How Did You Find Us?

[ctubutis]

So, who's gonna tell us their experience with the Eniac? ;)

My first programming was in my sophomore year of HS, we had brand-new Apple ][s to use.
We had color & crude graphics! And true, floppy disks! I don't remember what the program needed to do.

My first working job with computers was with DEC 11/70-era stuff followed by VAX, something similar to this stuff:

[Gary Lewis]

Before I read the text I was about to say "Chris, that's DEC hardware!"  But, you covered it.

Chris and I've covered this with each other, but the PDP-11 is a 16-bit machine.  I programmed and repaired PDP-8's, which are 12-bit machines, to the component level.  And I still have the programming card that shows all the machine language instructions.  Had it memorized.  For instance, a 7402 is a Halt.

[85lebaront2]

That is funny, almost as good as the engineer I was working with trying to make some load vs deflection tests on a block of aluminum bronze. He says "why don't we stick the dial indicator on the block with a magnetic base?" I looked at him and with a straight face said, if you have a magnet that will do that, we are going to very quietly walk out of here and get rich.

[Gary Lewis]

That would be a neat magnet to invent.  Lots of uses.

[reamer]

As 85lebaron2 mentioned, Your invitation to me as "founding Fathers"

[Gary Lewis]

Yes, Ron, and thanks for coming.  

[Rembrant]

Darksidesm wrote

I grew up in the internet days of forums and I guess I just prefer that.

I grew up before the internet, but I too prefer the traditional forums.

I tried voting, but it didn't seem to let me. I'm a little late to the vote here...I was a couple hundred miles out in the north Atlantic the past couple weeks with an internet connection that was sketchy at best;).

In any case, I came via FTE, but I can't remember exactly what/when/why....a link to one of Gary's write-ups I presume. I believe it was the gauge needle painting page;).

[Gary Lewis]

The vote count is up, so I'm thinking it did let you.  I think you just press the button for the way you want to vote and then press the Vote button to register your vote.

And, after almost 4 days we have 3 votes for a search, 12 for another forum, and 2 for "other", for a total of 17.

[Gary Lewis]

After 8ish days the input is that our members have come from:

Search = 4 (21%)
Facebook = 0  (0%)
Another Forum = 13  (68%)
Other = 2  (11%)
Total = 19

And, for the first two days of August traffic to the site has come from these sources, although I'm just showing the top 4 sources:

Search (Google, Bing, etc) = 222  (43%)
Bullnose Forum = 160  (31%  Means we've clicked on links in the forum that took us to a page on the site)
Facebook = 88  (17% Result of us having posted links to answers on the site.)
Ford Truck Enthusiasts = 51  (10%  Result of links y'all post on FTE.)
Total of the big 4 = 521

These results suggest to me that there are, indeed, at least two types of on-line people - those who Facebook about trucks and those who use a forum.  I surmise that because no one has voted that s/he came from Facebook, and while it is possible that we have those who have come from FB they apparently aren't active on the forum.

Another way of looking at it is that the links posted on FB generate traffic at that moment (I've seen huge spikes in the traffic right after posting a link), but that the nature of FB is that no one will see those links ever again since external searches don't find things on FB.  And, who searches FB itself?  It is essentially a "right now" medium.

But, links on forums, like the Bullnose Forum, FTE, FSB, FORDification, etc will be found from time to time since external searches do find those things.  And, people do internal searches on forums.  In other words, FB links are a flash in the pan, but forum links are sown seeds that continue to help others well after their initial posting.

Given that, it looks to me like spending time on Facebook in order to bring others in is fruitless.  And, spending time on Facebook in order to help others has less impact than spending time on forums.

Does that make sense to y'all?  What am I missing?

[ctubutis]

Millennials aren't interested in reading extended-length text, they say anything more than 2 paragraphs is "too long" and won't bother unless they really have to.

I wonder how they graduated college.

[Gary Lewis]

I'm actually seeing a range of post styles, and those vary across the several FB pages I'm on.  Some pages are well moderated and the people seem intelligent.  And others appear to be wide open, with people being snarky and arguing about everything instead of helping.

And on the latter pages the people seem to go out of their way to appear illiterate. Some of the posts I'm seeing don't have a single period in them, much less a paragraph break.  As for education, I can't believe they were able to graduate high school with that style of writing.  

[myrl883]

I found this forum completely by luck of the google draw. While searching the word "Bullnose", you can figure the rest!

[Gary Lewis]

And we are sure glad you did.  And while there are LOTS of Facebook pages that say "Bullnose", you can't find them via a Google search.  But, you will find us!  

[85lebaront2]

Gary, they are probably Millennials, I don't need no stinking educashun.

[Gary Lewis]

I know too many Millennials to believe that all of them are that way.  And I know too many Ford truck ..... "nuts" to believe that all of them (us?) are that way.  So I'm at a loss.

But I'm glad for y'all.  

[Steve83]

I got here from https://www.f150forum.com/f13/rewiring-1986-f150-need-source-425156/#post5897363, and I plan to add your EVTM links to several of my SMN captions.  So people who browse my photos may come here for more info.

BTW
My first computer encounter was a kit that a neighbor built (I can't remember the brand name), but I never saw it work.  My first use was a TRS-80 and an Apple (before they were numbered) at my middle school, where we had to use the cassette interface to store programs (because they had no HDD, FDD, or EEPROM).  By high school, there were TRS-80 model IIIs, and Apple IIes with 5.25" FDDs; and I was carrying a TRS-80 PC (pocket computer) model I, but I later upgraded to a model III (or maybe it was a IV) with the 8K expansion module (doubling its memory) & printer.  I've been discussing these trucks online since before BBSs - I originally joined the Bronco.com e-mail list.

[NotEnoughTrucks]

Steve83?  We are in good company. Welcome!

I came here from FTE. Not much of a surprise there, I suppose. I enjoyed following Gary's posts over there and was initially somewhat baffled when he disappeared. I knew he had established the  Garagemahal and came over here looking for info. I was pleasantly surprised to discover the forum. I still post over at FTE, particularly in the 87 to 96 forum and of course, I have a number of Ford trucks of various years

[844rd]

Saw the link in FTE. Nice to have a form for the bullnose, Thank you for starting it!!

[Sully69]

I know.... Another old thread but .....
I came through FTE, lurked here a bit and joined. Much better to search here & get info on the trucks I'm looking for than to search for info on '87 truck & be given info on anything but '87. Although, when the things I type get changed it baffles me, where does that come from. Lol

As for 'puters I learned in the dark basements of MIT. I'd skip school and spend many, many hours there learning code from some really strange characters.
After leaving the Army I went back to school & learned all about electronic technology. Never stopped working as a mechanic though. Always got graveyard shift jobs at various insurance companies, banks & the like running the mainframes. In the '80s I started working for startup companies most worked on the Human Genome Project. Finally burned out and went back the being a mechanic full time with no graveyard computer jobs.

Sully

Sorry I forgot what the thread was about....

[Sully69]

I heard that someone based a movie or tv show on the halt and catch fire routine that was said to have been built in to some firmware, although I never came across it. Before hackers became bad things I hacked a lot.