I just finished watching BBS: The Documentary and noticed the same thing. It seemed like everyone they interviewed had an entire room full of old computer equipment. They had boxes of software, walls of hardware manuals, stacks of monitors, cabinets of capacitors and resistors, rows of soldering irons, and at least one fully-equipped workbench.
Up until the past decade or so if you wanted to be a serious computer enthusiast you needed an empty garage; now you just need space on your desk for a Macbook Pro.
i like minimalism but to a point. i have a full workbench for example as i like to fix stuff on m own. not just computers, mind you. i also like creating physical stuff - i think most ppl on HN revolve around creating non-physical stuff most of the time.
i also cook my own food more often than not. both are more economical _and_ i enjoy it.
ive a 800sqft 1 bedroom in sf so its not that small either. workbench isnt in a garage so its pretty compact yet is a real, full featured bench. 2500sqft with unused rooms certainly is way too big tho.
I know what you mean about physical stuff. Many years ago, when I'd finish a cool software project, I couldn't really show it to anyone -- it was just a bunch of gibberish to them. But once I started some wood working... I can still to this day show people my home made computer desk, book cases, etc. But none of my early software hacks still survives.
Someone with 'space on a desk for an apple product' is not really a 'computer enthusiast' just like someone with a mobile phone is not a 'radio amateur'. Yes, the phone contains an advanced radio system, enabling the user to communicate with whomever they want at the flick of a finger. In contrast to a radio amateur the user usually does not know how the thing works other than which buttons to press. The apple user usually knows which buttons to press but show them the nitty-gritty details of how that button press is translated into action on the hardware and their eyes glaze over. A serious computer enthusiast is better off with that wall of hardware, better off with Linux or *BSD than with a closed system, if it is OSX they want to run they're better of with a hackintosh.
Most of the programmers I know use MacBook Pros. Some have hackintosh desktops as a backup, but concede that the hackintosh setups are a pain in the ass compared to an actual Mac. So I'm not sure where you're getting that last part.
Personally, no. I would computer enthusiast requires either building your own computer or having old computers around. This is needlessly pedanic, but it's perfectly fine to be a programming enthusiast.
For instance, my grandpa had a ton of computers from the vic 20 to the IBM PC
If you liked this, you'd probably also like Get Lamp--also by Jason--which is about interactive text adventures in general and Infocom in particular. I'm probably biased because I know a lot of the people in the film but I thought it was great. (And more of a true film than BBS.)
In the 1980s (roughly the period covered by that documentary), you didn't necessarily need to build printed circuit boards and the like. Though a number of people interviewed in the film go back to the very earliest days of BBSs when there was more of that sort of thing.) But, you're basically right. Even if you didn't do a lot of soldering, you generally were building PCs, needed all sorts of cables and miscellaneous hardware, lots of books and other paper.
Up until the past decade or so if you wanted to be a serious computer enthusiast you needed an empty garage; now you just need space on your desk for a Macbook Pro.