Why Amiga?
Some people like Macs. Some people like PCs. While I use PCs nearly all the time, and enjoy using them, there are a few things that bug me about the way the PC, and other mass-market computer systems, are headed:
- The emphasis these days seems to be on more and more power. The faster the computer, the better your computer. System requirements for operating systems rise and rise with every new iteration - not just recommended system requirements, but minimal requirements. That means that every new operating system demands more and more power to provide what should be basic functionality.
- Most of these resources are nearly always wasted on useless functions such as graphical "eye candy".
- Commercial games made for modern computers and consoles almost always place the focus in the wrong area: graphics. By aiming for cutting-edge graphics and other technology-dependent polish, these games almost always require massive teams to work long hours to create, and seldom place enough focus on the most important part of a game: gameplay.
- Digital rights management systems are becoming ever-prevalent, and, in some cases, are being buried right inside the bases of operating systems, which not only disregards consumer rights, but also places more of a resource burden on computers.
- If less resources were required/used, then computers could be cheaper, more efficient, run cooler and consume less power.
One of the reasons that I use the Amiga is that it is a product of a time when none of these concerns were prevalent. Though, of course, it pales terribly in comparison to what a modern computer system can do (or even what a somewhat old computer system can do!), there are some things that surprise me (a 90s kid) about just what it -can- do:
- A full, pre-emptive multitasking (more than one program can run at a time, and the OS can suspend and schedule programs to ensure they all get a share of processor time) operating system, with a graphical user interface as standard, in as little as 256kB of RAM and ~2MB of disk space.
- The user interface is able to create multiple vertically draggable screens, which can have different resolutions.
- Programs trying to access a disk volume can access it either by device name (eg DF0 = first floppy drive) or volume label (eg Work:). If accessing by label, then any connected disk volume with that label name can be read. When coupled with assigns (a function that allows a folder to be assigned to a volume label), this means that a program trying to access files on a floppy disk can be "fooled" into loading the files from a folder!
- The Amiga can be used with a standard TV, through RF or composite... or any monitor that can sync down to ~15kHz horizontal frequency. Though most modern monitors cannot do this, hardware exists to double the frequency and allow monitors to display Amiga output.
- Unexpanded, the wedge-profile Amigas (500, 600 to the best of my knowledge, and 1200) need no active cooling and thus run almost completely silent.