Old stereos are definitely of a better build than today’s plastic crap.
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While not really retro I do like the Fosi box and mini powered speaker system I got last year or the year before. The FOsi box is a mini-amp amp with inputs for,optical, usb, component, and Bluetooth and pumps out more sound than I’d ever need in my office.
With accompanying visuals, when that lava lamp is switched on. 
Also, is that a Classic or a Classic II there to the right?
I still use it.
I haven’t been to their webpage in ages. Apparently something is going on.
Alas it’s not a lavalamp but a jarred tornado. It also uses more AA batteries than conceivably possible.
Also Apollo there is a Classic II. Currently off in “quarantine” since the last time I booted him, it took fifteen attempts for the voltage stabiliser to stabilise before the tube would strike. I need to solder a new capacitor kit in there but haven’t got round to it yet.
Phoenix, the 5500 (their names are their developer codenames, it’s a theme we have) also needs new capacitors but the only thing actually wrong with her is the speakers have fused. New caps would stop that happening, as well as the screen jitter on startup; something beyond the rectifier is introducing noise until the electrics warm up.
What’ll happen if you use a flux capacitor?
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The components in the machine will get newer rather than degrading (optimistic) or I’ll send my Mac back to the dinosaurs (pessimistic).
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Same. I use a really old version - at least 15+ years.
When it hits 88 MPH, you’ll see some serious shit.
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You meant 88wpm?
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For those of you who still have old hardware (or old software that can run in an emulator), FreeDOS has just released v1.3.
I might just have top grab that and have a play. No idea what I’ll use it for (if anything)…
Any useful ideas?
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There’s Westwood’s C&C Red Alert, LucasArts’ Star Wars Dark Forces, and Bullfrog’s Theme Hospital are my go-to DOS games
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Are you saying that I could play Wing Commander again?
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Naturally! You’ve got hours to burn
There are heaps of ‘abandonware’ sites out there. I never realised there were so many - hell, I even found a copy of NeXtStep v3 (or however you capitalise the damned thing) for x86.
That’s tempting, just for the “what was all the fuss about?” curiosity factor.
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DOOM and Duke Nukem…
“come get some”
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If you happen to run across Birth of the Federation, let me know. I haven’t been able to find that one. It’s kind of like Master of Orion, but Star Trek.
I found a couple of copies on torrent sites.
According to my list, I have the following Star Trek games.
Birth of the Federation
Star Trek Armada
Star Trek Armada II
Star Trek ConQuest Online
Star Trek Voyager: Elite Force
Star Trek Voyager: Elite Force
Star Trek Voyager: Elite Force Expansion Pack
Star Trek: Elite Force II
Star Trek: 25th Anniversary
Star Trek: Captain’s Chair
Star Trek: Legacy
Starfleet Academy
For Official Strategy Guides, Birth of the Federation and for both Voyager: EF games.
Most of them are the original releases that I would have bought at places like CompUSA and Fry’s, back when you could actually get your game in a box and usually a printed manual, rather than a CD/DVD case with a PDF on the disc. I think the only ones I ever played were Star Trek Voyager: Elite Force and STV:EF2.
I kept the game discs separate from the packages, so rounding those up might take sorting through a few boxes, but I know which one the Birth of the Federation package is in. @Nabiki, if I can find everything that goes with it, I’ll let you know.
I should dig these books out, too:
- Why Won’t This *@#! Game Work?
- Running DOS Games Under Windows 95
I know companies like Good Old Games already did that kind of work, but it would be interesting to see what it used to take.
Got the original Starfleet Academy on CD discs.
Eldest daughter wanted to play it, but was bummed when it bombed out on win10.
I have purchased the same from GOG.com recently, as they have included a wrapper of some sort, to enable win10 compatibility.
No more messing around with CD discs, yay.