February 2, 2026
Retro bytes, spicy fights
Carnegie Mellon Unversity Computer Club FTP Server
CMU’s old-school file vault sparks nostalgia vs “why in 2026”
TLDR: CMU’s Computer Club still runs an old-school FTP mirror, refreshing open-source and retro files every six hours. Comments clash over relevance in 2026, with nostalgia hunters praising rare MP3s and jokesters spamming an endless “ubuntu/ubuntu/ubuntu” link.
Carnegie Mellon’s Computer Club just reminded the internet that retro isn’t dead: their old-school FTP (a simple way to share files) mirror is humming along, refreshing every 6 hours with goodies like GNU tools, Ubuntu installers, Knoppix CDs, Amiga’s Aminet, scene.org demos, and the High Voltage SID Collection. Cue the comment brawl. One pragmatist asks, “Why is this noteworthy in 2026?” while another drops the bare ftp link like it’s a secret door. A third flexes comedy with an endless tunnel of ubuntu/ubuntu/ubuntu so long you’ll need a snack, and the nostalgia squad points at core‑mp3s as time capsules.
The page itself leans full retro—ASCII art banner, export-law legalese about cryptography, and even a spicy note about a scene.org demo pulled years ago after an antivirus warning, which rekindles the eternal debate: preservation vs overzealous filters. Fans cheer the university for keeping the “old internet” accessible; skeptics roll eyes and say we’ve moved on. But the vibe is clear: this mirror is a museum where the exhibits still work. Whether you’re chasing Commodore 64 chip tunes, Ubuntu ISOs, or just the thrill of clicking a raw directory listing, the community is here for the drama—and the downloads.
Key Points
- •The Carnegie Mellon University Computer Club hosts an FTP mirror service with directories including gnu, ubuntu, knoppix, and zeroshell.
- •Mirrors update on a six-hour interval and cover resources such as GNU, Ubuntu (including ISOs), Knoppix (CD/DVD), Aminet, scene.org, the Debian archive, and Zeroshell.
- •Requests for additional mirrors are considered based on relevance and disk space; inquiries can be sent to gripe@club.cc.cmu.edu.
- •A scene.org file was removed on 2015-11-17 after being flagged as malware by a commercial antivirus vendor, affecting the andrew.cmu.edu domain rating.
- •The site includes a legal notice stating cryptographic software may be exported under License Exception TSU per 15 C.F.R. § 740.13(e), with guidance to consult the Bureau of Industry and Security.