Mozilla ponders dropping Firefox support for Win2k, early XP!!!

[DavidR]

Thanks for the encouragement, guys!  I checked it out nine years ago, David.  64MB max for that old motherboard.  IIRC, I had it built in 1996 with 32MB RAM and a 166MHz Cyrix processor on W95. 

You're welcome. I just put that out as a memory jogger (excuse the pun) for other respondents suggesting more RAM as there are limitations beyond simply buying more

I think the RAM might have been $700.  In 2000 I maxed it out to 64MB RAM, put in a 450MHz AMD-K2 processor, installed W98SE -- having been warned off ME -- and added a second 6GB hard drive.  The MB couldn't accept the huge 30GB drives available at the time.

It still works just fine.  Comes in handy for accessing the Internet while I'm playing games on my newer PC.  I stay away from any dodgy sites though since W98 hasn't gotten any security updates for a long time.

I remember when RAM was measured in KB not MB and there were no HDDs only 5 ₁/⁴" floppy for programs and storage. My first PC with an Intel 8086 chip and twin 5 ₁/⁴" floppy drives, cost an arm and a leg.

Because of the costs, this is when I did my first computer upgrade. Whilst in Hong Kong I bought an 8286 chip, a new motherboard and some RAM chips so I ended up with 256KB of RAM, massive in those days

[FreewheelinFrank]

Thanks for the encouragement, guys!  I checked it out nine years ago, David.  64MB max for that old motherboard.  IIRC, I had it built in 1996 with 32MB RAM and a 166MHz Cyrix processor on W95.  I think the RAM might have been $700.  In 2000 I maxed it out to 64MB RAM, put in a 450MHz AMD-K2 processor, installed W98SE -- having been warned off ME -- and added a second 6GB hard drive.  The MB couldn't accept the huge 30GB drives available at the time.

It still works just fine.  Comes in handy for accessing the Internet while I'm playing games on my newer PC.  I stay away from any dodgy sites though since W98 hasn't gotten any security updates for a long time.

$700? 

Holy Zarquon singing fish!

I just paid £10 for 256MB.

(About $10 the way the £ is.)

[scythe944]

Heh.  I remember paying $100 for 16MB.

Anyway, regarding this:

Holy Zarquon singing fish!

I just paid £10 for 256MB.

Just think how much memory will be in 10-15 years. $10 for 256GB?

[MikeBCda]

We've wandered a little off-topic, but the new direction's interesting too, brings back some fond (and some not-so-fond) memories. 

My first personal PC (as opposed to, say, my C64 before that) was a 386, 4 megs ram with a 10-meg HD.  Oh, and a whopping 1 meg video card.  I quickly found I had to upgrade the RAM to 8 megs and the drive to 40 megs (and DoubleSpace that), and the video to 2 megs, to be able to run anything properly.

Prior to that, first system at the office was an Osborne "portable" (weighed maybe 60 lbs., but had a carrying handle) running under CP/M, had 64K RAM and two 5-1/4 floppies (no HD) and a video display that was maybe all of 4 or 5 inches.  We quickly upgraded it to (what was then) top of the line, 640K ram, plus added a video adaptor to permit us to use a more reasonable video output, something like 10 or 12 inches.

The comments about pricing over the years were particularly interesting.  Including the C64, this is only my 4th or 5th home system in maybe 30 years, and in each case the new system was approximately the same price as the much poorer and older one it replaced.

[RejZoR]

I payed like 74 eur for 4GB of RAM lol

[FreewheelinFrank]

Heh.  I remember paying $100 for 16MB.

Anyway, regarding this:

Holy Zarquon singing fish!

I just paid £10 for 256MB.

Just think how much memory will be in 10-15 years. $10 for 256GB?

Somehow, I doubt that. For most computer applications, is there any point to adding much more memory? This computer runs Ubuntu fine on 512MB. My other computer can run more applications smoothly on Ubuntu or XP with 1GB. 2GB runs Vista smoothly, so I hear, but who needs 4GB or 8GB or 16GB? Gamers maybe, but for the general market, I think the product has actually overshot the consumer requirement. 1GB and 2GB machines are still selling at PCWorld. I predict a levelling off of specifications at about 2-4GB as consumers realising that'll do everything they want to do comfortably, with games machines being the exception, maybe. I can see the industry trying to push computers for gaming, but is it going to work?

Gaming computer: £900.
Computer that does everything else really well except gaming: £400.
Spare change: £500.
Playstation/XBox: £300.
Computer that does everything else really well except gaming + Playstation/XBox: £700
Spare change: £200.

[spg SCOTT]

Gaming computer: £900.

Don't forget the constant upgrading to stay current with the newest games

Playstation/XBox: £300.

XBOX 360 for me thanks, so much easier

-Scott-