Author Archives: Blake Patterson

Found Photo: Me and My Apple QuickTake 200 Camera

Posted on June 6, 2013 by Blake Patterson

I was recently digging about the storage shelves, looking for an old box of floppies when I came across a large box full of photos that I hadn’t opened since moving into this house ten years ago. I spent an … Continue reading →

Posted in Just Rambling | 1 Comment

Regarding Keyboards, and a New Favorite: the Leopold FC660C

Posted on May 21, 2013 by Blake Patterson

Nearly two years ago I got into mechanical keyboards (real keyboards, proper keyboards) in a pretty big way. In order to truly enjoy the experience of typing on these quality boards, I decided to learn to type “properly,” as opposed … Continue reading →

Posted in Just Rambling, Multi-Platform | 6 Comments

My First “Homepage” and Email “Sigs” of Olde

Posted on May 8, 2013 by Blake Patterson

Last month, to mark the 20th anniversary of the World Wide Web, CERN placed the first web site back online at its original address. This got me thinking of my early experiences on the Internet and, soon after (when it … Continue reading →

Posted in Just Rambling | 5 Comments

i-Opener: The Internet Appliance That Was Made to be Hacked

Posted on April 23, 2013 by Blake Patterson

I scan eBay’s vintage computer area daily — a few times a day, actually — to keep an eye on what’s passing through. The other day I saw a new-in-box Netpliance i-Opener pop up, and that took me back a … Continue reading →

Posted in Other Platform | 1 Comment

A Glimpse of the Elusive ‘Time Bandit’ for the Sanyo MBC 550

Posted on April 4, 2013 by Blake Patterson

Those who follow me here at my retro blog or over at TouchArcade know that I’ve been a gamer for quite some time, now. And, after all of those years of gaming, I certainly have my favorites that still provide … Continue reading →

Posted in Gaming, Multi-Platform | 4 Comments

My First Computer Thought It Was a Sewing Machine

Posted on March 11, 2013 by Blake Patterson

I’ve shared many stories of my early adventures in computing on this blog over the past nine years, but it recently occurred to me that one of the most bizarre details of all, I’ve never mentioned. While I have spoken of … Continue reading →

Posted in TI-99 | 7 Comments

Pinterest as a Visual Archive of Computing History

Posted on February 5, 2013 by Blake Patterson

A couple of years ago, a social network based around the photo pinboard concept went online. Known as Pinterest, the site enables users to setup an account and “pin” photos from around the net to their own set of “boards,” … Continue reading →

Posted in Just Rambling | 2 Comments

An Inside Look At OS/2…And Why It Failed

Posted on November 26, 2012 by Blake Patterson

Just a quick post to point folks to a two-part look (from The Register) at the situation that was the OS/2 operating system and why it failed, from the perspective of an IBM insider. It’s well worth a read. Part One: IBM … Continue reading →

Posted in Other Platform, Windows | 1 Comment

A Phone Call I’ve Remembered These 28 Long Years…

Posted on November 14, 2012 by Blake Patterson

My first home computer was the TI-99/4A from Texas Instruments. I wanted to get a “real computer” (I had an Atari 2600 at the time), I bugged my parents, and I got to choose from what was on the (1982) … Continue reading →

Posted in TI-99 | 9 Comments

One of the Finest iPad Apps Is No More – Thanks for the Update, Twitter

Posted on October 1, 2012 by Blake Patterson

I know this is my vintage computing blog, but sometimes I need to stray off just a little. (That’s why I took pencil to the masthead logo a year or so ago…) Right now, I just need to vent my … Continue reading →

Posted in Just Rambling, Other Platform | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments