Gawd, they know how to make me feel old...
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Move over, parvenus! My first computer was a Commodore PET 2001 with 8KB (that's KILO-bytes)! My dad bought it in 1977, and it was one of the first five of its kind in Israel. The Commodore PET 2001 had a built-in cassette recorder/player, which could be used to store/load programs and data. Given that many (most?) mainframes of the time still used tape for mass storage (a disk drive might be used for the O/S and for commonly-run programs), I take exception to the assertion that a computer with a cassette tape was not a computer. I used it for many things, from calculating e and pi (to about 10,000 digits - all that I could do in-memory) to learning 6502 assembly language to game playing (I purchased an incredibly slow version of chess that ran in those 8KB). Those were the days! :)
I sooooo wanted one of those... but my dad bought an Exidy Sorcerer[^]. I later borrowed it for an extended period of time. My actual first computer was an Amiga 1000.. which I still have and fire up once in a while. I even still have the original monitor and Rom Kernel manuals (a set with the mislabeled manual).
We can program with only 1's, but if all you've got are zeros, you've got nothing.
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Comitstrip: First Computer[^] My first was an Amstrad 1640: EGA graphics, 640K RAM, 8MHz processor, no math coprocessor (but a socket so you could add one), no HDD, but twin 5 1/2" floppies (360Kb per disk). And that was second hand... What was your first "real" computer? (I'm not counting Spectrums and their ilk here: if it had a cassette tape it doesn't count :laugh: )
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
Wow, Timex Sinclair (admittedly, no drive, but a 40 col thermal printer!) [I returned it, BTW] TI 99/4A (Expansion Pack, Plus Floppy) TRS-80 Model 1 PDP-11/34a (at school, 20 paper terminals, and 3 CRTs for the cool kids, LOL) All within 1yr. Then I moved UP in the world: I got a Tandy-1200 HD (monochrome, green screen) DOS. With a HD and a Floppy, LOL... This lasted me until my first Dell in College. And I have been using various Dells since! (Of course, Dell was called PCs Limited back then). Kirk Out!
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Comitstrip: First Computer[^] My first was an Amstrad 1640: EGA graphics, 640K RAM, 8MHz processor, no math coprocessor (but a socket so you could add one), no HDD, but twin 5 1/2" floppies (360Kb per disk). And that was second hand... What was your first "real" computer? (I'm not counting Spectrums and their ilk here: if it had a cassette tape it doesn't count :laugh: )
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
My first computer was an s100 bus z80 base system (back in the late 70's). I wire wrapped all the boards except for the graphics card (16 lines by 64 ASCII characters) which connected to a small TV. I had a 2KB monitor program called Zapple and a total of 4K of RAM. I use to know most of the z80 instruction set by the numbers since I didn't have a z80 assembler. This system eventually morphed into a CP/M system with 48KB of RAM and 2 high density 8 inch floppy drives! Talk about a fun time learning about computer hardware and software.
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Comitstrip: First Computer[^] My first was an Amstrad 1640: EGA graphics, 640K RAM, 8MHz processor, no math coprocessor (but a socket so you could add one), no HDD, but twin 5 1/2" floppies (360Kb per disk). And that was second hand... What was your first "real" computer? (I'm not counting Spectrums and their ilk here: if it had a cassette tape it doesn't count :laugh: )
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
My first computer was one I designed and built myself, starting the day the 8080 CPU was released, in late 1974. There was no commercially available microcomputer in those days. By Feb. 1975 I had it up and running, with a huge 1K of RAM! I had to put a small boot program using the front panel switches, and I had an old 33ASR teletype with a paper tape punch and reader for mass storage, as well as keyboard input and printed output.
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Comitstrip: First Computer[^] My first was an Amstrad 1640: EGA graphics, 640K RAM, 8MHz processor, no math coprocessor (but a socket so you could add one), no HDD, but twin 5 1/2" floppies (360Kb per disk). And that was second hand... What was your first "real" computer? (I'm not counting Spectrums and their ilk here: if it had a cassette tape it doesn't count :laugh: )
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
My first was a Philco C2 (named for the building that housed it). It had a fantastic 28k of RAM. Data and programs were loaded using 80 byte punch cards. Due to limitations, we could only load 2007 data cards. If we exceeded the data limit, I would have to do the calculation on a Friden calculator to determine which of the cards I could yank to complete the run on the C2.
The difficult may take time, the impossible a little longer.
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Mine was a Commodore VIC20 - was great at the time (I was 8 at the time and got given this at Christmas instead of the Atari console that I'd asked for - wise move) :) http://oldcomputers.net/vic20.html[^] Introduced: June 1980 Released: January 1981 Price: US $299 (cost about the same in GBP) CPU: MOS 6502, 1MHz RAM: 5K (3.5K for the user) Display: 22 X 23 text, 176 X 184, 16 colors max
How do you know so much about swallows? Well, you have to know these things when you're a king, you know.
Ah, the mighty VIC-20. I still remember that special plastic smell when I first unboxed it, more than 30 years ago.
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Comitstrip: First Computer[^] My first was an Amstrad 1640: EGA graphics, 640K RAM, 8MHz processor, no math coprocessor (but a socket so you could add one), no HDD, but twin 5 1/2" floppies (360Kb per disk). And that was second hand... What was your first "real" computer? (I'm not counting Spectrums and their ilk here: if it had a cassette tape it doesn't count :laugh: )
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
My first was a Commodore Pet 2001 with no HDD, no FDD, and no cassette tape drive. I had to type programs in every time. My second was a Commodore Pet 4000 with the integrated "datasette" cassette tape drive. Third was a Franklin Ace 2000 (Apple IIe clone) with a 5MB HDD and 5.25" floppy. I added a Bernoulli box with two 10MB cartridges the next year. I kept them in the garage until about 15 years ago, when my wife made me start "disposing" of all my old computer equipment.
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Yup. IBM 1620 with hydraulic disk drive that always leaked hydraulic oil on the floor! An I think it had 40K of 6-bit Binary Coded Decimal "digits". Pretty quickly learned how to cold-start it by using the bit switches mounted on the front of the selectric typewriter that was the operator's consol. Punch cards and a 60 lines per MINUTE line printer (upper case only). Those were the good old days.
Roy Williams
Member 10119140 wrote:
Pretty quickly learned how to cold-start it by using the bit switches mounted on the front of the selectric typewriter that was the operator's consol...
You are describing a different machine. The 1620 (either version) didn't have bit switches sufficient to boot the machine. The cold start was done with a punch card in the card reader. I think it was 35000000000... mumble mumble. I used to have the 30 or so digits memorized. Warm start was done by hitting the halt button and typing 4900796"RS" on the console, which was a branch to location 00796 in core (the main monitor loop).
I'm retired. There's a nap for that... - Harvey
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Comitstrip: First Computer[^] My first was an Amstrad 1640: EGA graphics, 640K RAM, 8MHz processor, no math coprocessor (but a socket so you could add one), no HDD, but twin 5 1/2" floppies (360Kb per disk). And that was second hand... What was your first "real" computer? (I'm not counting Spectrums and their ilk here: if it had a cassette tape it doesn't count :laugh: )
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
OriginalGriff wrote: What was your first "real" computer? (I'm not counting Spectrums and their ilk here: if it had a cassette tape it doesn't count ) Mine was a Xerox 820 with the dual-processor option plus an eight-inch floppy drive and an eight-inch, eight megabyte hard drive in a separate case. It was already eight years old when I got it. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xerox\_820
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IBM AT: EGA "Graphics", 512kB RAM on the MB and a 6MHz processor, but 2 20MB Harddrives (5¼" Double height, could be used as anchors) and one 5¼" floppy (1.2 MB) The 512MB RAM was a very frustrating limitation. So when I upgraded it I had enough money for a DX50 + 16MB RAM or a DX2/66 + 8MB RAM. Being as frustrated as I was with the RAM limits of the old MB I chose more RAM. Just to find out that there were no programs that could use more than 8MB at the time. :sigh: At the same time I also upgraded to an 800MB 3½" HDD supposedly state of the art at the time, just to find out that the old battleships were faster. :wtf: <edit>And the old IBM keyboards were so sturdy you could go to battle with them as a Claymore substitute</edit>
Wrong is evil and must be defeated. - Jeff Ello
The DX50 was the better choice, then - it was a true 50 MHz bus machine, whereas the DX2/66 had a 33 MHz bus, clock-doubled in the CPU. So, the CPU was faster, but getting data in and out of it to memory was slower. All for an extra 16 MHz (33%) speed increase. Unless the data you were process could all mostly fit into the CPU's cache (even in the 486 days, not likely), the 50 MHz bus speed was the better deal.
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Comitstrip: First Computer[^] My first was an Amstrad 1640: EGA graphics, 640K RAM, 8MHz processor, no math coprocessor (but a socket so you could add one), no HDD, but twin 5 1/2" floppies (360Kb per disk). And that was second hand... What was your first "real" computer? (I'm not counting Spectrums and their ilk here: if it had a cassette tape it doesn't count :laugh: )
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
My first real computer was a 16K TRS-80 Color Computer; I know that may not fit your specs as to it being a "real" computer. I started with a cassette tape, but quickly (within a year) convinced my parents to get me a floppy drive. I later moved to the Color Computer 3, and eventually upgraded it from 128K to 512K. I still have both of those machines, and they both work today. My last Radio Shack machine - which would fit your definition - was a Tandy 1100HD; it was also my first "laptop" (certainly not a luggable like the Kaypro, but nothing like today's lightweight beasts). It had a 20Mb hard drive, and a 3.5 inch floppy. I still have that machine as well (though I don't know if it still works - I haven't turned it on in ages). My next machines after that were an Amiga 2000, then an Amiga 1200. Then I got a 486 DX2/50 after Commodore bit the dust - plus I fell in love with the game, Myst, at the store - and had to have that system to play it. As far a PC CPUs are concerned, my favorite has always been the AMD 586/133 - a weird hybrid; basically a crazy-fast 486 - at the time, it could outperform some of the lower-end pentiums (back when there was a serious AMD/Intel rivalry), for a fraction of the cost. It could be overclocked to 166 MHz fairly reliably, too.
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Member 10119140 wrote:
Pretty quickly learned how to cold-start it by using the bit switches mounted on the front of the selectric typewriter that was the operator's consol...
You are describing a different machine. The 1620 (either version) didn't have bit switches sufficient to boot the machine. The cold start was done with a punch card in the card reader. I think it was 35000000000... mumble mumble. I used to have the 30 or so digits memorized. Warm start was done by hitting the halt button and typing 4900796"RS" on the console, which was a branch to location 00796 in core (the main monitor loop).
I'm retired. There's a nap for that... - Harvey
You are so right - I am remembering the bit switches on the IBM 1130... on the 1620 it was "sense switches". And now that you remind me, I do remember that we memorized the cold start sequence and typed it in....but that was 50+ years ago. Speaking of cold start cards, we made up a cold start card for the 1130 that worked correctly no matter what orientation it was put in the card hopper. (Really!)
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Comitstrip: First Computer[^] My first was an Amstrad 1640: EGA graphics, 640K RAM, 8MHz processor, no math coprocessor (but a socket so you could add one), no HDD, but twin 5 1/2" floppies (360Kb per disk). And that was second hand... What was your first "real" computer? (I'm not counting Spectrums and their ilk here: if it had a cassette tape it doesn't count :laugh: )
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
Acorn Archimedes 305. A great machine for hacking about in both the hardware and software sense. Great BBC basic with inline ARM assembler. I remember changing a magazine mandelbrot program to do 64 bit arithmetic. Lots of folks hacked the !Sprites files so icons for programs were unrecognisable on 'hackers' machines. Matthew Broadbent of the Auckland Acorn Users Group created a sound sampler by attaching resistors to the parallel port lines. A binary chop style algorithm established the analog to digital value. I hacked the ST-506 cable to split the cylinders of a big external Hard Drive so it looked like two disks (too many cylinders). I've never messed with my subsequent PCs like I messed with the Archimedes.
I am a set of distortions of spacetime. Jeremy Thomson
