Hola Bo,
On Wed, 9 Jan 2002, Bo Zimmerman wrote:
> Well said again..
>
> "Can't we all just get along???"
This post actually has some content related to cbm-hackers, but first I
would like to indulge briefly in a little history and a little philosophy
(a guilty sin; please forgive me).
The problem with the term "collector" is of course that it can evoke many
different images, and applies to many different types of people. In the
early 90's, C= computers were simply obsolete, things that nobody
wanted that you picked up at a garage sale, and so "collectors" were
people like George Page, who simply had a hobbyist fascination and drive
to acquire one of everything that C= ever made -- the kind of guy who
would make a side trip while visiting relatives because he heard there
might be a slightly different type of power supply in a box in an obscure
computer shop. People also "collected" things because they had some
memory associated with them -- had one in high school, saw one in a
magazine and was always curious about it, and so on. And, of course, some
collected out of a technical interest.
But then, maybe around, what, 96 or so, a different type of "collector"
appeared. "Retro computing" started becoming fashionable, and you got the
sense that there were some for whom "collecting" was a competition, a race
to get the most toys, to have the most "valuable" or "rare" items -- to
acquire things for the purpose of coveting, perhaps even for some sense of
identity? "I am a _collector_!"
Now, I'll get to the point of all this in a second. I have a lot of
respect for the "collector" described in the first paragraph -- they
preserve items, use them, and generally make these items known to the
full community (through technical knowledge, etc.). But I have an
enormous amount of disdain for the second type, because of the opposite
effect: software and hardware that was once common suddenly becomes
unavailable, hidden away, unused, and otherwise "valuable". (On the other
hand, maybe I'm just bitter about not getting an SX-64 when they were
cheap; who knows). The C65 is a great example -- something that went from
being a $100 item of interest mainly to hackers, to a "collectible" item a
few years later, now selling for, what, over $1000? I never got one for
$100, just because I figured I'd never do any coding for it and it should
go to someone who would actually use it (a financial blunder, but a moral
victory!).
And that brings me to my point: I'd like to see this thing go into the
hands of someone who will actually do something with it, instead of going
into someone's detestable "collection". I don't care who -- you, or
Richard, or Ruud are all great and worthy guys. So I'd be willing to chip
in some money to buy the thing; as in, I would be willing to send you $50
to help buy it. I fully realize that promises of money are dangerous, and
there's some conceivable legal issues, but in my experience most cbm
hacker types are honest, and obviously if several people contributed some
$$$ it could make a big difference.
Whaddaya think? Too crazy? Too bigoted? Unnecessary because whoever
picks it up will do good things with it anyways?
cu,
-Steve
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