I've recently purchased and retro-modded a Toshiba Libretto from eBay.
It was listed as non-working, untetested. I added a IDE to CF card adapter, a fresh install of w98, added a $3 PCMCIA wireless card, with a hot spot running from my phone.
Even the battery that was made back in the mid to late 90's is holding a charge. I've owned countless phones in the last decade that can't say that.
I'm thoroughly enjoying reliving my retro years telneting around experincing BBS nostalgia from my couch and micro-laptop. I've had to dust off learnings from a few decades ago working with such an old os, but somehow I find it both relaxing and fun.
Here's to the late 90's.
This lovely image made me go up into the loft and get my little Dell
laptop down. It's not quite as old as I thought, though, with a Pentium
233 processor, and the hard drive seems to have died. Better order
myself another CF to 40 pin IDE adaptor, I think!
Here's to the late 90's.
Enjoy!
BobW
Nice. Took me a while to get my PCMCIA wireless card working. Now that I have that figured out, looking for a DOS style BBS client. mTelnet works until it crashes whenever I try to post a message. An older version of Putty works,2~ but doesn't have ZModem support...
Hope you get it running...
A pretty authentic 90s online experience, then :) Takes me back to
'95, having to swap between two "known good" copies of WINSOCK.DLL
depending on what I was trying to do that day...
Laugh, I remember doing that as well! I switched to OS/2 right around that time because it worked better.
Re: Re: Toshiba Libretto
By: Tiny to Bob Worm on Mon Nov 06 2023 06:18 am
Laugh, I remember doing that as well! I switched to OS/2 right aroun that time because it worked better.
I really wanted to see OS/2 overtake Windows, but by the mid-90s, I
think it was too late.
Shaggy wrote to All <=-
I've recently purchased and retro-modded a Toshiba Libretto from eBay.
It was listed as non-working, untetested. I added a IDE to CF card adapter, a fresh install of w98, added a $3 PCMCIA wireless card, with
a hot spot running from my phone. Even the battery that was made back
in the mid to late 90's is holding a charge. I've owned countless
phones in the last decade that can't say that.
Bob Worm wrote to Shaggy <=-
Serial to WiFi adaptor out of the question? Would probably double the footprint of a Libretto, though!
Tiny wrote to Bob Worm <=-
Laugh, I remember doing that as well! I switched to OS/2 right around that time because it worked better.
Yeah.. OS/2 Warp was basically Windows 2000 six years early..and sure enough by the time it got to Win2K service pack 2 or 3 I switched over to that
instead. The stability was just as good for me..
I kept trying to decide if I was going to say Windows 7 or XP was the last Windows I truly liked everything about the GUI.. but I hate them both lol. Win2K for life.
Xircom used to make a parallel to Ethernet adapter - was a good fraction
of the size of the Libretto! They finally came out with a CF card that worked with it, my user was much happier.
A pretty authentic 90s online experience, then :) Takes me back to '95, having to swap between two "known good" copies of WINSOCK.DLL depending
on what I was trying to do that day...
Yeah, I'll probably just cheat and install Linux on it. I have a couple
of PCMCIA WiFi cards around here somewhere, I just can't lay my hands on one right now - I'm not sure USB1.1 would really work for WiFi.
Nice! My company's CEO had one back in 1998 or so, loved getting to
configure/fix it for him. About that same time, I got an IBM workpad
Z50, a little 2/3s form factor thinkpad that ran Windows CE. Another
person in the company had a HP 200LX. Good times for small computers.
I did love OS/2, though. I started out running OS/2 1.3 on IBM PS/2s,
and could run a modem session, MS LAN Manager networking, Novell
networking, connect to a AS/400 over twinax, and run Word and Excel on
a system with a 386 and 8 MB of RAM.
I liked Win2K as well. But I did like Windows XP and Windows 7 too.. I kinda liked their UIs, though I did tend to disable the Windows Themes service and have the Windows UI look more like Win2K. I preferred not having so much resources taken by the UI. Though these days, I feel
like operating system UIs look too flat and uninteresting.
If there was a device back then with CE and the PSION
keyboard, that would've been better.
I think I might walk into my next meeting with the CIO and whip out my Libretto. See what his reaction is. :)
Need to find a FSE that works on linux for my WWIV BBS though...
I don't know why, but for me, WinXP feels like the best GUI experience
of any OS I've ever used. I loved XP. Perhaps it's just nostalgia but I really enjoyed using it and still like using it on one of my retro
builds.
Need to find a FSE that works on linux for my WWIV BBS though...
I had to Google that... I assume you mean "Full Screen Editor", rather than "Furry Search Engine", which is the first hit when you search for
Shaggy wrote to Poindexter Fortran <=-
I had a HP CE device, but was never impressed by how it was pokey slow
and hard to type on. If there was a device back then with CE and the PSION keyboard, that would've been better.
I think I might walk into my next meeting with the CIO and whip out my Libretto. See what his reaction is. :)
fusion wrote to Nightfox <=-
I kept trying to decide if I was going to say Windows 7 or XP was the
last Windows I truly liked everything about the GUI.. but I hate them
both lol. Win2K for life.
Bob Worm wrote to Shaggy <=-
Re: Re: Toshiba Libretto
By: Shaggy to Poindexter Fortran on Mon Nov 06 2023 23:45:44
Hi, Shaggy.
If there was a device back then with CE and the PSION
keyboard, that would've been better.
I have a series 5 up in the loft (this loft is starting to sound like
an Alladin's cave) but, as they often do, the display has stopped
working on it. I may revive it one day but I gather that's quite an expensive thing to do - I wonder if there's an IPS screen replacement
for those? That would be lovely :)
I really liked Psion's OS, as well. It's a shame they're not around any more :(
I think I might walk into my next meeting with the CIO and whip out my Libretto. See what his reaction is. :)
I was thinking of taking my Acorn A3020 with me to the datacentre the
next time I'm there. I imagine it might attract some odd looks sat on a crash trolley, especially if I started inserting 3.5" floppies into it.
In truth, I work on telecoms / networking kit so anything with a 9600
baud serial port is perfectly fine.
In fact that's how I found out the Psion was dead - I thought it would
be ideal as an ultra-portable serial terminal and got it out for that purpose.
Speaking of professional computing, another one of my permanently
shelved projects was to take my son's old Leapfrog Clickstart "My First Computer" and decode the IR coming out of the keyboard and mouse so
that it could be used as an input device on a "real" computer.
For those unfamiliar:
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2007/06/27/technology/28computer.600.jpg
I got some way into that project using a logic analyser but never got
to a working prototype. Anyway, I thought it would be pretty amazing to use as a daily runner, or at least to take into the office and to
pretend to use it as a daily runner...
We are an interesting group...
BobW
--- SBBSecho 3.20-Linux
* Origin: >>> Magnum BBS <<< - bbs.magnum.uk.net (21:1/205)
I don't know why, but for me, WinXP feels like the best GUI experience of any OS I've ever used. I loved XP. Perhaps it's just nostalgia but I really enjoyed using it and still like using it on one of my retro builds.
I may need to spin up another XP nostalgia VM.
[...]Bob Worm wrote to Shaggy <=-
BobW
I really liked Psion's OS, as well. It's a shame they're not around any more :(
I had to Google that... I assume you mean "Full Screen Editor", rather
than "Furry Search Engine", which is the first hit when you search for
"FSE BBS"?
Or at least it is when I search for it... not sure what Google is trying
to tell me, there!
I think I might walk into my next meeting with the CIO and whip out
my
Libretto. See what his reaction is. :)
That would be awesome, especially if you plugged it into a desktop
projector and pulled out a powerpoint. It's got VGA out somewhere,
doesn't
it? Maybe on the dock?
It's funny to think of Windows XP as nostalgia now. I remember using XP when it was brand new and thinking it was pretty cool.
I don't know why, but for me, WinXP feels like the best GUI experience
of any OS I've ever used. I loved XP. Perhaps it's just nostalgia but I really enjoyed using it and still like using it on one of my retro
builds.
BTW - I want to see this loft! Seems like a treasure trove of nastalgic technology.
Nightfox wrote to poindexter FORTRAN <=-
It's funny to think of Windows XP as nostalgia now. I remember using
XP when it was brand new and thinking it was pretty cool.
It's funny to think of Windows XP as nostalgia now. I remember using XP
when it was brand new and thinking it was pretty cool.
You're not alone. I remember when we had to phase Windows XP out, and we had holdouts who preferred it to Windows 7.
I remember when we had to phase Windows XP out, and we
had holdouts who preferred it to Windows 7.
You're not alone. I remember when we had to phase Windows XP out, and we had holdouts who preferred it to Windows 7.
WinXP was OK, but after failed Vista I think W7 ultimately upgraded the original Windows experience to the maximum, before the've started
screwing again.
I just touched Win 11 today for the first time in my life, for 2 minutes and I switched back to Mac... W10 was OK again... not so much big difference to me after W7.. it only fixed w8 badness in all front,
nothing revolutionary and w11 is like poor's man macos with file
explorer + browser integration brought back to windows again....
Operating systems these days all have a more plain, flat UI. I feel
like it's like they don't put any thought or effort into making the UI look good anymore.
Operating systems these days all have a more plain, flat UI. I feel
like it's like they don't put any thought or effort into making the UI
look good anymore.
I do like some aspects of this. For example I use KDE Plasma as my DE on my daily driver linux laptop, and I love it. I have everything set to dark mode but beyond that most things are plain OOTB settings. It feels like a very natural and complete UX to me.
It's funny to think of Windows XP as nostalgia now. I remember using
XP when it was brand new and thinking it was pretty cool.
You're not alone. I remember when we had to phase Windows XP out, and we
had holdouts who preferred it to Windows 7.
I wasn't an XP holdout, as I liked WIndows 7 as well. But I think Windows XP was one of the best versions of Windows they produced.
Quoting Nightfox to Fusion <=-
preferred not having so much resources taken by the UI. Though these days, I feel like operating system UIs look too flat and
uninteresting.
100% agree. We can thank mobile devices for the idiotic UI's of desktop computers today. Ugh.
Operating systems these days all have a more plain, flat UI. I feel like it's like they don't put any thought or effort into making the U look good anymore.
I do like some aspects of this. For example I use KDE Plasma as my DE on my daily driver linux laptop, and I love it. I have everything set to
dark mode but beyond that most things are plain OOTB settings. It feels like a very natural and complete UX to me.
It's funny to think of Windows XP as nostalgia now. I remember usi
XP when it was brand new and thinking it was pretty cool.
You're not alone. I remember when we had to phase Windows XP out, anI wasn't an XP holdout, as I liked WIndows 7 as well. But I think Win XP was one of the best versions of Windows they produced.
had holdouts who preferred it to Windows 7.
100% agree. We can thank mobile devices for the idiotic UI's of desktop computers today. Ugh.
unc0nnected wrote to Ogg <=-
For me I was a windows 2000 holdout, I just couldn't get past how
bubbly and dumbed down XP felt after being with 2000 for a couple of
years so I stuck with that until Windows 7. Although compared to
Windows ME, XP was a dream come true.
Spectre wrote to Elf <=-
You can probably also add a decline in pooty sales to that too. The
long shop, (side of the road) has gotten very sparse in computers over
the last few years. I suspect the only main to groups still buying are corporate and game boys...
for my main desktop though, http://kirin.dcclost.com/~alex/fsx_rc.png
basically stripped to the bones :) and very much how i remember linux as
a sort of pick-and-choose random pile of software
The next thing I know, Windows 8 is being rolled out and it looks
exactly like the phone. Supposedly it's all geared around being able to use proper Windows on a touchscreen / tablet. Gross.
This message thread made me think about how I didn't mind Vista all
that much. It was a bit faster than 7, but the hardware at the time was
crap. I remember core 2 duos with 3 GB of RAM being high-end for home
use, and Vista could have used more - did more than XP did. Vista on a
SSD would have been a different story.
for my main desktop though, http://kirin.dcclost.com/~alex/fsx_rc.png
That's pretty cool. I've always had respect for Slackware, it was one of my original linux distros way back in the day. I had no idea there was
an OS/2 Warp DE :P
basically stripped to the bones :) and very much how i remember linux a sort of pick-and-choose random pile of software
Yeah, for a while I was going super minimal. I made an Openbox desktop with a panel and a right click menu and that was basically it. I enjoyed setting it up but it was missing some QOL features so I ended up just giving Plasma a shot. Turns out Plasma doesn't eat up much more RAM than running a super minimal Openbox, so... *shrug* here I am hehe
This reminds me of the Enlightenment window manager for linux. E back in the day was sharp, and I really liked it and found it to be a standout. Then, they made design decisions to prepare it for mobile computing, and that really changed the trajectory of the look and feel of E. It changed
Quoting Spectre to Elf <=-
You can probably also add a decline in pooty sales to that too. The
long shop, (side of the road) has gotten very sparse in computers over
the last few years. I suspect the only main to groups still buying are corporate and game boys...
If pooty sales are slowly going down the tube, then its probably not
worth dollar wise putting the effort into making them pretty.
E reminded me of Litestep for Windows. I started using it looking for a lower-overhead environment for my BBS, and ended up endlessly tweaking
it to make a custom environment for my laptop. I wish I could find the theme I had, I loved it, but ended up spending more time tweaking it
than using my laptop. :)
esc wrote to poindexter FORTRAN <=-
That's how I was for a long time :P Now I just settle into comfy KDE Plasma and call it a day.
Quoting Bob Worm to Elf <=-
100% agree. We can thank mobile devices for the idiotic UI's of desktop computers today. Ugh.
Yes, I remember being given a Windows mobile for work. An authentic Windows experience, it spent the first afternoon applying patches
before I could even use it and would occasionally reboot just before a
key meeting to install updates as well... That had the "new", "modern" tiled appearance.
The next thing I know, Windows 8 is being rolled out and it looks
exactly like the phone. Supposedly it's all geared around being able
to use proper Windows on a touchscreen / tablet. Gross.
I spent the next 6 months ignoring ever grumpier e-mails from IT
telling me I needed to be "upgraded" to Windows 8. Eventually I
managed to inherit a Mac from someone else who left the company and
then ultimately resigned myself. I've still not had to face the
prospect of working on any version above 7.
Quoting Blue White to Spectre <=-
That last bit has come to light now that the systems are being
upgraded to be all point and click. The new user hires don't know how
to do even that.
But, I found myself fixing too many things too many times. But what I
loved about it, is buttons were clearly buttons, borders around windows clearly were visible, etc. I like having an interface I can see. :-)
But, I found myself fixing too many things too many times. But what I loved
about it, is buttons were clearly buttons, borders around windows clearly
were visible, etc. I like having an interface I can see. :-)
This is why I switched from Linux as a daily OS to Mac - everything just works and I still have a proper shell. Except some very nerdy stuff where I need to fall back to Linux, which I can do by tunneling X Windows through SSH.
I've used Mac OS before, mostly for work, and in my experience, not everything just works all the time. I use Linux Mint at home for my BBS PC (I also run Plex Media Server on it), and things have pretty much always worked there for me. Even upgrades to new versions of the OS have always gone fairly smoothly.
Yeah, I will admit that upgrading my iMac to Big Sur absolutely screwed it. The in-place upgrade completely failed to the point where it couldn't boot and a from-scratch install was basically unusable. I legitimately
In retrospect, I think I spent as much time tweaking OS/2 config.sys
files trying to get drivers to load correctly as I did running
trying to eke out a little more RAM out of DOS.
Tiny wrote to poindexter FORTRAN <=-
In retrospect, I think I spent as much time tweaking OS/2 config.sys
files trying to get drivers to load correctly as I did running
trying to eke out a little more RAM out of DOS.
Probably but it was more fun. LOL
But, I found myself fixing too many things too many times. But what
I loved about it, is buttons were clearly buttons, borders around
windows clearly were visible, etc. I like having an interface I can
see. :-)
This is why I switched from Linux as a daily OS to Mac - everything
just works and I still have a proper shell. Except some very nerdy
stuff where I need to fall back to Linux, which I can do by tunneling
X Windows through SSH.
The GUI elements are very consistent on Mac so they look like what
they are to me, possibly I've just got used to them. I don't miss the window borders, they remind me of clunky old Windows versions and for
me they're wasted space - I do get annoyed by the rounded corners on
Mac Windows, though - sometimes it eats into the content of the window which is... kind of unforgivable!
For some strange reason I'm fascinated by the way screen grabbing a
full window also grabs the window's shadow, complete with alpha
channel. It does look nice when you put the image into documentation, though.
telnet://bbs.roonsbbs.hu:1212 <<=-
When compared to Windows at the time, it was amazing - once you got it
up and running. I ran Maximus and Frontdoor on my desktop and barely
noticed it running in the background. It took years for Windows to
catch up to that.
Tiny wrote to poindexter FORTRAN <=-
True. I think Windows XP SP2 is around where it caught up enough that
you could run a BBS in the background without really noticing it. At least it was the first version of Windows I could use to run a BBS.
This reminds me of the Enlightenment window manager for linux. E back in the day was sharp, and I really liked it and found it to be a standout.
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