Animator-Pro

There is a binary of the original 1989 Animator (but compiled around 2010 from BSD-licensed source code I think) here if you want to try it: https://github.com/AnimatorPro/Animator-Pro/tree/f5ed3/bin/d... I am sure it is possible to find the Pro version somewhere, but I have not seen a build yet based on the published source code. Pro supported SVGA graphics and had a built-in scripting language, so should be more useful in practice, especially with access to the source code for modifying it (if/when someone figures out how to build it). There have been some attempts to port it to modern platforms, but not sure how that went.

Not just a modern application with a retro gaming aesthetic, but this year I got heavily into using (ex-Autodesk, now open source) Animator as my programmer art application of choice. Actual 16-bit software. https://github.com/AnimatorPro/ https://github.com/AnimatorPro/Animator-Pro/tree/f5ed37135ad... Fun restrictions to work with/around and it has some fun features too. Running in DOS also makes it run everywhere, including on my phone. Would be happy to use more old DOS software, but I just have not found more that seemed as useful (maybe VGAPaint 386 for a different paint app?). No constant (forced) upgrades to keep up with. I can compromise a lot with features if it means that I can spend years/decades on mastering a tool instead of just barely keeping up with how the latest version works. (Guess that is why I always liked Emacs so m

I like to start up Dosbox-X or one of the virtual Amiga environments that comes bundled with Amiga forever. Definitely cozy. More often I use some old application, like the nowadays BSD-licensed ex-Autodesk Animator. It is fun to figure it out and more fun than modern applications in many ways. I even bought an old used book about it and read cover to cover. Limited compared to modern graphics software, but "cozy" is a great way to describe the experience. https://github.com/AnimatorPro/Animator-Pro

I took the time a few years ago to learn a bit about how to use Autodesk Animator (it was released with a BSD license some ~10 years ago and can be downloaded legally for free these days). Was really impressed with the GUI. Just press a single key to open the menu that begins with that letter, then the first letter of the menu-item you want to use. They managed to use only words that begin with unique letters while still making a lot of sense. Plus some other single-key shortcuts. And many, to me, unusual design choices everywhere, but it all makes sense and is consistent in a way that after a few hours I was not bothered at all by the fact that nothing was like a modern GUI, and there was definitely nothing about using more modern GUI conventions I can think of that would make it more pleasant to work with. https://github.com/AnimatorPro

https://github.com/AnimatorPro/Animator-Pro Direct descendant (by Jim Kent) of Cyber-Paint on the AtariST. Also Tom Hudson of CAD-3D went on to AutoDesk with 3D Studio.