Computer Chronicles Revisited

The October 2026 issue of "Computer Chronicles Revisited" is now available. This month, I cover a November 1989 episode on portable computers, including new machines from IBM & Apple, the battle of Poqet vs. Portfolio, and no fewer than three Dynabooks! www.computerchronicles.blog/computer-chr...

I've started getting emails from what are clearly AI agents offering to research and write my website for me. How do I know they're agents? The emails are all addressed to Stewart Cheifet.

George Morrow on computers and politics:

Just imagine the synergy that would take place if they merged with Spatula City.

“Outlines obscure details. The same is true of many outliners now on the market; they tend to obscure rather than illuminate. Now that was before ‘MORE,’ a most graphical outliner and database.”

Andrew Wulf of Data Tailor, Inc., appeared on a 1987 "Computer Chronicles" to demonstrate "Trapeze," a color spreadsheet he wrote for the Macintosh II. "Trapeze" only sold about 13,000 copies and the program was off the market by 1989. www.computerchronicles.blog/computer-chr...

How long before we actually start seeing boxed copies of "Leisure Suit Larry" getting appraised on "Antiques Roadshow"? 😆

My weekly plug: "Computer Chronicles Revisited" is a monthly newsletter. You can download the 16-page PDF for free. I also sell 6- & 12-month mail subscriptions (U.S. only). This month's issue (October 2026) covers a 1989 episode on portable computers: www.computerchronicles.blog/computer-chr...

"If you’re into decision support software, here is the ultimate program: It’s called ‘Ask God.’ It’s purportedly an AI program that accesses the entire King James Bible and lets you conduct a dialog with the software to find out what advice the Bible has about a particular area of conduct."

Windows XP turns 25 this weekend. Not many versions of Windows had as much staying power as XP did. In this blog post, we explore why. We even explore whether it really counts as retro. dfarq.homeip.net/windows-xp-r... #retrocomputing #vintagecomputing

Adam Osborne of Paperback Software appeared on a 1987 "Computer Chronicles" to demonstrate "VP Planner," a low-cost spreadsheet. Lotus sued Paperback, alleging "Planner" illegally copied elements of the "Lotus 1-2-3" menu design. Lotus won the case. www.computerchronicles.blog/computer-chr...

There are no ethical uses of AI. There are no “safe” uses of AI. There are no defensible “leftist” uses of AI. You want to know how I know this? The computer scientists in my life who had to work on it are all suffering moral injuries and burnout.

That sounds like my workflow every time I try to explain why I spent three hours debugging a font issue in a post about workflow tools.

Me trying to write a newsletter targeting retro computing enthusiasts that involves a lengthy discussion of an accounting scandal: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q65l...

Tonight's out-of-context legal research:

“Apple is not forgetting the IIgs, despite all the recent attention to the new Macs. Apple is about to launch a $1 million direct mail campaign, sending three-dimensional pop-up cards to millions of American homes. The cards open into a 3D model of the computer."

"Computer Chronicles" literally did an entire episode in the 1980s warning people about the danger of posting stolen credit card numbers to BBSes. Now the tech industry is telling people to hand those same numbers over to poorly coded chatbots.

yeah I miss Bioware. I also miss Westwood, I miss Origin, I miss LucasArts, I miss Sierra, I miss Looking Glass, I miss SSI, I miss Interplay, I miss Bullfrog, I miss Sensible, just mergers and buyouts and then stripping the fucking copper from the walls and throwing our history in the garbage.

Marco Bucci’s story is absolutely fascinating. He went from an untrained teenager who was rejected from art school to a self-taught elite industry illustrator for Disney, Marvel, and Blizzard. And now has created a homebrew pinball masterpiece. #thesimpsons #simpsons #mrburns #pinball #arcade

I can hear his voice and the theme music.

As EA started to absorb Origin into their studio culture, an artist at Origin came up with this graphic and the studio made up shirts. It predates First Contact!

Creative Computing was one of the greatest magazines of the 1970s and 80s. Over its 11 year run, it gave coverage to platforms the other magazines ignored. It also published some type-ins that became classic games, like Oregon Trail. dfarq.homeip.net/creative-com... #retrocomputing #vintagecomputing

“PHP, Gitlab, Node.js, the Number Four. Being a systems administrator today is more stressful than ever. Today, we’ll take a look at the best types of gin to help you cope with the horrors of the modern Internet, on this edition of ‘The Computer Chronicles.’”

Part of my literal job is to fly out to physical game studios to rescue and recover historical materials that might be endangered and put them in a permanent archive. @gamehistoryorg.bsky.social is a 501(c)3 publicly funded to do that, my DMs are open, and I'm free for the next couple weeks...

I do wish video game people had less affection for studio names and more familiarity with people’s names. I feel it does BioWare a disservice to collapse the entire studio to what it was in 2010

Kind of odd to be writing a newsletter about the over-consolidation and collapse of most of the 1990s computer game industry given what's now happening. But as they say, if you don't learn from history, something something, capitalism is more efficient, yadda yadda.

Robin Cobbey of Computer Sports World appeared on a 1987 “Computer Chronicles” to demonstrate her company’s service. Owned by the San Francisco Chronicle, CSW was a dial-up database of sports scores and statistics updated in real time. www.computerchronicles.blog/computer-chr...

In the year of turmoil for coin-op, 1983, the game Bouncer was seen as the next stage in evolution for traditional video game graphics. Emphasizing big and bold animated characters, the game never properly launched and is an infamous lost game to this day. www.turbosub.com/bouncermain....

Epyx was a leading game producer for Commodore and Atari 8-bit computers, producing titles like Impossible Mission, Jumpman, and Pitstop. What was your favorite Epyx game? dfarq.homeip.net/what-happene... #retrocomputing #retrogaming

Judging by that look he's giving her, I'm guessing the sequel involved Brad stalking Melissa a decade later when she was a freshman at Blasteria University.

A glimpse of the hottest gaming PC in 1995 and the hottest mech game of the same year: Mechwarrior 2. But as we can see, not even $3000 worth of mid 90s PC could push SVGA MW2 at anywhere near a smooth frame rate. Which yeah, has been my experience running it on similar spec VMs. #VideoBytes

Dr. John Martin appeared on "Computer Chronicles" in 1987 to discuss PALS, a literacy program he developed for IBM. In 1966, Martin quit as the head a New York school district after receiving death threats due to his support for racial integration. www.computerchronicles.blog/computer-chr...

Writing the introduction for the new issue. I'm being a bit meaner than usual in discussing this one ex-software company CEO. Then again, she's dead and can't sue me for libel. 😛

I mean, at the rate things are devolving, I think the word you're looking for is just "YouTube."

Really doesn't help the research when you misspell the first name of the guest, fellas. 😆

This is the way it's gonna be, I suppose. So far, two of the guests from the episode I'm reviewing are now running AI slop startups, one of them deliberately targeting children. I'm probably going to omit any mention of those, because why throw gas on a tire fire? 🤷

"It's not society that discriminates against girls, it's those blasted electrons!"

Finally, the long-awaited sequel to 44 Liquormart, Inc. v. Rhode Island.

The best part about writing this month's newsletter on 1980s edutainment software is explaining the connection to a botched insurance merger in the 1990s. 😛

Oh, you're not the only one. 😀

I covered the short, sad history of Cricket Software. I'd even started writing a podcast script about the company. They could've literally been "PowerPoint"; Bill Gates tried to buy them twice! www.computerchronicles.blog/computer-chr...

“The Coast Guard Academy has become the 18th American college to require a freshman to buy a personal computer. The Coast Guard has picked the Macintosh as the official student computer. West Point and Annapolis are also among the schools requiring computers for their incoming students.”

They would often use MFS in "Computer Chronicles" demos back in the 1980s as well. (Although this image is taken from an episode where the subject was flight simulators, albeit in the military and professional context.)

Was the VICmodem the first modem to sell a million units? I dug into it. In this blog post, I estimate how many units actually sold and I share my methodology. And this one's personal, it was my first modem. dfarq.homeip.net/how-many-vic... #retrocomputing #vintagecomputing

The PS6 is just gonna be three PS4s in a trench coat, isn't it?