Panelists: Michael Mulhern (hosting), Earl Evans, Paul Hagstrom, and Jack Nutting

Host’s Topic: Surprises!

I’m sure we’ve all bought retro machines where we’ve found a little something extra. An unlisted interface card, extra RAM, Floppy in the drive… A mummified mouse hiding behind a power supply!

Retro Computing News:

• SIDtracker64 for iPad
• Ninjaforce NinjaTracker for Apple IIGS
• Commodore – The Amiga Years, the funded Kickstarter
• Amiga 2000 and climate change at the Grand Rapids Public School system
• Retrochallange 2015/7
• Breakthroughs in OCR ca. 1966
  • Details: “The Computer Tutor… or How To Teach Your Computer to Read”
• #CPCRetroDev Game Creation Contest
• TIS-100 game, use assembly language, solve problems, and discover the secrets of the machine
• Can you pilot an Apollo Lunar Mission?
• From Abacus to Smartphone
• Windows 1.01 (starts running at 12:30)
• Earl ports Forth to a C128

Vintage Computer Commercial:

• IBM PC Convertible

Retro Computing Gift Idea:

• 64JPX – JoyPad eXpander

Auction Picks:

• Earl: ATARI 1200XL COMPUTER
• Jack: HP-01 Calculator watch
  • HP-01 at Wikipedia
• Michael: Sharp OZ8000
• Michael: Palm Pilot
• Michael: Sony Clié PEG-NX70V/U
• Paul: Univac 8” drive unit (8406)
• Paul: Oki 8-bit Starter Kit (80C49)

Intro / Closing Song: Back to Oz by John X – link
Show audio files hosted by CyberEars

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Panelists: Jack Nutting (hosting), Earl Evans, Paul Hagstrom, and Carrington Vanston

Host’s Topic: Bugs

Bugs. You’ve seen ‘em. You’ve complained about ‘em. Maybe you’ve even created some yourself. The bugs we encounter on retro systems can seem like a different beast than on modern systems. On the one hand, we typically have no manufacturer offering support for buggy old hardware and software, but on the other hand, the inherently simpler design of older systems gives us a great chance of being able to track down and even fix bugs ourselves.

Retro Computing News:

• Re-engineered: Wizardry III (comp.sys.apple2)
• Model 100 Roomba
• Amiga – a visual compendium
• Dragons Lair on Sinclair ZX81
• American Genius: Steve Jobs vs. Bill Gates
• Commodore – The Amiga Years by Brian Bagnall, uncancelled
• Arduboy – Card Sized Gaming
• the two first two computers in the Netherlands
• Open Apple #47.5: John Brooks v. Matt Ownby
• Confessions of a Tech Nerd: Why I Buy Vintage
• UNIX history on github
  • Github repository for UNIX
• Remembering Amiga

Vintage Computer Commercial:

• Are you keeping up with the Commodore?

Retro Computing Gift Idea:

• Roomba robot kit

Auction Picks:

• Earl: Hewlett Packard HP 85A
• Earl: Franklin Ace 1000
• Jack: Atari Lynx II
• Paul: TRS-80 DVI
• Paul: CoCo set with appliance controller
• Paul: PET bonanza

Intro / Closing Song: Back to Oz by John X – link
Show audio files hosted by CyberEars

Listen/Download:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed