Classics Rock

Examining IT trends from the past live to help IT managers plan for the future.

  • Administrator // January 12, 2009, 9:09 AM PST

    Name that CPU

    We've played Guess The OS a few times before. This time let's see if you can figure out what CPU is being talked about in this article. Look back and see how arguments about computer performance have lingered forever.

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  • John Sheesley // January 8, 2009, 8:44 AM PST

    Classic Tip: Control how programs start with batch files

    When using batch files, you sometimes may want a program to start minimized or full screen. This classic tip from 2000 shows how you used to do it in Windows 9x and how little things have changed.

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  • John Sheesley // January 5, 2009, 8:58 AM PST

    Y2K: The New Year's disaster that never happened

    Another New Years goes by in the 21st Century and we're still using computers. If you believed all the hype from 90's, we'd be living in the Stone Age by now. Here's a set of videos that look back at the Y2K bug and raise new conspiracy theories.

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  • John Sheesley // January 4, 2009, 6:28 AM PST

    Five 2008 cutting-edge technlogies that will look quaint in the future

    Like every year, 2008 introduced to dozens of new technologies and IT products. Shiny and new now, these things will look quaint in just a few years. Here are some of the new things for 2008 that we'll reminisce about.

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  • John Sheesley // December 28, 2008, 11:55 PM PST

    Classic Tip: A Notepad trick from 1999 that works in Vista

    Even though Microsoft makes major changes to Windows through the years, some things stay the same. This Notepad trick for Windows 98 that was featured in our 1999 Windows TechMail is a prime example.

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  • John Sheesley // December 22, 2008, 10:05 AM PST

    Recapping classic Classic Rock posts for 2008

    We started Classics Rock in March 2008. Here's a recap of some of the posts that drew the most discussions for the year.

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  • Michael Banks // January 6, 2009, 11:06 PM PST

    Prodigy: The pre-Internet online service that didn’t live up to its name

    One of the early online destinations before the Internet was Prodigy. Like many child prodigies that share the name, Prodigy started off with lots of promise, only to wind up a disaster. Guest contributor Michael Banks gives a look back at Prodigy's tortured journey.

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  • John Sheesley // December 15, 2008, 9:34 AM PST

    Bring out your dead!

    Calling all TR Members. Do you have any old equipment laying around that you'd like to get rid of and have featured in our Cracking Open series? Now's your chance. Read on to find out how to submit your old equipment, or pictures of them, to TechRepublic to appear on the site.

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  • John Sheesley // December 15, 2008, 9:22 AM PST

    Classic Tip: Prevent your users from talking to each other

    Networks are supposed to foster communication, but sometimes you don't want users communicating TOO much. Here's a classic tip about how to stop NetWare users from messaging each other directly across a network. Doing so in Windows presents a challenge.

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  • John Sheesley // December 11, 2008, 8:07 PM PST

    An annual holiday tradition: Computer commercials

    Christmas, Hannukah, and all of the other traditional winter holidays are around the corner. That means its the time of year for lots of commercials, including ones for computers. Here are some Holiday Classics.

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  • John Sheesley // December 4, 2008, 9:53 AM PST

    1950's IT without tailfins and leather jackets

    Usually when talking computer classics, I stick to computers from the 70's, 80's and 90's. This video from IBM shows a state of the art accounting computer from the 1950's. See how far we've come.

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  • John Sheesley // November 28, 2008, 9:28 AM PST

    What's the biggest tech turkey of all time?

    This time of year, we're supposed to give thanks for our blessings. Sometimes one of the things we're thankful for is the technology nightmares we no longer have to deal with. What's the biggest Tech Turkey of all time? Place your vote.

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  • Michael Banks // November 24, 2008, 9:04 AM PST

    Cloud computing? Been there. Done that.

    Cloud computing is nothing new. It's just a fancy name for technology that's been around since the 1980's and before. Classics Rock Guest Columnist Michael Banks talks about computing in the clouds in 1983 with his Tandy 100 and CompuServe.

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  • John Sheesley // November 24, 2008, 8:53 AM PST

    Guess the OS (Office Suite edition)

    Usually when we play Guess The OS, we're talking about classic operating systems. This time OS refers to office suites. Here's an article from Home Office Computing. What office suite is being discussed? See if you can guess.

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  • John Sheesley // November 20, 2008, 8:41 AM PST

    Questing before the age of WoW

    World Of Warcraft is the top online destination for questing today, but long before Kil'jaeden the Deceiver ever dreamed up the Lich King, there was another quest to be had. Almost all modern questing games can be traced back to Sierra's King Quest. This video has a run through and here's a look back.

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  • John Sheesley // March 21, 2008, 6:40 AM PST

    5 of the best desktop operating systems you never used

    Chances are, you're reading this blog entry on a Windows machine. If not, you're probably running a Mac or Linux. Here are five of the best desktop operating systems that you probably never used, but paved the way for what you're running right now.

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  • John Sheesley // April 2, 2008, 6:41 AM PST

    Does anyone actually still USE Token Ring?

    One of the big technology battles of the 80's and 90's was Token Ring vs. Ethernet. Even though it was technically superior, Token Ring was overpriced and ultimately fell by the wayside. Here's a recap of Token Ring's advantages, and we ask whether Token Ring is even used anymore.

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  • John Sheesley // October 27, 2008, 10:34 AM PST

    Play Nintendo classics on your PC

    Who needs the Wii? You can play original Nintendo NES games right on your PC. All it takes is a trip to vNES.

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  • John Sheesley // January 5, 2009, 8:58 AM PST

    Y2K: The New Year's disaster that never happened

    Another New Years goes by in the 21st Century and we're still using computers. If you believed all the hype from 90's, we'd be living in the Stone Age by now. Here's a set of videos that look back at the Y2K bug and raise new conspiracy theories.

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  • John Sheesley // September 29, 2008, 12:55 PM PST

    Surf the Web on your Commodore 64

    One of the things that usually keeps old machines from being useful in today's world is the fact that modern necessities like network and Internet connection are missing. Not with a 1980's Commodore 64 however. Here's how you can surf the Web with a C64.

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  • John Sheesley // May 29, 2008, 11:40 AM PST

    New software doesn't always mean better software

    New software releases are supposed to make things better. Often, things just get worse. Check out what to do about software bloat and take the poll to see which software has suffered the most from release to release.

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  • John Sheesley // October 13, 2008, 9:05 AM PST

    An 80's forerunner of the Mac vs. PC ads

    Apple has a pretty long history of PC envy. Even before the Mac, Apple made direct comparisons between itself and the PC. Here's an ad showing why an Apple IIc was a better choice than a PCjr.

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  • John Sheesley // December 11, 2008, 8:07 PM PST

    An annual holiday tradition: Computer commercials

    Christmas, Hannukah, and all of the other traditional winter holidays are around the corner. That means its the time of year for lots of commercials, including ones for computers. Here are some Holiday Classics.

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  • John Sheesley // December 11, 2008, 12:21 AM PST

    An old Exchange tip highlights feature creep and overlap

    As a software vendor revs a product, more features wind up getting added to it. Sometimes these features overlap features in another product sold by the same vendor creating confusion. This Classic Tip examines Exchange Public Folders and their overlap with SharePoint.

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  • John Sheesley // December 4, 2008, 9:53 AM PST

    1950's IT without tailfins and leather jackets

    Usually when talking computer classics, I stick to computers from the 70's, 80's and 90's. This video from IBM shows a state of the art accounting computer from the 1950's. See how far we've come.

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  • John Sheesley // April 4, 2008, 7:49 AM PST

    50MB of Data - For the low low price of $100

    One of the drawbacks to having old equipment around is keeping it running and finding parts when things break. The hard drive went out on one of my old Tandy 1000's. It's amazing how much hard drives cost for older PCs, especially compared to what storage costs today. Read on.

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  • John Sheesley // August 14, 2008, 11:47 AM PST

    60's style Soviet computer technology

    The Univac and IBM 700's weren't the only mainframe computers around in the late 50's and early 60's. Take a look at this video showing the URAL-2 computer from the Soviet Union, circa 1963.

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  • John Sheesley // October 23, 2008, 10:20 AM PST

    A 1969 perspective on computers in the future

    Remember The Jetsons and how cool 'the future' was supposed to be? This 1969 video shows the convenience of online shopping, banking, and an 'electronic correspondence machine'. It shows a future with a passable resemblance to today.

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  • John Sheesley // August 21, 2008, 11:41 AM PST

    A bit of Frost-ing for the iMac's 10th birthday cake

    Here's Apple's ad from 1998 debuting the iMac - with a little bit of poetic license at Robert Frost's expense. Check out Steve Job's introduction of the iMac as well.

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  • John Sheesley // October 30, 2008, 12:05 PM PST

    Ancient word processors highlight the lack of modern software diversity

    One of the claims of superiority that Microsoft claims with Windows over the Mac is the amount of software that's made to run under Windows. Even though there are thousands of programs available, the actual diversity of software seems to have diminished compared to the 80's. Word Processors are an excellent example.

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