George R. R. Martin uses a 36-year-old DOS software to write his books

wikiofthrones.com

16 points·alexmolas··14 comments

As someone who's been using Emacs since the 80s, once you settle into tools that work for you, you can spend your mental energy on solving your problems. :)

If only the current generation of software engineers actually followed this advice :)

Does he still write? I thought he basically tossed the pen in when GOT blow up.

Previous discussion on WordStar https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26370252

Danielle Steel still uses a typewriter! Got to be 70 years old at least. So does Tom Hanks.

I believe Cormac McCarthy did as well, at least until his recent death.

That seems to imply that he's had multiple deaths. ;)

Can you imagine how much longer it would take him to write if he could also web surf while working?

Because wordstar is simple and elegant.

Until you need to access a printer, where it becomes hideously complicated and unable to converse with anything you might own.

It did have the virtue that it ran on barely compatible machines like the Sanyo MBC-550 but word perfect made wordstar instantly redundant.

> Until you need to access a printer, where it becomes hideously complicated and unable to converse with anything you might own.

Funny that i have the same feeling almost everyday with web browsers. Printing from a web browser is an exercise in pain.

That is true, and seems ti be getting worse rather than better.

Now I understand, why he didn't finish A Song of Ice and Fire, yet.

I bet he is vulnerable to all sorts of zero day exploits. /s

Reply on news.ycombinator.com