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Well guys,
=20
I may as well answer myself.
=20
GH> Where are we today? Who's living where? Using what hardware?
=20
Here! Here! Over here! Oh, where is "here?" That would be
Carson City, Nevada. Elevation 4,500 ft, population 53,000.
About 30 minutes to Reno, 30 minutes to Lake Tahoe. Gorgeous.
=20
For what it's worth, let me say this: I finally live someplace
that I actually chose. For the first time, I didn't move to
follow the work or to be close to family or dodge the law. We
picked this place, worked out a strategy, and overcame "stuff"
to get here.
=20
That wouldn't be such a big deal, except that I'm finding most
people never do that. They just grow where they're planted.
=20
GH> The very meaning of "Survivor PC" has changed radically in that
GH> time -- the cutting edge stuff of 1997 (or even 2000) is showing
GH> up in dumpsters everywhere. I can go to the local Used Computer
GH> Warehouse and pick up 700 MHz PIII boxes (warrantied) for cheap.
=20
I have some random machines: a 486SX 33MHz, 486DX 66MHz, an AMD
586 100MHz, a Heathkit (Zenith) H/Z89 machine Z80 @ 2.048 MHz
running your choice of HDOS or CP/M 2.2 from single-sided 5.25"
floppies (100KB), a Kaypro II (CP/M) that's been upgraded to a=20
Kaypro IV (double-sided 5.25 floppies, 390KB), and 2 Kaypro 10s=20
with huge 10MB hard disks, also CP/M.
=20
The CP/M boxes I have kept to give my son a chance to learn the
basics on a simpler processor. This may not work out in reality
and I may have to find them a caring home that can actually make
use of a Z80 box.
=20
The 486s and 586 are destined for either web terminals using
DOS/Win3.1 and WinSock apps, or possibly a life as edge routers
or lightly tasked servers running BSD.
=20
The stuff that's currently in use:
=20
Toshiba Libretto 70CT, with a 1.5 GB HDD, 6-inch VGA screen,=20
Win98. It's been my companion for five years, handling my mail=20
with Pegasus, my browsing with Opera 3.62, FTP with FtpVoyager 6,=20
and a number of languages and tools (MS C 5.0, FoxPro 2.5b, Forth,=20
A86 Assembler, Rebol, others), a parallel port Zip100 drive, a=20
PC-Card CD-ROM drive, and the most expensive keyboard I own=20
(Cherry, AT, no Win keys) hooked into the external port.
=20
More recently, about a year and a half ago I got the first new
computer I've had in more than ten years: a Fujitsu Lifebook
running WinXP Pro on a Transmeta TM5800 CPU @ 867 MHz, spinning
a 30GB HDD, a DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo drive, with a 10.6-inch VGA
screen. With both high-capacity batteries in it, I can run for
12 hours unplugged. It just doesn't get any better. Yet.
=20
I also inherited my desktop from my wife. She got the latest
thing in Athlons (1.8 GHz or 2.x GHz at the time, with 120GB
of platter, DVD ROM, CD-RW, 17-inch flat panel VGA LCD monitor,=20
Bose (!) speakers, cordless KB & mouse, WinXP Pro) and I got=20
her old one (Athlon 750 MHz, 30GB HDD, 19-inch glass monitor,=20
Win98SE). =20
=20
You see, she runs a business that lives and dies by how well
her machine runs and how fast her Internet connection is. And
her business accounts for a *sizeable* chunk of the household
income. So I pony up the bucks to keep her well equipped with
the computer I just described, color fax/copier, color printers,
large page scanner, automated CD library (kinda cool, really),
and the best Internet connection I can afford.
=20
The kids have an Athlon 1.8 GHz and a Duron 700 MHz with 80GB
and 60GB drives, one 17" flat panel and one 17" NEC MultiSync.
CD-ROM drives and DVD-ROM/CD-RW drives (both). They share our
network and our broadband connection, which is okay 'cuz there
is plenty of bandwidth (1.5 Mbps down, 512 Kbps up). My son
helps manage the high school web site, helps teachers with
their machines, and carries top grades in all his computer
classes. Strange.
=20
Oh, and I have a PDA collection (Handsprings, Sony Clies, my
cell phone runs Palm OS, so does my wife's) and both kids
have Palm OS PDAs. So, PDAs, big deal -- but my son's Palm
Tungsten has more memory and processor than BOTH of my first=20
two PCs combined! That's right, my XT and AT together had=20
less total memory and storage and less total CPU power than=20
his Palm Tungsten.
=20
And we have digital cameras. Which have more storage than
my first two PCs. I doesn't do to dwell on that too much,
because then I get to thinking about how much power and
storage my son's wrist watch will have in 10 years. How
they will find it quaint that "Dad used to make his living
on something slower than 50GHz -- and less than a terabyte=20
of RAM and disk combined!" How primitive!
=20
From=20the shopping list above, you could be forgiven for
thinking that my chosen career has something to do with
computers.
=20
GH> . . . Working in what fields or on what projects?
=20
Well, my day job is with a good-sized "gaming" company
(gaming in the "slot machine" sense), where I write code
that runs as firmware (bits-on-chips) and drives little
tin boxes that bolt onto gaming devices and allow the
game's owner to count his money in near-realtime.
=20
My off hours are spent chipping away at an endless list
of "honey-do" items, and trying to raise teenagers --
kind of a "herding cats" problem. In those rare moments
that I'm not slaving away over somebody else's grand
plan to take over the world, I write database code for
private clients, do some Web and Internet stuff, learn=20
new languages (Rebol is my latest thing, XBase++ should
be next), and incrementally move toward getting my *own*=20
business set up at home.
=20
I have a domain -- noisyroom.com -- that should have
been up and running a year ago, but see the above two
paragraphs for why not. That, and moving three times
in two years. My son currently uses noisyroom.com to
experiment with scripting and page design. Right now
I think it's down with a busted script.
=20
And in my SPARE time, I manage an obscure mailing list.
I know, if I weren't so lazy I'd spend more time here
with you guys.
=20
And you know what? I'm working on that.
=20
=20
All the Best,
=20
~~ Garry
~~ [EMAIL PROTECTED]
=20
=20
----- Friday, July 2, 2004, 10:50:00 AM, Garry wrote: -----
=20
GH> Hi Listers,
=20
[snip]
=20
GH> Running what OS? Working in what fields or on what projects?
=20
GH> It's time to get to know one another again. The list belongs
GH> to you who participate. Let's stir it up. Start some trouble.
GH> Pry into one another's lives. Get personal. Invite some
GH> friends.
=20
GH> Enough with the "peace and quiet" already. I can go to a local
GH> cemetery if I want that.
=20
GH> I want to hear some noise.
=20
=20
GH> ~~ Garry
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<P>Well guys,</P>
<P> </P>
<P>I may as well answer myself.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>GH> Where are we today? Who's living where? Using what hardware?</P>
<P> </P>
<P>Here! Here! Over here! Oh, where is "here?" That would
be</P>
<P>Carson City, Nevada. Elevation 4,500 ft, population 53,000.</P>
<P>About 30 minutes to Reno, 30 minutes to Lake Tahoe. Gorgeous.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>For what it's worth, let me say this: I finally live someplace</P>
<P>that I actually chose. For the first time, I didn't move to</P>
<P>follow the work or to be close to family or dodge the law. We</P>
<P>picked this place, worked out a strategy, and overcame "stuff"</P>
<P>to get here.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>That wouldn't be such a big deal, except that I'm finding most</P>
<P>people never do that. They just grow where they're planted.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>GH> The very meaning of "Survivor PC" has changed radically in that</P>
<P>GH> time -- the cutting edge stuff of 1997 (or even 2000) is showing</P>
<P>GH> up in dumpsters everywhere. I can go to the local Used Computer</P>
<P>GH> Warehouse and pick up 700 MHz PIII boxes (warrantied) for cheap.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>I have some random machines: a 486SX 33MHz, 486DX 66MHz, an AMD</P>
<P>586 100MHz, a Heathkit (Zenith) H/Z89 machine Z80 @ 2.048 MHz</P>
<P>running your choice of HDOS or CP/M 2.2 from single-sided 5.25"</P>
<P>floppies (100KB), a Kaypro II (CP/M) that's been upgraded to a </P>
<P>Kaypro IV (double-sided 5.25 floppies, 390KB), and 2 Kaypro 10s </P>
<P>with huge 10MB hard disks, also CP/M.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>The CP/M boxes I have kept to give my son a chance to learn the</P>
<P>basics on a simpler processor. This may not work out in reality</P>
<P>and I may have to find them a caring home that can actually make</P>
<P>use of a Z80 box.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>The 486s and 586 are destined for either web terminals using</P>
<P>DOS/Win3.1 and WinSock apps, or possibly a life as edge routers</P>
<P>or lightly tasked servers running BSD.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>The stuff that's currently in use:</P>
<P> </P>
<P>Toshiba Libretto 70CT, with a 1.5 GB HDD, 6-inch VGA screen, </P>
<P>Win98. It's been my companion for five years, handling my mail </P>
<P>with Pegasus, my browsing with Opera 3.62, FTP with FtpVoyager 6, </P>
<P>and a number of languages and tools (MS C 5.0, FoxPro 2.5b, Forth, </P>
<P>A86 Assembler, Rebol, others), a parallel port Zip100 drive, a </P>
<P>PC-Card CD-ROM drive, and the most expensive keyboard I own </P>
<P>(Cherry, AT, no Win keys) hooked into the external port.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>More recently, about a year and a half ago I got the first new</P>
<P>computer I've had in more than ten years: a Fujitsu Lifebook</P>
<P>running WinXP Pro on a Transmeta TM5800 CPU @ 867 MHz, spinning</P>
<P>a 30GB HDD, a DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo drive, with a 10.6-inch VGA</P>
<P>screen. With both high-capacity batteries in it, I can run for</P>
<P>12 hours unplugged. It just doesn't get any better. Yet.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>I also inherited my desktop from my wife. She got the latest</P>
<P>thing in Athlons (1.8 GHz or 2.x GHz at the time, with 120GB</P>
<P>of platter, DVD ROM, CD-RW, 17-inch flat panel VGA LCD monitor, </P>
<P>Bose (!) speakers, cordless KB & mouse, WinXP Pro) and I got </P>
<P>her old one (Athlon 750 MHz, 30GB HDD, 19-inch glass monitor, </P>
<P>Win98SE). </P>
<P> </P>
<P>You see, she runs a business that lives and dies by how well</P>
<P>her machine runs and how fast her Internet connection is. And</P>
<P>her business accounts for a *sizeable* chunk of the household</P>
<P>income. So I pony up the bucks to keep her well equipped with</P>
<P>the computer I just described, color fax/copier, color printers,</P>
<P>large page scanner, automated CD library (kinda cool, really),</P>
<P>and the best Internet connection I can afford.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>The kids have an Athlon 1.8 GHz and a Duron 700 MHz with 80GB</P>
<P>and 60GB drives, one 17" flat panel and one 17" NEC MultiSync.</P>
<P>CD-ROM drives and DVD-ROM/CD-RW drives (both). They share our</P>
<P>network and our broadband connection, which is okay 'cuz there</P>
<P>is plenty of bandwidth (1.5 Mbps down, 512 Kbps up). My son</P>
<P>helps manage the high school web site, helps teachers with</P>
<P>their machines, and carries top grades in all his computer</P>
<P>classes. Strange.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>Oh, and I have a PDA collection (Handsprings, Sony Clies, my</P>
<P>cell phone runs Palm OS, so does my wife's) and both kids</P>
<P>have Palm OS PDAs. So, PDAs, big deal -- but my son's Palm</P>
<P>Tungsten has more memory and processor than BOTH of my first </P>
<P>two PCs combined! That's right, my XT and AT together had </P>
<P>less total memory and storage and less total CPU power than </P>
<P>his Palm Tungsten.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>And we have digital cameras. Which have more storage than</P>
<P>my first two PCs. I doesn't do to dwell on that too much,</P>
<P>because then I get to thinking about how much power and</P>
<P>storage my son's wrist watch will have in 10 years. How</P>
<P>they will find it quaint that "Dad used to make his living</P>
<P>on something slower than 50GHz -- and less than a terabyte </P>
<P>of RAM and disk combined!" How primitive!</P>
<P> </P>
<P>From the shopping list above, you could be forgiven for</P>
<P>thinking that my chosen career has something to do with</P>
<P>computers.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>GH> . . . Working in what fields or on what projects?</P>
<P> </P>
<P>Well, my day job is with a good-sized "gaming" company</P>
<P>(gaming in the "slot machine" sense), where I write code</P>
<P>that runs as firmware (bits-on-chips) and drives little</P>
<P>tin boxes that bolt onto gaming devices and allow the</P>
<P>game's owner to count his money in near-realtime.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>My off hours are spent chipping away at an endless list</P>
<P>of "honey-do" items, and trying to raise teenagers --</P>
<P>kind of a "herding cats" problem. In those rare moments</P>
<P>that I'm not slaving away over somebody else's grand</P>
<P>plan to take over the world, I write database code for</P>
<P>private clients, do some Web and Internet stuff, learn </P>
<P>new languages (Rebol is my latest thing, XBase++ should</P>
<P>be next), and incrementally move toward getting my *own* </P>
<P>business set up at home.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>I have a domain -- noisyroom.com -- that should have</P>
<P>been up and running a year ago, but see the above two</P>
<P>paragraphs for why not. That, and moving three times</P>
<P>in two years. My son currently uses noisyroom.com to</P>
<P>experiment with scripting and page design. Right now</P>
<P>I think it's down with a busted script.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>And in my SPARE time, I manage an obscure mailing list.</P>
<P>I know, if I weren't so lazy I'd spend more time here</P>
<P>with you guys.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>And you know what? I'm working on that.</P>
<P> </P>
<P> </P>
<P>All the Best,</P>
<P> </P>
<P>~~ Garry</P>
<P>~~ [EMAIL PROTECTED]</P>
<P> </P>
<P> </P>
<P>----- Friday, July 2, 2004, 10:50:00 AM, Garry wrote: -----</P>
<P> </P>
<P> GH> Hi Listers,</P>
<P> </P>
<P>[snip]</P>
<P> </P>
<P>GH> Running what OS? Working in what fields or on what projects?</P>
<P> </P>
<P> GH> It's time to get to know one another again. The list belongs</P>
<P> GH> to you who participate. Let's stir it up. Start some
trouble.</P>
<P> GH> Pry into one another's lives. Get personal. Invite some</P>
<P> GH> friends.</P>
<P> </P>
<P> GH> Enough with the "peace and quiet" already. I can go to a
local</P>
<P> GH> cemetery if I want that.</P>
<P> </P>
<P> GH> I want to hear some noise.</P>
<P> </P>
<P> </P>
<P> GH> ~~ Garry</P>
<P> </P>
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