Remember your first PC???

coathanger007

Tomorrow Tweaking Today
Joined
19 May 2003
Messages
1,520
We've come a very, very long way. Just compare my first with my current PC.

NAME PC XT
MANUFACTURER IBM
Time 1985 (I think)
CPU Intel 8088
SPEED 4.77 MHz
RAM 64k
GRAPHIC MODES CGA modes : 320 x 200
COLORS 16 (my monitor only supported monochrome)
SOUND Tone Generator
BUILT IN MEDIA One 5.25'' FDD, 360k
10Mb hard-disk (rpm???don't even ask)
OS MS DOS (M$ then M$ now)

The most intensive game I could run on it - primitive version of Dig Dug - breathtaking graphics and sound quality that would blow your socks off. This was 'Future proof'...at the time
:D My watch has even more grunt than this. Put this into context.
Imagine PCs 2 decades from now....3.0Ghz processing power in a pocket calculator :) Doom 3 will be crappy abandonware and the monster Super PCs of today that cost $10000 will be in a Museum or in the dumpster. PCs may not even exist as such - sorry y'all hardcore PC enthusiasts.
 
Oh blimey, I havent got a clue :|
Dig Dug always was, and still is, a fantastic game that will never lose its prowess in amusing me :D
 
Apple IIe
Codename: Diana

CPU: MOS Technology/SynerTek 6502

CPU Speed: 1 Mhz

FPU: none

Bus Speed: 1 Mhz

Data Path: 8 bit

ROM: 16 kb

Onboard RAM: 64 kb

RAM Slots: expansion via 1st slot

Maximum RAM: 128 k, with Extended 80 Columns Card

Maximum Resolution: 40/80x24 text, 4-bit 40x48, 6 color 140x192, 4-bit 140x192, 1-bit 240x192, 1-bit 560x192

Slots: 8 proprietary

Floppy Drive: optional

Speaker(s): mono

Introduced: January 1983

Terminated: March 1995

Released in January 1983, The Apple IIe was to be one of the most successful Apple computers ever. It was based on the 6502 processor, which could run at 1.02 Mhz. It came with 64K of RAM and a 32K ROM which included BASIC, an assembly language interface, and several other hard-coded options. The Apple IIe originally sold for $1,395, and was replaced in 1985 by an updated model.

Mine was complete with a dual floppy drive and a green screen monitor.

I think my daughter still has it stored away in a closet!
 
Mine WAS at least double as fast as yours :) Maybe you could show off a screenshot of the 'PC' in storage?
 
Zenith 6Mhz with "ZDOS" as the OS. I don't remember how much RAM it had. And a monochrome monitor!
 
I can't remember exactly(I was like 4 yrs old), but I remember using an Apple of some sort. Oh, and it could play Prince of Persia! :D
 
I think I was about 8 when we got our first computer at home. It was this big, bulky Tandy 9000 (not sure of the number). I remember it had this freaky blue and yellow desktop, and I had to go to DOS to play my favorite game: Caveman Ugh-lympics. Also had an old-skool dot-matrix printer with the little perforated strips with holes on each side you had to tear off after printing.
 
Commodore 64K

Storage was an audio cassette. monitor was a black and white 13" TV. No games for it.


Heeter
 
we had an Amstrad cpc464. it used to take tapes that took about an hour to load, but when they did load they were dam good games :D
 
No one has beaten Damnyank yet - probably also the oldest guy on this thread :D
 
OMG - yes I do - but was it a PC?

It used the 6502, a much under rated CPU in those days if you want my opinion it beat the Z80's hands down - a bit like the AMD/INTEL debate now maybe?

Anyway here are some pics from archives I found - although the board I had was one of the early prototypes (complete with track bugs - I had to go in and cut some!

(mobo pic on the attachment)

Believe it or not I had on old 9600 modem and this baby had teletext - so I played my first MUD games on this and there were even primitive pictures - but OMG it cost a helluva lot more than DOOM! does now to play! Those were the days - when the net was barely thought of...

here it is - glorious design!

see it dance!

PS - BTW this was out before the Apple IIe - used same processor too!

Anyone have a TRS-80 - they were before this one, or a Commodore PET?
 
ha ha found some info on mine:
This is the very first model of computer manufactured by Amstrad. It was powered by a Zilog Z80 processor clocked at 4MHz, with 64K RAM, 32K ROM containing the OS and BASIC, and with a built-in cassette drive. The BASIC, written by Locomotive Software, was VERY powerful, allowing the BASIC programmer to manipulate up to 8 windows (with their own text streams) at a time, file I/O, direct access to operating system functions, setting up of interrupts and timers, with their 'payloads' written in either BASIC or machine code, 3 channel stereo sound, and graphics.

cpc464.jpg


NAME CPC 464
MANUFACTURER Amstrad
TYPE Home Computer
ORIGIN United Kingdom
YEAR 1984
END OF PRODUCTION 1990
BUILT IN LANGUAGE Locomotive Basic
KEYBOARD QWERTY mechanical keyboard
Numeric keypad and edit block with arrow keys
CPU Zilog Z80
SPEED 4 MHz
RAM 64 kb (42kb left for user)
VRAM 16 kb
ROM 32 kb
TEXT MODES 20 x 25 with 16 colors
40 x 25 with 4 colors
80 x 25 with 2 colors
GRAPHIC MODES 160 x 200 with 16 colors
320 x 200 with 4 colors
640 x 200 with 2 colors
COLORS 27
SOUND 3 channels, 8 octaves
+1 noise channel
I/O PORTS Printer port
Bus port
1 Joystick plug (Atari standard)
Floppy Disc Port
DIN plug for Amstrad monitor
Headphone / Sound stereo jack output
BUILT IN MEDIA Tape Recorder (1000 or 2000 bauds)
OS AMSDOS or CP/M
POWER SUPPLY 5v DC (powered by an Amstrad monitor)
PRICE Monochrome - 455 (December 84)
Monochrome -410 (March 86)
Color - 684 (Dec. 84)
Color - 608 (March 86)
 
Originally posted by coathanger007
No one has beaten Damnyank yet - probably also the oldest guy on this thread :D

Yes I am the oldest (as far as I know) on this thread - Kirrie2001 is the only one I know of that is older than I am on the forum! But you have to remember that Apple was my first experience and I was proabably older (37 ish) than most of you are now!:D

Here is a pic of what the AppleIIe looked like - no way am I going into my one of my daughters closet there is no telling what is in there - plus she lives on the side of town!
 
Timex
Everything had to be programmed each time you did it. It had a tape thermal printer and used my B&W TV as a monitor.
 
my first pc was the one where you had to get another person to run in a wheel and produce the electricity to turn it on.
 
Howzabout using Fortran on an IBM 360 back in 1971? That was my first computer. I've been on everything from the Timex around 1980 or so, Commodore, Apple, and probably some you never heard of. I even got to use CPM once on an old "desktop" that heated up my whole house. Ah, memories.
 

Members online

No members online now.

Latest profile posts

Also Hi EP and people. I found this place again while looking through a oooollllllldddd backup. I have filled over 10TB and was looking at my collection of antiques. Any bids on the 500Mhz Win 95 fix?
Any of the SP crew still out there?
Xie wrote on Electronic Punk's profile.
Impressed you have kept this alive this long EP! So many sites have come and gone. :(

Just did some crude math and I apparently joined almost 18yrs ago, how is that possible???
hello peeps... is been some time since i last came here.
Electronic Punk wrote on Sazar's profile.
Rest in peace my friend, been trying to find you and finally did in the worst way imaginable.

Forum statistics

Threads
62,015
Messages
673,494
Members
5,621
Latest member
naeemsafi
Back