of usable memory, no
>memory banking schemes, no dependence on finding monitors of a
>particular scan rate or interface. Just a simple I/O port!
>
>Admittedly, many folks seem to believe that a computer must have
>a video generator to be a "computer". My CP/M experience started with
>Model 33 Teletypes and blinkenlights front panels, so perhaps I'm the odd
man
>out here.
>
>--
> Tim Shoppa Email: shoppa_at_trailing-edge.com
> Trailing Edge Technology WWW: http://www.trailing-edge.com/
> 7328 Bradley Blvd Voice: 301-767-5917
> Bethesda, MD, USA 20817 Fax: 301-767-5927
Received on Sun Apr 04 1999 - 17:23:49 BST

This archive was generated by hypermail 2.3.0 : Fri Oct 10 2014 - 23:31:39 BST