"Missing Links" - July 10, 2020

[RichA2]

Still on the boat; I’ve come up with three different answers by three different methods, but none is so obviously correct as to instill any confidence. My plan (barring a late aha! moment) is to submit the least unlikely this evening, preparing to smack my forehead tomorrow when all is revealed.

[Bird Lives]

Our earliest one was a TRS-80 we got in 1980 with a cassette tape drive.

From there we moved to MAC's because I was working on a multicompany project which standardized on Mac's. Then the company would not let Mac's on the network (except for the graphic art department) we migrated to PC's

I remain convinced that as late as the mid 90's if Apple had opened its architecture, we would all be using Apple architectured products. MS-DOS, Windows 95 and Windows 98 could not compete with the Apple operating systems.

I think I remember the KayPro Computer, or was that a Radiohead album? I had portable TRS-80 that looked like it was trying to pass itself off as a sewing machine. Also a Compaq portable that was portable only by those who were into power lifting. I used VisiCalc before Lotus 1-2-3 and then Quattro (the next step after 1-2-3, get it?). Friends used Word Star and XY Write. I still use WordPefect because it's still the best.

[michaelm]

Our earliest one was a TRS-80 we got in 1980 with a cassette tape drive.

From there we moved to MAC's because I was working on a multicompany project which standardized on Mac's. Then the company would not let Mac's on the network (except for the graphic art department) we migrated to PC's

I remain convinced that as late as the mid 90's if Apple had opened its architecture, we would all be using Apple architectured products. MS-DOS, Windows 95 and Windows 98 could not compete with the Apple operating systems.

I think I remember the KayPro Computer, or was that a Radiohead album? I had portable TRS-80 that looked like it was trying to pass itself off as a sewing machine. Also a Compaq portable that was portable only by those who were into power lifting. I used VisiCalc before Lotus 1-2-3 and then Quattro (the next step after 1-2-3, get it?). Friends used Word Star and XY Write. I still use WordPefect because it's still the best.

Used to call that the Compaq luggable. Always liked WordPerfect much better too, but finally got overwhelmed by compatibility issues with Word users from the Office suite

[PHOFER]

On shore. I had to sleep on it as usual. It is amazing what new things your brain sees after sleep.

[Jb321123]

So happy to be confidently back on shore! Solved puzzle on Friday and walked away after feeling like I was on the right track but still swimming. Got busy with chores to get done. Sat down 10 min ago and it jumped off the page. For those of you close, take a walk about and look at it again.

[MajordomoTom]

my dad had one of those "portable" Compaq - green screen, roughly 5"x5", two floppy drives.

it's probably a boat anchor somewhere today. Along with a few HP LaserJet 5s - those things were SOLID.

[rexthree]

on shore.

[edot]

Still on the boat; I’ve come up with three different answers by three different methods, but none is so obviously correct as to instill any confidence. My plan (barring a late aha! moment) is to submit the least unlikely this evening, preparing to smack my forehead tomorrow when all is revealed.

My plan as well! Still on the boat...Might take a walk as others have suggested and see if that clears anything up

[cbarbee002]

Finally ran onto something that can't be coincidence, but not immediately seeing the mechanism to turn it into the solve . . . . another margarita may do the trick.

Well, swam to shore just in time for last call at the beach bar! Make mine a Blantons!

[LadyBird]

I bought my first computer in the mid-80's for grad school. I recently found the sales slip in one of my Covid-cleaning forays. Don't remember the specs, but I'm sure it wasn't much. That and B&W monitor and dot matrix printer was almost $2000!

I made it through undergrad with a manual typewriter. Hit the big time senior year when my roommate had an IBM Selectric.

[OGuyDave]

Done (Thu eve) and done (just now, Sunday evening). Truly remarkable composition. This one might set a personal record for most brainwork resulting in a solve.

TFTXWD

[ky-mike]

I bought my first computer in the mid-80's for grad school. I recently found the sales slip in one of my Covid-cleaning forays. Don't remember the specs, but I'm sure it wasn't much. That and B&W monitor and dot matrix printer was almost $2000!

I made it through undergrad with a manual typewriter. Hit the big time senior year when my roommate had an IBM Selectric.

I bought my first one (COMPAQ portable that looked like a portable sewing machine, had one floppy disc drive and a small built-in CRT monitor, plus a dot matrix printer) in the mid 80's for about that same price.

[Bird Lives]

I was lucky enough to work at one of the UK's largest DEC installations (PDP/8). Spent days in front of that line of light bulbs and toggle switches programming in machine code, telex terminal at my side. Had to keep busy while waiting for my reports to be typed by the typing pool ... with true "cc" (carbon copy) of course! Oh boy - nostalgia creeping in again... time for a Watney's Red Barrel

At work we had DEC Rainbows, a computer with its own idiosyncratic commands and incompatible with every other system. Everyone hated therm.

[802puzzler]

Three rabbit holes, and just not seeing complete closure. So I'd have to honestly say I'm still at sea, but I'm going to submit my best guess.

[steveb]

PINEAPPLE WARS???

WE'RE GOING TO START PINEAPPLE WARS???

OK, I strongly disagree - a Roundtable Pizza (Hawaii and California chain), Canadian Bacon, Pineapple, Red Bell Peppers - YES!!!

I grew up in Palo Alto and we would go to the original Round Table. So much better than the chain, but the chain is pretty good, too.

The one on El Camino in Menlo Park! It's still there, one of the few things in town that hasn't changed much since 1959.

[OGuyDave]

stressed/desserts is pretty common, but the rest ... blow my mind that it's all fitted together that neatly.

pupils/slipup and diaper/repaid are just ... wowsers.

Reversible words seems to be a pretty sparse population. Here's what I got from a perl script I whipped up:


90 Three-letter words
102 Four-letter words
42 Five-letter words

Six letters:
Orig wd is animal reverse word is lamina
Orig wd is denier reverse word is reined
Orig wd is denies reverse word is seined
Orig wd is dennis reverse word is sinned
Orig wd is derats reverse word is stared
Orig wd is diaper reverse word is repaid
Orig wd is drawer reverse word is reward
Orig wd is eviler reverse word is relive
Orig wd is harris reverse word is sirrah
Orig wd is looter reverse word is retool
Orig wd is pupils reverse word is slipup
Orig wd is recaps reverse word is spacer
Orig wd is redraw reverse word is warder
Orig wd is reflow reverse word is wolfer
Orig wd is rennet reverse word is tenner
Orig wd is repins reverse word is sniper
Orig wd is sleets reverse word is steels
Orig wd is sloops reverse word is spools
Orig wd is snoops reverse word is spoons
Orig wd is spirts reverse word is strips
Orig wd is sports reverse word is strops

Seven letters:
Orig wd is deifier reverse word is reified
Orig wd is deliver reverse word is reviled
Orig wd is dessert reverse word is tressed

Eight letters:
Orig wd is desserts reverse word is stressed

Didn't find any hits for any words more than eight letters.

[Emmajane]

On shore but waterlogged....

[802puzzler]

Ashore! I found the first step right away, but it took some time to notice step 2.

I wonder who will be the first to post the obvious music video this one inspires?

You're killing me! I too found the first step right away, but my second step is NOT bringing to mind a music video! LOL

[Thurman8er]

LAS but not giving up.

[Thurman8er]

LAS but not giving up.

Just saw the mechanism after looking all weekend. What is it...a minute since I posted I was lost? I can't tell you all how often that happens to me.

I really must complain more often.