General / Off-Topic Amiga stuff

Was funny how the amiga was ridiculed as a "games" machine. Now if you can't play games it's not worth mentioning, how times change.

I think that's just a gradual realisation in society that games are a legitimate use for computers (it's not all databases, spreadsheets and word processors), and they are also a good benchmark for overall performance.

They always were of course, but back then we were kids. Now we're all growed up and still playing computer games, so maaaybe... ;)
 
I'll never forget my old Commodore Amiga. It will always occupy the top premium spot in my vault of fond material memories, even over the 2 motorbikes I had in my late teen years (I loved the 90's), so many thousands of hours of enjoyment, fun and dreams with my dear Amiga 500...

I still remember the day my parents bought it when I was 11, 29 years ago... I even remember going to the shop just with my mother to ask about it, brought some pamphlets... Then we went back home, and when my father arrived from work I remember fiddling wit the pamphlets to get his attention. He went to talk alone with my mother and that same day we were back at the shop buying it. :) My mother convinced my father getting that computer would be good for my future. Incidentally, I'm now reaching a 20 year old career in software, so she got it right :) Still I don't think even her realized at the time just how much impact that machine would have in my life, it was the thing that ignited the spark that guided me during the next decades.
 
I still remember the day my parents bought it when I was 11, 29 years ago... I even remember going to the shop just with my mother to ask about it, brought some pamphlets... Then we went back home, and when my father arrived from work I remember fiddling wit the pamphlets to get his attention. He went to talk alone with my mother and that same day we were back at the shop buying it. :) My mother convinced my father getting that computer would be good for my future. Incidentally, I'm now reaching a 20 year old career in software, so she got it right :) Still I don't think even her realized at the time just how much impact that machine would have in my life, it was the thing that ignited the spark that guided me during the next decades.

Nice story. With me it was my Dad rather than my Mum, who did things (like buying a C64) totally against my Mum's wishes. For years, she couldn't understand why I was on "that thing all day", but it was Dad who introduced me to it all and bought me my first C64 and then Elite. I was inspired by it to learn to code, and a few years later started to get things published. Now, I've made a career out of software development spanning around 30 years.

He passed away suddenly in 2005 and I still miss him. When E: D Kickstarted, I spent far too much money on it because I wanted to name a station after him - and it's in there. John Irving Station in Asphodel, as a small way of honouring him igniting that interest all those years ago. It's why Frontier lying about offline mode hurt so much, because now that station will only exist as long as the game makes money for Frontier. :(
 

rootsrat

Volunteer Moderator
Amiga years were the golden years of gaming for me. Those had the most soul you can get. These developers were so passionate and so clever... Just yesterday in fact I played through Dune (1992) on Amiga emulator. It was as amazing as it was all those years ago. Took me around 8 hours to beat. That was a fully open world - quite massive too - with a sandbox-like gameplay and so many possibilities. All on just 3 floppy disks.

So amazing.
 
Amiga years were the golden years of gaming for me. Those had the most soul you can get. These developers were so passionate and so clever... Just yesterday in fact I played through Dune (1992) on Amiga emulator. It was as amazing as it was all those years ago. Took me around 8 hours to beat. That was a fully open world - quite massive too - with a sandbox-like gameplay and so many possibilities. All on just 3 floppy disks.

So amazing.

The first Dune was one of my favorites too, together with a space themed RTS called Utopia - Creation of a Nation, Sid Meiers Pirates, Railroad Tycoon, Sensible Soccer, The Manager, Wing Commander, and a huge number of flight sims like Gunship 2000, Knights of the Sky, Birds of Prey, F-29 Retaliator, F-15 Strike Eagle II, Thunderhawk, Combat Air Patrol, etc...

Good times! :)
 
I'll never forget my old Commodore Amiga. It will always occupy the top premium spot in my vault of fond material memories, even over the 2 motorbikes I had in my late teen years (I loved the 90's), so many thousands of hours of enjoyment, fun and dreams with my dear Amiga 500...

I still remember the day my parents bought it when I was 11, 29 years ago... I even remember going to the shop just with my mother to ask about it, brought some pamphlets... Then we went back home, and when my father arrived from work I remember fiddling wit the pamphlets to get his attention. He went to talk alone with my mother and that same day we were back at the shop buying it. :) My mother convinced my father getting that computer would be good for my future. Incidentally, I'm now reaching a 20 year old career in software, so she got it right :) Still I don't think even her realized at the time just how much impact that machine would have in my life, it was the thing that ignited the spark that guided me during the next decades.
I guess a lot of people who work in IT have followed the same path as you (me too).

The spark of the 90s that guided us. :)

🦠 🦠 🦠 🦠 🦠 😷
 
Nice story. With me it was my Dad rather than my Mum, who did things (like buying a C64) totally against my Mum's wishes. For years, she couldn't understand why I was on "that thing all day", but it was Dad who introduced me to it all and bought me my first C64 and then Elite. I was inspired by it to learn to code, and a few years later started to get things published. Now, I've made a career out of software development spanning around 30 years.

He passed away suddenly in 2005 and I still miss him. When E: D Kickstarted, I spent far too much money on it because I wanted to name a station after him - and it's in there. John Irving Station in Asphodel, as a small way of honouring him igniting that interest all those years ago. It's why Frontier lying about offline mode hurt so much, because now that station will only exist as long as the game makes money for Frontier. :(
For my part I discovered all alone the computer. To start in compagny as a data entry operator on an IBM terminal.

And after in a home training on basic language with a Z80 and CP / M

After I've bought an Atari STF.

And one day a family friend brought me an i486 DX2 66 and MS-DOS 6.22

I was training as a programmer analyst.

The great adventure has begun.

Happy days. A lot of nostalgia for this period of my life. :)😢:)

🦠🦠🦠🦠🦠🦠🦠😷
 
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If anyone wants to know how and why Commodore was great and how it became so (relatively) affordable, and also why and how it crashed and burned so soon afterwards, I highly recommend this book: https://www.amazon.com/Edge-Spectacular-Commodore-Bagnall-2005-09-14/dp/B01NGZZMDG (*)

It's a very easy read, and anyone from that era, especially people who work in IT, will enjoy it tremendously. Lots of nostalgia value, and also tells some incredible stories about the daily hardships and successes of working in IT in the 80's and 90's.

(*) edit: holy crap the book got insanely expensive in the last 15 years!! I must have got it for 30/40$ tops... Better get a used one if you're interested.
 
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The first Dune was one of my favorites too, together with a space themed RTS called Utopia - Creation of a Nation, Sid Meiers Pirates, Railroad Tycoon, Sensible Soccer, The Manager, Wing Commander, and a huge number of flight sims like Gunship 2000, Knights of the Sky, Birds of Prey, F-29 Retaliator, F-15 Strike Eagle II, Thunderhawk, Combat Air Patrol, etc...

Good times! :)
Hell yes..... great times in gaming advances.

Also this:

Stunt Track Racer (Stunt Car Racer in the UK) is a racing videogame developed by Geoff Crammond and published by MicroStyle in 1989 for the Amiga, Atari ST, MS-DOS, ZX Spectrum, Co...


Mercenary is the first in a series of computer games, published on a number of 8-bit and 16-bit platforms from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s, by Novagen Software. The second and third games were known as Damocles and Mercenary III: The Dion Crisis respectively.

The games were notable for their smooth vector and polygonal graphics, vast environments, and open-ended gameplay which offered several ways to complete each game. All three titles were favourably reviewed when they were originally released,[


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Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oxIykvkZFro


Mercenary: Second City also rocked.....

And so many hours in Elite......
 
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