10 Jul
1997
10 Jul
'97
5:17 a.m.
Enrico,
You're absolutely, terribly correct. In our benighted shortsightedness
we have been ignoring the core, the soul, nay, the very existentialism
of the historical man-machine interface and the personal hygiene of Gary
Kildall. These bits of metal and plastic have become a zen-like cyborg
interface which has allowed us to ignore the realities of our Jungian
existance. Those among us who have perused and then obviously ignored
the message of the volume of our times, Gibson & Sterling's _The
Difference Engine_, and shall surely rotate on the firey rotissery of
Dante's twenty-ninth buglia of the pit, which of course is reserved for
those who have committed the terrible sin of coveting thy neighbor's
Imsai. How can we claim to discuss the so-called 'collecting' of
so-called 'classic' computers when our hypocritical censorious
self-righteousness has made us purblind to the fact that 'collect' also
purtains to a short prayer comprising an invocation, petition, and
conclusion! And 'classic' from the Roman 'classicus' identifies us as
citizens of the first rank, who should know better! What this obviously
boils down to is the age old conflict of materiality and the health of
the soul cleaved by the sword of societal amiguity. In an awful orgy of
idolitry we have in a very real and illusive sense integrated these
actual bits of, as you put it, metal and plastic into our flesh itself,
becoming no more than Waldos while Charles Babbage's heart is ripped
from his chest by ravens dark as toner, eight claws
upon each talon.
Kai
----------
From: e.tedeschi
Reply To: classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu
Sent: Thursday, July 10, 1997 1:07 AM
To: Discussion re-collecting of classic computers
Subject: Re: farewell
Bill Whitson wrote:
from
Hi Jim.
> I agreed with the new rules until the bit where nobody can say
they
disagree.
> That, and I really don't have time to
read the volume coming from
this list.
> Farewell all, then. If you have questions
about apple2 GSs or
Tiger Learning
Computers, please feel free to e-mail me personally
Sorry you feel this way. The point wasn't really to prevent you disagreeing - it was to prevent a flood of
responses which might
have
bogged down the list for days. The whole idea of
the new rules was
to
curb the absolute flood of unsubs that have
resulted for the most
part
due to the constant bickering. We dropped from
over 220 members to
160
over the last month. I'm sorry to see you
go.
On the contrary, I think that people are unsubscribing because in this
mailing list about collecting Classic icons there is NOT ENOUGH
discussion about the history of the computing boom and the hows and
whys
that led to it. To just limit the discussion to the mere hardware is
narrow minded and shows the kind of attitude which leads to consider
"the other" (the one which begs to differ) as an enemy or at least as
an
intruder. The "dont' bother us as we know what we should be talking
about" attitude might be legal and understandable but is it wise?
As already said here several times, computers are bits of metal and
plastic. They are important for the sentiments and the feelings they
managed to raise in each and everybody (and soul) of us. You keep your
hardware (and I will keep mine so that I can leave it to future
generations) but I will keep my principles and if this will mean I
will
have to do without you, then (I will be sorry but) be it.
enrico
--
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Enrico Tedeschi, 54, Easthill Drive, BRIGHTON BN41 2FD, U.K.
tel/fax +(0)1273 701650 (24 hours) or 0850 104725 mobile
website <http://www.ndirect.co.uk/~e.tedeschi>
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Bill, please unsubscribe me.
OK.
Bill