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Humphreys posted:Oh - oops yeah I forgot it was only if you have aero turned on. 6 screens of windows layered over each other and tabbing through looks great, and all windows go back to their original location. I have a Stenograph from back in the day and it's pretty fun to play with. It's an amazing concept. However, that gal needs to speed up in her explanation. To be a stenographer, you need to have your mind in the game. "This machine has keys on it..." I got it lady, how do you use it? Let's get a fire going here people.
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Apr 24, 2016 15:40
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Grumbletron 4000 posted:Whips out dick and starts scanning at the root. Scanner runs out of paper. <scans dick and scanner runs out of bulb>
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Apr 24, 2016 18:16
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Samizdata posted:<scans dick and scanner runs out of bulb> Sorry mate but they don't make scanners with enough resolving power to image that
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Apr 24, 2016 22:32
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Samizdata posted:<scans dick and scanner runs out of bulb> <scans dick and computer runs out of memory>
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Apr 24, 2016 22:47
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Mister Kingdom posted:<scans dick and computer runs out of memory> EDSAC didn't have a scanner, hon.
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Apr 24, 2016 23:07
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T-man posted:EDSAC didn't have a scanner, hon. There's a one-year overlap between the first computer scanner and the shutting down of EDSAC so who knows?
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Apr 24, 2016 23:11
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Where does Colossus fit into the history of computers? I've had this Jeremy Clarkson Computers Documentary on my drives for 15+ years, it tells the history of computing from a British perspective and I'm curious to know how it jives with the American narrative https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTsHnxS5bg0 Worth watching at least the first few minutes to see Clarkson smashing the gently caress out of an old laptop with a hammer.
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Apr 27, 2016 02:49
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Wilford Cutlery posted:Any love for the Datadesk SmartBoard?
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Apr 27, 2016 03:00
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Vanagoon posted:Where does Colossus fit into the history of computers? I've had this Jeremy Clarkson Computers Documentary on my drives for 15+ years, it tells the history of computing from a British perspective and I'm curious to know how it jives with the American narrative It wasn't general purpose; it was designed for a specific task and wasn't Turing Complete. Still very important, but Britons are not immune to the common habit of ascribing all great breakthroughs to one's own country, and Clarkson does it worse than most.
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Apr 27, 2016 03:05
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Pham Nuwen posted:It wasn't general purpose; it was designed for a specific task and wasn't Turing Complete. The Colossus was significant in that it was the first electronic, digital, programmable computer. It did take switches and plug panels to reprogram (which is a pretty painstaking process), but it's better than the old electromechanical machines that would have needed a full rebuild to be changed from their designed parameters (like Turing's bombes). That said, the American ENIAC was a significant improvement in being Turing-complete with better flexibility.
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Apr 27, 2016 03:54
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Colossus was also a big deal because it was a major practical application of computing power. It helped defeat the Nazis. It’s a war hero. Z3 was cute, but it was on the wrong side of the war and never got the funding to do anything interesting.
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Apr 27, 2016 04:30
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 Also notable for controlling the world's nuclear arsenals, perving on scientists, and critiquing martini preparation.
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Apr 27, 2016 05:31
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moller posted:
And being capable of some amazing algebra.
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Apr 28, 2016 15:09
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Did the math on my TI - it checks out.
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Apr 28, 2016 17:53
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After being super lazy after moving house 8 months ago I just opened a box and I kid you not it was a treasure trove of obsolete tech. There was a disposable camera still sealeed, NES cart (Duck Maze PAL pirate cart), Neo Geo Cart, Cassette tape, new still sealed Minidiscs, Powerglove, Counterstrike Condition Zero retail box. AGP graphics card, serial cables and strangly some optic networking cables. I would have posted a photo but sure you guys would have immediately screamed I planted it. EDIT: poo poo there's a GCon2 light gun, Neo Geo CD gamepad, Sega Master System RF modulator and more in there. This box is a treasure trove! (and proves I am a packrat/hoarder)
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Apr 30, 2016 10:11
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Another issue with old R-to-R magnetic tape is the backing material - very old tape(and cheap, lovely tape) used acetate and when it gets old, it just disintegrates into shreds. Newer/better tape used polyester, which holds up better,?and the best tape used Mylar, which holds up great even after 35-40 years. The difference is amazing, acetate tapes break when I just thread the reel of my old Ampex deck, while the Mylar works A-Ok after repeated plays.
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Apr 30, 2016 11:39
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I bought this, which is obsolete in multiple ways: -CD-player -1x SCSI CD-ROM drive -Kodak Photo CD player
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Apr 30, 2016 13:32
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evobatman posted:I bought this, which is obsolete in multiple ways: Holy poo poo that looks cool! I remember my highscholl girlfriends dad have a black Mac and it's killer feature was a TV tuner! Having said that, today i was fawning over my bosses GT Cobra, then got thrown the keys to go 'all out' around the block (his words). The loving this was an automatic! (for non-car people, that thing should be a manual gearbox no matter what level of kit version!)
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Apr 30, 2016 14:02
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Humphreys posted:Holy poo poo that looks cool! I remember my highscholl girlfriends dad have a black Mac and it's killer feature was a TV tuner! People who want to have a cool car but aren't really that into cars always get automatics (autotragics). Try finding a secondhand Corvette with a manual tranny, it's pretty hard because they're mostly purchased by old men who want a "cool car" but have sore backs/legs these days... Which is a shame because a modern corvette is as close as you can get to a supercar for under 100k.
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Apr 30, 2016 15:00
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Humphreys posted:Holy poo poo that looks cool! I remember my highscholl girlfriends dad have a black Mac and it's killer feature was a TV tuner! The Macintosh TV. I had one as my first computer, and it was great -- you could Open Apple + Shift + 3 in TV mode and get a 16 bit color, 640x480 PICT format screenshot. I used it constantly to screen cap Wings and The Simpsons. However, all the flight sim stuff I was into needed a 030 FPU that it didn't come with. It didn't have any expansion slot for one, either, and the RAM could only be upgraded to 8 MB from 5 MB.
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Apr 30, 2016 15:01
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Groda posted:Open Apple + Shift + 3 Let's talk obsolescence *and* technology. The key you're looking for here is called Command - Since about 2007-ish they pulled the Apple logo from the keyboard entirely and changed over to the ⌘ symbol alone. There were two main escape-sequence keys on the Apple II keyboard: "Open Apple" (a line drawing of the Apple logo) and "Closed Apple" (a 'solid', filled-in drawing of the Apple logo). The Apple IIGS came with ADB, the then brand-new S-video-connector having connection for input devices. Because ADB would be used for the Mac as well, the primary escape sequence key on ADB keyboards needed both the new ⌘ symbol and the old Open Apple symbol on them. I'm a terrible nerd, It grates on my nerves when people say "Open Apple-" anything.
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Apr 30, 2016 15:11
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it is called the Apple key and will always be called the Apple key
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Apr 30, 2016 16:44
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Groda posted:The Macintosh TV. I had one as my first computer, and it was great -- you could Open Apple + Shift + 3 in TV mode and get a 16 bit color, 640x480 PICT format screenshot. I used it constantly to screen cap Wings and The Simpsons. Lol, you old.
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Apr 30, 2016 17:44
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Pham Nuwen posted:People who want to have a cool car but aren't really that into cars always get automatics (autotragics). Try finding a secondhand Corvette with a manual tranny, it's pretty hard because they're mostly purchased by old men who want a "cool car" but have sore backs/legs these days... Which is a shame because a modern corvette is as close as you can get to a supercar for under 100k. A modern 7+ speed automatic transmission is better than a manual in nearly every measurable way except for cost and a small percentage of power going to pumping losses. They launch and accelerate faster than a professionally trained driver can manage on a manual thanks to the much faster shift time and integration with the ECU, and they do it perfectly every. single. run. They even get better fuel economy in real use because modern computer controlled transmissions can be very aggressive about shifting to high gears during low load as they can nearly instantly downshift when power is demanded instead of waiting for fluid and vacuum pressures to build like in the old ones. The main drawback is they cannot anticipate the driver's actions but more advanced programming to identify the type of driving being done and paddle shifters which can temporarily override the gear selection have largely solved that. However the performance is usually hidden behind sedate behavior during normal driving and people just have the mental connection of manual = sporty.
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Apr 30, 2016 22:13
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I had an older BMW V8 with almost 300 HP for a while, and I loved the auto tranny. Stomp pedal, go. It was super fun. I guess I'm biased since I'm European, because over here, 99% of people see automatic as a luxury and just cool.
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Apr 30, 2016 22:50
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Shifty Pony posted:A modern 7+ speed automatic transmission is better than a manual in nearly every measurable way except for cost and a small percentage of power going to pumping losses. If longevity matters, manuals can do retarded miles though. Not that the car manufacturers care about that. quote:I guess I'm biased since I'm European, because over here, 99% of people see automatic as a luxury and just cool. I'd own an auto if I did a lot of stop / start driving exclusively, but I enjoy a manual too much for driving in any other conditions. GRINDCORE MEGGIDO has a new favorite as of 23:09 on Apr 30, 2016 |
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Apr 30, 2016 23:04
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I always drove manuals until I moved to Pittsburgh. No thanks, I'll take multiple levels of engineer-tuned gear shifts and a launch mode, plus the option of manually shifting if I want.
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Apr 30, 2016 23:04
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Shifty Pony posted:A modern 7+ speed automatic transmission is better than a manual in nearly every measurable way except for cost and a small percentage of power going to pumping losses. They launch and accelerate faster than a professionally trained driver can manage on a manual thanks to the much faster shift time and integration with the ECU, and they do it perfectly every. single. run. They even get better fuel economy in real use because modern computer controlled transmissions can be very aggressive about shifting to high gears during low load as they can nearly instantly downshift when power is demanded instead of waiting for fluid and vacuum pressures to build like in the old ones. The main drawback is they cannot anticipate the driver's actions but more advanced programming to identify the type of driving being done and paddle shifters which can temporarily override the gear selection have largely solved that. This is true, these days. I still contend that a manual is a hell of a lot more fun, and if you're buying your car to wank over launch speeds instead of have fun driving, you bought it for stupid reasons. As for driving in cities, I find the basic act of driving an auto so mind bogglingly dull that I was yearning for a manual even in the Bay Area. Even in heavy traffic it's not bad, just put it in first and let it crawl.
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May 1, 2016 01:55
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Exit Strategy posted:The key you're looking for here is called Command - Since about 2007-ish they pulled the Apple logo from the keyboard entirely and changed over to the ⌘ symbol alone. But from what you said, if I was talking about something on an Apple II, then "Open Apple" would be the correct way to say it? And just to make sure I got this right, ⌘ is pronounced "Command"? Yeah I don't use Apple stuff much. Pham Nuwen posted:This is true, these days. I still contend that a manual is a hell of a lot more fun, and if you're buying your car to wank over launch speeds instead of have fun driving, you bought it for stupid reasons. It seems to me that some people's idea of fun is launching faster than everyone else when the lights go green though, so whatever you think is fun I guess?  I'd rather people didn't have their car racing fun on the same streets I'm driving on though.
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May 1, 2016 02:06
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It's funny how valuable that original boxed games can be. I used to save all the boxes for games since I could start buying them on my own, and only threw them out when I finally moved out, transfering all the disks to wallets and just tossing any and all floppies. Why do I need a floppy disk version of Heroes of Might and Magic 2, SimCity 2000 or Tie Fighter? Hah, and now you can get what you paid for them or more sometimes, becuase there is a collectors market for old PC games in box. buying PC games as a physical disk is dead. I bought a super cheap Sims3 with Showtime box for 8bux at best buy and in it was just a download code, and that was like 4 years ago, now I cannot imagine that say, The Legion expansion for WoW will actually have a disk inside of it. Though that's probably a bad example as WoW is still super popular, and there are enough people without high speed connections or unlimited usage that a disk is probably a good idea. Did Fallout 4 have an actual disk? Though I refuse to buy games via PSN becuase unless they're on sale, I can get them way cheaper at an EB or Best Buy. Dark Souls 2 Scholar Edition is still 50bux on there, while i can get it for 35$ in a store.
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May 1, 2016 02:11
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7PbQTlv5ig (He mentions 70 minutes per CD for VCD. Personally I have crammed The Fellowship of the Rings extended cut onto a single disc back when I was a poor and had no DVD burner).
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May 1, 2016 03:20
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twistedmentat posted:It's funny how valuable that original boxed games can be. I used to save all the boxes for games since I could start buying them on my own, and only threw them out when I finally moved out, transfering all the disks to wallets and just tossing any and all floppies. Why do I need a floppy disk version of Heroes of Might and Magic 2, SimCity 2000 or Tie Fighter? Last week on a whim I bought Battlefiend Hardline from EB games. Then spent hours on the phone to EA because the CD Key was used. Of course they didn't believe me and after maybe 5 customer service reps and explaining that in the time I have spent with them I could have gone to work and earned enough to buy 4 copies via Origin, finally got it sorted and then was told I have to download the game and not use the 2 discs that were in the case! (I am in rural Australia - so my internet is poverty spec. A wombat might burrow into the underground lines and ruin my connection, and loving Magpies on the phone wires are stealing packets! - joking obviously) Humphreys has a new favorite as of 03:44 on May 1, 2016 |
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May 1, 2016 03:41
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Shifty Pony posted:A modern 7+ speed automatic transmission is better than a manual in nearly every measurable way except for cost and a small percentage of power going to pumping losses. They launch and accelerate faster than a professionally trained driver can manage on a manual thanks to the much faster shift time and integration with the ECU, and they do it perfectly every. single. run. Shifty Pony posted:They even get better fuel economy in real use because modern computer controlled transmissions can be very aggressive about shifting to high gears during low load as they can nearly instantly downshift when power is demanded instead of waiting for fluid and vacuum pressures to build like in the old ones. Ah, yes, like the Chrysler 9-speed autos, which break a lot and when they're not broken tend to basically ignore driver input in favor of staying in 8th and then drop down 3-5 gears when you finally push past the kickdown because the truck is about to merge into you Buttcoin purse posted:It seems to me that some people's idea of fun is launching faster than everyone else when the lights go green though the target market of the Tesla Model S: people who believe that a car's rate of acceleration directly correlates to how good it is, and who have never ventured and never will venture more than 140 miles away from the town they were born in atomicthumbs has a new favorite as of 05:11 on May 1, 2016 |
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May 1, 2016 05:09
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God, I can't wait to see how mad autonomous cars make driving fetishists.
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May 1, 2016 05:22
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Humphreys posted:After being super lazy after moving house 8 months ago I just opened a box and I kid you not it was a treasure trove of obsolete tech. There was a disposable camera still sealeed, NES cart (Duck Maze PAL pirate cart), Neo Geo Cart, Cassette tape, new still sealed Minidiscs, Powerglove, Counterstrike Condition Zero retail box. AGP graphics card, serial cables and strangly some optic networking cables. I would have posted a photo but sure you guys would have immediately screamed I planted it. Time to whore out some of that obsolete tech on eBay for big $$$. Buttcoin purse posted:It seems to me that some people's idea of fun is launching faster than everyone else when the lights go green though, so whatever you think is fun I guess? But winning a stoplight drag race gives me that fleeting twinge of superiority before I'm immediately reminded of how my life sucks in just about every other respect. 
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May 1, 2016 05:26
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I used to hate autos, then some time in the 90s they became OK as long as the car was reasonably powerful, and in the past 10 years they've reached a point where they're not too bad even on low powered economy cars. I'd rather drive a manual (and I do), but it's getting harder and harder harder to criticise someone for buying an auto these days.
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May 1, 2016 05:29
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Toast Museum posted:God, I can't wait to see how mad autonomous cars make driving fetishists. It's a good time to be alive.
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May 1, 2016 05:34
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open24hours posted:I used to hate autos, then some time in the 90s they became OK as long as the car was reasonably powerful, and in the past 10 years they've reached a point where they're not too bad even on low powered economy cars. I'd rather drive a manual (and I do), but it's getting harder and harder harder to criticise someone for buying an auto these days. I think part of it is that automatic transmissions became tolerable at the same time that Fuel Injection got really good. Made FI engines much more tractable so they didn't have all their power sapped out of them. As per my username, I had a Vanagon with a 1.9l wasserboxer with absolutely lovely Digiet fuel injection and a 3 speed non lockup autobox. It was utter hell. Plant your foot and wait.
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May 1, 2016 05:38
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Toast Museum posted:God, I can't wait to see how mad autonomous cars make driving fetishists. It's going to be wonderful, because all the people who don't want to be driving will be chauffeured around by a hypervigilant computer, instead of driving one handed with their phone out and rear-ending me. Meanwhile I'll choose to either drive or be driven, but in either case the cars around me are likely to behave safely and predictably.
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May 1, 2016 05:50
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Shifty Pony posted:A modern 7+ speed automatic transmission is better than a manual in nearly every measurable way except for cost and a small percentage of power going to pumping losses. They launch and accelerate faster than a professionally trained driver can manage on a manual thanks to the much faster shift time and integration with the ECU, and they do it perfectly every. single. run. A dual-clutch automatic, but not a regular slushbox with a torque converter, even if it has 9 speeds. quote:The main drawback is they cannot anticipate the driver's actions but more advanced programming to identify the type of driving being done and paddle shifters which can temporarily override the gear selection have largely solved that. My current rental is a 2015 Mustang with the 4-cylinder Ecoboost turbo. It's generally enjoyable except between the turbo lag and the automatic, passing people is an annoyance, there's a good chunk of time before telling the car "I'd really like to pass now" and it actually realizing you want to accelerate. The flappy paddles mitigate, but do not eliminate, that. It's still not as anticipatory of manually picking the right gear now for what you want to do soon. Fundamentally, manual, automatic, CVT, whatever, it's all compromise: how do you deliver useful torque to the wheels across a wide range of engine RPM. I test-drove a Model S a while back, and I really like that approach: gently caress it, just have a AC induction motors that deliver a shitload of torque to a fixed-gear transmission, so much that even though the torque falls off as the engine turns faster it doesn't matter because it's just a bottomless pit of torque. That's the kind of thing that'll make this discussion obsolete. atomicthumbs posted:Ah, yes, like the Chrysler 9-speed autos, which break a lot and when they're not broken tend to basically ignore driver input in favor of staying in 8th and then drop down 3-5 gears when you finally push past the kickdown because the truck is about to merge into you In fairness, using Chrysler as an example of anything automotive is like using Olive Garden to talk about restaurants. quote:the target market of the Tesla Model S: people who believe that a car's rate of acceleration directly correlates to how good it is, and who have never ventured and never will venture more than 140 miles away from the town they were born in There's sooo much better about the Model S than that. I don't have that kind of dough to drop on a car, but if I did I'd seriously consider it over anything else in the price range. Maybe an i8. Be interesting to see what happens with the charging station bit when more people are driving electrics. It doesn't seem like a very scalable solution. Yeah, you can plot a trip around them, but what happens when you stop at the one outside of City Name and there are like 5 other cars waiting for it ?
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May 1, 2016 06:07
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