The good old days of home computing? Not.

Oct. 13, 2007
I friend sent me this CNET link and commentary today: Ahh, seeing this warmed the cockles of mine heart on this fine Friday. It also reminded me of the total possession obsession I had for the Atari 800 that was never to be satisfied. (A quick ...

I friend sent me this CNET link and commentary today:

Ahh, seeing this warmed the cockles of mine heart on this fine Friday.

It also reminded me of the total possession obsession I had for the Atari 800 that was never to be satisfied. (A quick trip to eBay shows them selling for $50 - which seems about $40 too high.)

Instead, I had temporary custody of a Commodore-64, which quickly drove me mad. (Say, how come the C-64 and VIC-20 aren't in this collection? Not to mention Cromemco!)

Those were not the days of home computing.

http://www.news.com/2300-1042_3-6213000-1.html?tag=ne.gall.pg

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Boy, I'll say. My first experience with microprocessors was with a 4004. I found the whole thing frustrating and time consuming. As home computers came out, I could not for the life of me figure out why anyone would invest the copius amounts of time needed to get those old machines to do anything remotely interesting.

About the Author

Lee Teschler | Editor

Leland was Editor-in-Chief of Machine Design. He has 34 years of Service and holds a B.S. Engineering from the University of Michigan, a B.S. Electrical Engineering from the University of Michigan;, and a MBA from Cleveland State University. Prior to joining Penton, Lee worked as a Communications design engineer for the U.S. Government.

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