Dave’s Farewell

by David Hunt

A pity really, still, good things don’t last forever. Paul has suggested that this piece ought to reminisce a bit, you know, funny anecdotes from the past and all that. Well reminiscence is a peculiar thing (see the other piece from me if Paul’s included it) I can’t think of a thing. I dare say they’ll come to me later.

What strikes me now is the changes and effects that Nascom and Gemini have made in my life. And all the interesting people, many of them now good friends, who I have met over the last 10 years. All because John Marshall had this idea of producing a microcomputer kit which anyone with a bit of electronic knowledge could build. Also, and unusually, everyone was equal, starting from the same point, knowing virtually nothing about the subject. All right some of us grasped the concepts a bit quicker than others, and some fell by the wayside, unable to make the mental leap which allows the pursuit of anything new. But in the main it has been a friendly and intense period of learning. You’re never too old to learn something new.

There are many people I ought to thank, they’ll know who they are. Those who pointed me in the right direction in the very beginning. Those who offered advice and tips over a period of time. Thank you one and all. In my turn, I have tried to help others a little, either by my dubious writings in this and other magazines or by trying to answer letters on specific points or by meetings at computer clubs, et al.

As far as changes go, many of the people I have met (and myself included) now have new careers in the challenging area of computing and microelectronics, all because they tried to build and drive a humble Nascom. John Marshall has a lot to answer for (most of it complimentary), although I doubt that he foresaw the changes that his kit would bring about in a small segment of the U.K. This magazine, with its various names over the time, has been useful, so I should thank the organisers of these. Most of the people I have met in the field and who have been most helpful have been readers and contributors at various times. It’s only now, when this is the last issue that I feel a little regret, as there’s many of you out there that I have not met, and will lose contact with, no matter how indirect.

Enough introspection, Paul’s idea was to bow out with a laugh, rather than a sob.

During the last ten years I have been able to formulate and prove many new laws of nature. Extensions to Murphy’s Laws if you like. Most are obvious and owe their origins to the Great Murphy himself, others are more obscure, but none-the-less valid.