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Game of Thrones Author George R R Martin Writes with WordStar on DOS

Hugh Pickens DOT Com writes: "Ryan Reed reports that when most Game of Thrones fans imagine George R.R. Martin writing his epic fantasy novels, they probably picture the author working on a futuristic desktop (or possibly carving his words onto massive stones like the Ten Commandments). But the truth is that Martin works on an outdated DOS machine using '80s word processor WordStar 4.0, as he revealed during an interview on Conan. 'I actually like it,' says Martin. 'It does everything I want a word processing program to do, and it doesn't do anything else. I don't want any help. I hate some of these modern systems where you type a lower case letter and it becomes a capital letter. I don't want a capital. If I wanted a capital, I would have typed a capital. I know how to work the shift key.' 'I actually have two computers,' Martin continued. 'I have a computer I browse the Internet with and I get my email on, and I do my taxes on. And then I have my writing computer, which is a DOS machine, not connected to the Internet.'"

18 of 522 comments (clear)

  1. And.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    ..it takes him 5 years to write a novel. Now we know why.

    1. Re:And.... by NotDrWho · · Score: 5, Funny

      He keeps loosing his new chapters. If you're going to try for a second side on your floppies with a hole punch, you take your chances.

      --
      SJW's don't eliminate discrimination. They just expropriate it for themselves.
  2. Also by sootman · · Score: 4, Funny

    'I have a computer I browse the Internet with and I get my email on, and I do my taxes on. And then I have my writing computer, which is a DOS machine, not connected to the Internet.

    And for the ultimate in security, he also uses 8" floppies.

    --
    Dear Slashdot: next time you want to mess with the site, add a rich-text editor for comments.
    1. Re:Also by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Funny

      wieners. floppy wieners. floppy wieners...

  3. He thinks it is not connected to the internet ... by PolygamousRanchKid+ · · Score: 3, Funny

    . . . but curiosity got the better of those eager NSA employee fans, who have bugged the computer to know what will happen before the rest of the world . . .

    --
    Schroedinger's Brexit: The UK is both in and out of the EU at the same time!
  4. The Clippy version by Snufu · · Score: 5, Funny

    "It looks like you're trying to write a newsletter about incestuous elves. Would you like assistance?"

  5. Shut up..... by Dareth · · Score: 5, Funny

    Every time someone complains about how long he takes to write a book he kills another Stark!

    --

    I only look human.
    My mother is a halfling and my dad is an ogre, so that makes me an Ogreling
  6. Re:Amen, brother Amen! by fizzer06 · · Score: 2, Funny

    Real DOS users edit with EDLIN. (ducks)

  7. Re:Amen, brother Amen! by master5o1 · · Score: 5, Funny

    Type 'Google' into Bing bar to get Google to search for 'Hotmail' to look at their email and then forward it to their grandchildren.

    --
    signature is pants
  8. Re:Also credits the dude that keeps it running by Austerity+Empowers · · Score: 5, Funny

    Poor guy has to dick with GRRM's autoexec.bat and config.sys every time he adds a new feast scene.

  9. Re:Amen, brother Amen! by Richy_T · · Score: 3, Funny

    I was just thinking this would be something a Raspberry Pi would be perfect for.

    In fact, if Wordperfect was still around in a reasonable condition, they could just sell the complete package in a box (just add keyboard and monitor). Or they could just sell the SD card.

  10. Re:somebody make a dragon for dos joke by geekoid · · Score: 5, Funny

    When Smaug came to the Lonely Mountain, he Terminated and stayed resident.

    --
    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  11. Re:If it ain't broke, don't fix it by xevioso · · Score: 4, Funny

    Hye, don't knock ThÃloündyir, he was a major player in the fantasy series "The $JAk5-~T_8x7XP;Mnmw)+eQdHo'e'=Ue'y!0\HP_].Ax30{ of House B|knn_5_ctp%h$iizImAl\@*D*=9n"

  12. Re:If it ain't broke, don't fix it by bjackson1 · · Score: 4, Funny

    In fact one of the main characters is named John Snow...

    You know nothing about Jon Snow!

  13. 1,000 trailer trucks filled with clay tablets ... by perpenso · · Score: 4, Funny

    The publishers I've dealt with won't accept a written manuscript. You must submit it electronically.

    The rules are different for you and I and GRRM. If he showed up at a publisher with a 1,000 trailer trucks filled with clay tablets for book 6 they would sign a deal and cut him a check.

  14. Re:Amen, brother Amen! by MightyYar · · Score: 3, Funny

    I have a fax-through-email service. I had to talk my wife out of using it to send someone some forms back to a person who had emailed her the forms to sign :)

    --
    W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
  15. Re:640k isn't enough for everybody by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Funny

    It'd've been better to not use the contraction?

  16. Re:If it ain't broke, don't fix it by Mantrid42 · · Score: 4, Funny

    DOS WordStar is notably lacking in support for extended characters of any sort.

    If there's one thing Martin doesn't need, it's more characters.