So they were all "to program a computer, just turn it on and type in these basic commands!"
And I go home and turn on the Packard Bell 486 and type in some code!
C:\> 10 PRINT "HELLO WORLD!"
BAD COMMAND OR FILE NAME
So they were all "to program a computer, just turn it on and type in these basic commands!"
And I go home and turn on the Packard Bell 486 and type in some code!
C:\> 10 PRINT "HELLO WORLD!"
BAD COMMAND OR FILE NAME
I go to the library and read ALL their computer books. I learn a lot about BASIC without being able to run it.
I read all the manuals, and now I know a lot about DOS and Windows 3.1.
I start experimenting with my computer, trying to find some way to program it.
Eventually I figure out that DOS is supposed to have a program for running basic code: GWBASIC or QBASIC.
I don't have that program.
At one point I try to start reverse engineering windows 3.1 EXE files in order to find out how they're written... This without any knowledge of x86 assembly, or having a hex editor.
I don't get far, but I'm still proud of baby!foone for trying.
We got our Packard Bell used, and the previous owner was some kind of power user who needed every last kilobyte of their hard drive, so they deleted those files.
And forgot to give us the DOS installation disks with the PC, so I couldn't reinstall it.
Anyway I finally got QBASIC, did a bunch of BASIC coding on that, then switched to Visual Basic 5 after a random stranger sent it to me over ICQ, and around 2000 I learnt C/C++ and started doing more serious programming.
I think I only got access to a BASIC interpreter when I bought (with my own allowance) the DOS 6.22 upgrade.
I think I'd tried to get the files from my grandma, but there was some issue. Maybe the floppies I copied the files onto went bad? I know that happened a few times... I once excitedly used my grandparents' company's internet connection to download the Duke Nukem 3D shareware (4-5 disks!) and then i waited until we drove home to play it, but it turned out one of the disks died
But I honestly think it was that initial period of hyperfixation that turned me into a programmer. I spent months trying to crack the code (no pun intended) and figure out how to program, and all that effort got me stuck on this path.
But the initial roadblock of "all the books are in BASIC, and you don't have a BASIC interpreter" was such a problem that it forced me to learn a lot about programming and computers and BASIC before I could get any satisfaction from successfully programming.
And by then I was hooked. I knew too much about programming and computers to NOT make this my life's work.
If I'd had access to BASIC from the beginning, I can easily imagine my interest just being a passing thing. I spent an afternoon or two typing in simple BASIC code in from the book, then return it to the library and go back to reading their whole sci-fi section
Bad idea: a website that tracks how long it's been since U2 played "I still haven't found what I'm looking for" in concert.
That way we'll know if they ever find it, since we can assume they'll stop playing the song.
It's like a musical warrant canary: as long as they keep playing it, we know they've not found it
okay it's not 10.1-beta, because that one was used to hack on Spyro for the GBA, Excel '95, the Tandy-Memorex VIS BIOS, and the FlashPath kernel driver
maybe I'd be better at getting back into my reverse engineering projects if getting back into them didn't involve first figuring out which of the 13 Ghidra versions I have installed is for that project
10.1 non-beta was Railroad Tycoon and "MyPetChimp", whatever that was.
10.1.5 was the DS9 point and click game and a WinCE powered printer
10.0.4 was SOLELY for a GBA DBZ game
10.1.4 was an aliexpress single-key-keyboard and some parts of the Borland Graphics Interface
ah-ha! It was 10.2.2
9.2.2 was a vape unit I was trying to run Doom on, Duke Nukem 1 for DOS, and Links386 for DOS
okay now I can see why may2023!foone got stuck here. this is so fucking complicated.
Hardware / software necromancer, collector of Weird Stuff, maker of Death Generators. (she/they🏳️⚧️)
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