Computers

This is my computer autobiography, a chronological history of my primary computers throughout the years. I have own and used a whole bunch of other computers than those listed here (among with a lot of old Sun hardware), but this is a straight time-line of what my main computer was a the time.

Video Technology Laser 200

VTech Laser 200
  • Used: 1984 - 1986
  • CPU: 3.58MHz Zilog Z80A
  • Memory: 8KB (with a 16KB expansion cartridge from hell)
  • Storage: 600 baud cassette recorder
  • OS: Microsoft BASIC (with enhancement) in 16KB ROM
  • Notes: Annoying but exiting computer, "cheapest colour home microcomputer on the market", "Oh daddy why couldn't you get a C64 like everyone else?", 45 glorious rubber keys that beeped at every keystroke, shortcut keys for almost every BASIC keyword.

Ericsson PC

Ericsson PC
  • Used: 1985 - 1987
  • CPU: 4.77 MHz Intel 8088 (with an Intel 8087 coprocessor I think)
  • Memory: 640K (which ought to be enough for anybody)
  • Storage: 10MB hard drive, 5.25" floppy drive
  • OS: MS-DOS 2.11 (later upgraded to 3.2)
  • Notes: Piece-o-junk (in the end actually caught fire and burned up), My father's CAD workstation, Fugly yellow and white monitor, cost about 40.000 NOK (well over 10.000 Euros today), Sold as a "top class workstation for CAD construction professionals" (yeah right)

Amstrad PC-1512DD

Amstrad 1512DD
  • Used: 1986 - 1989
  • CPU: 8MHz Intel 8086
  • Memory: 512KB
  • Storage: 20MB hard card (with the strangest sounds), Two 5.25" floppy disk drives
  • OS: DOS plus 1.2 (a bastard between CP/M and DR-DOS from Digital Research), MS-DOS 3.2
  • Software: GEM 1.1 (a GUI ahead of everything else at the time)
  • Notes: Fantastic computer, 99% IBM compatible ;-), "Oh daddy why couldn't you get a Amiga-500 like everyone else?", Sexy Amstrad-only 640x200, 16 color mode that only GEM understood, Fugly 320x200 CGA mode, Sierra On-line games, GW-Basic, Wayne Gretzky Hockey, Scandinavian PC-systems' "Ord"-word processor, Winter Games, Summer Games, Pitstop.

GoldStar 386SX

  • Used: 1989 - 1993
  • CPU: 20Mhz Intel i386SX
  • Memory: 640K (with 2MB expansion)
  • Storage: 40MB hard drive, 3.5" floppy
  • OS: MS-DOS 4.01 (later upgraded to 5.0 and 6.2), Windows 3.0
  • Notes: Reliable computer, VGA graphics, gamez and warez, Turbo Pascal, spend my whole summer job salaries on a Soundblaster 16 with 2x CD-ROM, Sierra On-Line games, Lucas Arts games, Civilization, Wolfenstein 3D, Dune II.

Olivetti P90

  • Used: 1994 - 1999
  • CPU: Intel Pentium P90
  • Memory: 32MB (later upgraded to 64MB and 256MB)
  • Storage: 650MB Hard drive (later added a 2.1GB Quantum Fireball)
  • OS: Dos 6.22, Windows 3.11, 95, 98, NT 3.5, Red Hat Linux 4.0, 4.2
  • Notes: First Internet connected computer, Linux, Linux, Linux, Multi boot bonanza with System Commander, mp3z, Hard disk recording, Windows Annoyances, Colonization, Command & Conquer, Doom, Windows 95 Secrets, Delphi.

Toshiba Tecra 8000

tecra 8000
  • Used: 1999 - 2001
  • OS: Redhat 6.0, 6.2, Windows 98SE
  • Notes: My first notebook computer, ended it's life as a wall picture frame computer ..

HP Omnibook 6000

omnibook 6000
  • Used: 2001 - 2002
  • CPU: 700Mhz, Pentium III
  • Memory: 384MB
  • Storage: DVD-ROM. 3.5" floppy, 20GB Hard drive
  • OS: Redhat 7.3, Windows 2000

HP Omnibook 500

omnibook 500
  • Used: 2002 - 2004
  • CPU: 700Mhz, Pentium III
  • Memory: 512MB (later 768MB)
  • Storage: 20GB Hard drive. DVD-ROM and 3.5" floppy with docking.
  • OS: Redhat 9, Fedora Core 1
  • Notes: Perfect computer apart from several internal design flaws, and one that made the mother board overheat and burn out. Three mother board replacements, two hard drive replacements, one LCD screen replacement, and a very buggy docking station solution that would short circuit when to much dirt got stuck inside the pin connectors under the computer. Everything broke, it even lost me important data, but I loved it anyway :-D, Very good battery time (4 hours), Builtin WLAN, Internet over IR and GSM.

HP/Compaq EVO N610C

Compaq EVO N610C
  • Used: 2004 - 2005
  • CPU: 1.8GHz, Pentium 4-M
  • Memory: 1024MB
  • Storage: 30GB, DVD-ROM/CD-RW
  • OS: Fedora Core 2
  • Notes: Boring and average computer. Problems with overheating.

Dell Latitude D600

Dell Latitude D600
  • Used: 2005 - 2006
  • CPU: 2GHz, Pentium M
  • Memory: 1024MB
  • Storage: 60GB Hard drive, DVD-RW
  • OS: Fedora Core 4
  • Notes: Good computer apart from bad battery time (2 hours), nice screen, WLAN with ndiswrapper, one hard drive replacement,

IBM Thinkpad X40

Thinkpad x40
  • Used: 2006 - 2008
  • CPU: 1.4GHz Pentium M
  • Memory: 1024MB
  • Storage: 40GB, 3.5" floppy and CD-RW with docking
  • OS: Fedora Core 5
  • Notes: Great computer apart for a bit too small screen resolution and appalling time on the original battery (1.5 hours), Python, programming, work, IM, Extra battery (4.5 hours). The computer that refused to die (two battery replacements, one hard drive, and a cracked LCD-display).

Lenovo ThinkPad X61

Thinkpad x61
  • Used: 2008 - present
  • CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo 2.0GHz T7300
  • Memory: 2048MB DDR2
  • Storage: 7200RPM 100GB Hitachi SATA
  • OS: Fedora 7
  • Notes: First computer that I dropped buying any floppy or CD-ROM with (OS was installed over the network by booting with an USB-pin).