The Conservative Cave
Current Events => The DUmpster => Topic started by: franksolich on May 06, 2009, 08:56:56 PM
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http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=403x2775
Now, in case anyone's disremembered, the steely primitive lost his apartment, and had to move in with friends. As he had no money, he agreed to do the cooking for the friends. As that wasn't quite cutting it for the rent, the friends got him hired to sort goods in a thrift store, where the steely primitive apparently still is.
Richard Steele (1000+ posts) Thu Apr-30-09 04:12 AM
Original message
OK, here's the "Dick Steele's FIND of the WEEK" thread where y'all realize how truly LAME I am:
For starters, my second-best "find" of the week was a really AWESOME suit. It's some weird shade of deep purple gabradine with a subtle 1/4" pinstripe, and the original owner bought it at a "SEARS" store on November 6, 1961.
But the thing I'm most excited about: Yesterday, I got a "Commodore64" computer in its original box.
I almost posted a thread about it yesterday, but I kinda held back, because there aren't many folks who collect "vintage electronica" like I do...
And I thought y'all might think I was kinda LAME to be excited about such a thing.
But TODAY, when I walked into work, My mainMan H***** called me over and asked:
"Hey, Dick: do you know what this thing is? I think it's something that might go with
that old computer you bought yesterday; it's got the same name on the box."
"This thing" was an 1983 COMMODORE EXTERNAL 5-INCH FLOPPY-DISC DRIVE,
IN THE ORIGINAL BOX!
Hey, I'm as homophobic as the next guy, and H****** is old and ugly,
but there was a second there when I wanted to kiss him full on the mouth.
The only reason I didn't was because he was HOLDING that antique disk drive,
and I was afraid he might drop it.
The vindictive primitive, the primitive who wants to get her hips replaced in a third-world country where medical care is "free," and there's a beach:
Vinca (1000+ posts) Thu Apr-30-09 07:58 AM
Response to Original message
1. Congratulations. I'm on a dry streak, but glad you've found something.
Richard Steele (1000+ posts) Fri May-01-09 02:09 AM
Response to Reply #1
2. I know that very few folks share my enthusiasm for such things...
..but I know a lot of you here at DU can APPRECIATE how exciting it is to find such a rare thing, whatever it may be.
And RARE they are, nowadays. In the last ten years, I've seen about 15 "Faberge Easter Eggs", but only 4 or 5 Commodore 64's.
(To be fair, the eggs are better. The guilloche work alone is just unbelievable.)
Kat45 (1000+ posts) Fri May-01-09 06:11 PM
Response to Reply #2
3. I have an old Osborne computer.
Do you think there are people who would be interested in purchasing one of those?
Richard Steele (1000+ posts) Tue May-05-09 10:19 PM
Response to Reply #3
5. I'm certain some people would be interested in buying that, but not for very much money.
That's what's nice about collecting such things: it's all dirt cheap.
So it's GREAT to be a BUYER
But that kinda SUCKS if you have one and are looking to sell it-looks like a nice Osborne with all the original accessories is worth about $125 right now.
In my opinion, that's just silly, and I truly believe that the situation will change someday.
Think about it- that Osborne is generally considered to be the FIRST portable computer.
Living in "The Information Age" as we do, shouldn't such a thing be an incredibly desirable collectors item?
It was at the forefront of technological revolution that changed our society's entire way of life.
When was the last time such a thing happened?
The best comparison I can think of is when Henry Ford introduced his
revolutionary "Model T".
Just imagine if you owned a "Model T" today, with 100% original parts, in complete working condition.
Such a thing would be worth MANY times its original purchase price, wouldn't it? You bet it would.
Wealthy collectors would be FIGHTING to bid for it.
Yet, back in the '40s and '50s when working Model T's were still common, they were widely regarded as "just obsolete old cars", and you couldn't hardly GIVE one away.
Someday, your Osborne will be accorded the same respect (and $$$ value) as the Model T is today.
But that day is not yet here, and it probably won't arrive for a few decades yet.
I suggest you keep it safe, and eventually pass it along to some trustworthy member of the younger generation.
Someday, future collectors will thank you for doing so.
You know, examining the above comment alone, just really carefully examining it, I'm left with the impression the steely primitive was high when he wrote it. High on what, I know not, but high.
safeinOhio (747 posts) Fri May-01-09 09:54 PM
Response to Original message
4. I really, really know the feeling
Two or three times I've found Grande Ballroom post cards from the 60s. Got down the driveway and did a dance.
hunter (1000+ posts) Wed May-06-09 03:48 PM
Response to Original message
6. My own weakness is Atari 8 bit stuff.
But I think I already have enough which probably won't stop me from buying more if I'm holding it in my hands.
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A Commodore 64! From back when computers didn't suck quite so much. Ah, those were the days.
[youtube=425,350]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d85p7JZXNy8[/youtube]
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There's not a damn thing subtle about a purple suit, I don't care what kind of pinstripes it has. :rotf:
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There's not a damn thing subtle about a purple suit, I don't care what kind of pinstripes it has. :rotf:
First thing I thought of -
(http://fat-berry.com/blogs/media/blogs/a/joker.jpg)
Second thing was a 70's pimp outfit.
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Hey, I'm as homophobic as the next guy,
This isn't allowed, is it?
I'm still wondering what he's going to do with that floppy drive. What do you do with crap like this that he's all excited over? Sit around and stare at it? Watch the blinking c prompt?
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This isn't allowed, is it?
I'm still wondering what he's going to do with that floppy drive. What do you do with crap like this that he's all excited over? Sit around and stare at it? Watch the blinking c prompt?
There are user communities of hobbyists for almost all of the obsolete computers, you can still get supplies like 5-1/4" floppies easily enough by going through them. Though Commodore did make a 3-1/2" drive as well, and if you really wanted to play with a C64, you could use one of those to copy anything you had from the big ones to the small ones, and considerably ease your supply problem.
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My C64 only had a tape drive to load in software. Then I got a Kaypro 4 with 8 Kilobytes of RAM and TWO 51/4s.
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I go back to: they're packrats. They can't let go of anything, and in fact they're in search of new worthless things all the time.
They generally live in squalor, and part of the squalor is shit they have stacked high to the ceiling...crap they'll never read, use, or play with. It's sort of sad. Sort of.
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I go back to: they're packrats. They can't let go of anything, and in fact they're in search of new worthless things all the time.
They generally live in squalor, and part of the squalor is shit they have stacked high to the ceiling...crap they'll never read, use, or play with. It's sort of sad. Sort of.
I can't throw any stones at anyone for being a packrat, but I do play with all my stuff.
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"Hey! I found a Commodore 64!" "Really? Whatca gonna do with it?" "I donno, look at the green blinking cursor?" "Sounds cool........can we play WoW?" "Nope, I don't know what it'll play, but It looks cool." "Lets go get pizza and play WoW at my place." "Ok, I was getting bored anyway."
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There was this game I started playing on the C64 that I never finished for some reason, it was kind of a cool 3D game before the 3D craze really hit with Wolfenstein 3-D and Doom. You were like some sort of robot vehicle on some prison moon that was going to explode unless you planted these 9 or 10 pylons to release trapped gasses and occasionally you had to fight a prison security system. And then I also never finished Hitchhiker's Guide but that I can play online if I want. Those text games were really cool back in the day. Leather Goddess of Phobos was really cool.
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My C64 only had a tape drive to load in software. Then I got a Kaypro 4 with 8 Kilobytes of RAM and TWO 51/4s.
My neighbor had a Commodore 64. The only thing I remember about it was it took forever to load a game.
Lots of games, though... good luck finding any of them on a usable floppy disk.