12 May
2001
12 May
'01
4:35 p.m.
On Sat, 12 May 2001, R. D. Davis wrote:
On Sat, 12 May 2001, Eric Chomko wrote:
Well, to some people it's important. And going with Eric Chomko's theme,
"Why? Because!" :)
And the reason the Mona Lisa is so highly valued is, in part, because Da
Vinci, one of the most celebrated inventors/scientists/artists/etc in
history, painted it.
Iggy Drougge wrote:
> Of course they would be highly valued, but
my point is not whether
> they are, but whether they should.
I see Iggy's point; he's asking, as I'm wondering, what logical
difference does it make whether or not some famous artist actually
touched something. Furthermore, I've seen much more attractive
paintings than the Mona Lisa sell for much less than the Mona Lisa
would sell for. Giving this additional thought, ss not the Mona Lisa a
rather
unattractive painting of a woman who isn't particularly attractive?
To each his own, of course. Art appreciation is entirely subjective. It's
the same with old computers. Someone who actually used an Altair back
when it came out may consider it junk.
Now, to get back on topic, let's apply this to
computers. For
example, why should an Apple I or an Altair sell for more than. let's
say, a Sun 4/330? That makes no sense; the Apple I is much slower and
has fewer graphics capabilities, etc.
Good question, but I think it has to do with the fact that a) there were
at most 200 made, b) they were hand-made by Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs,
two of the most celebrated figures in computer history. c) it was a
pretty cool computer for its day. This is the historical point of view.
Now for the practical point of view, of course it's nothing to be compared
to the Sun 4/330. It can't do all the nifty things the Sun 4/330 can do,
at least not as fast, or with as high resolution graphics, or with as much
memory, or with as much hard drive space, etc. (It might possibly be made
to do it, but that's niether here nor there :)
So what's more important to you? Historical interest or practical
interest? To each his own.
Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival
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International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org