

Jef Raskin's final gift to Aza (2010) - sirwitti
http://www.azarask.in/blog/post/my-father-final-gift/

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thought_alarm
Jef Raskin's BASIC Programming Manual [1] for the original Apple II is truly
delightful. That is was written in 1978, for such a arcane little machine like
the original Apple II, is all the more amazing.

It demonstrates as well as anything his ambitions to bring computers to the
average person, at a time when very few people understood the potential of the
home computing market.

[1]
[http://www.classiccmp.org/cini/pdf/Apple/Apple%20II%20Basic%...](http://www.classiccmp.org/cini/pdf/Apple/Apple%20II%20Basic%20Programming%20Manual.pdf)
(Big PDF)

~~~
dchest
Thank you for the link! _"First, there are no lower case letters. You can only
get capital letters on the APPLE II. This is all you need for programming."_

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yanowitz
The beauty of this writing is a wonderful tribute to a man who loved language.

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edw519
What a great story. It reminded me of my own father, who's been gone for 8
years now.

I still vividly remember the first time we played 20 Questions. I must have
been about 8 years old. I figured it out in 5 questions. I was so proud.

"That's not the way you're supposed to play the game!" he told me, "You're
supposed to figure it out as soon as possible, then ask dumber and dumber
questions to make the other person think you don't know. Then on Question 20,
you just pop out, 'Is it a razor?'"

I've played that game (and many other real life games) like that ever since.
It's amazing how empowering it is for an introverted nerd to enable his
adversaries to underestimate him so easily.

Thanks OP for the memories and thanks, Dad, for all the lessons. I can still
smell the Old Spice.

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swombat
This was posted on HN before, I think. No matter, it still brought tears to my
eyes.

~~~
sirwitti
to me too.

funny how stories can touch me.

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marcusf
A beautiful thing. My father passed away about six years ago as well, far too
young. But cancer doesn't really care, does it? This very much reminded me of
him. Our final days were not as apt for stories but I'm sending him an extra
thought today.

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naner
This feels a little serendipitous considering that (spoiler alert if you
haven't read the story yet...) safety razor shaving has seen somewhat of a
resurgence in recent years.

New (albeit small) companies have sprung up offering a new spin on an old
tradition, old products are available new again, people are scouring yard
sales, pawn shops, and antique stores and replating very old razors, etc.
There are many variations on that simple razor design, all to some extent
alter the shave quite a bit.

Safety razor shaving actually looks to be a decent hobby, provided you're
willing to spend the extra time each morning.

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hkarthik
Wonderful story. I always hope to have the kind of relationship with my kids
as Jef Raskin did with his son Aza.

Teach them, inspire them, and watch them grow into more than you ever dreamt
they could be.

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Jem
Beautifully written. Clearly a talented family.

