2024
Reunanen, Markku; Joelsson, Tapani; Saarikoski, Petri
Commodoren varjossa. 1980-luvun tietokonepelaamista marginaalikoneilla Journal Article
In: Pelitutkimuksen vuosikirja, pp. 2-25, 2024, ISSN: 1798-355X.
Abstract | Links | Tags: Computer games, Digitaalinen kulttuuri, Digital culture, Home computers, Kotitietokoneet, Marginaalisuus, Marginality, Tietokonepelit
@article{Reunanen2024,
title = {Commodoren varjossa. 1980-luvun tietokonepelaamista marginaalikoneilla},
author = {Markku Reunanen and Tapani Joelsson and Petri Saarikoski},
url = {https://pelitutkimus.journal.fi/article/view/145359
https://pelitutkimus.journal.fi/article/view/145359/100276},
issn = {1798-355X},
year = {2024},
date = {2024-12-19},
urldate = {2024-12-19},
journal = {Pelitutkimuksen vuosikirja},
pages = {2-25},
abstract = {Monenkirjavat kotitietokoneet olivat 1980-luvun suosituimpia digitaalisia pelilaitteita. Keskenään yhteensopimattomia malleja oli markkinoilla kymmeniä erilaisia, eivätkä useimmat niistä selvinneet pitkään kilpailun puristuksessa. Suomessa Commodoren kotimikrot saavuttivat vankan jalansijan pelaajien suosikkikoneina, mutta niiden varjossa pelattiin myös Spectrumeilla, MSX-tietokoneilla, Amstradeilla ja vielä niitäkin harvinaisemmilla laitteilla. Tässä artikkelissa käsitellään marginaalikoneilla pelaamista pohjautuen monimuotoiseen lähdemateriaaliin: tietokone- ja kerholehtiin, lehtien lukijakirjeisiin sekä kesällä 2022 järjestetyn kyselyn vastauksiin. Tuloksissa korostuvat lehdistön näennäisen neutraali asenne, harvinaisten koneiden käyttäjien ratkaisut kaupallisen tuen puuttuessa sekä se, kuinka kokonaisvaltaista laitteiden marginaalisuus oli.
In English:
Various home computers were popular gaming platforms in the 1980s. There were tens of mutually incompatible models available and most of them did not survive in the competition for long. In Finland Commodore’s home computers claimed the top spot among gamers, but in the shadow of the mainstream devices people also played on Spectrums, MSX compatibles, Amstrads and even rarer machines. This article deals with gaming on marginal computers based on diverse research material: computer and club magazines, letters to the editor and the answers to a survey organized in 2022. The results highlight the apparent neutrality of magazines, the solutions that the users tried when there was little commercial support available and how all-encompassing the marginality of a device could be.},
keywords = {Computer games, Digitaalinen kulttuuri, Digital culture, Home computers, Kotitietokoneet, Marginaalisuus, Marginality, Tietokonepelit},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
Monenkirjavat kotitietokoneet olivat 1980-luvun suosituimpia digitaalisia pelilaitteita. Keskenään yhteensopimattomia malleja oli markkinoilla kymmeniä erilaisia, eivätkä useimmat niistä selvinneet pitkään kilpailun puristuksessa. Suomessa Commodoren kotimikrot saavuttivat vankan jalansijan pelaajien suosikkikoneina, mutta niiden varjossa pelattiin myös Spectrumeilla, MSX-tietokoneilla, Amstradeilla ja vielä niitäkin harvinaisemmilla laitteilla. Tässä artikkelissa käsitellään marginaalikoneilla pelaamista pohjautuen monimuotoiseen lähdemateriaaliin: tietokone- ja kerholehtiin, lehtien lukijakirjeisiin sekä kesällä 2022 järjestetyn kyselyn vastauksiin. Tuloksissa korostuvat lehdistön näennäisen neutraali asenne, harvinaisten koneiden käyttäjien ratkaisut kaupallisen tuen puuttuessa sekä se, kuinka kokonaisvaltaista laitteiden marginaalisuus oli.
In English:
Various home computers were popular gaming platforms in the 1980s. There were tens of mutually incompatible models available and most of them did not survive in the competition for long. In Finland Commodore’s home computers claimed the top spot among gamers, but in the shadow of the mainstream devices people also played on Spectrums, MSX compatibles, Amstrads and even rarer machines. This article deals with gaming on marginal computers based on diverse research material: computer and club magazines, letters to the editor and the answers to a survey organized in 2022. The results highlight the apparent neutrality of magazines, the solutions that the users tried when there was little commercial support available and how all-encompassing the marginality of a device could be.
In English:
Various home computers were popular gaming platforms in the 1980s. There were tens of mutually incompatible models available and most of them did not survive in the competition for long. In Finland Commodore’s home computers claimed the top spot among gamers, but in the shadow of the mainstream devices people also played on Spectrums, MSX compatibles, Amstrads and even rarer machines. This article deals with gaming on marginal computers based on diverse research material: computer and club magazines, letters to the editor and the answers to a survey organized in 2022. The results highlight the apparent neutrality of magazines, the solutions that the users tried when there was little commercial support available and how all-encompassing the marginality of a device could be.
Reunanen, Markku; Hoeberechts, Guus; Viljanen, Tytti
”A Step into the Computer Era” – A Comparative Study on Early Home Computing in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Finland Journal Article
In: WIDERSCREEN, 2024, ISSN: 1795-6161.
Abstract | Links | Tags: Computer programming, Digital culture, Home computers
@article{nokey,
title = {”A Step into the Computer Era” – A Comparative Study on Early Home Computing in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Finland},
author = {Markku Reunanen and Guus Hoeberechts and Tytti Viljanen},
url = {http://widerscreen.fi/numerot/ajankohtaista/a-step-into-the-computer-era-a-comparative-study-on-early-home-computing-in-the-united-kingdom-the-netherlands-and-finland/},
issn = {1795-6161},
year = {2024},
date = {2024-09-26},
journal = {WIDERSCREEN},
abstract = {This paper examines how early home computers were portrayed to domestic audiences in the UK, the Netherlands, and Finland. The first half of the 1980s saw rapid growth in the productization of these devices and their market. But how was the consumer convinced to buy a product they virtually did not have a need for? This comparative study aims to answer this question by analyzing advertising material for home computers from the late 1970s to mid-1980s. Madeleine Akrich’s two concepts, projected user and script, serve as the theoretical backbone of the discussion. The results show that, despite the three countries having vastly different domestic markets, the themes that emerge from the advertisements are consistent across them. Companies made grand promises concerning the possibilities and influence of new technology, but in hindsight many of them never realized. A fear of being left behind marked both the industries and the advertisements. On a more positive note, consumers were urged to enhance their own abilities, make their daily tasks easier, and provide a robust future for their children – to-be members of the information society.},
keywords = {Computer programming, Digital culture, Home computers},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
This paper examines how early home computers were portrayed to domestic audiences in the UK, the Netherlands, and Finland. The first half of the 1980s saw rapid growth in the productization of these devices and their market. But how was the consumer convinced to buy a product they virtually did not have a need for? This comparative study aims to answer this question by analyzing advertising material for home computers from the late 1970s to mid-1980s. Madeleine Akrich’s two concepts, projected user and script, serve as the theoretical backbone of the discussion. The results show that, despite the three countries having vastly different domestic markets, the themes that emerge from the advertisements are consistent across them. Companies made grand promises concerning the possibilities and influence of new technology, but in hindsight many of them never realized. A fear of being left behind marked both the industries and the advertisements. On a more positive note, consumers were urged to enhance their own abilities, make their daily tasks easier, and provide a robust future for their children – to-be members of the information society.
2022
Saarikoski, Petri; Lindfors, Antti; Suominen, Jaakko; Reunanen, Markku
The Illuminatus Space Game: From an April Fools’ Joke to Digital Cultural Heritage Book Section
In: Giappone, Krista Bonello Rutter; Majkowski, Tomasz Z.; Švelch, Jaroslav (Ed.): Video Games and Comedy, Palgrave Macmillan Cham, 2022, ISBN: 978-3-030-88338-6.
Abstract | Links | Tags: 1980s, April Fools' joke, Cultural memory, Digital culture, Game journalism, Home computers, Humour, Simulation games
@incollection{Saarikoski2022,
title = {The Illuminatus Space Game: From an April Fools’ Joke to Digital Cultural Heritage},
author = {Petri Saarikoski and Antti Lindfors and Jaakko Suominen and Markku Reunanen},
editor = {Krista Bonello Rutter Giappone and Tomasz Z. Majkowski and Jaroslav Švelch},
url = {https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-88338-6_7},
doi = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-88338-6_7},
isbn = {978-3-030-88338-6},
year = {2022},
date = {2022-03-26},
urldate = {2022-03-26},
booktitle = {Video Games and Comedy},
publisher = {Palgrave Macmillan Cham},
series = {Palgrave Studies in Comedy},
abstract = {In April 1989, the leading Finnish computer hobbyist magazine MikroBitti published a glowing preview of a 3D space-faring game called Illuminatus. It was described as an epic space flight, trading, combat and empire building title that was more than a game, rather a way of life. In reality, the game did not exist at all, but the April Fools’ joke was taken seriously by many readers. In this chapter we analyse the cultural and historical context of the prank, its plausibility, and repercussions. The technological optimism of the decade is an important backdrop for the joke, and the journalist behind it cleverly evoked the hopes and expectations of the audience. Even after more than three decades, Illuminatus is still referenced and remembered within Finnish enthusiast circles. Interestingly, it appears that the (non-) existence of the game hardly matters at all in the long run, as it has become part of the shared cultural memory of a hobbyist generation, just as if it had been any popular game of the time. },
keywords = {1980s, April Fools' joke, Cultural memory, Digital culture, Game journalism, Home computers, Humour, Simulation games},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {incollection}
}
In April 1989, the leading Finnish computer hobbyist magazine MikroBitti published a glowing preview of a 3D space-faring game called Illuminatus. It was described as an epic space flight, trading, combat and empire building title that was more than a game, rather a way of life. In reality, the game did not exist at all, but the April Fools’ joke was taken seriously by many readers. In this chapter we analyse the cultural and historical context of the prank, its plausibility, and repercussions. The technological optimism of the decade is an important backdrop for the joke, and the journalist behind it cleverly evoked the hopes and expectations of the audience. Even after more than three decades, Illuminatus is still referenced and remembered within Finnish enthusiast circles. Interestingly, it appears that the (non-) existence of the game hardly matters at all in the long run, as it has become part of the shared cultural memory of a hobbyist generation, just as if it had been any popular game of the time.