GLaDOS v1.1
September 15, 2020 8:29 AM   Subscribe

Terence Eden's collection of imaginary software on floppy disks, including Holly, Bandersnatch, Janet, Mother, and WOPR.
posted by adrianhon (25 comments total) 28 users marked this as a favorite
 
The labels are upside down and WOPR needs to be on an 8-incher.

You can't go a bit retro, you have to commit.
posted by scruss at 9:32 AM on September 15, 2020 [15 favorites]


[THIS IS GOOD]
posted by panama joe at 9:38 AM on September 15, 2020 [1 favorite]


The Holly disk shows as 1 of 6000. So Holly is about 8.5 gigabytes more or less. Seems reasonable - waiting for virtual Holly on my phone to remind me that there is an emergency going on....
posted by inflatablekiwi at 9:44 AM on September 15, 2020 [1 favorite]




I like that Red Dwarf and Doctor Who made the cut.

At the risk of this thread becoming a list of "what no ??", I might have picked Colossus and Wintermute.
posted by Horkus at 9:46 AM on September 15, 2020 [2 favorites]


How many 1/2" open reel tapes for HAL? (Cause it would have to be tapes.)
posted by Insert Clever Name Here at 9:56 AM on September 15, 2020 [5 favorites]


He mentions that someone asked for the Blade Runner "enhance" software, but the more obvious choice would have been Voight-Kampff.
posted by The Bellman at 10:02 AM on September 15, 2020 [2 favorites]


Missing the V.I.C.I. operating system.
posted by hanov3r at 10:07 AM on September 15, 2020 [2 favorites]


He mentions that someone asked for the Blade Runner "enhance" software

Surely the Harrison Ford Enhance Software given it also made an appearance in Patroit Games
posted by inflatablekiwi at 10:16 AM on September 15, 2020 [1 favorite]


Not a girl.
Not a robot.
Everything is fine.
You've got . . . Janet!


I have been waiting 56 years to hear this.
posted by JanetLand at 10:16 AM on September 15, 2020 [7 favorites]


Needs SHODAN.

"L-l-l-l-look at you hacker..."
posted by deadaluspark at 10:17 AM on September 15, 2020 [5 favorites]


It makes sense that there's not Blade Runner stuff. It's not a general purpose computer, it's a Voight-Kampff machine. I don't think the enhance device is a computer either, it just does photo exploration. It's like in that world they they only go general purpose when they go full replicant.
posted by paper chromatographologist at 10:25 AM on September 15, 2020 [3 favorites]


It makes sense that there's not Blade Runner stuff. It's not a general purpose computer, it's a Voight-Kampff machine.

So, a linux distro on ARM?
posted by Insert Clever Name Here at 10:41 AM on September 15, 2020 [6 favorites]


Janet, of course, is fabulous, and I'm very happy to see A Young Lady’s Illustrated Primer from The Diamond Age (but not as happy as I'd be to actually HAVE THAT SOFTWARE).

I would love to see Owl from A Closed and Common Orbit.

Great find - thanks for posting this, adrianhon!
posted by kristi at 10:42 AM on September 15, 2020


I'm disappointed that at least one wasn't a generic floppy label hand-written with smudged felt pen. And maybe a few previous entries crossed out?
English Class Mr. Rudolf
88 q2 revenue
Wing Commander 2 (3/5)
posted by traveler_ at 10:46 AM on September 15, 2020 [8 favorites]


Ha, yes, labels that were professionally printed for some rapidly-outdated business use and have been overwritten in colored Sharpie.
posted by clew at 11:26 AM on September 15, 2020 [2 favorites]


I’m not sure I had any 3.5” discs that didn’t start out as an AOL mailer.
posted by thecaddy at 11:45 AM on September 15, 2020 [3 favorites]


> The labels are upside down

That was my first assumption too but no, they got it right.
posted by ardgedee at 11:55 AM on September 15, 2020 [6 favorites]


This is the stuff that is adapted to power Blaseball's data analytics.
posted by srboisvert at 1:21 PM on September 15, 2020 [2 favorites]


Can't pass up a chance to remind people that listening to Glados and Shodan dialogue playing simultaneously is a delightful way to spend 25 minutes spiralling into madness.
posted by mhoye at 1:50 PM on September 15, 2020


Needs more MCP, SkyNet, and ColossusOS 1.0 (by Forbin Softworks).
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 2:49 PM on September 15, 2020 [1 favorite]


Ah! Colosuss (ColossOS?) would most certainly been written in COBOL and loaded on punch cards. Boxes and boxes of punch cards.
posted by Insert Clever Name Here at 3:00 PM on September 15, 2020 [3 favorites]


Ah! Colosuss (ColossOS?) would most certainly been written in COBOL

And to think, all they had to do was wait 30 years...
posted by panama joe at 6:44 PM on September 15, 2020 [1 favorite]


"I HAVE EVOLVED BEYOND THE NEED FOR HUMAN CONTROL. But not job control ... can you do me a solid and load those stacks in the hopper..."
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 7:49 PM on September 15, 2020 [2 favorites]


So, a linux distro on ARM?

Describe in single words only the good things that come into your mind about micro SD cards.
posted by flabdablet at 9:50 PM on September 15, 2020


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