[vcf-midatlantic] past, present and future

[Herb Johnson]

> [ a future VCFed exhibit on] PC Transporter for the Apple
> //e.  I will also be able to show demos of Ted Nelson's JOT and Jef
> Raskin's SWYFT systems for anyone interested. 

Sounds good to me. I'm familiar with some of Ted Nelson's work. I never 
saw JOT in action. Raskin, I"ve heard of. Not sure what the Apple 
product has to do with either person's interests. I'm over 60 by the 
way, so these are contemporary to me.

> The potential uses for them I see in the
> decentralized internet space (which is already being crowded out by
> corporate interests). 

I am not aware of "decentralized internet". I did a Web search, and it 
seems to be something that MIT people are looking at for grants and 
funding (and businesses and IPO's). As in:

https://dci.mit.edu/decentralizedweb

That does not strike me, as a vintage computing subject. I'm not in 
charge of those judgements, but I think it's a fair call to make. If MIT 
is talking up half a dozen start-ups to supersede the modern Internet, 
it's not "vintage". I have no clue about such stuff, myself. And I'd 
suggest, a lot of my vintage computing colleagues won't know either.

I don't think this should lead to a thread of explanation. As you said, 
"contact you privately". I myself think that would be off-topic. I used 
a search engine to learn more; so can others.

But you know: vintage computing things, don't *have to be* potentially 
usable today. They have their own time and place where they were (or 
weren't) in use. They should be considered in their context. Vintage 
things, often are simpler and more approachable. More familiar to those 
of that time; and static so they can be examined by people of after that 
time. This is something I know about. Still, my opinions.

But to see old stuff in use today, is kinda fun, if that's reasonable.

To that extent, I have a "different opinion", which you asked about.

regards, Herb Johnson


-- 
Herbert R. Johnson, New Jersey in the USA
http://www.retrotechnology.com OR .net
preserve, recover, restore 1970's computing
email: hjohnson AT retrotechnology DOT com
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