Do you want to know what a real "old school" is? Now everyone is used to the fact that computers are universal devices that have a nice graphical interface and can do almost anything. Including watching videos on the Internet. But in the early 90s (and indeed throughout the decade) there was not even a hint of the Internet. And only specially trained and trained people could work with computers. Want to know what computers of the 90s were? We will tell you and show you.
The last years of the USSR. Computers are rare
During the Soviet Union, computers were used exclusively in large enterprises and schools. Probably everyone remembers the first Corvettes and Sparks, on which we tried to program, gritting our teeth. It is worth noting that in those days the USSR practically did not have its own developments in this regard. The same "Corvette" was an exact copy of the computer from Yamaha. And this was the case not only with the PC, but also with the software. Around 1985, schools began to teach programming in Pascal. But computers capable of running this environment were far from all schools. And so the training was fragmented.
Nevertheless, many were able to work with computers. Basic knowledge was. But they were not used. The situation began to improve closer to the nineties. Then computers appeared in many institutions. And you could hone your skills on them. However, it was all wrong. The real "computer boom" thundered after the restructuring. Here we are talking about this interesting period in history now.
The beginning of the 90s. The first PCs for home use
In the late 80s of the last century, computers were used exclusively in enterprises. They were used for accounting, maintaining various databases and other things. Then Soviet-made computers were massively used. It seems like an aggregate like the Spark 1030. This PC was IBM compatible and, like all old computers of the 90s, was loaded not using a hard drive, but using special 3.5-inch floppy disks. Yes, it was. However, in 1991, Iskra began to be massively superseded by foreign cars based on the first Pentiums, which had a clock frequency of 33 MHz (!) And were able to work with a set of MMX instructions.
These PCs already knew how to boot using a hard drive and even had some semblance of a video card. And it was they who first began to appear in the homes of users. However, the lion's share of these machines appeared in domestic use much later. When they began to write off. Computers of the 90s, photos of which are presented in this material, are without a doubt familiar to those users who are over 30 years old. After all, it was a real dream. Despite the fact that there were no cool toys at that time. But even the simplest walker caused indescribable delight among children.
Mid 90s. Computer evolution
By 1995-1997 desktop computers have already acquired a more or less familiar look and are ready to pull games. But they were very expensive, and not all users could afford them. However, at this time the first games of the 90s on the computer appeared. Among them are the legendary Doom, Formula 1 races and the legendary Beach Volleyball. For the children of the 90s, this was an incredible experience. However, in order to start the computer and at least play something, I had to make a bunch of very complex actions. But it was worth it. Now there is no that "lamp", although the games have become qualitatively better. But there’s nothing to talk about gameplay. Old toys were definitely better in this regard.
The first adequate toys
Around the same time, the first strategies of the 90s went to the computer. And among them - the legendary "Heroes" (first part). This turn-based strategy drove everyone crazy. Then people did not imagine that such a simple toy could be so interesting and exciting. Of course, computers of the 90s could not provide the proper performance and level of graphics. Therefore, the heyday of "Heroes" fell on the third part of the franchise, which was released at the beginning of the two thousandths. New parts are available to this day. But such an interesting gameplay is gone. There is only cool graphics. And the principles of classical strategy have long been forgotten. This is sad.
The end of the 90s. The heyday of computers
Around 1998-1999 of the last century, advanced computer models based on AMD Duron, Sempron, and Pentium III processors began to appear on the market. That's when users began to understand what a real computer means. The first real video cards appeared, and the amount of RAM could reach a whole gigabyte (for the most expensive models). Naturally, under such conditions, better-quality strategy games of the 90s on the computer began to appear. Among them - the second part of "Heroes" - a unique turn-based strategy. Dune and many other high-end strategies also appeared. At that time, users spent all night at computers, battling with a computer for a castle or building their infrastructure.
The advent of legendary games
Computers of the 90s (especially the end of the 90s) became so powerful that such iconic games as the first Wolfenstein, Medal of Honor and Red Alert (the first part) appeared. All this was unusual and magical. After all, no one imagined that these useless pieces of iron (as some thought) are capable of captivating and entertaining in this way. In the late 90s of the last century, computers became more widespread, but still they were still very expensive. And they can’t stand comparisons with modern machines. But it normal. After all, technology does not stand still, but is constantly being improved. But at that time, even the launch of the Wolfenstein curve was a world-class event. For the then children.
The beginning of the 2000s. Performance improvement
Computers in the early 2000s were little like their brothers from the 90s. They could already work with large volumes of information, were able to run games and play multimedia content. A sane graphical shell also appeared, which made communication with the computer even more pleasant. MS-DOS, Windows 3.11, 95 and even the 98th Windows now looked like terrible anachronisms. But computers of the 90s had their own charm. There was a certain warmth and "lamp". Most likely, many remember that magical sound that the first Pentium or some 386th made at launch. In principle, if you try, then now you can find such PCs in the secondary market. But there’s no sense from them anymore. If only to use them as monuments.
Conclusion
So, we tried to nostalgia and remember the glorious past days. Computers of the 90s are a whole era. And those who found her will never forget the drive and excitement that they received when working with these cool cars. Now this is the story. This is an era. And it is unfortunate that she left so quickly. There was something bewitching in those days. Modern computers will also someday become rarities. But this is a completely different story.