SirCliveSinclair
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Sinclair ZX Spectrum turns 30, gets immortalized as a Google Doodle
Today's Google UK doodle celebrates both St. Georges Day and the little home computer that became a British phenomenon, the Sinclair ZX Spectrum. To be competitive with the rival Commodore 64, the 16KB of RAM-packing machine retailed for just £130 ($210 in today's money), punched well above its own weight and was often the first computer bought by techno-phobic families. Designed to be as programmer-friendly as possible, the founders of Shiny, Rare and Blitz Games studios all cut their teeth on the computer that introduced the world to Manic Miner, Jet Set Willy and Dizzy. It lasted a full decade in production, selling five million units before Amstrad purchased the money-losing unit and closed it down. Despite its demise, it's still got a loyal following from a generation of fans, something we doubt can be said about the Amstrad machines that replaced it.
Sir Clive Sinclair doesn't use a computer, exceeds recommended irony levels
Clive Sinclair is a Knight Commander of the British Empire, the inventor of the slimline pocket calculator, the man behind the Sinclair ZX80 that made home computing affordable in the Queen's isles and also, by his own admittance, a dude who just can't be bothered to use a computer. Speaking to The Guardian, he glibly confesses that he has his emails read to him (by his manservant, presumably), before launching a broadside against modern computers for being "totally wasteful" with their memory, requiring time to boot up, and having altogether "appalling designs." Hit the source for the full interview and an expanded history of the man's achievements, it's well worth the read.
