Without addressing anything you have put here (sorry), I think this addresses the big picture:
“Capitalism’s grow-or-die imperative stands radically at odds with ecology’s imperative of interdependence and limit. The two imperatives can no longer coexist with each other; nor can any society founded on the myth that they can be reconciled hope to survive. Either we will establish an ecological society or society will go under for everyone, irrespective of his or her status.” – Ursula K. Le Guin
Awesome. I never used the Altair, but a friends father had one which we were not allowed to go near. A couple years later we did manage to get access to an IMSAI 8080 running IMDOS. Not long after, the TRS-80 came out, and became the foundational experience that got me hooked on computers, and was the reason I spent a lot of time lurking around Radio Shacks, haha.
Then my school bought three 4k TRS-80 Model III units, where I learned to make my own double sided floppies and write code.
Those were good times, indeed, compared to today. I don't really relate to most of the modern tech world, despite having been an eager witness to the forefront of it throughout my youth. There's no allure left for me in this techno-fascist reality we now inhabit. These days, I spend much of my free time growing vegetables and planting trees instead, which takes the edge off the frustration and disappointment. I like to think of myself as my own meta-assembler within the framework of ecology.