Does anyone remember the Amiga?
It was a very specialized computer introduced in 1985. Mainly, it was marketed for gaming and ray-tracing (see Babylon 5 TV series’ CG graphics made using Video Toasters). The graphics and sound were way ahead of its time, much better than the IBM and Apple PCs.
I was more involved in the gaming side of the Amiga such as Lemmings, Shadow of the Beast, and Arkanoid. I owned the Amiga 2000 with upgrades such as a whopping 1Mb Chip RAM, and the Commodore A2090 SCSI controller with a SCSI hard drive (which I couldn’t remember the make and size). I used to go to computer conventions in Toronto to spend hundreds of dollars on hardware and software. I would also visit my friends, who has other Amiga models, and see their setup, exchange ideas, etc.
Like all good things, the Amiga didn’t last long. Commodore filed for bankruptcy and ended the Amiga. Its community fought to the very end. They kept the flame alive by continuing to support and discuss Amiga topics on BBS, Usenet, and chat channels (IRC’s #amiga was my home for a while). I ended up giving away my Amiga 2000 to a cancer patient who needed a computer. Since then, I have not heard of the Amiga for a long time.
I just read a series of article on Ars Technica. It’s about the history of the Amiga, and it’s worth the read for nostalgia (and historical) sake. Below are the direct links:
Building IT
Jot It Down
The Amiga was ahead of its time. The only thing I missed back then was resource tracking in its OS.
DK got the first Amiga back in 1986. We thought it was an awesome machine–way ahead of its time for graphics and music. I loved it so much I told one of my friends a couple of years later to get as his dorm room computer. It wasn’t too long after that that Commodore went belly up and the Amiga disappeared. Hmmm … come to think of it, my friend and I haven’t talked since college. I wonder if it’s because I told him to spend his money on a computer that was obsolete a year later? 😀
@LK,
Don’t feel too bad. He’ll get over it. It’s just “stuff”.