ZX81 denigrated! (was Re: Approaches to projects)

[Tony Duell]

> 
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: Tony Duell <ard at p850ug1.demon.co.uk>
> 
> > What's this love of the ZX81, which I regard as a postively horrible 
> > machine. I'd not rip one apart, though, mainly because there's little of 
> > use to raid from it...
> 
> You regard it as horrible because . . . ?
> 
> (Please don't mention the keyboard.  Lots of machines of
> that era had crap keyboards.  It's easy to attach a better
> keyboard to a ZX81.)

OK, in no particular order : 

The keyboard (and see below for my comment on your comment). It's almost 
unusuable

The video system. It's a total kludge, about the worst I've seen

The cassette storage (I am used to _reliable_ data storage systems)

The BASIC. BASIC is not my favourite language at the best of times, this 
versions is one of the worst, though

The expansion connector (the physical form of it, the fact that if the 
RAMpack wobbles, the machine crashes).

The ULA. I dislike hardware I can't hack, modify or repair.

OK, most of those can be got round by adding/replacing hardware. But by 
the time you've finished, about all that's left of the ZX81 is the Z80 
CPU, and there are plenty of easier ways of getting and useing that chip.

For the time, it was cheap, and therefore sold well. Nowadays there are 
many, many, nicer machines available for less money than a second-hand 
ZX81...

-tony