Hacker News with Generative AI: Nostalgia

Cleaning Out Our Computer Graveyard (bottomfeeder.substack.com)
I've been running Spiderweb Software since 1994, long enough to become a dedicated tech hoarder. I'm terrified of getting rid of any computer, because at any time I might need to locate an obscure file from 20 years ago and if I don't I will die.

Technology, Personal Stories, Nostalgia

6 points by Tomte 3 days ago | 0 comments

Projects for Old OS X (jonathanalland.com)
In the fall of 2019, I came to a decision: it was time to leave modern macOS behind.

Operating Systems, Apple, Retro Computing, Nostalgia

139 points by pierremenard 3 days ago | 34 comments

The raccoons who made computer magazine ads great (technologizer.com)
In the 1980s and 1990s, PC Connection built its brand on a campaign starring folksy small-town critters. They’ll still charm your socks off.

Advertising, Nostalgia, Technology, History

181 points by coloneltcb 4 days ago | 41 comments

SerenityOS is a love letter to '90s user interfaces (serenityos.org)
SerenityOS is a love letter to '90s user interfaces with a custom Unix-like core.

Operating Systems, User Interfaces, Nostalgia, Unix

181 points by doener 4 days ago | 193 comments

Honest and Elitist Thoughts on Why Computers Were More Fun Before (datagubbe.se)
It's simple but controversial: Computers were more fun when they weren't for everyone. There, I said it.

Technology, Nostalgia, Gaming

56 points by todsacerdoti 8 days ago | 42 comments

Why does everything look infantilized? (assemblagenyc.substack.com)
If you’re like me, you have been bemoaning that they “just don’t make things like they used to.”

Design, Aesthetics, Nostalgia, Culture

18 points by futuraperdita 9 days ago | 7 comments

Remember Pidgin, formerly GAIM? It's coming back (theregister.com)
In the 2020s you might be forgiven for having forgotten that such a thing as a native chat client exists, but a handful still do and they're still useful. One of these is Pidgin, the artist formerly known as GAIM.

Messaging, Software, Nostalgia, Open Source

3 points by ColinWright 11 days ago | 0 comments

C64 User Logs into BBS After 39 Years with His Original SX-64 (theoasisbbs.com)
In a story almost too perfect to plan, The 300-Baud Guy shares a rare moment of timing and tech history. After nearly four decades away, a Commodore 64 user known as Vandal logged into the Snobsoft BBS — exactly 39 years after his last visit — right down to the date: March 31, 1986.

Retro Computing, Nostalgia, Commodore 64

12 points by SeenNotHeard 14 days ago | 1 comments

Show HN: I built a Yahoo Messenger-inspired web chat app – pure nostalgia (buzzed.chat)

Web Development, Chat Applications, Nostalgia, Web Apps

66 points by lakshikag 17 days ago | 32 comments

Show HN: Windows XP Themed Personal Site Built with React (sohailsayed.com)
Welcome to Sohail's personal site!

Web Development, React, Personal Websites, Nostalgia, Windows XP

12 points by okincilleb 21 days ago | 3 comments

Remembering MS-DOS 5.0 (arstechnica.com)
On this day in 1975, Bill Gates and Paul Allen founded a company called Micro-Soft in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Operating Systems, History, Nostalgia

14 points by whobre 21 days ago | 1 comments

RIP Val Kilmer: Celebrating cult classic Real Genius is now a moral imperative (arstechnica.com)
Back to the Future justly dominated the summer box office in 1985, but it's too bad its massive success overshadowed another nerd-friendly gem, Real Genius, which debuted one month later, on August 9.

Movies, Nostalgia, 1980s, Pop Culture, Film

7 points by LinuxBender 24 days ago | 6 comments

Why Smartfood Popcorn Doesn't Hit Like It Used To (eater.com)
Smartfood White Cheddar popcorn is the only snack I ever want. I mean this. I do not often crave sweets, and while I will happily accept chips and Cheetos and various Haldiram’s mixes, Smartfood is the only one that sends me into a focused stupor. I have regularly eaten entire bags of it — big ones, the ones meant for a whole family — while watching a movie.

Food, Snacking, Personal Opinion, Nostalgia

5 points by ctoth 24 days ago | 0 comments

RIP Val Kilmer: Real Genius .. the Film Nerd Culture Deserves (2015) (reactormag.com)
It’s interesting to me that Revenge of the Nerds, while still full up of the nostalgia that the 80s lends us, is lately being repositioned in the zeitgeist.

Film, Culture, Nostalgia, 80s

328 points by MPSimmons 24 days ago | 105 comments

Station: Travel Through the Four Seasons (1994) (gingerbeardman.com)
After reaching 1 million files in my Macintosh Magazine Media project, I thought it would be cool to post about something I found recently in those discs. I get a real buzz rediscovering something like this after more than 30 years have passed.

Retro Gaming, Nostalgia, Macintosh, Digital Media

20 points by msephton 26 days ago | 0 comments

Blue95: a desktop for your childhood home's computer room (github.com/winblues)
Blue95 is a modern and lightweight desktop experience that is reminiscent of a bygone era of computing.

Operating Systems, Nostalgia, User Interfaces, Software

568 points by elvis70 27 days ago | 313 comments

Interview with the Creator of Deluxe Ski Jump (spillhistorie.no)
This is a complicated time for ski jumping in Norway. Interest has been declining for years, with plenty of negative press, and it all peaked recently with the disappointing revelations of widespread suit cheating among Norwegian jumpers. But perhaps we can use this rough patch to reminisce about truly great ski jumping experiences — experiences that, of course, took place in front of a screen.

Gaming, Sports, Nostalgia

87 points by Kolorabi 29 days ago | 14 comments

Meta debuts Friends tab, Mark Zuckerberg pushes 'throwback to OG Facebook' (cnbc.com)

Social Media, Facebook, Meta, Nostalgia, User Interface

13 points by koolba 30 days ago | 17 comments

Why Smartfood White Cheddar Popcorn Doesn't Hit Like It Used To (eater.com)
Smartfood White Cheddar popcorn is the only snack I ever want. I mean this. I do not often crave sweets, and while I will happily accept chips and Cheetos and various Haldiram’s mixes, Smartfood is the only one that sends me into a focused stupor. I have regularly eaten entire bags of it — big ones, the ones meant for a whole family — while watching a movie.

Food, Snacks, Nostalgia, Consumer Goods

6 points by coloneltcb 30 days ago | 3 comments

Little things that made Amiga great (datagubbe.se)
To most people, the Amiga is probably synonymous with the Amiga 500 and that machine was, above all, a video game: something into which you plonked 3.5" floppy disks that transported you to strange, wonderful worlds and hours of fun.

Retro Computing, Video Games, Personal Computers, Nostalgia

11 points by andsoitis 34 days ago | 2 comments

Blogging like it's 1987: A blog post from my old text terminal (pointinthecloud.com)
I'm writing this on a black and yellow screen that is 38 years old, and I'm really enjoying it.

Nostalgia, Technology, Blogging, Retro Computing

8 points by ftvkyo 35 days ago | 0 comments

Never underestimate the bandwidth of a station wagon [2025 revisited] (bsd.cafe)

Networking, Humor, Technology, Nostalgia

4 points by mtmail 38 days ago | 0 comments

43-year-old Family Canoe Trip (paddlingmag.com)
On June 14, 1974, my grandma Glady dropped her two sons off at a marina in the Puget Sound. They loaded gear into homemade woodstrip canoes and pushed off into the cold, black water. Decades later, Grandma told me as she watched them disappear into the fog, she wondered if she would ever see her boys again.

Family, Canoeing, Puget Sound, Nostalgia, Personal Stories

103 points by cameron_b 39 days ago | 24 comments

Spirit of Amiga (amigawiki.de)
Without a doubt there is the 'Spirit of Amiga'. But… how do you explain it? What is it made of?

Gaming, History, Culture, Nostalgia

4 points by doener 40 days ago | 1 comments

A Great Old-Timey Game-Programming Hack (2013) (moertel.com)
A long time ago, when I was a college undergrad, I spent some time working on computer video games.

Gaming, Programming, Nostalgia

4 points by palsecam 41 days ago | 0 comments

Ask HN: Best Way to Build MS-DOS-Style Text UI in the Browser? (ycombinator.com)
I'm working on a web app that mimics the look and feel of an old MS-DOS program—think Turbo Pascal IDE or Norton Commander.

Web Development, User Interfaces, Nostalgia, Retro Computing

6 points by 3stripe 41 days ago | 6 comments

The 90s Gamer Experience: Handwritten Notes and Maps (rz01.org)
In an age where information is easily available on the internet, it’s hard to imagine a time when gamers actually had to figure out everything by themselves or by sharing with (offline) friends.

Gaming, Nostalgia, History, Video Games, Culture

88 points by exitnode 49 days ago | 10 comments

Was Snow Leopard 10.6 the greatest OS X release? (2022) (greggant.com)
If you were to ask a group of long-time Mac users, what's the best Operating System Apple has ever released? It'd likely be nearly unanimous.

Operating Systems, Apple, Mac, Nostalgia, History

10 points by oumua_don17 50 days ago | 3 comments

Re-Volt is still alive (re-volt.io)
Re-Volt is an R/C car racing game from Acclaim, originally released in 1999. It features great gameplay, several game modes and realistic physics, coupled with bright and colorful visuals that still hold up to this day.