Sir Clive Sinclair - RIP

[Dirk]

Sir Clive Sinclair passes away aged 81.
https://www.theguardian.com/technol...uting-pioneer-sir-clive-sinclair-dies-aged-81

 

[Chromatic]

Sad news.
My Sinclair Cambridge Scientific calculator has outlasted him.

 

[Dolorous Edd]

I do think it is rather disrespectful of the Guardian and others to mock someone who was a real genius by relentlessly focusing on the unfortunate C5. Perhaps if we weren't so intent on knocking the successful, we would have a better economy and society.

 

[Drago]

While the C5 bombed, he made many millions off most of other ventures, something that no Guardian columnist has managed.

I think his nephew(?) Is making some sort of flash looking enclosed e-trike, but its fearfully expensive.

Edit - found it. https://www.grantsinclair.com/en/e-bike.html

 

[Paulus]

I do think it is rather disrespectful of the Guardian and others to mock someone who was a real genius by relentlessly focusing on the unfortunate C5. Perhaps if we weren't so intent on knocking the successful, we would have a better economy and society.

It is a shame that he appears to be only remembered for the C5. He was a visionary in electronics which may of taken years to perfect but his ideas were sound.

 

[Vapin' Joe]

I have fond memories of my first computer, a ZX81 and then the Spectrum that followed it.

Sinclair does get a lot of unfair stick over the C5 but he was thinking in the right direction and with the technology available today such a design would be very viable as a commuter vehicle.

A typical British eccentric in many ways, but like many of that type he was a genius in his field and whatever you may read about PCs, Macs and BBC computers, it was Sinclair's affordable and innovative early models which were largely responsible for starting the computer boom in this country,

 

[Supersuperleeds]

His ZX81 and then the Spectrum 48k were, for their time, brilliant creations. I spent many an hour on the speccy as a kid.

 

[roley poley]

loved his zx81 xxx

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Plus ZX80 before it

 

[DaveReading]

His ZX81 and then the Spectrum 48k were, for their time, brilliant creations. I spent many an hour on the speccy as a kid.

I had both, in fact I think they're still around here somewhere. Before my company discovered PCs, I used to use the Spectrum at work to do aircraft performance calculations.

Very apt that Sir Clive made it to 81 ...

RIP

 

[tyred]

RIP.

I think the time will come for C5 type runabout. It was years ahead of it's time and a city full of C5s would be preferable to one full of SUVs.

I think my Sinclair Spectrum is still in my parents attic

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

I hated the ZX 80/81 and spectrum - but they were brilliant for their time
In fact they were way ahead of their time

Basically I was working on mainframe and mini computers all day so converting to his system at home was just not going to happen

but as far as his concepts and design and knowing what people WOULD WANT - he was brilliant

the C5 was a great idea - if we had had loads of good cycle paths at the time - and it had been advertised as a sort of ebike then who knows what would have happened
but again - he was ahead of his time and in that case maybe a bit too far ahead

WIth his death the overall IQ of the World has dropped - he made the world a better place - which is the best you can say about anyone

RIP

 

[slowmotion]

Sad news. I think his main strength was as a visionary rather than a realist. I remember at school some people buying his amplifier kits. He under-specced all the capacitors by a few volts to keep the price down. After a couple of months they all packed up. His QL computer was quite appalling too.
A very bright guy though. RIP.

Edit: I forgot his pocket calculator kits from the early 1970s. Revolutionary at the time.

 

[DCLane]

Many, many hours spent on a Spectrum. RIP and imo he should be remembered for the contributions he made.

 

[roubaixtuesday]

Didn't he also invent the digital watch?

I learned machine code on the speccy. Basic was so slow you had to.

Sadly, it's all very redolent of a certain type of British failure. Good ideas, briefly successful, never really driven with business acumen or long term investment, ended up being sold off on the cheap by Alan Sugar.

RIP.