Systm.org – Better than I had expected


I’ve been holding off watching any of Kevin Rose’s Systm – mainly because he’s a dork 😛

However … I was pleasantly surprised! I watched their MythTV episode, and while their hands were hyperactive, it was totally watchable.

The coolest thing about their show, that will probably bring me back every time, has to be their main logo – a stylised Commodore PET.

My 1st computer was a Commodore PET 4032. I learned to program in BASIC and 6502 assembly on that. I learned by digital electronics with it, hacked extra devices into it’s memory space, and created my own custom OS (and OS extensions). It’s interesting how certain memories can trigger strong emotional responses. I loved that machine.

As impracticle as it would be, I wish for it back at times. There was not a single component of it that I did not fully comprehend; hardware or software. If only that were possible today … actually, I wouldn’t have a job in IT Systems Support 😉

I still get a kick out of programming (“I’m an amateur programmer”), and hacking around with hardware, electronics, and creating extension devices and applications for my computers.

To this day, I am still the only person I know or have known who had a PET. Does that make me weird?