Or Tab!DigitalQuirk wrote:Perhaps they would have been drinking Diet Coke instead of regular Coke.
After discovering recently that a local grocery store still sells Tab, I've started buying and drinking it.
-Andrew
Moderator: Moderators
Or Tab!DigitalQuirk wrote:Perhaps they would have been drinking Diet Coke instead of regular Coke.
http://lunacityarcade.com/photos.htmral-clan wrote:Although the 80s isn't the time I would want to recreate (except for the computer part), I do think it would be cool to go into a totally re-created early 1980s arcade. Maybe a Chuck-E-Cheeze pizza parlour/arcade recreation. That would be fun.
WOW wonderful atmosphereJeff-20 wrote:http://lunacityarcade.com/photos.htm
Look at this guy's home arcade. That's dedication.
I have to disagree. I think that we've always had junk; especially in the 1980's. Honestly, the Canon digital camcorder I bought a few years back is way beyond anything we had in the 80's; it's easier to use, more capable, more portable, more reliable, and yields a much better image. It was also much cheaper. Mind you, it's made in Japan. Still, it goes to show. Also, a watch I recently bought:Mirage1972 wrote:I've been doing this more and more the older I get (okay, I'm only 36 now, but that's older than I have ever been before!). To me, most everything made today is total junk. And it's getting worse and worse all the time, with more and more being made in China etc.
Well, I still see the good in new things. A $30 mechanical watch that is well beyond a $30 mechanical watch of the 80's (if you could even find one). A camcorder better than anything in the 80's at a price that you'd be lucky to get a VCR for in the 80's. There's no damned way I would ever fool myself into believing a Vic 20 hooked up to a B&W TV while listening to a tape in a walkman is better than using my modern PC while listening to MP3's. That said, I will challenge any modern keyboard with a model M from that era.ral-clan wrote: This makes me think about a thread I've been meaning to post here many times. Do you guys ever think that perhaps what we are doing is kind of a futile nostalgia? i.e. as we are approaching middle age, we are grabbing onto things from our child-hood looking at them through rose-coloured glasses. Are we becoming curmudgeonly - unable to see the good in new things? I am not sure - sometimes my wife tells me I'm too sentimental about old things.
Of course digital technology is vastly superior to everything from the past -- that should always be true. And of course there will always be exceptions. Generally speaking though, with day-to-day mechanical household-type devices, I think it's far harder to find quality today than it ever has been in the past. More and more "Made in China" crap. That wasn't even an issue until around the '70s and seems to be a rapidly escalating issue since then. As for Japan -- they have always been the exception, but items made in Japan are rapidly declining as well. Made in Japan has most often meant quality. Cars are the obvious example, and most electronics. Also, the Japanese Fender guitars of the '70s and '80s are usually considered on par (sometimes better) than their American counterparts. Today, the equivalent is made in Mexico (or Baja Mexico) and are far far less desirable than those low-priced Japanese guitars of the past.DigitalQuirk wrote:I have to disagree. I think that we've always had junk; especially in the 1980's. Honestly, the Canon digital camcorder I bought a few years back is way beyond anything we had in the 80's; it's easier to use, more capable, more portable, more reliable, and yields a much better image. It was also much cheaper. Mind you, it's made in Japan. Still, it goes to show. Also, a watch I recently bought:Mirage1972 wrote:I've been doing this more and more the older I get (okay, I'm only 36 now, but that's older than I have ever been before!). To me, most everything made today is total junk. And it's getting worse and worse all the time, with more and more being made in China etc.
I had one. Overpriced plastic that fell apart.Jeff-20 wrote:Swatch watch.
While I would agree that there's certainly more junk available for sale, I don't think it's necessarily harder to find quality. People tend to walk into stores like Wal-Mart expecting to find quality, but they can't. Many people fail to realize that Wal-Mart is, for all intents and purposes, the modern version of Bi-Way. They are the bottom of the retail store ladder.Mirage1972 wrote:Generally speaking though, with day-to-day mechanical household-type devices, I think it's far harder to find quality today than it ever has been in the past.
You make some very good points, which I agree with. Quality can be defined in several ways. I definitely see your definition of quality and I agree with it. Another way I'm looking at it, is say, a toaster. Take a very old toaster, and they're often made of a heavy (thick) metal, has some heft to it, and sometimes are nicely chromed. That was the average toaster of yesteryear. If you can find the same quality now, it's going to cost a fortune. Similarly, look at reproduction pieces of kitchen hardware (knobs and such), or reproduction kitchen equipment (for example, in a "retro" diner). If you go to an actual old diner (they're hard to find, but still around in the US at least) with equipment from back in the day, you'll see real quality. In the "retro" diner with new repro equipment, the quality still isn't there. Same goes for old cars. Thick, strong, heavy metal. The new ones are better because they're longer-lasting (sometimes), get much better gas mileage, and most important, are much safer, with crumple zones, air bags, etc. Much tighter fit of parts, too.DigitalQuirk wrote:I had one. Overpriced plastic that fell apart.Jeff-20 wrote:Swatch watch.
While I would agree that there's certainly more junk available for sale, I don't think it's necessarily harder to find quality. People tend to walk into stores like Wal-Mart expecting to find quality, but they can't. Many people fail to realize that Wal-Mart is, for all intents and purposes, the modern version of Bi-Way. They are the bottom of the retail store ladder.Mirage1972 wrote:Generally speaking though, with day-to-day mechanical household-type devices, I think it's far harder to find quality today than it ever has been in the past.
The real problem is that our dollar doesn't go as far today. Sure, people are, on average, earning more than people did in the 1960's and the '70's; but things such as houses and cars have become disproportionately more expensive. For example, in the mid 1970's, the average car cost approximately 30% of the average income. Today, the average car now costs approximately 60% of the average income. Back then, the average person could buy the average house for less than 3 years worth of the average wage. Today, that is now over six years. Not to mention, there's more taxes, utilities such as gas and hydro cost more, and, of course, we pay more for gas.
What this means is that people can't really afford the high quality things we used to be able to buy. This is why we find junk filled Wal-Marts everywhere, and why the higher end stores like Sears and The Bay are struggling (which used to be the mainstaples of '75). That said, the quality items are still out there, and relatively easy to find. Problem is, many people balk at the prices, even though, when accounting for inflation, they're actually less expensive than they were in '75.
This is why items like musical instruments seem to be going down in quality. In order to keep Joe Blow interested in putting his kid into music, the instruments need to fit the average modern household budget. Often, this means finding cheaper labour. We aren't allowed to use slaves anymore, but Mexicans are the next best thing.
What happened to Mountain Dew? They don't sell it in Quebec anymore? Or are you referring to something else?eslapion wrote:What happened to Mountain Dew is just a plain catastrophe.
Hehe. Thanks for keeping me in mind. Tell you what, those 6-packs of coke in 237 mL bottles is exactly what I buy on a Saturday night. SweetEach one is only 237mL, so guys like pitcalco needn't worry so much about their health when enjoying one.
I think this is referring to Mountain Dew being sold only in non-caffeinated form in Canada.wiskow wrote: What happened to Mountain Dew? They don't sell it in Quebec anymore? Or are you referring to something else?
-Andrew