Dear Time Lords: Freeze Computers in 1993
7 hours ago
- #computing-history
- #technology
- #nostalgia
- The author humorously proposes that computer technology should have stopped evolving in 1993, arguing that the technologies available then were optimal.
- In 1993, CPUs like the MIPS R4000 were simple, efficient, and just complex enough with features like MMU, FPU, and RISC architecture.
- Distributed operating systems like OSF/1 with DCE offered capabilities like distributed filesystems, RPC, and Kerberos, which the author claims haven't been meaningfully improved since.
- Programming languages such as Modula 3, Sather, and Dylan were safe and expressive, unlike later languages like Java and JavaScript.
- The web was still niche in 1993, and the author believes its subsequent explosion was a mistake, preferring alternatives like Gopher, IRC, and FTP.