29 votes

We spoke with the last person standing in the floppy disk business

19 comments

  1. [17]
    BeanBurrito
    Link
    George R.R. Martin will always be a customer. He writes his books on a DOS computer ( no internet connection ) and sends his output to his publisher via a floppy.

    George R.R. Martin will always be a customer. He writes his books on a DOS computer ( no internet connection ) and sends his output to his publisher via a floppy.

    9 votes
    1. [10]
      updawg
      Link Parent
      We'll never get the rest of that series.

      We'll never get the rest of that series.

      14 votes
      1. [8]
        ACEmat
        Link Parent
        I thinking using "writes" in the present tense is incorrect.

        I thinking using "writes" in the present tense is incorrect.

        12 votes
        1. [7]
          Hobofarmer
          Link Parent
          Frankly, what reason does he even have at this point to finish the series? He's earned his keep already, the TV series and hype are over, and while it's still going somewhat with House of the...

          Frankly, what reason does he even have at this point to finish the series? He's earned his keep already, the TV series and hype are over, and while it's still going somewhat with House of the Dragon, it's nowhere near as popular as it once was.

          He's doing the writers equivalent of quiet quitting.

          5 votes
          1. [5]
            ACEmat
            Link Parent
            I don't blame him at all, if I made something and it made me a millionaire, fuck that I'm out. Semi related, people got mad at the Valheim devs because they made a shit ton of money but didn't...

            I don't blame him at all, if I made something and it made me a millionaire, fuck that I'm out.

            Semi related, people got mad at the Valheim devs because they made a shit ton of money but didn't expand their team. Like, why would they want to? Sure, I'm sure they enjoy making games for a living, but really, at the end of the day, we're all working so one day we don't have to anymore.

            12 votes
            1. [2]
              Hobofarmer
              Link Parent
              I actually applaud those who make their fortune and bow out. If you feel you have more to give and want to, sure; but just pumping out more and more in a search for more money? Gross. I hate that...

              I actually applaud those who make their fortune and bow out. If you feel you have more to give and want to, sure; but just pumping out more and more in a search for more money? Gross.

              I hate that that's our culture. We're not content with "enough", it's always "more".

              8 votes
              1. updawg
                Link Parent
                We get mad at rich people for taking our money but also get mad at them for deciding not to take our money.

                We get mad at rich people for taking our money but also get mad at them for deciding not to take our money.

                3 votes
            2. [2]
              zod000
              Link Parent
              They did expand their team I believe, but they didn't go on some sort of crazy hiring spree and while I'd love to have more content for the game sooner, they are doing just fine.

              They did expand their team I believe, but they didn't go on some sort of crazy hiring spree and while I'd love to have more content for the game sooner, they are doing just fine.

              6 votes
              1. F13
                Link Parent
                Plus, their hype (predictably) died down. If they had hired a ton more staff, they very possibly wouldn't be able to support them any longer.

                Plus, their hype (predictably) died down. If they had hired a ton more staff, they very possibly wouldn't be able to support them any longer.

                4 votes
          2. CptBluebear
            Link Parent
            He will also never redeem the plot. Nothing will live up to the hype people will self insert even if he'd shadow drop it.

            He will also never redeem the plot. Nothing will live up to the hype people will self insert even if he'd shadow drop it.

            5 votes
    2. [4]
      redwall_hp
      Link Parent
      I think that's mostly due to using WordStar. I'm sure he could move to using dosemu or some other substitute to run that, and send the files some other way, if push came to shove. There are also...

      I think that's mostly due to using WordStar. I'm sure he could move to using dosemu or some other substitute to run that, and send the files some other way, if push came to shove.

      There are also newer attempts at reimplementing WordStar's interface, such as WordTsar.

      6 votes
      1. [3]
        BeanBurrito
        Link Parent
        I saw an interview with him where he said he liked the exact look of WordStar on a DOS box, and that he liked the reduced distractions of his non-connected DOS box.

        I saw an interview with him where he said he liked the exact look of WordStar on a DOS box, and that he liked the reduced distractions of his non-connected DOS box.

        8 votes
        1. [2]
          SunSpotter
          Link Parent
          Can confirm, as someone with ADHD who writes as a hobby in their spare time, this interview lives in my brain rent free lol. I think a lot about how a no distractions environment with a nice...

          Can confirm, as someone with ADHD who writes as a hobby in their spare time, this interview lives in my brain rent free lol.

          I think a lot about how a no distractions environment with a nice keyboard and simple but effective UI could greatly enhance my ability to write for longer sessions. So I can completely understand the appeal. Saving actual work on floppy disks though (or vintage media in general)? Bit too risky for my taste.

          6 votes
          1. BeanBurrito
            Link Parent
            At the time I saw the interview I had a job in a huge cube farm. My section bordered on the section where all of the sysadmins sat. When I told my coworker about the interview and expressed...

            At the time I saw the interview I had a job in a huge cube farm. My section bordered on the section where all of the sysadmins sat. When I told my coworker about the interview and expressed surprise that you could still buy 5.5 inch disks a bunch of the sysadmins came over. The pulled up places to buy suck disks on my browser and got into a very enthusiastic conversation ( all GoT fans ) about his system.

            3 votes
    3. [2]
      lou
      Link Parent
      That sounds like a disaster waiting to happen. I would hate if his hard drive went to shit without backup.

      That sounds like a disaster waiting to happen. I would hate if his hard drive went to shit without backup.

      1. Tuaam
        Link Parent
        He could probably easily fix it by getting a CF - IDE adapter which takes a compact flash card... Assuming his computer can use LBA.

        He could probably easily fix it by getting a CF - IDE adapter which takes a compact flash card... Assuming his computer can use LBA.

        3 votes
  2. snake_case
    Link
    Damn, I’m glad the floppy disks were one of the things I kept when I emptied out my grandparents house. Theres a good chance they’re the solid ones made in the 90s. Had no idea they could be worth...

    Damn, I’m glad the floppy disks were one of the things I kept when I emptied out my grandparents house. Theres a good chance they’re the solid ones made in the 90s. Had no idea they could be worth something so soon, I just kept them cause I like computers and thought they were cool.

    5 votes
  3. Tuaam
    (edited )
    Link
    I think these days all the enthusiasts moved on to floppy disk emulators, which take USB drives and treat them like floppies. Almost all the disks I have which were for some OS have rotted, they...

    I think these days all the enthusiasts moved on to floppy disk emulators, which take USB drives and treat them like floppies. Almost all the disks I have which were for some OS have rotted, they can read but you can't boot off them. But yes, hobbyist use seems to be in high demand given that scene is alive, despite this I would probably justify buying physical disks for boot disks or utilities - not copying games.

    People tend to think about floppy disks in the same way as CDs and DVDs.

    I would consider them wholly analogue to USB drives, to be honest. It seems like USB drives have pretty much supplanted the need for a quick-to-use boot medium, and they're very useful for transferring data.

    5 votes