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Boot the wife or boot the Apple?


Keatah

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Emulation like masturbation: fun first few minute, but unauthentic and feel shame shortly afterward.

 

you can do it anywhere, make things exactly how you like them, without having to negotiate the quirks of aging hardware.

 

I'm...not sure which -ation we're talking about at this point.

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How much gaming and computer stuff do you have? Is it a collection or hoarding? And how many rooms have you taken over compared to her? In any case ultimatums are never a good sign in a relationship, that is if she's serious. This is why I would never get married without a prenup. People can change dramatically over the years.

 

A lot, 3 rooms depending how much I sprawl it all out.

Both a collection and boarderline hoarding.

She has her drawing room, sewing and fabric room + reading alcove.

Something like that.

 

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What I'm saying is that it's rare for a marriage to fall apart because one person is just crazy. There are always two sides. If this is what she's taking a stand over, then maybe there are other issues at play, or maybe this one issue really is out of hand. I'm not judging one way or another, but I am saying that *people* are generally more important than *stuff*. If someone is really in danger of losing their closest loved one because of a collection of old computer equipment, then maybe some kind of compromise is in order.

 

I need to take a vacation, and thin it all out to what fits in one pickup bed. Been meaning to to do that, and back and forth and back and forth it goes. But some of that ebay stuff is a powerful lure. And then there are these little estate pickups. Having maintained touch with tech people from past jobs I fully expect more of this in the next couple of years. Mostly I bring home things I wanted as a kid.

Edited by Keatah
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Wow. I guess that's the internet.. but ok..

 

I'll address the emulation/masturbation thing first. Authentic or not - people love it! They're going stir crazy over the NES-mini, relentlessly calling around, standing in lines, journeying from store to store to store. And less, but still significant, they're chasing after the AT-Games portable flashbacks and similar pnp consoles. All of them are built on fake emulation. And they love it. It is a means to an end. I'd rather fill my shopping cart with one of these units and other things rather than a full-size console and equivalent amount of cartridges. Emulation is the future. The people love it and have spoken.

 

2nd, most all of us have some hoarding tendencies, if you don't that's great. Don't know about collectards or how they think or anything, but I myself was a master hoarder. Fully qualified to teach courses. So I'm rather mindful of not falling into the trap.

 

3rd, my original plan was to get everything into the garage and some of the scummy dusty stuff on the patio to air out. But with the snow on the way all of it just kinda-sorta came inside. Can imagine that'd be a shocker in what is usually a nicely organized house. The house became the storage shed. I think the wife got the impression I was keeping this stuff and exploded. I usually bring stuff home and it stays outside till it's been cleaned and determined worthy. But this time all of it was inside all of a sudden. You see, I used to do that years ago. We've argued about it several times.

 

The intent is go through it and find anything that will support my existing collection which is the usual:

Apple II, TRS-80 Pocket Computer 1, 2, and 4, and 486 from 1992.

 

The Apple II stuff I really really should pare down to my original stuff + support material. While clean, organized and containerized, it could use some richening up and thinning out. No need for scattered A+ and Cider rags, have them in pdf for example..

 

There's a few hard-to-find cards and accessories I want for the II series, and nothing is going on ebay or in the trash till I've gone through every last box, while looking under the flaps too.

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^^^ I think those are good points.

 

Also consider why you feel the need to accumulate 35yo computer stuff, and your partner's feelings about how all that stuff is getting so much time and attention (in addition to space)

 

Our home is too small to bring in tons of extra things. They have to be really nice to justify having a place.

 

Then our pets just walk all over them anyway.

 

attachicon.gifIMG_5908.JPG

 

I think a math co-processor card for the II+ (with no bent pins or scratched chips) is a really nice item. Especially if it's from 1979.

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You can work wonders with shelving strategies. Just build platforms to place things so that you can stack stuff to the ceiling in the main retro room that you use. That should help to contain and display a lot of it.

 

As for her ultimatum -- how much of the house/living costs does she cover? If it's most of it, then maybe she has some right to complain. If you're the covering most of the costs, then you have quite a bit of leverage and a right to a reasonable amount of space.

 

The other question is: How much space is she using up with her stuff? If it's a lot, is she being fair when the tables are turned?

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Rafters in the garages. It's the plan. Recently she just sold off her old mainframe memento stuff like parts and documentation to allow for finishing out that section of the basement. She has her 2 crafts rooms, I have my 2, we try to be fair. I don't think I've gone in hers for like months now.

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She would have accepted your idiosyncrasies and now she's trying to change that? That's just unacceptable.

People change. There are a few things about my wife I used to accept or tolerate but no longer do. And she's no doubt got a few things about me that drive her nuts now that never used to.

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Just remember.... The Apple will keep you warm at night. When you have a rough day at work... Your Apple will "tell" you everything will be okay. Your Apple won't care if you go out with your friends. And your Apple will not make you choose. Keep the comp, ditch the wife.

 

But then again, I've been married and divorced twice... So I may not be the best person to give advice on this.

 

In reality though, she should realize that this equipment is important to you. And even try to understand why its important. My girlfriend did that with my BBS and my retro gaming and found that she likes it. If she hasn't already tried to understand. .. She may find that she enjoys it (or at least isn't hostile towards it.)

 

There could always be a deeper issue that is bothering her and the anger about the computer equipment is an outlet for that concern she has.

 

I hope everything works out for both of you.

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It might be as simple as some of the stuff being genuine junk. I usually keep the shit outside.

 

As a test I'll have to try another load of nicer things on purpose. Stuff that's nicely packaged and doesn't smell. Maybe put something in there she can use and let her "find" it.

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You were probably into this old stuff and collecting it before you got married to her. She would have accepted your idiosyncrasies and now she's trying to change that? That's just unacceptable.

People change as noticed, and also, I hear the same story around me : when couple first met, the husband had a few machines, that would take maybe a desk and a shelf of room. Acceptable. Years later, it's taking half a room, maybe a full room, and it doesn't seem it's going to stop.

Edited by CatPix
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I hear the same story around me : when couple first met, the husband had a few machines, that would take maybe a desk and a shelf of room

 

im the opposite

 

when we first got married there was something retro tech in like every room, today its a apple mac LC2 with an apple IIe card in it (which gives me a 16 bit 68k mac and a apple IIe enhanced with hard disk and VGA monitor support in one box) and a 8086 laptop

 

I have no desire to horde old stuff unless its a diamond in a goat's ass ... and luckily I can't afford many of those

 

now I still buy it, quite a bit and I will get a stash going but its all for the intent to sell... buy, clean, pimp, sell for profit for next passing toy, and it stays in my 1 car garage (which started off from day one that a car will never stay in the garage ... even for work I do that in the driveway unless its freezing outside)

Edited by Osgeld
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People change as noticed, and also, I hear the same story around me : when couple first met, the husband had a few machines, that would take maybe a desk and a shelf of room. Acceptable. Years later, it's taking half a room, maybe a full room, and it doesn't seem it's going to stop.

 

Yes I relate to that. Before I met her I was likely a candidate for hoarders. Aside from 1/2 a closet of nice clean awesome sauce I had 3 garages full of everything imaginable, including some arcade cabs. Had every console up to the N64 in triplicate, maybe not EVERY console, but large variety. Even had a carton of ipods and pocket concerts (I kept 1). I cleaned up the act and continued battling accumulating stuff at a rapid pace. Seems I slipped and need to redouble efforts. It happens.

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You can always replace material possessions, but you can't replace a loved one. If you love her then learn to compromise and live with having less stuff. But if you don't love her anymore and want out of the relationship then those are feelings that you may have to come to terms with, without using the acquisition of more stuff as an excuse for them.

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You can always replace material possessions, but you can't replace a loved one. If you love her then learn to compromise and live with having less stuff. But if you don't love her anymore and want out of the relationship then those are feelings that you may have to come to terms with, without using the acquisition of more stuff as an excuse for them.

 

We did. Stuff from the truck goes into the garage first, is sorted there, then once critters are cleaned from it it can come inside if its in good order.

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I hope this is not a real topic. Anyone that would choose material things over a loved one is a fucking moron.

Depends on what kind of person the loved one is and how important the material thing is to you.

 

If the loved one is a manipulative, controlling narcissist and the thing is something that reminds you of the best years of your life, then the decision isn't so cut-and-dry anymore. Not that it applies to this situation specifically. Just that cases like that do exist.

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