My Old School Computers Part 3, The Compaq Presario 850

[79Datson]

Our first computer was a 486 with 16 mbs of ram.Someone gave us it in the late 90's..I remember being the only kid in the class that did not have a computer it was running windows 3.1 when we got it then a few years later we upgraded to windows 95.

[torythefanman]

that sound program thing is really cool.

[an65001]

My first PC came with Windows 98 first edition.

[an65001]

This splash screen comes from the unofficial 98SE SP2.

[Maxxarcade]

@an65001 Yep! I used that on the last few systems that were running 98. Helped stretch them out a bit longer for usefulness.

[wastedpills]

it would be so amusing to see you try to run windows xp on that thing

[an65001]

@wastedpills It's impossible. It does not have the processor instructions to run Windows XP. I wouldn't even recommend 2000 or ME. 98SE is the highest this can go without problems.

[wastedpills]

@an65001 yeah i know that's why i said it would be amusing, because it would be SO

FUCKING SLOW

[LellePrinter82]

Ah, those were the days.. My first own computer was a Hyundai PC with a Pentium 133mhz CPU, 32mb ram, 2mb S3 graphics. Upgraded later to a Voodoo 3 2000 16mb PCI. And a total of 13gb of hard drive space. Some Scsi 50-pin drives and some ide drives lol.

[vwestlife]

That is a custom Windows 98SE splash screen, and I rather like it!

S3M was similar to the Amiga MOD file format. I have two CD-ROMs full of MOD, S3M, and other similar music files.

[Maxxarcade]

@vwestlife Yep, I have some MOD's too. Wasn't IT another similar setup?

[vwestlife]

@Maxxarcade Yes, IT and XM were additional module file formats which most players support. IT was the format used by Impulse Tracker, which was the successor to Scream Tracker, which created STM and S3M files.

[scottjacko87]

@Maxxarcade S3M is underrated. Use VGM for megadrive music :P

[TheMr6507]

I feel so young...my first computer was home built and given to me with Windows 2000 on it. No DOS for me...

[borderlineartistic]

@TheMr6507 windows xp. i ownloaded windows 98 one day (dont tell anyone!) and couldnt figure out how to install drivers or play games. pissed me off lol

[ThisGuyFrritz]

You have that Compaq computer hooked up to an HP monitor. I suppose the two companies were separate at the time those things were manufactured.

S3M files? I can remember MOD files, including the ones on some games. There were times when I could use a MOD player to listen to the tunes for the heck of it. I also could listen to them on CD-ROMs that my dad got for a cheap price (with shareware). Every once in a while I hear a same tune under a different filename. Those were the days.

[weasel2htm]

I once installed a MATX board in the little brother to that case, kinda cool top have a Athlon 950 in a 486 case. I was looking for that case the other day, still can't find it, hope I wasn't pressured into chucking it :(

[taz3000nice]

Nice !!! I have the exact tape drive !!!! :P

[psychoclown420]

damn that thing looks too legit to quit

my first pc was a anno 2000 compaq presario with a 700mhz amd Duron..

[MixerVM]

Why do the icons and start button look like Windows 2000?

[talldude123]

@MixerVM It's an unofficial Windows 98 service pack, developed by somebody and offered as a free download.

[fordbroncodave]

that DOS music is way cool!!!! how do i get DOS games and will they work on DOS windows xp?

[Maxxarcade]

@fordbroncodave You can use DOSBox to emulate an older PC for that stuff. Just Google DOS games and you'll probably find some.

[uxwbill]

Cirrus Logic video...wow! I would have expected a Compaq Qvision chip. It's like completely silent...until the hard drive started up! And here I was thinking that the Presario line was started with the all-in-one machines...

The graphics in that racing game look more like MCGA mode to me...

Very cool stuff. I never did play with a sequencer program as capable as that one!

[Maxxarcade]

@uxwbill Yep, it has Cirrus Logic video with 1MB RAM. I think it may have been expandable to 2MB.

The racing game does have an MCGA mode, but it was designed for EGA and looks identical in either mode.

I was surprised how loud that hard drive was. I don't remember it being that noisy when I was younger. I guess I've gotten used to the modern hard drives we have now.

[Oerg866]

Hi, is it a COAST module? I think i have an asus branded coast cache module around here somewhere

[Maxxarcade]

@Oerg866 The part number is 197005-001. It's a 128KB module I think.

[m134mr]

brings back memories!

Wow, s3m. I remember those. On my old Amiga computers, I remember they was called .mod files, same kinda thing. great stuff!

[KawaiiKitii]

Maxx, there's a DAW out there called Renoise, and it's based on old trackers like the one you're using in the video.

[L0nerism]

I may be 16 but I remember the first PC my family had. It was a Compaq Presario 5070. I also haven't heard that Windows 98 sound in a long time.

[Unicornguy]

I really like the synthesizer program you found! And all the music too! Is there any way you could send a copy of all that to me? I'd love to put this on cassette! I love music like this!

[tommee10533]

Wow... I have never seen a computer w a 5 1/4 floppy, and a cdrom drive.

[TwinMillMC]

phat track @ 9:42 !

[talldude123]

I never knew Doom had cheat codes...makes me wanna install it somehow!

[BigH3017]

My haf 932 case is all steel and solid as a rock, my system weighs about 50 lbs

[yourmom67859]

My grandparents had one just like that!

[Machinia]

That Windows 98 splash screen is different. I have the SE version of 98 and it doesn't look like that.

[Maxxarcade]

@Machinia Yep, it was an unofficial service pack.

[kryptonnms]

Was that a custom Windows 98 bootscreen or something?

[Maxxarcade]

@kryptonnms It was an unofficial service pack that someone put together. It also includes a few improvements in the look and performance.

[randomrazr]

i dont think its 1992

[amfan12]

Never seen 98SE with the Windows 2000 Theme or that start up screen.

[mociinurbo]

Ahhh, YouTube is such a wonderful thing. Thanks for sharing maxx.

[cgillyard]

I remember Doom 2, I had that on an old Compaq PC.

[youtubasoarus]

Man I remember using this program Scream Tracker to do those S3M files. I even made a few songs. Funny stuff. Great little machine! I couldn't even imagine having 64MB in my machine back then that's huge! And yeah that's one thing I get reminded of when I start up my old computer every now and again, is the whirr of that hard drive. Great vid!

[nodariel]

Awesome series.

[fedorauser1003]

The blue graphics at 9m55s remind me of a hard drive utility we used back in the early 90s. Can't remember what the program was now, but it was cool looking.

[Sansui350A]

Wow.. I had one of those, too! Small world huh? I've had a TON of those QIC drives over the years, dad used 'em at the store for backups.. and i MIGHT have a cache module.. I'll have to look though. Really neat to see these vids, I forgot I even HAD some of these computers. :D

[Sansui350A]

@Sansui350A btw.. any chance I can get a copy of that DOS prog and teh muzix inside..?

[james42519]

that is a nice win98se start up screen. looks different the normal. nice to get some of that music

[xsheryTV]

Street Rod Polish Game xD

[bangulo2012]

I love this old school tracker music!



[joshhsega]

why not update it to windows 2000 it would be a good way to end its useful life

[linagee]

It's all about the MOD files.

[linagee]

My first computer: Tandy 1000 EX. Family's first computer: TRS-80. The machine you are showing on this video is much more advanced!

[KRC1023]

I've got some speakers that look kinda like those juster ones....

[pcgod8]

I never got into .s3m, I was more of a midi guy.

[Aeduo]

A lot of modern games I would say still use MOD/S3M/IT/XM/etc formats, or alikes. Mostly for small games (Small Steam games, XBLA, PSN) or handhelds. They still have their place in that you can create great music, as long as you don't require fancy effects.

Also, you forgot to get the chainsaw.

[evilcrow1001]

50Mhz = BEAST

[negerauto123]

this is soooo cool!

[apctech1]

i have all the doom games on cd rewritten for windows xp with updated sound and grafics i love the old doom games.

[macintoshgermany]

IDDQD IDKFA

[Maxxarcade]

@macintoshgermany And IDMUS, IDCLEV to skip music or levels.

[nintendonick]

Totally forgot about s3m's

[kbhasikevin]

My "back in the day" in 2000 was a custom pc, beige case, Tomato motherboard, pentium 3, 128mb ram, windows 98, 15gb hard disk.

[tsukasa2k6]

sweet stuff :D where could i get some of those s3m files ? or can you upload it somewhere ?

[nintendonick]

Sweet. I love these vids!

[robot797]

i would buy a dos pc for only that programm

[JinzoDefiler]

itd be awesome if you could upload those .s3m files. I sure remember those from back in the day.

[pedifer1999]

so slow,my windows 98 pc has an 8.4 gb hdd and a pentium 3 @ 450mhz

[Lachlant1984]

If you say your family bought that computer in 1992 and it came stock with a 486 DX2 then it wouldn't have been a cheap computer at all, I imagine it would have been rather expensive for the time. I know nothing about the S3M files or SM3 or whatever you said it was, this is the first I've ever heard of that format, but it sounds like a lot of fun to play around with. I'm guessing you used the tape drive for backing up your data right?

[Maxxarcade]

@Lachlant1984 It was my Dad's business computer.  We got it with a Dell 15" Ultrascan FS monitor, and the Epson Action Laser II printer that I still have. I think it was over $4k total.

[TheDataZoo]

Our first family pc was a 486 :P and 8mb ram and for some odd reason a voodoo :P

[KCompRoom2000]

Nice computer! When i saw this video i thought it was gonna run Windows 95 or 3.1 but it ran 98, and the windows Start up screen looks like the one on my Old HP E-PC C10, and this PCs Windows has the Windows 2000/ME Theme and Icons and it seems pretty high-end for something from 1992

[Maxxarcade]

@KCompRoom2000 Originally it had Windows 3.1 and Tabworks, and was later upgraded to Windows 95. I installed 98 on it more recently, but I don't plan on keeping it that way.

[HakDunn]

My first computer was a compaq presario 5441. I love that thing.

[42hiker]

Nice. My "back in the day" was BBCs in 1984, then onto Amigas in the late 80s.

[Maxxarcade]

@42hiker The first computer I ever had was a secondhand Apple II+, then an IBM PC 5150. From there I went through several systems from 286 and up.

[42hiker]

@Maxxarcade Actually, our family literally never owned a computer (far too poor). But I practically lived on them (as I'm sur e you did) through school and friends. The first computer I actually owned myself would have been an Amiga 1200. I missed early IBM/Clone PCs completely, instead going for Commodore machines. I think I probably enjoyed those days more than I enjoy computers today.

[WinbookXL3]

@Maxxarcade Back Im My High School Years My ID Card was 286!

[FrozenParanormalwolf]

The Compaq Presario 850 had one back in grade school .

[pedifer1999]

first