The Commodore Amiga was The computer of the late 1980's and early 1990's. It was a browinsh, largish desktop computer with some...shall we say 'quirky' habits and astonishingly irritating set up. Nevertheless it was a well loved and loyal companion to 8-30 year old children everywhere.

The Amiga 500 - Solid Workhorse and Frequent Cause of Hair Loss

The Amiga 500 had manifold advantages, listed beneath in traditional point-blob thingeys.

• The games were good. Not 'good' in the modern sense of having nice graphics and smooth scrolling but in the sense of being genuinely enjoyable to play.
• The Amiga 500 was well supported by its 'Public Domain'. This was a system by which amateur programmers could distribute their games without having to become part of a large, sinister global megacorporation. The 'PD', as it was known, was the greatest computer game producer The world has ever known
• Amiga Power, the greatest magazine ever, drew some of its inspiration from the Amiga 500.
• The Amiga made an interesting crashing sound when you dropped it.

Problems With the Amiga

Like most computers, the Amiga had its share of problems.

The mouse was extremely uncomfortable to use. In order to plug the machine into a TV, a strange device, which could conceivably have housed an evil spirit, known as a 'TV Modulator' needed to be bought and persuaded to work. It fitted into the back of the Amiga and rarely, if ever, worked.

Commodore mismanaged the Amiga to the point where most software companies gave up making games for it

Some Important Points to Consider

• Amiga means 'Girlfriend' in Spanish. What the implications of this on the social lives of Amiga users is worth thinking about.
• If all the Amigas ever sold were lined up end to end, they would stretch half way to Saturn¹.
• If an Amiga was taken and flattened, it would have the surface area of a tennis court².
• The Amiga is worshipped in some areas of Cambodia as the God of Fertility³.
• There are more Amiga users in the world than there are grains of sand on all the world's beaches⁴.