July 2004 Archives

Yesterday I went through a drawer that I haven't looked inside for years, and threw out a whole black bin bag full of old, boxed BBC Micro and Spectrum games on cassette tape, and other random bits and pieces from the 8-bit era.

It needed to be done. Not only had I not touched these tapes since my BBC Micro was last set up, I hadn't even used them since I got a 5¼ inch disc drive for the Beeb -- about 15 years ago. There was no chance I was ever going to want to load those tapes again, even if by some fluke the data on them had not degraded to uselessness. And I considered putting some of the stuff on eBay, but I doubt any of it is worth more than pennies.

Still, I felt strangely guilty about consigning them to the dump. When the 8-bit computer revolution took off in the early 1980s with affordable machines for the home, I was old enough to learn how to use them, and young enough that I could still get really excited about them. I wrote dozens of simple games and programs. My bedtime reading was Acorn User magazine (and Micro User, its inferior rival). I typed in long listings by hand from the programming pages. I never learned 6502 assembly language, which I regret because I know now that it would have made me a better programmer, but I was one of the best BBC BASIC coders in my school.

Looking through the junk brought back a lot of memories. A thick book about programming the Acorn Electron, which started me on coding. A paper cassette inlay for Chuckie Egg (but no tape). A book called 'Advanced Spectrum Machine Language', apparently unread, dated 1984. A copy of 'Revs', with manuals and fold-out Silverstone map. The plastic box for the BBC disc version of 'Exile'.

Whatever these things originally cost, whatever memories are brought back by looking at them, doesn't change the fact that I'll never use them again. And something that doesn't get used is just taking up space. I threw it all in the bag, tied the top, and struggled to take it out to the dustbin without tearing it.

Throwing this stuff out hasn't made me feel bad -- actually, I feel quite good about reclaiming some storage space -- it's just made me nostalgic. Hence this entry full of reminiscence.

I did save the empty 'Exile' box, by the way. What, you thought I'd throw away a prize like that?

Click for large image.

At the start of the year, I posted six New Year resolutions. I put them online specifically because knowing they were a matter of public record, I would be more encouraged to stick to them, since my success or failure would be public too.

The year's now half over, so it seems like a good time to go back to the scorecard and try to figure out how well I'm doing so far.

This year I will:

• Get more exercise. Haven't really been doing this, and I can't blame it entirely on the weather. And I think I'm gaining weight. A few years ago that didn't seem possible. Success: Not really.
• Read more books. I've read a few. I even put the titles on the website sidebar while I'm reading them. But I'm still a long way from reading every day as a matter of habit -- I just need to reserve the time for it. Success: Somewhat.
• Blog more often. Nope. For the past six months this site has been a wasteland, with only a handful of decent entries. This isn't one of them. Sorry readers. Success: Nil.
• Complete, and maintain, another website. The site in question is The Sky is Falling and it's going well. It's been running for five months now and it's updated six days a week. Its audience has grown every month, too. Sometimes people even leave comments. Success: Definitely.

By the end of this year I will:

• Finish a personal creative project. Haven't started this yet, but have one or two ideas. Well, one idea. And it's not very good. But there's still time. Success: Not yet.
• Start working out a career. I haven't even landed a job yet. I'm not even sure what kind of job I really want -- so far it's been individual jobs, not types of job, that have appealed to me most. I'm still stumbling around in the dark. And I just stubbed my toe on something. Success: No.

That's 1.5 out of 6 resolutions achieved. Not too impressive, really. If only my six resolutions had been:

• Cover a pinboard in job ads
• Perform abysmally in an interview
• Learn a magic trick
• Stagnate socially
• Suffer from allergies
• Shave off that stupid beard

...then I would have a 100% success rate right now. Ah well, hindsight is 20/20.

So there we go. It's a good day to reaffirm my commitment to the six original resolutions. I won't mention them again for another six months, but my final score will hopefully be a lot better than 1.5. Stay tuned for the exciting conclusion. How can you possibly handle this much suspense?