Ping Richard riplin@az.....

-------------------------------
Ironically, tomorrow will be the 40th anniversary of my being in the
computer industry.
--------------------------------
640Kb, good grief I used 2.5 MHz 8085AH with 64Kb. 640Kb could run 3
or 4 users on a multi-user system.
-------------------------------
That would be difficult, especially here in Auckland.
-------------------------------

i now have another reason to win a lottery... i gotta take a trip to nz. no doubt you have
stories to tell, and i'd like to hear them. even in auckland.

the most users i've heard of on a 640k machine was a pick machine. still my favorite os.

sss



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"SeaSideSam" <Sam@theSeaSide> wrote in message
news:d254e$48bca15c$6214829b$8954@ALLTEL.NET...
>
> -------------------------------
> Ironically, tomorrow will be the 40th anniversary of my being in the
> computer industry.
> --------------------------------
> 640Kb, good grief I used 2.5 MHz 8085AH with 64Kb. 640Kb could run 3
> or 4 users on a multi-user system.
> -------------------------------
> That would be difficult, especially here in Auckland.
> -------------------------------
>
> i now have another reason to win a lottery... i gotta take a trip to nz.

No, really... it's awful.

We live in an earthquake zone and can get destroyed any minute (there were
two serious quakes last week; some sheep were seriously inconvenienced...)

The idyllic blue waters and surf beaches are infested with savage sharks;
you take your life in your hands just going for a swim...

The people are xenophobic and generally suspicious of strangers.

The rivers are treacherous and people drown in them every year.

The bush and wilderness is unforgiving and people die there every year
too... especially tourists.

The mountains are dangerous (I know from first hand; I used to be a climber
and nearly died twice on Taranaki (Mount Egmount)).

And as if all that weren't enough, we have an active volcano in the middle
of the North Island that blows it's stack every few years and covers
everything with ash, not to mention another one offshore in the Bay of
Plenty (where I live) that has actually killed people who were stupid enough
to try and mine the sulphur there...

Then there are the fierce Maoris and all the other ethnic diversity that
means language problems and garlic breath.

And to put the little tin hat on it, apart from Richard and I, nobody is
writing COBOL (in line or any other way) and they've all bought in to Java
and LAMP and packages...

Take my tip, stay away.

Your impressions gained from a rainy day in Wellington were absolutely
accurate and trying to tell you something...

After all, it IS the centre of Government (and I was born there...)

Pete.
--
"I used to write COBOL...now I can do anything."

On the other hand ... there is today in the Winnipeg Free Press an article
by Peter Holle (an example of the worst sort of free market exponents)
called "Learn from the Kiwis" which praises Hutt City & Christchurch for
their peerless administrations and methods and results.
(winnipegfreepress.com). Holle is the sort of commentator who will describe
a community somewhere is New Jersey as getting 90% of its revenue from
casinos, but will unblushingly state that its great financial position is
due to the fact that it subjects all its contracts to public bidding
(treating its own departments as bidders). His article today is more
balanced.

PL


Pete Dashwood <dashwood@removethis.enternet.co.nz> wrote in message
news:6i4j8dFouthpU1@mid.individual.net...
>
>
> "SeaSideSam" <Sam@theSeaSide> wrote in message
> news:d254e$48bca15c$6214829b$8954@ALLTEL.NET...
> >
> > -------------------------------
> > Ironically, tomorrow will be the 40th anniversary of my being in the
> > computer industry.
> > --------------------------------
> > 640Kb, good grief I used 2.5 MHz 8085AH with 64Kb. 640Kb could run 3
> > or 4 users on a multi-user system.
> > -------------------------------
> > That would be difficult, especially here in Auckland.
> > -------------------------------
> >
> > i now have another reason to win a lottery... i gotta take a trip to
nz.
>
> No, really... it's awful.
>
<snip>

"tlmfru" <lacey@mts.net> wrote in message
news:mbfvk.12812$3A4.4401@newsfe04.iad...
> On the other hand ... there is today in the Winnipeg Free Press an article
> by Peter Holle (an example of the worst sort of free market exponents)
> called "Learn from the Kiwis" which praises Hutt City & Christchurch for
> their peerless administrations and methods and results.

I grew up in "the Hutt". It is a valley outside of Wellington where the Hutt
river flows down from the Rimutaka and Akatarawa ranges, until it exits into
Wellington harbour at Petone. It is very beautiful and, as a child I
remember spending a lot of time with my friends and our dogs down by the
river or exploring the bush in the hills above the valley. Our parents never
had to worry about us. Unfortunately the world is a different place today
and I doubt that anyone would let their kids have the freedom that we
enjoyed.

I always smile when journalists use words like "peerless"...

Pete.
--
"I used to write COBOL...now I can do anything."

On Wed, 3 Sep 2008 11:43:24 +1200, "Pete Dashwood"
<dashwood@removethis.enternet.co.nz> wrote:

>
>
>"tlmfru" <lacey@mts.net> wrote in message
>news:mbfvk.12812$3A4.4401@newsfe04.iad...
>> On the other hand ... there is today in the Winnipeg Free Press an article
>> by Peter Holle (an example of the worst sort of free market exponents)
>> called "Learn from the Kiwis" which praises Hutt City & Christchurch for
>> their peerless administrations and methods and results.
>
>I grew up in "the Hutt". It is a valley outside of Wellington where the Hutt
>river flows down from the Rimutaka and Akatarawa ranges, until it exits into
>Wellington harbour at Petone. It is very beautiful and, as a child I
>remember spending a lot of time with my friends and our dogs down by the
>river or exploring the bush in the hills above the valley. Our parents never
>had to worry about us. Unfortunately the world is a different place today
>and I doubt that anyone would let their kids have the freedom that we
>enjoyed.

I wonder if the risks have really increased rather than the tolerance
for risk being less. If the latter, is the decreased tolerance good
or bad? Should parents be considered inadequate or negligent for
allowing their children to take risk that we used to take as children
(I'm 69 and grew up in suburban US in suburbs bordering or close to
major cities) I took risks that my late sister would not let her
children take.
>
>I always smile when journalists use words like "peerless"...
>
>Pete.

On Wed, 03 Sep 2008 13:17:19 -0300, Clark F Morris
<cfmpublic@ns.sympatico.ca> wrote:

>I wonder if the risks have really increased rather than the tolerance
>for risk being less. If the latter, is the decreased tolerance good
>or bad? Should parents be considered inadequate or negligent for
>allowing their children to take risk that we used to take as children
>(I'm 69 and grew up in suburban US in suburbs bordering or close to
>major cities) I took risks that my late sister would not let her
>children take.

Certainly our standards have changed. Consider bicycle helmets and
seatbelts.

From everything I've read, in most countries that consider themselves
"civilized", there were far more bullies beating up kids every day
after school a century ago than today - with the trend being pretty
constant.

Also many of the terrors were more local. Some atrocity was
committed that terrorized a small town or community, but didn't make
the 5:00 news. My town really had nothing to do with the town on the
other side of the city. But now both towns are part of the city's
metropolis of millions, and it takes lots fewer bad guys to scare a
much bigger population when we see the victim on TV.

I suspect these aren't as big as the change in standards. We have
peer driven values. It's easy to accept as normal war atrocities -
if your buddies are doing them. It's easy to disregard WWJD, if our
peers all hate. And it's easy to watch other parents and decide that
good parents never let children take risks (except for socially
approved risks such as little league).

In article <l2htb45vnv40kjiqv7a5hur0l0808jap05@4ax.com>,
Howard Brazee <howard@brazee.net> writes:
> On Wed, 03 Sep 2008 13:17:19 -0300, Clark F Morris
> <cfmpublic@ns.sympatico.ca> wrote:
>
>>I wonder if the risks have really increased rather than the tolerance
>>for risk being less. If the latter, is the decreased tolerance good
>>or bad? Should parents be considered inadequate or negligent for
>>allowing their children to take risk that we used to take as children
>>(I'm 69 and grew up in suburban US in suburbs bordering or close to
>>major cities) I took risks that my late sister would not let her
>>children take.
>
> Certainly our standards have changed. Consider bicycle helmets and
> seatbelts.

Yeah, and motorcycle helmets. Oh, wait.....

>
> From everything I've read, in most countries that consider themselves
> "civilized", there were far more bullies beating up kids every day
> after school a century ago than today - with the trend being pretty
> constant.

Can't say I agree. Especially after what my daughter went thru 15 years
ago in highschool. I saw a lot less and better handling of the situation
45 years ago.

>
> Also many of the terrors were more local. Some atrocity was
> committed that terrorized a small town or community, but didn't make
> the 5:00 news. My town really had nothing to do with the town on the
> other side of the city. But now both towns are part of the city's
> metropolis of millions, and it takes lots fewer bad guys to scare a
> much bigger population when we see the victim on TV.

I would blame that more on the media than the situation. We had guys
holding the police at bay after killing their wives and families 50
years ago. But we only had one TV station and TV's were about one to
block rather than 400 TV stations and TV's sometimes more than one to
a room. News has become a product that has to be sold and sensationalism
sells. My local TV stations (in northeast PA) have been talking about how
much rain and potential destruction we could see from Gustav for almost
two weeks. As it turns out, we aren't even going to see a rain shower.

bill

--
Bill Gunshannon | de-moc-ra-cy (di mok' ra see) n. Three wolves
billg999@cs.scranton.edu | and a sheep voting on what's for dinner.
University of Scranton |
Scranton, Pennsylvania | #include <std.disclaimer.h>

On 3 Sep 2008 18:32:00 GMT, billg999@cs.uofs.edu (Bill Gunshannon)
wrote:

>In article <l2htb45vnv40kjiqv7a5hur0l0808jap05@4ax.com>,
> Howard Brazee <howard@brazee.net> writes:
>> On Wed, 03 Sep 2008 13:17:19 -0300, Clark F Morris
>> <cfmpublic@ns.sympatico.ca> wrote:
>>
>>>I wonder if the risks have really increased rather than the tolerance
>>>for risk being less. If the latter, is the decreased tolerance good
>>>or bad? Should parents be considered inadequate or negligent for
>>>allowing their children to take risk that we used to take as children
>>>(I'm 69 and grew up in suburban US in suburbs bordering or close to
>>>major cities) I took risks that my late sister would not let her
>>>children take.
>>
>> Certainly our standards have changed. Consider bicycle helmets and
>> seatbelts.
>
>Yeah, and motorcycle helmets. Oh, wait.....
>
>>
>> From everything I've read, in most countries that consider themselves
>> "civilized", there were far more bullies beating up kids every day
>> after school a century ago than today - with the trend being pretty
>> constant.
>
>Can't say I agree. Especially after what my daughter went thru 15 years
>ago in highschool. I saw a lot less and better handling of the situation
>45 years ago.
>

Sign of the times...there was an article in our small town weekly
newspaper that said the high school was going to strictly enforce its
rule against having cell phones turned on during school hours.

This was necessary to prevent distractions, cheating and cyber
bullying which, evidently, had been a big problem the previous year.

All I ever had to worry about was some bully stealing my 50 cents for
lunch!


>>
>> Also many of the terrors were more local. Some atrocity was
>> committed that terrorized a small town or community, but didn't make
>> the 5:00 news. My town really had nothing to do with the town on the
>> other side of the city. But now both towns are part of the city's
>> metropolis of millions, and it takes lots fewer bad guys to scare a
>> much bigger population when we see the victim on TV.
>
>I would blame that more on the media than the situation. We had guys
>holding the police at bay after killing their wives and families 50
>years ago. But we only had one TV station and TV's were about one to
>block rather than 400 TV stations and TV's sometimes more than one to
>a room. News has become a product that has to be sold and sensationalism
>sells. My local TV stations (in northeast PA) have been talking about how
>much rain and potential destruction we could see from Gustav for almost
>two weeks. As it turns out, we aren't even going to see a rain shower.
>
>bill

Regards,
////
(o o)
-oOO--(_)--OOo-

"I'm addicted to placebos. I'd give them up, but it wouldn' make
any difference."
-- Steven Wright
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Remove nospam to email me.

Steve

On Thu, 04 Sep 2008 14:07:31 -0400, SkippyPB
<swiegand@Nospam.neo.rr.com> wrote:

>Sign of the times...there was an article in our small town weekly
>newspaper that said the high school was going to strictly enforce its
>rule against having cell phones turned on during school hours.
>
>This was necessary to prevent distractions, cheating and cyber
>bullying which, evidently, had been a big problem the previous year.

It's interesting reading Vernor Vinge. He had a Hugo winning novella
"Fast Times at Fairmont High", and then expanded on that environment
with the Hugo winning novel _Rainbows End_ (A character wonders
whether the missing apostrophe was intentional or not).

These show worlds where people have instant access to data with
implants and such. The novella is obviously in a high school
setting, and the novel is University of San Diego.