• Updated 2023-07-12: Hello, Guest! Welcome back, and be sure to check out this follow-up post about our outage a week or so ago.

Hello Again

Da Penguin

Well-known member
Finals just wound down for my third year, and I felt it was about time to stop in and see what had changed. I have tried going through a few threads here and there, and I don't recognize 75% of the people! yikes!

Anyone want to give me a recap of the past few months? Last I checked in was...wow...December and January.

I hope all is well with everyone, those known for a long time and those new alike.

I will probably frequent a bit more this summer, as I only have 1 job this time instead of 3 as of last summer. Speaking of summer jobs, who here is SF Bay Area? I may need some tips and pointers as I will be there all summer.

TBird

 

Cory5412

Daring Pioneer of the Future
Staff member
Well, we've got a lot of new people, seems to be a new face every week or so.

Standards have dropped significantly -- the Lounge is now more of a group blog than anything else, and it's apparently okay to use significantly coarse, un-family-friendly language on the forum. (I need to work on fixing that I suppose.)

And most of us are more interested in newworld-PPC and Intel Macs than actual 68k Macintosh computers.

Unfortunately I'm not SF Bay Area, but I've heard it's a really nice area, and you'll probably really like it there.

Anyway, great to see another familiar name posting!

 

LCGuy

LC Doctor/Hot Rodder
G'day TBird, haven't heard from you in a while. Yeah, I'll drink to what Cory said about standards here. Either way, its great to see you again :)

 

Christopher

Well-known member
Not just macs but it seems like we got a buttload of pc lovers too..... As well as Sparc, Sun, and NeXT people too.

 

Cory5412

Daring Pioneer of the Future
Staff member
well, Sun/SGI/NeXT and the like have always kind of had a place in the heart of MLAers, mainly because it seems to come with the territory of "cool old/not-the-mainstream computing platforms."

PC lovers, well, basically we've got all types here -- and they seem to get along just fine. I'll admit that even I'm posting this from my Lenovo ThinkPad R61i with Windows Vista, which is cool because I like having a bit of everything around.

 

Temetka

Well-known member
I agree with Cory.

Those of us with a leaning towards retro hardware and computing in general also have more than a passing interest in the Big Iron of yesteryear. This also entails with some of us ending up with a rather large amount of time being spent repairing, upgrading, and tinkering with said hardware and software.

It is my own musings which have me pondering the thought that the 68kMLA may indeed end up morphing into a retro computing one stop community rather than sticking to 68k Macintosh / Apple computing. It is only natural that as our users delve into the wonderful world of retro computing that they also bring questions, advice, advice and tales relating to the sum of the retro computing existence rather than just a piece of it.

I would posit then that in an effort to keep the forums as retro and 68k as possible while still allowing for the discussion of topics verboten, it would then seem apparent that the course of action to be undertaken would be in the direction of creating a Windws sub-forum. This would allow for the discussion of Windows related topics at hand. Not to mention it would help clean up the lounge a bit.

 

SiliconValleyPirate

Well-known member
Hey TBird! Long time no ski!

Yeah this place has changed a lot, I came back only about 6 months ago and I couldn't really believe it either. Some of the crap people post about...

Anyhoo, enough whining, welcome back :)

 

Charlieman

Well-known member
Apologies, Cory, if it sounds like I'm having a go at you.

The Compact Mac threads here are interesting. Given that the Mac 128K is 24 years old, it is amazing how much interest exists. And it is not just "how do I turn it on" but "how do I use it more".

We still love Quadras and 68030s. Rockets and PDS accelerators are a continually arising topic.

Intel Macs, G4 and G5: not bovvered but I don't think that they suit this forum.

 

tmtomh

Well-known member
Let me add my voice to the chorus - welcome back, Da Penguin!

As for the discussion Cory started, I think it's fine that folks are interested in newer hardware. This is still a very retro-oriented site. Consider:

- The "moment of birth" of 68kmla, according to the FAQ, was August '01, and it involved the liberation of a Color Classic. Well, the slot-loading iMac G3, and the Sawtooth Power Mac G4, are as old today as the Color Classic was back in '01.

So considering that, and considering that the Apple I/II/III and Compact Mac forums (among others) are still pretty active here, I'd say this site is still going strong.

Finally, all communities change over time, and so even if this one continues to branch out to PC hardware, post-68k Mac liberating, and so on, the name 68kMLA has achieved larger connotations beyond just 68k machines, and I think there'd never be any need to change it.

Best,

Matt

 

Unknown_K

Well-known member
Sure, people love coming to a 68kmla site to talk about OSX and x86 macs now don't they.

Don't talk like the founders of this site evolved into talking about newer machines, its mostly the newer people who talk about new machines (taking over this site).

 

tmtomh

Well-known member
Hostile much?

So who counts as a "newer" person: anyone who didn't join back in 2001?

I joined in August '02, 9 months after 68kmla was founded. Am I a noob?

M

 

Cory5412

Daring Pioneer of the Future
Staff member
It has been a very long time since something I've said has been so massively differently interpreted by so many people. Indeed, it feels like it's been a long time since anyone has really bothered to even read what I've said.

What I did initially mean to convey was my own personal dissatisfaction with the fact that 68kMLAf seems to have become a free for all.

In a way, it's nice because almost anything I post there'll be someone here who knows about it -- but I know it's not necessarily appropriate, because there are other places for other other machines. Nekochan, sunhelp, forums for newer macs, and the various NeXT forums.

 

SiliconValleyPirate

Well-known member
I quite often contribute to other people's discussions about moderns stuff, because I've got knowledge I feel this place can help me share. I rarely start one of my own threads on moderns hardware though.

The thing that gets me most about the way the forum has evolved is the 'Conquests' forum has turned into an 'I just bought this' forum, rather than a place to post what gear you saved from the recyclers/crushers at a low price/free. It needs sorting out IMHO, and we're all guilty of promoting that to one extent or another.

Personally I don't care what people discuss here, but even I have limits. We're all a bit computer-nerd-esque so lets keep it at least on computers maybe? It certainly beats stupid threads about drinking a cold Pepsi.

We are all here because we share a common interest, but that doesn't mean we can't talk about *anything else* but old Macs, I mean tbh I find them about as interesting as dirty dishwater these days, but I hang around here for the people I know and get on well with, and sharing the knowledge I've built up over the years.

 

tmtomh

Well-known member
out the way the forum has evolved is the 'Conquests' forum has turned into an 'I just bought this' forum, rather than a place to post what gear you saved from the recyclers/crushers at a low price/free. It needs sorting out IMHO, and we're all guilty of promoting that to one extent or another.
I totally agree on this point.

Personally I don't care what people discuss here, but even I have limits. We're all a bit computer-nerd-esque so lets keep it at least on computers maybe? It certainly beats stupid threads about drinking a cold Pepsi.
Amen to that too!

And BTW, Cory - I respect what you said in your original post in this thread (and I respect your tremendous contributions to this forum); my recent annoyed post in this thread was in response to the tone of Unknown_K's post and had nothing to do with your original post.

M

 

Tom

Well-known member
Hello!

The forums have changed a lot (definitely less Mac and more retro), but the technical forums seem to be as popular as ever. Especially for people interested ind developing.

Seems like the 'issue' users tend to burn out after about a week of heavy posting.

 

Unknown_K

Well-known member
Well its how I feel about the situation. If you look back at who was around when this site was founded you will see most got burned out or had other issues and left. They started the site, contributed mostly on topic, and when they had nothing more to add they went on with life. When I google for something I just snagged I tend to hit posts from the original site, which is very usefull. Sometimes I even hit one of my very old posts, funny how I have changed over the last few years. These forums are an archive of knowledge, they should not be full of water cooler talk.

Too many people joined here to talk about things other then what the site was made for, and tend to flood the forums with offtopic instead of ontopic.

I collect more then just 68K/ppc macs, I tend to talk about them in IRC or post to the correct forums for that hardware. I also get into military history, should I start threads up about that here too? The issue is do you respect what the forum is meant for and post acordingly or do you decide to take a forum hostage and drag it into whatever you are into at that moment.

Most of the offtopic should be in a personal blog, you can easily link your blog in the SIG you use here. If people like your posts they will eventually check out your blog as well.

There are forums I used to post in that I rarely if ever post in anymore (but do read once in a while), people change and move on.

 

heebiejeebies

Well-known member
I agree with the preceding comments. The situation is dire.

Like moths to the flame we march towards our destruction.

Oh the horror! Oh the ghastly black tormented horror!

Oh the agony of it all!

Oh sweet pain, my only consolation... Sweet, bitter, horrible, beautiful pain.

Everything that is beautiful fades. Why should this forum be any exception?

Oh, didn't we tell you this is now an emo forum? :lol:

 

Temetka

Well-known member
WTH was that?

Anyways, it is my opinion that a forum for retro computing but with a main focus of 68k computing will have threads of an unrelated nature. I am going to change my earlier stance. Any threads talking about windows (the SP3 thread is a a perfect example) or any other OS not being run on retro hardware should be closed.

Stupid threads such as the pepsi one should be be closed forthwith.

68kMLA is a great place. It will never return to the pure 68k discussion it used to be. However if we move fast enough we can stem the flow of stupidity that seems to be plaguing the lounge. It is not a personal blog area. Threads about e-bay australia policies see, ok with me as a ton of our users also use e-bay and we tend to let one another know when we are bidding on something so as not to get into a bidding war with fellow MAF'ers.

 
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