I can relate to the topic, I also had a similar thing recently with the C64, and also the Amiga , The C64 being an even tougher object to get specimens for any reliable extensive usage..
And about current Computers - PCs - they have simply become GODLESS, SOULLESS, cant be trusted .. "Trusted Computing" - yeah right ... Did PCs really ever have a soullike sensation ? And when did Apple lose it ?
And one thing, you pretty much knew what was going on in your Amiga or C64 at any one time, but with PCs you might have a trojan spying or you just dont know whats going on in the box , "WHY IS that drivelight flickering ALL the time ?! Im not really DOING anything .. " Paranoia , sure .. But it adds up to a feeling that , that computer isnt really your friend... Worse now with Win 7 ..
To get on topic. I did however starting in this May of 09 get a few machines used in ok condition, one in seemingly excellent condition (a C64G) and a couple of 1581 disk drives !!! I laid down quite some cash on them (I live in Norway). Could not believe my luck to get the 1581s, 3-4 times the storage of a 1541 floppy. And Ive even since then been able to find two routes to get software from the net over to the C64s .. !
I also have gotten more into my 4 Amigas, getting the old A500 i got in 1988 , my prescious I had back then, set up on a 20 inch TV with RGB to scart cable. My CDTV, A1200 and CD32 is also set up .. I have yet to find the time to play extensively with them though..
IF ONLY .. IF ONLY .. Commodore had, had proper management, there would not have been so many nostalgic Amigans ... Then we would have had Amigas still,, Maybe there would have been a triopoly instead of the Windows, MacOS duopoly, yeah I forgot Linux .. But thats a PC too .. :-) If slightly better ..
And what about the conspiracy theory Ive come to have, that Amiga DID NOT DIE, IT WAS KILLED !! Secret agreement between the powers that be, that there was no room for "Amiga" in the IT landscape ... ? Only Microsoft and Apple .. Ok Ok this is way offtopic :-)
Anyway, my solution to my nostalgia problem was to keep tinkering in the remainder of the Amiverse... The classics being my passion. With in my case also a big if not biggest portion in the C64 world .. !
But the hope is that the Natami happens before the flu kills us all, and that mayyybe Jens Schoenfeld has a a few Cloned A's up his sleeve .. ! And that Minimig gets a properly put together featureset, 030 CPU, enough ram, preassembled ARM expansion etc. In a nice case to buy. ReadyMade(tm). And for me that I can sustain my Amiga and C64 passion on used hardware and NewOld stock till then ... Old hardware cant last forever, and my repair skills are pretty bad..
What can I suggest ? Hang on to Amiga, if you want to, if only by a thread. Things will not be the same, but they never are ..
Remember fondly the good past while looking forward to the future. Maybe something will come along. While you tend to the daily business of Life After the heyday of the first Amiga age. And to be honest , I KNOW emulators arent the same, but WinUAE / Amigaforever is getting good - atleast for games, and particularily on a CRT. And a biggish update is on the way I read on winuae.net.
