I’m almost 30 now, but I remember more than half my lifetime ago rooting around in DOS on our Windows 3.11 256MB machine (with no internet connection, because it was the 1990’s and mum didn’t think we needed one) and coming across QBasic. The idea that I could make my own games blew my little mind at the time, and using the inbuilt help and some very limited tutorials I managed to print out in my weekly 15 minutes of “internet free time” in primary school I was able to create a number of text based games.
I recently found that old computer and was able to replay some of those games (along with Leisure Suit Larry what a game). The best one was a cricket simulator, where you could simulate a test series, test match, or one day match. I had all the test teams, associate nations that I liked, and if you selected option 0 (not listed on the screen) you got to play as my current under 12’s team. It just simulated the scores in a very rudimentary way based on the batters skill (nothing to do with the bowlers ability) and at the end of it all it exported the scorecard and series averages to a text file so you could keep them. Not bad for an 11 year old who didn’t really know what he was doing.
I never went on to a career in programming /IT or anything like that, but finding this stuff was a mad trip down memory lane. I downloaded DOSbox and QBasic on my Mac tonight to have a bit of a bash again for fun.
Anyone else do anything like that when you were kids?
I recently found that old computer and was able to replay some of those games (along with Leisure Suit Larry what a game). The best one was a cricket simulator, where you could simulate a test series, test match, or one day match. I had all the test teams, associate nations that I liked, and if you selected option 0 (not listed on the screen) you got to play as my current under 12’s team. It just simulated the scores in a very rudimentary way based on the batters skill (nothing to do with the bowlers ability) and at the end of it all it exported the scorecard and series averages to a text file so you could keep them. Not bad for an 11 year old who didn’t really know what he was doing.
I never went on to a career in programming /IT or anything like that, but finding this stuff was a mad trip down memory lane. I downloaded DOSbox and QBasic on my Mac tonight to have a bit of a bash again for fun.
Anyone else do anything like that when you were kids?
