In a world where millions of people have 1990s-class supercomputers in their pockets, it’s fun to revisit technology from the days when 1-megahertz machines on the desktop were a giant leap forward.Recently, a collector named Brian Green showed off his vintage computer collection I thought it would be fun to ask him on Twitter why and how he set up a computer lab in his home.
By day, Green works as a senior systems engineer based in Arkansas. But in his off hours, “Ice Breaker” (as it’s popularly known online) is the vintage his computer collection he’s built over the decades and the computer he’s been running ever since. I am passionate about a bulletin board system (BBS) called “Particles”. 1992.
Green’s interest in computers dates back to 1980, when he first used an Apple II+ in elementary school. “I brought home a printout of her BASIC program that her sister was working on. I was fascinated by being able to use something akin to English to tell a computer what to do. ’” recalls Green. “Once I realized you could code games, I was hooked.”
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A wide-angle shot of the room reveals a setup that includes multiple workstations where Brian Greene or his visitors can use his classic machines.
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The walls are lined with 4×3 dimensional vintage machines, with Atari, Tandy and Commodore machines at the center. Among them, Green decorated the walls with vintage computers and illustrations related to his console video games.
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The Commodore CD32 and CDTV are seldom co-located and rarely overlapped like in the bottom right corner of this photo.
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A close-up of the shelves and artwork that decorate the walls. A rare Commodore B128 sits on the bottom shelf towards the center of the photo.
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Here you can see Green’s beloved Apple III. This is the most sought after of all machines. Also Mac SE and Apple IIgs.
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Those curtains really tie the room together.
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From this angle you can see the Commodore CBM 8032, Commodore 16 and IBM PCjr fragments on the left. Check out this vintage red telephone with a 1980s flair.
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Here are the details of the Apple IIc Plus, a rare version of the Apple IIc that adopted a 3.5-inch disc.
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Right next to a retro 1980s window treatment, Green installed shelves that look like an Amiga 500, an Amiga 3000, and two Amiga 600 computers.
Despite his early encounters with the Apple II, the 1982 Commodore 64 really won him over. The first computer with a disc drive was too expensive for a child. So he saved up his paper money all summer to buy a disk drive. “At the time, most of my friends had,” he says.
Today, Green’s vintage computer collection spans a wide variety of machines, including a 1982 Commodore B128-80. As part of the failed Commodore B-series computer, this model barely made it out the door before the plug was removed. According to Green, it was pulled. “Of the B series, this is the most common, with about 10,000 built,” he says Green. “There were only a few hundred other models.”
When I asked him which computer was the hardest to track, he pointed to the ill-fated Apple III. It was launched by Apple in 1980 as a business-ready follow-up to his more famous prequel, stating: Most computers can be bought for money on his eBay, but shows and freebies aren’t as fun as getting something on the market. Display it proudly at a good price. “
computer lab setup
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Brian Green enjoys amateur radio (KF5MDY) as much as BBSing and vintage computers, so his setup has a prominent position in his computer lab, right next to the Apple III.
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Radio hams flanked by state-of-the-art computers, Ferrari F40 posters, and tractor-fed printer banners enhance the computer lab’s ‘human sanctuary’.
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Brian Green’s bookshelf is stocked with many issues of Retro Gamer magazines, vintage computer magazines, box software, and more. Can you find a copy of OS/2?
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A collection of Nintendo GameCube and Nintendo DS consoles sits on bookshelves stocked with vintage computer classics.
It’s clear from these photos that Green’s home computer lab practices nostalgia for weapons-grade technology. His goal is to recreate his 1980s computing experience growing up reading magazines such as Family Computing.
“Every month a new computer was being announced or reviewed,” he says. “I was a kid at the time and could not afford to buy these computers, but I was always fascinated by all the different hardware. I wanted to try it all! I’m trying to use “old” hardware, but these machines are also littered with new hardware. “
