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wrongdog reckons
United States
Приєднався 17 лис 2023
Reflecting on technology and what it means in our lives.
My retro computing rabbit hole and reconnecting with the first computer I used: a Commodore Plus/4
In this video, I talk about how I learned about retro computing and a rabbit hole I fell into soon after. As a result, I reconnected with the first computer I ever used, the Commodore Plus/4, and it made me think a lot about what we consider obsolete.
As I explored commodore's line, C64, c16 etc, I recognized a memory from my past.
As I explored commodore's line, C64, c16 etc, I recognized a memory from my past.
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Відео
My Nostalgia Machine: Recreating 80's broadcast TV with a Raspberry Pi
Переглядів 86 тис.Місяць тому
I recreated over-the-air broadcast television the way I remember it from my childhood. In this video, I'll wax nostalgic about the old-days and then show you how I built this simulator and talk about how it works. I use a Raspberry Pi 5, a Raspberry Pico, an old aerial rotator box and some custom code to create an accurate simulation of TV in the late 70s and early 80s. The source code for this...
Building Artificial Life Simulations to learn Crystal-Lang on a Steam Deck
Переглядів 1,3 тис.4 місяці тому
I set out to learn a new programming language. I used it to build a couple of artificial life simulators: a cellular automaton and a colony optimization algorithm to simulate route finding and optimization in an unmapped space. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed programming in Crystal. It was super easy to pick up and very easy to think in. I'll continue learning this language and add it to ...
Building a Retro-Styled Homebrew Computer & Operating System from micro-controllers
Переглядів 52 тис.11 місяців тому
I built a homebrew computer using micro-controllers in a custom hardware architecture and operating system. It's been a non-linear journey that started with curiosity about how operating systems worked and took me down several Rabbit holes to end up with a piece that I'm pretty proud of. Most of all, it reminded me of how much I have left to learn :) This video covers the history of what led to...
Revisit Perl programming after 20 years - using Perl to code a generative language model
Переглядів 3,5 тис.11 місяців тому
20 years ago, I started shifting development to Python. In this video, I revisit the Perl programming after 20 years and use it to build a simple generative text model based on Markov chains. I have forgotten many things about Perl, so a Perl guru will note many issues as I'm developing the code. The end product worked remarkably well, and I enjoyed getting reacquainted with Perl and its commun...
You, my friend, have made something I've personally debated on pursuing for a few years. I'm extremely pleased with how this looks, and i personally might consider making my own, if not doing something similar to one of those 70s/80s jerrold cable boxes. excellent video, hope for the best
Have you seen the Retrotink 4K with CRT filters that gamers use to recreate CRT look on modern displays? There's even a mode that adds scanlines and hijacks the HDR to make sure the image looks bright still. I wonder if this could also create an authentic feeling CRT filter for old TV shows on a modern TV. Because there's so many pixels in 4K image, there's like 27 pixels on a 4K TV for every 1 pixel on a SD CRT, so you can use those pixels to simulate the look of a CRT "pixel". I imagine with better TV technology that have individually lit pixels and 8K panels we'll be able to take this even further.
This is exactly the reason we are so disconnected now. We are all in our own little corners with exposure only to what the algorithms select for us based on past selections. It’s confusing and most people don’t stop long enough to notice it, but I understand. ✌️💪
I think were so disconnected that we'll lose enough common reference points that the ability to effectively communicate will be impacted.
Great job! :) How is the Pi connected to the TV-unit? Unless I am mistaken, The Pi5 only supports HDMI and no longer has the 3.5mm jack that outputs analog video and audio.
Thanks! It was connected through a confusing mess of converters initially: HDMI->Composite->RF over coax, but the old RF converter died and I bought an HDMI->RF converter. The audio tags along with the video through the conversion. I think you can still get analog audio out of the GPIO pins.
if you know 6502 assembly.....you will find the plus4 is a gift....it displays better than a c64...the Ted chip wernt crap 320x496 interlaced
The last time I used assembly was college, except for some minor work a decade back. I plan to use this to play with 6502. Agree - this little computer has a pretty sweet display IMO.
TED has smaller side borders. Kernal on plus4 includes TEDmon. Reset key actually works (unlike RunStop-what is it even ? Maskable interrupt?)
there were keys that you kept pressed that would reset the machine but keep the program in memory u would recall it with a sys number
That's a really nice project. I have something similar on my project backlog - so I was thrilled to see your implementation. One of the things that made TV "better" back in the day was how "rare" it was. Or maybe how tenuous or ephemeral it was. Much as you point out, we planned our lives around when our favorite shows were on. And if you missed it - it was gone. That meant you anticipated the next episode, and you savored it while it was on. Now, music and television are commodities like water. You turn the spigot and it literally streams out at you. No, the old shows weren't better... they were just more rare. This was a great video, and a great retro-looking project. I'm a little jealous!
Thanks! Oh the backlog - the depths of the project backlog is staggering sometimes huh? I think you are dead on with the statement on good programming and "how tenuous or ephemeral it was" - rarity adds value (both real and imagined). If you want to build one and use my code as a starting point, just post an issue on github if you run into any issues. Cheers!
I fear the "retro" community is about to take a nose dive in popularity. As we move into the mid 2020'a the nostalgia for "retro" computers will fall into the mid 1990's - which had the most boring machines. Everything was beige, boxy, and MSDos / Windows '95. There's not a lot of variation. Sure, there are a handful of oddball computers from that era. But for the most part, the interesting era of computing was the 1980s. Standards were not set and competition generated innovation. It was hard to do BASIC things (no pun nintended) like Hi-Res graphics, audio, hi-density storage, and inter-computer communications (not to mention networking). As the mid nineties emerged, so did standards and computers became appliances. It wouldn't be until the early 2000s that Steve Jobs would return to Apple and cool things would happen. But for the rest of the world, it was beige, boxy, standardized DOS/Windows machines. Very boring for nostalgia.
I'm not as sure about that - the reason is that when look at /r/retrocomputing/ I see an aweful lot of beige boxes. Even if they aren't as interesting to us, it seems that people that grew up with them are nostalgic about them too. I am pretty nostalgic for that time too - not because of the hardware per-say, but that was the time period when Linux was rising and I have a lot of affinity for the software of that era - which brings it to 'well, it would run more authentically on native hardware' Consider the car example - cars from that era are not classics in my mind, but people who had them when they were young are still fixing them up and taking them to car shows. Remember: the year 2000 is as far from now as the year 1960 was from 1984.
I also want to agree with you on almost all of your points - particularly this statement: "Standards were not set and competition generated innovation. It was hard to do BASIC things (no pun nintended) like Hi-Res graphics, audio, hi-density storage, and inter-computer communications (not to mention networking). " One of the things I've noted is how seldom anything changes anymore - especially in software development. Everyone uses React for the front-end and has for years. Everyone uses node.js or python for the back-end and has for years. There are some advancements here and there, but mostly its the same tools we had 10 years ago.
Well, PS3 and GBA seem to have fans. Dreamcast is nice. PS3 runs Linux and has USB. Everyone skips 1995 - 2001 . Windows NT on DEC alpha . All those dream workstations are so fat! SGI, DEC or sparkStation or arcades. Hercules, Mac , and ST appeared 1984 and ran in hires monochrome.
@@ArneChristianRosenfeldt good points - it does seem to me like there are plenty of things in that era to be nostalgic about. I mentioned that I got into computing in my mid-twenties - which happened during the mid 90s. So, the first computer I owned was a beige IBM Aptiva - if I can find the same model with original OS, I will buy it.
@@ArneChristianRosenfeldt - there were also some amazing SPARC machines running Solaris and IBM Power line running AIX from back in that timeframe. I wouldn't mind having a Sun workstation to remind me of college days :)
Where are the video files coming from?
They would come from your personal collection of legally owned content. You can take digital copies of DVDs and VHS tapes that you own or any digital downloads that you have rights to use for your personal entertainment - dependent on local laws of course. I have made the source code available, but it does not come with any content - it is designed to play user supplied content that they own and have legal rights to for their personal viewing. What I demonstrated in this video was the system working with my own personal content. Curating the content was, by far, the largest effort in this project. Cheers!
I learned awhile ago to leave the past where it is,in the past.
"I learned awhile ago to leave the past where it is,in the past." - so, you learned that in the past, but didn't leave it there? ;) Cheers!
So jealous of this. I wish I could make something like this happen myself, just feels way too over my head. :(
Start small, with a little idea and then build it out - you might be surprised by what you can accomplish. Its all about learning new things - even if what you end up with isn't what you pictured when you started, as long as you learn something new then it can be mission accomplished time. Cheers!
Jam in new low profile ceramic caps.
Right? The travel distance on these keys is CRAZY long. On the upside, I never have to go 'where did I put the keyboard for this thing?'
Less ist more and the modern paradox of choice is just dissatisfying.
It really is dissatisfying. Nothing like the regret when you look back down at the menu after you just ordered...
there is NO WAY your wife is that cool to surprise buy you a Plus/4. LOL
Its a true story - I kept looking at it and talking to her about it and she asked "Why don't you get one?" and I said something like "It'll take up too much room, it wont work and would still be disappointing because its just an old computer" - a few weeks later when we get back from vacation there's a box waiting for me. She really is that cool - I was wrong - it wasn't disappointing, but now also responsible for whatever I get next since she guided me to this rabbit hole :)
I've come to think of Basic as old "Open Source". Companies were happy to see people share and give away free code, as long as it was just Basic. Ironically, mostly Microsoft Basic (of their design if not their name brand). That was just normal use of a computer, then some groups, often idealogues, or at leadt looked on as such, needed to make legal protections to let people share code for free without others ripping them off, and in turn ripping other people of with hijacked "free code". I think of FOSS as getting back to "normal" computer use, not a new phenomenon.😊
Good points - FOSS definitely grew out of a response to watching the 'sharing community' of software get locked off in walled gardens for some profit driven reasoning. Shareware got eaten by scammers - charging for minor updates to code they themselves got for free - so the legal protections have been good, but I'm not sure companies follow them closely. Cheers!
I used to trash pick "old" computers in the 90s. Because I was broke. I had more fun cleaning up this stuff for "free" than anything bought. Now the things I used to find, IBM M keyboards, C64s, 8088s, even a DEC Rainbow, go for hundreds and more. It's weird seeing the behavior my wife and mother used to make fun of me for become a major hobby.
I suffer from the 'Who would want this old junk' - so I threw out stuff that I now find myself wanting... it makes no sense :)
2:30 "the least popular" ugh... That's highly debatable :-D I enjoyed your video, glad you got you Plus/4 running. Near the end you briefly touched on something very important: for our generation, we grew up these machines, spending hours during those same summers programming them - which lead to a lot of us becoming what are now called "IT professionals". IMHO there's *nothing* in the modern era that teaches young people to learn the same way... But that's a much longer discussion. Anyway, I run a small site for the Commodore Plus/4, it's called Plus/4 World, look it up and drop by :-)
That is quite impressive!
Thanks! I've had so much fun making it :) Cheers!
When you watched tv in the olden days tv itself had to hold your attention so you'd see the next ad or to keep the rating up. Nowadays as long as you are in the app it's irrelevant if you are actually watching anything or not. Think about it, imagine you have a streaming service with half a billion subscribers. Of course the content creators want to sell you the fight to their program. And of course you want to buy another thumbnail for another famous thumbnail to attract more subscribers. There is zero incentive to make you watch or want to watch anything at all.
'Engagement' is the new metric - the interesting thing about a platform like youtube is that you can get more credits for people commenting to tell you how much they hate you than likes and view time. They used to say 'all publicity is good publicity' - now those exact same types of people say 'any engagement is good engagement' - I am not aligned with them. Thanks for watching!
Gotta love the computing rabbit hole :D thanks for the video.
If I had seen it coming, I would have moved out of the way :) Cheers!
It would work if you were in a remote cottage etc and someone else was doing the scheduling i.e it would work if you went back in time 😂
Or, it could take you back in time itself. New feature. Cheers!
Seeing that antenna rotator box really gave me that nostalgia feel - we had that exact same Bakelite box growing up in Philadelphia. The unique sound it made whilst turning the roof antenna is still burned into my memory. Thanks for bringing that back.
Thanks! Can you tell me a little more about the sound? I want to put a buzzer in it to reproduce a sound - and I have heard from a couple of folks that had this box talk about the unique sound it made. The box we had was a bit different (a channelmaster I think) and I recall it just as 'the sound of electricity' - not quiet a motor sound but also NOT a motor sound?
This is a great project, and you've inspired me to attempt my own. Thanks for sharing this. (One critique: having your inserted clips have audio only on the left channel drives me crazy to listen to! Please consider panning them predominantly to one side, but please leaving some audio on the other. Thanks!)
This is great input! Someone else commented on that, but were vague. I have a sound bar directly in front of me and didn't listen to it on headphones before now, so I get it. This sent me down a rabbithole and I learned a lot that I think may improve my whole audio setup. Thanks!
@@wrongdog_reckons I'm glad to hear that, and it's kind of you to say. Thanks, looking forward to future videos.
This is absolutely incredible!!! What an amazing build and programming! I recently came across an early 2000's alarm clock that is built to look like a tube TV. I am hoping to put a small monitor behind the rounded glass and put a pi in it with a few movies that can be switched between channels. I have zero experience with coding so that may be a dream
Thanks! That sounds like a great idea! You should be able to accomplish it without much/any coding, but might take some configuration and linux research to get it running. Depending on how you want it to work, my software might be a good starting point. If you give it a go and run into any issues, file an issue on the github project and I'll try to help. Best of luck and cheers!
@wrongdog_reckons thank you so very much! I will do my best and truly appreciate your response. I may be reaching out!
Sorry but I have to disagree on was tv better back then. Maybe not the resolution , but the content , most definitely. We had Saturday morning cartoons , we had better shows back then with better actors and comedians , it wasn’t as filthy as shows are today. Sure there were some stuff that was implied but these days there’s nothing implied , it’s all out in the open. These days it’s like every show or movie or whatever has to have a gay or lesbian character. And it’s like they’re trying to push it towards kids more than anything. And until video games came along , kids would play outside and get some sun and exercise. Now all they do is sit on a game console or pc and make videos. People are afraid of drinking water from a hose , not knowing there are most likely far more things in a recycled plastic bottle. And in the water they put in that bottle. The old days when you could talk to someone in ur house without having to use a computer or cell phone even though they’re in the next room or across the room. Hey just my opinion , I would trade these days for those days anytime. I sit and watch old commercials and old cartoons more than anything. Can’t stand the things on today’s networks. Hollywood destroys anything they make these days and it’s mostly remakes with their own little twist. Well that’s my take on it anyway. I’m almost 60 , lived through hot summers and blizzards in the winter , that was our climate change. That looked like a pretty neat gadget though. Just like the old days , you had to watch what was on , you couldn’t skip it or the commercials. 👍👍👍✌️✌️✌️
I was tracking with you for a minute, but then this: "every show or movie or whatever has to have a gay or lesbian character" - and you pointed out exactly what was bad about TV back then: we were missing representation for anyone who wasn't straight and white. Remember, they had an 'unspoken rule' back then to only have one person of color per show so it didn't concern 'decent folks'. That is the BAD part about how TV and society was, not the good part. I am not aligned with you and am pretty sad that this is what you took from my video. I am going to be honest since were talking about TV here: you sound like Archie Bunker and its not a good look.
I know of the guy you mention who took down the video, such a cool project. His YT name is Irish Craic Party. I admire your tech knowledge, it all seems like Elvish to me. Though that's not going to stop me from trying to build one! Thanks for putting the resources in the description, it's a big jumpstart.
Give it a go - I've updated the install process and documentation and built in quiet a few new features since the video came out. If you get stuck, file an issue on the github page and I'll try to help you out! Cheers!
taking into account your age and where you lived im going to assume at 6:05 on saturday evenings you were watching wrestling on wtbs
Every Saturday thatI stayed at my grammas house - she got TBS. We went to see them wrestle on Christmas day at the Omni one year - Rick Flair, Rowdie Roddy Piper and "Handsome" Jimmy Valiant. At my house, on Saturday mid-day we got Jim Crocket promotions Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling on NBC. Ricky (the Dragon) Steamboat was my favorite. Now you made me nostalgic about wrestling - good thing I know it will come on this Saturday night at 6:00 on my TBS channel :) (6:00 because I don't have the 5 after timing) Cheers!
@@wrongdog_reckons i live on long island we were lucky enough be one of first towns have cable i watched wwf saturday mornings and nwa on tbs at 605. my brother moved greenville south carolina about 10 years ago he says everybody has a ric flair story lol guy he works with did couple matches as a jobber on wtbs
I want to recreate the randomness of choices from my saved media with a mix in of standardized shows at certain times like holidays, late night movies, etc,
Yep, someone should make something like that :)
This takes me back. Those rotating motors dying in the winter… How soul crushing it was to see “Little House on the Prairie” was the only thing on…
I was with you up until the little house part - that was my favorite of all times. Loved little house - I even ended up reading all the books... cheers!
Since my desktop computer died over a year ago, and I had a Steamdeck already, I started using it in desktop mode due to the "emergency" and on a "temporary basis".... and here we are, with the Steamdeck still as my primary daily driver lol. Gaben really built an amazing device. It's a whole ass computer.
I'm really surprised by how well it worked - it is a whole damn computer after all - and could easily see it being my daily driver. I've been impressed with this little machine.
Shared experience with random people, yes, thank you for this. That's what's missing from modern society and why it's falling apart. We have no shared narrative anymore.
I think that without a shared narrative, we lose shares assumptions and we lose a common language to even have discussions in. On the other hand, with a mono-culture, people tend to lose options in how to express themselves (think Pleasantville) - is there a happy middle?
Amazing! I have always dreamed of doing something similar in the UK, but just for Christmas Day. The problem is of course sourcing all the shows, as most of it will be lost. It's all the incidentals that are the biggest problem - the interstitals and voice-over stuff. But I think there is enough stuff out there from 1976-1984 to put something together. Anyway, this is just brilliant!
Thanks! I was surprised at some of the things I was able to find - and equally surprised at things I wasn't able to fine. Archive.org VHS vault is your friend. Cheers!
An incredible commitment to memories. You have, in a way, created a time machine. Put it in a room with wood paneling and shag carpet and you could really be on to an experience.
One corner of my living room is starting to turn into exactly that - its starting to look like a place you should just sit down and solve a rubiks cube while you wait for Facts of Life to come on... Cheers!
Such great content for a small channel! Awesome job
Thanks - I really appreciate hearing that. These videos take time, so it makes me feel good when people notice :)
I think what you've made is very special . There was an experiment called "1979 'Counterclockwise' experiment by Ellen Langer" it took a handful of old people and put them for a week in a scenario where everything matched their lives when they were younger. It helped with their cognition and their medical conditions. I wonder if this helps you. You definitely have to include dukes of Hazzard and The Jeffersons.
There's no doubt that there is a comfort to the times you used to know. It does help me - it gives me that little warm feeling that things are okay. And you better believe that the Dukes and the Jefferson's are both there front and center. Something about the start up of 'Movin' on up, the the top!' just gets me.
Would you please consider going live with your curated content from 78-86. I realize I won't be able to change channels but maybe you could from time to time. I wasn't always allowed to touch the TV so that would be a bit of nostalgia in and of itself. I don't have time or ability to recreate what you did. It's so awesome! I do want to have background TV that puts my subconscious into a relaxed state of childhood. I'm 46. I play long blocks of commercials on UA-cam and part of me actually believes I'm there. I feel so safe and at ease as I go about my work. I would greatly appreciate your consideration of this request. Thanks so much! Keep up the good work. Just stellar!
I would love something like that, it's too bad that I am a techno idiot. I miss watching TV from back in the day. Even though the content today is at your finger tips for instant gratification, the old days of getting one episode per week was amazing. Your project was like a time machine for me. Thank you.
Thank you - I wish I could make and then give everyone one. It really is comforting.
Now make most of the channels play the national anthem at midnight and go to test pattern. I want a 1970’s broadcast tv experience.
I added that feature right after the video came out :) On my own setup, I started with that terrible tone that used to play with the test pattern but took that annoying sound right out and replaced it with grocery store music from the 60s/70s over the test patter - there is an advantage to being the station manager!
@ you are a worthy station manager!
what an ambitious and really good retro approach... i personally use Kodi as a personal Netflix building on my library via my NAS. But i have to admit this is a true nostalgia approach .. nicely done
I've heard a lot of good things about Kodi - I will check it out. Cheers!
I'm also sorta tempted to make one of these based on a my childhood of the 1990's mixed with some shows from the 1970's to the 1980's as reruns. And also to include some local Seattle flair to it. Including some of those classic Rainier Beer commercials and some episodes of Almost Live late at night.
Oh, I've got the Raaaaaiiiiiiiniiiieeer Beeeeeer commercial in my setup for sure! Being that Seattle is my selected home-town, I put quiet a few Seattle bumps and news breaks in. Almost Live was actually one of my first introductions to 'The Pacific Northwest' - hilarious stuff on that show! Make one! I'm adding a cable mode now - with faster channel switches and decade-themable guide channel. If you want to start with my code and get stuck, just post an issue on the github page. Cheers!
7:24 - Awesome Doctor Who commercial there. Tom Baker always was the most fun Doctor.
I didn't know what to make of Dr Who back in the day - I remember as a 7 year old thinking: One day, all of your peers will love this show and have deep feelings about it. If you don't watch, you'll only be able to smile and nod and then try to turn the conversation to Star Trek, so pay attention... How about Strange New Worlds?
I would love a replica Zenith cable box🤓
My next move is to make a 'cable-mode' - so you can emulate cable. Stay tuned :)
I wish you could mass produce this at a affordable price🤓
Me too - the devices could be mass produced - content licensing would be a nightmare.
sell these
I wish - content licensing would be a nightmare :)
I thought i was the only one that wanted to build something like this! You did a great job on it.
I think we must all miss the past a little, huh?
There were controls for fixing that kind of bad picture, though : )
Did they actually fix the picture though - I remember them turning the skin green, then red before Mom would say "Stop messing with that!"
Do the commercials play during the episodes? Or just in-between?
It uses a couple of strategies - but generally will cut them into the show in even increments until the time is filled. My next step is to make them look for a natural spot (silence, fade to black) - the way it currently works is sometimes very natural and sometimes abrupt points (which is how I remember TV working anyway)
This is fantastic. Several months ago I came across a random video where a tech guy built a 90’s era cable tv simulator. It was fantastic. Love this too. Would love to have this running on my regular tv all the time.
I think I know exactly the video you are talking about - the author took it down if it is. It was the video that inspired me to start a channel about my side projects in the first place because they did a phenomenal job.
@ - It was fantastic. What both of you have done is something I wish I could do for my home. I want a system where I have all my content loaded and everything runs kinda like you have here where there is a schedule and you jury turn it on.
TV today is TOO complicated.
Most things are, right?
oh my god I love it so much
Thank you - I love hearing that :)
I'm a milennial and I grew up in the city, watching tv from the mid 90s to the mid 2000s. This is still very cool, I'd love to make a similar nostalgia setup, although it might be a little easier since I grew up with vhs and dvd
Getting content from the 90's and 2000's is definitely easier - for example, the local kids show that I watched when I was very young (Monty's Rascals) was still being broadcast live: no film involved!! So, even the station doesn't have an archive of them. This same system can be very easily used to replicate cable - working on a small patch to switch the channel more like cable channel switch and adding in a preview channel that will be decade themeable. Cheers!
@@wrongdog_reckons I was thinking of getting one of those small TV+VCR combo units and then recording a bunch of stuff from youtube onto various tapes, at least to have something running
@@evanlee93 - that's not a bad approach. A lot of the content that I used had been originally VCR recorded and those fuzzy recordings are enough to set off the memories of watching recorded shows on old tapes - its nice.