| layout | post |
|---|---|
| title | How We Used to Code |
| date | 2013-10-27 22:13 |
| comments | true |
| categories | code, 1980s, Compute! |
To everyone who talks about the relatively minor differences in computer languages today:
{% img http://variousandsundry.com/cs/images/computer_code.jpeg 'This is how we used to enter code.' %}
This is how we had to do it thirty years ago, from the backs of computer magazines.
Here's the closeup:
{% img http://variousandsundry.com/cs/images/computer_code_closeup.jpeg 'See it better now?' %}
This kind of stuff would go on for three columns per page, and multiple pages per program. Thankfully, as I recall, the last couple of pairs were the checksum that you had typed the line in right. You didn't go far after making a mistake...
It wasn't all bad, though: You could also mail a check out for something like $10 or $20, and they'd send you a floppy disc with all the code on it already. Like Mom and Dad would let you get away with that...
For completeness' sake, here's how to enter the code:
{% img http://variousandsundry.com/cs/images/how_to_enter_code.jpg 'The instructions were rather simple...' %}
This came out of COMPUTE! magazine, dated December 1987. It had a sister publication, COMPUTE!'S GAZETTE that focused on Commodore computers.