The first writer with a word processor was Len Deighton. He had an IBM monstrosity installed back in the 1960s. For more retro fun:
Why do people write Apple II in such idiosyncratic ways?
I know, right? Everybody knows it’s Apple ][.
Because, when the computer booted up, the name of the Computer was displayed in various ways.
Apple //e
Apple IIgs
Apple ][
etc.
Not clicking that link.
LOL! Thanks for the Friday afternoon guffaw!
One of my favorite memories is the computer exhibit at the Smithsonian in the 1990s. One of Jerry Pournelle’s early computers (I think it was his first) was on display. His Chaos Manor blog had been fascinating and I had followed his exploits since his articles in Byte magazine with envy (couldn’t afford the early stuff on my own). No one was around, so I reached over the ropes and patted the case. No magic, but nice to have a slight connection to such an influential writer. Didn’t get caught (or security didn’t think it was an offense worth pursuing). Ahhh, crazy times.
That was his joke back then. I remember him telling an interviewer, “I got a big Wang.”
Was hoping for the 50 Shades of Gray lady typing on her Blackberry on the subway. No, really. And I ain’t even snarking: lady made something many, many people enjoyed in her surplus time because she had a pocket computer and a place to sit.
+1 for a 5.0" floppy Wang though.
I’m pretty sure it’s Richard Bachman in that photo.
One good joke deserves another. A friend of mine told a girl about Wang computers. When she asked, “What kind of games do you play with your Wang?” he blurted out, “I don’t have one!”
Yeah, about that…“made” may be too strong a word.. Never mind the fact that fanfic has its own accusations of plagarism from other fanfics.
Needing a catalogued collection of floppy disks just to store text files?
Talk about First Word Problems.
Harry is writing a 600 page novel. Each page of text requires 2 kilobytes of storage. If a single floppy disk stores 143 Kilobytes, How many disks will Harry need to store his novel?
If Harry is paid 3 cents a word, and disks cost $5.75 each, how many backups can harry afford to maintain?
(assume 250 words per page)
Impossible to say without knowing how many words per page.
As for me, “John Updike’s Lost Floppies” is now officially the name of my new band.
Does the incorrect aspect ratio of the Stephen King photo bother anyone else?
No, that’s an accurate representation of Stephen King’s incorrect aspect ratio.
