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		| rubric 
 
  
 Joined: 28 Oct 2006
 Location: Pongdongfongyong
 
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				|  Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2007 3:26 am    Post subject: Computer History - BBS - The Documentary |   |  
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				| http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulletin_board_system Here's some background on the BBS (bulletin board system) which helped form online communities pre-internet. The torrent is available. Pretty fascinating from a messageboard/forum/general online communities historical perspective.
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		| gsxr750r 
 
  
 Joined: 29 Jan 2007
 
 
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				|  Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2007 5:18 am    Post subject: |   |  
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				| My father and I were using a BBS called Wolfnet to leave messages (e-mail) to each other.  It was really neat at the time.  That was in 1990. |  | 
	
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		| mindmetoo 
 
 
 Joined: 02 Feb 2004
 
 
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				|  Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2007 6:44 am    Post subject: |   |  
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				| I go back to the days when BBS systems were run on a C64 with a 300 baud modem and a single floppy drive. |  | 
	
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		| mack the knife 
 
  
 Joined: 16 Jan 2003
 Location: standing right behind you...
 
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				|  Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2007 7:25 am    Post subject: |   |  
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				| For good all-around computer history you should [eventually] check out the Munich Museum of Technology.  It's geek-tastic. |  | 
	
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		| gsxr750r 
 
  
 Joined: 29 Jan 2007
 
 
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		| jazblanc77 
 
  
 Joined: 22 Feb 2004
 
 
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				|  Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2007 9:16 am    Post subject: |   |  
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 How about Legend of the Red Dragon (LORD)?  I spent way too many hours playing that game on  a bbs that someone set up in my university dorms.
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		| rubric 
 
  
 Joined: 28 Oct 2006
 Location: Pongdongfongyong
 
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				|  Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2007 3:44 pm    Post subject: |   |  
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	  | I go back to the days when BBS systems were run on a C64 with a 300 baud modem and a single floppy drive. 
 |  Yeah they went right into that in part one of the documentary. Watching the 300 baud modem working at 30 characters per second, about normal reading speed. Must have been frustrating for larger downloads, but maybe not as it was all relative to everything else that was around at the time.
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		| mindmetoo 
 
 
 Joined: 02 Feb 2004
 
 
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				|  Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2007 4:01 pm    Post subject: |   |  
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 Indeed. Although MULE is my all time favorite.
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		| europe2seoul 
 
 
 Joined: 12 Sep 2005
 Location: Seoul, Korea
 
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				|  Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 5:55 am    Post subject: |   |  
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				| I used to run Maximus BBS based BBS site (Maximus BBS is the software). Then we joined FidoNet to exchange messages with other sites and started our own network - with 3 sites. It was a big deal to upgrade from 2400 to 14400 and supporting 24 hour operation. Many at the time were night-time only BBSes from say 9PM. This was in early 90s up to say 1996-1997. Those were good times....
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		| the_beaver 
 
  
 Joined: 15 Jan 2003
 
 
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				|  Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 4:15 pm    Post subject: |   |  
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	  | mindmetoo wrote: |  
	  | Indeed. Although MULE is my all time favorite. |  
 MULE rocked. And you could especially impress friends by catching the moutain wampus.
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		| Hollywoodaction 
 
 
 Joined: 02 Jul 2004
 
 
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				|  Posted: Fri Mar 16, 2007 8:22 am    Post subject: |   |  
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	  | mindmetoo wrote: |  
	  | I go back to the days when BBS systems were run on a C64 with a 300 baud modem and a single floppy drive. |  
 I've used a telex machine, once.
 
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telegraphy
 
 
 My fist introduction to computers was the mainframe computer at my dad's laboratory in the mid 70's.
 
 Check this guy's 'antique collection'. It brings back memories.
 
 http://www.futurebots.com/cpu.htm
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		| huffdaddy 
 
 
 Joined: 25 Nov 2005
 
 
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				|  Posted: Fri Mar 16, 2007 8:52 am    Post subject: |   |  
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	  | mindmetoo wrote: |  
	  | I go back to the days when BBS systems were run on a C64 with a 300 baud modem and a single floppy drive. |  
 Been there.  Done that.  P!ssed off my parents when I ran up a $100 phone bill calling Compuserve in Kansas City.
 
 
 
 
	  | Hollywoodaction wrote: |  
	  | I've used a telex machine, once. |  
 Been there.  Done that.  Many times, in fact.  That's what I used to do my stat homework on my first year of college.
 
 Never actually used punch cards, but they were still floating around in the late 80's.
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		| dogshed 
 
  
 Joined: 28 Apr 2006
 
 
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				|  Posted: Fri Mar 16, 2007 1:36 pm    Post subject: |   |  
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	  | huffdaddy wrote: |  
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 Never actually used punch cards, but they were still floating around in the late 80's.
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 At Kansas State University I think the last year they used punch cards for registration was 1992.
 
 You went to different tables and got a punch card for each class you wanted and then took your stack of cards to a card reader.
 
 In many ways it was better than having someone type it in.
 
 -Jeff
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		| Hollywoodaction 
 
 
 Joined: 02 Jul 2004
 
 
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				|  Posted: Fri Mar 16, 2007 3:33 pm    Post subject: |   |  
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	  | huffdaddy wrote: |  
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	  | mindmetoo wrote: |  
	  | I go back to the days when BBS systems were run on a C64 with a 300 baud modem and a single floppy drive. |  
 Been there.  Done that.  P!ssed off my parents when I ran up a $100 phone bill calling Compuserve in Kansas City.
 
 
 
 
	  | Hollywoodaction wrote: |  
	  | I've used a telex machine, once. |  
 Been there.  Done that.  Many times, in fact.  That's what I used to do my stat homework on my first year of college.
 
 Never actually used punch cards, but they were still floating around in the late 80's.
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 Late 80s?  I'm talking about the early 70s.  I learned to write on printout paper of what was either a Honeywell 115 or IBM 360 mainframe computer.
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		| mindmetoo 
 
 
 Joined: 02 Feb 2004
 
 
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				|  Posted: Fri Mar 16, 2007 5:11 pm    Post subject: |   |  
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	  | Hollywoodaction wrote: |  
	  | Late 80s?  I'm talking about the early 70s.  I learned to write on printout paper of what was either a Honeywell 115 or IBM 360 mainframe computer.
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 I typed Lunar Lander BASIC into a Varian computer via a teletype, recording the program on punchtape. And you played the game with all output on paper teletype. The computer used magnetic core memory. I think it had about 4K of it.
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