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'Game of Thrones': DOS Computer From '80s Used by Author R.R. Martin

'Game of Thrones': DOS Computer From '80s Used by Author R.R. Martin

By    |   Wednesday, 14 May 2014 03:35 PM EDT

"Game of Thrones" author George R.R. Martin says his secret weapon in writing the bestselling fantasy novels is an archaic DOS computer.

“Well, I actually like it,” Martin told Conan O’Brien during an appearance on the comedian's talk show. “It does what I want a word processing program to do, and it doesn’t do anything else. I don’t want any help, you know, I hate some of these modern systems where you type a lowercase letter and it becomes a capital — I don’t want a capital. If I’d wanted a capital I would have typed a capital. I know how to work the shift key.”

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The software also doesn’t include spell check, which would be a nuisance with the words of Martin’s fantasy realm.

Martin’s WordStar 4.0 was released in 1987 and runs on the MS-DOS operating system, according to the International Business Times.

Martin is working on the sixth book in the "Game of Thrones" series, “The Winds of Winter.” “A Dance with Dragons” was released in 2011.

Martin said he has a second computer for browsing the Internet and checking email. He first revealed his writing tool of choice in 2011, when he called it it the "Duesenberg of word-processing software (very old, but unsurpassed)," referring to the long-since dead American car manufacturer.

The archaic computer also protects against viruses and hacking.

Twitter users reacted with amusement.







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TheWire
"Game of Thrones" author George R.R. Martin says his secret weapon in writing the bestselling fantasy novels is an archaic DOS computer.
game of thrones, dos, computer, author
328
2014-35-14
Wednesday, 14 May 2014 03:35 PM
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