Old Dog New Tricks

forumshrew · 08-31-2013, 10:39 PM

I was doing some searches of posts and see that several people still own their pda.

I have the Handspring Neo Visor, and still able to use it on Windows7. Found a driver that enables me to use the Palm Desktop.

I love being able to squeeze more life out of something. I'm still running Microsoft 97 on Windows7.

I had several programs that initially wouldn't run on Win7, but I hacked around with the properties compatability and permissions on all the exe. files and was able get them running.

Alas my Hp Scanjet from 1995 is just too long in the tooth. I am thinking of turning it into an ant farm. That big glass would be great for viewing their daily antics.

FizzyWater · 09-01-2013, 10:36 AM

There's a program I use to track my book purchases that hasn't ported over to Android, so my PDA is the only way to go. I had to go to Batteries+ last year to get a battery that lasted longer than a few hours, and it's working as good as new.

If only it weren't so heavy....

Jessica Lares · 09-01-2013, 10:51 AM

If it works for you, then why get rid of it? I have a 1989 TI calculator I still use, and I have G3, G4, and G5 Macs that get used everyday in this house. I have an AirServer license, so I can even AirPlay on these things.

I still run Windows 3.1 stuff too.

And I have game system emulators on my phone.

ucfgrad93 · 09-01-2013, 01:07 PM

Nothing wrong with continuing to use old hardware. As long as it is able to do what you want it to, then why get rid of it.

Typed on the first aluminum iMac purchased August 2007.

6charlong · 09-01-2013, 10:15 PM

I know what you mean. I’m still playing Infocom games that I first bought in the 1980s. I no longer rush into the games. Now I wander into the mazes Infocom constructed and just play around.

On the other hand, I don’t know how many Windows machines I’ve had fail on me. I finally gave my last one to my wife and got a Mac Mini. The last time I was in Costco I looked at a Windows 8 laptop and only shook my head. My wife refuses to dump that old Windows Vista machine and get a Mac even though it’s crashing almost every day now. It was upgraded to Windows 7 a couple of years back in an attempt to make it behave itself but if you’ve ever tried to reinstall Windows from disks 2 or 3 versions back, you will understand why she keeps pulling the plug to get it to restart instead of reinstalling.

There is a case to be made for junking old stuff, too.

Now then, if you’re talking about eReaders, I have to admit that Kobo has seduced me with its brilliant implementation of The Book. Like Amazon they are working to make the hardware disappear and succeeding: the Kobo Aura HD is the best reading experience I’ve had.

bbqncigars · 09-02-2013, 09:14 AM

I still use my Palm IIIx on the job every day. It's handier for taking field notes, and the equipment database built on thinkDB2 is not easily ported. The Rhinoskin titanium case is the only reason it has survived over the years.

forumshrew · 09-02-2013, 10:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 6charlong

Now then, if you’re talking about eReaders, I have to admit that Kobo has seduced me with its brilliant implementation of The Book. Like Amazon they are working to make the hardware disappear and succeeding: the Kobo Aura HD is the best reading experience I’ve had.

I'm not familar with Kobo, I'll have to check it out.

forumshrew · 09-02-2013, 10:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bbqncigars

I still use my Palm IIIx on the job every day. It's handier for taking field notes, and the equipment database built on thinkDB2 is not easily ported. The Rhinoskin titanium case is the only reason it has survived over the years.

I still get a kick out of using the Neo Visor. I've got the Targus folding keyboard I use for coffeeshop typing, also with the MemPlug module for additional storage. Folks see and ask what type of new gadget is it.

We certainly do live in a great time. The products have only gotten better and more useful. Best of all cheaper!!

Look at these prices from an old ad. I remember when a 128mb smart media card was going for $125.

September 13, 2001 10:03:29 PM

Handspring is going to announce on Monday two new Visor models. The Visor Pro is a mid-range model and will be the first ever to ship with 16 MB of RAM. It will cost $300. The Visor Neo is a low-end model that will have 8 MB of RAM and come in three possible casing colors. It will be $200.

mbovenka · 09-02-2013, 10:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by forumshrew

Look at these prices from an old ad. I remember when a 128mb smart media card was going for $125.

I remember those times too

. Now 2GB is about as small as you can get in USB sticks or memory cards, and they go for a few dollars/Euros...

j.p.s · 09-02-2013, 03:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mbovenka

I remember those times too

. Now 2GB is about as small as you can get in USB sticks or memory cards, and they go for a few dollars/Euros...

I remember when 256MB hard disks cost $50000 and were the size of a washing machine.

Jessica Lares · 09-02-2013, 04:07 PM

I had a SmartMedia card in my first digital camera.

I used to have to set my camera to take smaller pictures just to fit it onto the 8MB card. Otherwise only 4 pictures fit into it.

Not as bad as having to load the film into my Canon 35mm SLR though.

Katsunami · 09-02-2013, 04:41 PM

LOL. Tell me about stretching hardware... sometimes I upgrade quite quickly, but nearly as often, if it works, it works. With regard to hardware, I often only replace it when it doesn't do what I want anymore, or when it breaks.

Logitech Wireless Wheel Mouse: 1994 - 2004 (Trashed in favor of optical mouse.)
Canon printer of which I forgot the type: 1996 - 2006 (No Vista drivers, given away)
SoundBlaster Live!: 1998 - 2008 (Sold with the final computer it was in.)
FPS 1600 speakers: 1998 - ???? (Still in daily use!)
Plextor 40Tsi CDROM: 1998 - 2004 (Sold; finally broke down in 2009)
Yamaha 6416S Burner: 1998 - 2004 (Sold; thrown away working, in 2009)
Siemens S35 mobile phone: 2000 - 2010 (Replaced by smartphone, given away)
GeForce Ti 4600 (Asus): 2002 - 2008 (Sold in same computer as SBLive!)
Eizo 19 inch SPVA TFT: 2007 - ???? (Still in use while typing this post)
Current computer: 2008 - ???? (Still in use while typing this post, but has had some upgrades)
Current notebook: 2008 - ???? (Still in use, upgraded with SSD.)

It seems that +/- 10 years is about the time most hardware needs to start fearing of being trashed / replaced

I think computer hardware gets quite a bit more use at my home than could be expected on average. The lifespan of the main hardware has lengthened considerably as I got older

theducks · 09-05-2013, 01:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by j.p.s

I remember when 256MB hard disks cost $50000 and were the size of a washing machine.

You mean something like a DEC RP05 with the changeable disk packs

most of my computer mainboards are 10+ years old and other pieces ??
Brother MFC (workgroup class) printer: 10+ years (>50K pages printed)

HP

color Inkjets all malfunctioned with very low page usage and were recycled. I replace them with a Brother Color Laser
Just about every disk has been upgraded (sometimes I used the old drive for Swap (VM) service)

I keep old working parts until I have nothing left that they can be used with (ISA bus anyone?, SCSI 1, 14 pin RAM

)

Not Computers, but electronics still in service:
My Main speakers on both Home theater rigs were bought 1960's, early 70's
Turntable, (quad) Open reel tape: 70's
Laser player, FM Tuner: 80's

Katsunami · 09-05-2013, 02:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by theducks

Not Computers, but electronics still in service:
My Main speakers on both Home theater rigs were bought 1960's, early 70's
Turntable, (quad) Open reel tape: 70's
Laser player, FM Tuner: 80's

I give up.

*sigh*

greenasterisk · 09-06-2013, 10:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by theducks

You mean something like a DEC RP05 with the changeable disk packs

most of my computer mainboards are 10+ years old and other pieces ??
Brother MFC (workgroup class) printer: 10+ years (>50K pages printed)

HP

color Inkjets all malfunctioned with very low page usage and were recycled. I replace them with a Brother Color Laser
Just about every disk has been upgraded (sometimes I used the old drive for Swap (VM) service)

I keep old working parts until I have nothing left that they can be used with (ISA bus anyone?, SCSI 1, 14 pin RAM

)

Not Computers, but electronics still in service:
My Main speakers on both Home theater rigs were bought 1960's, early 70's
Turntable, (quad) Open reel tape: 70's
Laser player, FM Tuner: 80's

Now, that is hard core!

08-31-2013, 10:39 PM	#1
forumshrew Member Posts: 22 Karma: 85746 Join Date: May 2012 Device: Asus Transformer	Old Dog New Tricks I was doing some searches of posts and see that several people still own their pda. I have the Handspring Neo Visor, and still able to use it on Windows7. Found a driver that enables me to use the Palm Desktop. I love being able to squeeze more life out of something. I'm still running Microsoft 97 on Windows7. I had several programs that initially wouldn't run on Win7, but I hacked around with the properties compatability and permissions on all the exe. files and was able get them running. Alas my Hp Scanjet from 1995 is just too long in the tooth. I am thinking of turning it into an ant farm. That big glass would be great for viewing their daily antics.

09-01-2013, 10:15 PM	#5
6charlong friendly lurker Posts: 896 Karma: 2436026 Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: US Device: Kindle, nook, Apple and Kobo	New tricks for new dogs, too I know what you mean. I’m still playing Infocom games that I first bought in the 1980s. I no longer rush into the games. Now I wander into the mazes Infocom constructed and just play around. On the other hand, I don’t know how many Windows machines I’ve had fail on me. I finally gave my last one to my wife and got a Mac Mini. The last time I was in Costco I looked at a Windows 8 laptop and only shook my head. My wife refuses to dump that old Windows Vista machine and get a Mac even though it’s crashing almost every day now. It was upgraded to Windows 7 a couple of years back in an attempt to make it behave itself but if you’ve ever tried to reinstall Windows from disks 2 or 3 versions back, you will understand why she keeps pulling the plug to get it to restart instead of reinstalling. There is a case to be made for junking old stuff, too. Now then, if you’re talking about eReaders, I have to admit that Kobo has seduced me with its brilliant implementation of The Book. Like Amazon they are working to make the hardware disappear and succeeding: the Kobo Aura HD is the best reading experience I’ve had.

09-02-2013, 04:41 PM	#12
Katsunami Grand Sorcerer Posts: 6,111 Karma: 34000001 Join Date: Mar 2008 Device: KPW1, KA1	LOL. Tell me about stretching hardware... sometimes I upgrade quite quickly, but nearly as often, if it works, it works. With regard to hardware, I often only replace it when it doesn't do what I want anymore, or when it breaks. Logitech Wireless Wheel Mouse: 1994 - 2004 (Trashed in favor of optical mouse.) Canon printer of which I forgot the type: 1996 - 2006 (No Vista drivers, given away) SoundBlaster Live!: 1998 - 2008 (Sold with the final computer it was in.) FPS 1600 speakers: 1998 - ???? (Still in daily use!) Plextor 40Tsi CDROM: 1998 - 2004 (Sold; finally broke down in 2009) Yamaha 6416S Burner: 1998 - 2004 (Sold; thrown away working, in 2009) Siemens S35 mobile phone: 2000 - 2010 (Replaced by smartphone, given away) GeForce Ti 4600 (Asus): 2002 - 2008 (Sold in same computer as SBLive!) Eizo 19 inch SPVA TFT: 2007 - ???? (Still in use while typing this post) Current computer: 2008 - ???? (Still in use while typing this post, but has had some upgrades) Current notebook: 2008 - ???? (Still in use, upgraded with SSD.) It seems that +/- 10 years is about the time most hardware needs to start fearing of being trashed / replaced I think computer hardware gets quite a bit more use at my home than could be expected on average. The lifespan of the main hardware has lengthened considerably as I got older Last edited by Katsunami; 09-02-2013 at 04:51 PM.

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09-01-2013, 10:36 AM	#2
FizzyWater You kids get off my lawn! Posts: 4,220 Karma: 73492664 Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Columbus, Ohio Device: Oasis 2 and Libra H2O and half a dozen older models I can't let go of	There's a program I use to track my book purchases that hasn't ported over to Android, so my PDA is the only way to go. I had to go to Batteries+ last year to get a battery that lasted longer than a few hours, and it's working as good as new. If only it weren't so heavy....

09-01-2013, 10:51 AM	#3
Jessica Lares Wizard Posts: 2,240 Karma: 5759170 Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Near Dallas, Texas, USA Device: iPad Mini, iPod Touch (5th gen)	If it works for you, then why get rid of it? I have a 1989 TI calculator I still use, and I have G3, G4, and G5 Macs that get used everyday in this house. I have an AirServer license, so I can even AirPlay on these things. I still run Windows 3.1 stuff too. And I have game system emulators on my phone.

09-01-2013, 01:07 PM	#4
ucfgrad93 Wizard Posts: 2,360 Karma: 9026681 Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Colorado Device: Kindle Paperwhite 2nd Gen	Nothing wrong with continuing to use old hardware. As long as it is able to do what you want it to, then why get rid of it. Typed on the first aluminum iMac purchased August 2007.

09-02-2013, 09:14 AM	#6
bbqncigars PDA dino Posts: 80 Karma: 1527072 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Iowa, USA Device: Palm IIIx, Rooted NC, Voyages(2)	I still use my Palm IIIx on the job every day. It's handier for taking field notes, and the equipment database built on thinkDB2 is not easily ported. The Rhinoskin titanium case is the only reason it has survived over the years.

09-02-2013, 04:07 PM	#11
Jessica Lares Wizard Posts: 2,240 Karma: 5759170 Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Near Dallas, Texas, USA Device: iPad Mini, iPod Touch (5th gen)	I had a SmartMedia card in my first digital camera. I used to have to set my camera to take smaller pictures just to fit it onto the 8MB card. Otherwise only 4 pictures fit into it. Not as bad as having to load the film into my Canon 35mm SLR though.