VisiCalc was great!  That sums it up.

Welcome to Show 022!  This week's topic: VisiCalc - The Killer Application

Topics and links discussed in the podcast...

An Atari 800 laptop?  Believe it!  Brought to you by the hardware genius of Benjamin Heckendorn.
Check out Dan Bricklin's own web site, with info on VisiCalc, and a host of other information!
Thanks to NerdTV for interviewing Dan Bricklin, and for making their show available under a Creative Commons license.

Be sure to send any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com.

For online discussions on Retrobits Podcast topics, check out the Retrobits Podcast forum on the PETSCII Forums page!

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan.

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

Retro is in!  News at 11!

Welcome to Show 021!  This week we cover Assembly Language, the Happy Place for many 8-bit programmers.

Topics and links discussed in the podcast...

More episodes of the C64 Take Away Podcast!  Excellent!

Be sure to send any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com.

For online discussions on Retrobits Podcast topics, check out the Retrobits Podcast forum on the PETSCII Forums page!

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan.

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

These show notes brought to you by the mighty Atari 800.

Welcome to Show 020!  This week: The Bad, The Worse, And The Ugly...

Topics and links discussed in the podcast...

Cyber1.org is a group of people dedicated to the preservation of the world's first computer-based community, PLATO.
Check out this episode of Computer Chronicles: First of a two-part series on on-line services such as CompuServe, the Source and DowJones, featuring Steve Case, at the time VP of Marketing at QuantumLink, and eventual head of AOL.
Ira Goldklang's TRS-80 Revived Site is a great resource for all things TRS-80!
Have a look at MindCandy for a taste of the PC demo scene, and also, coming soon, the Amiga Demo Scene.
RetroGaming Radio is a FREE monthly MP3 radio show spotlighting the greatest era of video gaming.
The Classic Computers of the Past Calendar is a 12 month 2006 wall calendar packed with popular computers from the 1980's!  Sweet!  Makes a great gift for the holidays...
More pictures from the Vintage Computer Festival 8.0 are up!  Retro computing fun and frivolity at it's best.

Be sure to send any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com.

For online discussions on Retrobits Podcast topics, check out the Retrobits Podcast forum on the PETSCII Forums page!

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan.

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

Is it "Zee", or "Zed"?  I am having letter anxiety.

Welcome to Show 019!  This week's topic: The ZX Spectrum +3!

Topics and links discussed in the podcast...

QuantumLink Reloaded was on display at the Vintage Computer Festival 8.0!
There is now a Retrobits Podcast Discussion Forum, courtesy of Jeff Ledger and the PETSCII Forum!  Thanks Jeff!
The World Of Spectrum has a file archive, technical docs, links, and more!
If you want to run a Spectrum emulator straight from your Java-enabled web browser, then Jasper may be just the thing for you.
Have a look at the ZX Spectrum page on Wikipedia.  While you're there, check out links from that page for info on Sinclair Research, and Amstrad.
Planet Sinclair, a site all about Sir Clive Sinclair and his inventions, has a page on the ZX Spectrum +3.
You can always trust Old Computers dot com to have a page on the retro computer you're researching!
The "Your Sinclair Rock'n'Roll" page has the issues of "Your Sinclair" for your online reading enjoyment.

Be sure to send any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com.

For online discussions on Retrobits Podcast topics, check out the Retrobits Podcast forum on the PETSCII Forums page!

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan.

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

[Insert witty retro reference here.]

Welcome to Show 018!  This week's topic: Retro Books and Movies!

Topics and links discussed in the podcast...

Computer Collector Newsletter, a weekly newsletter for vintage computer collectors!
Interesting in buying a ZX81 kit, a ready to build retro computer?  Zebra Systems might just have what you need!
Ah, the sounds of music from 8-bit chips...  Check out Chiptunes on the flat four site!
The Spectacular Rise and Fall of Commodore...I'm picking up my copy this week.

Be sure to send any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com.

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan.

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

Formatting is such sweet sorrow...

Welcome to Show 017!  This week is a Mix and Match - various topics covered, including a sound byte [sic] from Nerd TV!

Topics and links discussed in the podcast...

Some links from Computer Chronicles, the long-running technology show now available on archive.org, including...
The Apple II
The Commodore 64, and
BBSing
A VIC-20 music composition contest using VIC Tracker?  Excellent, I've gotta try to do this...
Here's a nice website for the KIM-1, the first 6502 cpu based computer.
Want to know more about the first ever CPU?  Check out the Intel 4004 page!
Or, you could step forward a couple of years, and learn more about the Z80 from this webpage.
Don't have an Altair?  Join the club!  But you can have an Altair Simulator, a virtual Altair, loaded to the gills, with great software too!
Nerd TV is an Internet video program brought to you weekly by Robert Cringely and PBS.  This episode of the Retrobits Podcast contained audio from Episode 6 of Nerd TV, featuring Dave Winer.

Be sure to send any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com.

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan.

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

No - attaching floppy disks to the filing cabinet with a magnet is not - I repeat, not - a good way to store them.

Welcome to Show 016!  This week we cover Abandonware.

Topics and links discussed in the podcast...

The Retroputing site - preventing the fossilization of classic computers!  Features the Particles BBS.
Wikipedia to the rescue again, with a great article on Abandonware.  Check out the text, and their links.
Check out the official world archive for the Sinclair ZX Spectrum and the largest on-line gaming center on the Internet.  Hats off to Amstrad for officially endorsing this!

Be sure to send any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com.

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan.

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

Double Sided.  Double Density.  Guaranteed.

Welcome to Show 015!  This week's topic: The Bulletin Board System, Part II!

Topics and links discussed in the podcast...

I got my Atari Peripheral Emulator software and CD archive from Atarimax!  Yee hah, Atari madness for me.
I'm learning Atari Player/Missile Graphics in BASIC from the book archive on AtariArchives.org.
Phillip was able to attend the Classic Gaming Expo UK recently - looks like fun!
At that Classic Gaming Expo, a lucky person had a Commodore 65.  Rare retro madness!
Bo Zimmerman hosts one of my favorite Commodore sites.  Chris C. referenced it in a recent e-mail, thanks Chris!
Thurstan linked me over to a video of the Computer History Museum (Link 1) (Link 2), and some chats with various people from back in the day.  I've seen the first few minutes, and can't wait to watch the rest!
Chris O. has a podcast, UK and European gaming news brought to you weekly!
You have GOT to check out the BBS Documentary site.  The software list and history archive are amazing, and will keep you reading for hours.

Be sure to send any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com.

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan.

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

8 bit computers aren't slower.  They're just more relaxed.

Welcome to Show 014!  This week we go "behind the scenes" at Retrobits!

Topics and links discussed in the podcast...

Syndicomm Online members get access to exclusive forums, which include bulletin boards, chat rooms, and file libraries. Membership also includes an email address, personal web site, and optional business features such as DNS service and full-service hosting.
http://www.syndicomm.com

Not much by way of links this week!  Stay tuned for more exciting retro-URLs in the next show!

Be sure to send any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com.

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan.

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

My Commodore 64 boots faster than your P4 @ 3 GHz.  No contest.

Welcome to Show 013!  This week's topic - QuantumLink Reloaded!

Topics and links discussed in the podcast...

Syndicomm Online members get access to exclusive forums, which include bulletin boards, chat rooms, and file libraries. Membership also includes an email address, personal web site, and optional business features such as DNS service and full-service hosting.
http://www.syndicomm.com
Also check out the A2Central website for great Apple II enthusiast information...
www.a2central.com
The QuantumLink Reloaded Site!
www.quantum-link.org
I love Wikipedia.  I really, really do.
www.wikipedia.org
And on Wikipedia, read about QuantumLink...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_Link
...and QuantumLink Reloaded!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_Link_Reloaded

Be sure to send any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com.

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan.

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

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Welcome to show #012!  This week's topic: Emulators versus The Real Thing - The Ultimate Face-off!

Topics and links discussed in the podcast...

Program your 6502 machine in C with the CC65 Compiler!
http://www.cc65.org/
The C64 Take Away Podcast just gets better and better, I loved Episode 013...
http://www.slayradio.org/podcast/
Visit the Lemon website for Commodore 64 forums, game reviews, and fun!
http://www.lemon64.com/
I continue to have great fun with the Atari Peripheral Emulator (APE) software.
http://www.atarimax.com/
The Folklore site is dedicated to historical storytelling.  Right now, it's focused on the development of the Macintosh.  Great reading!
http://www.folklore.org/
Nerd TV - a downloadable TV show on technology hosted by Robert Cringely.
http://www.pbs.org/cringely/nerdtv/
The MESS emulation system - amazing multi-platform, multi-system emulator...
http://www.mess.org/
Check out the Help section of the Emulation Zone to learn more about emulation and how to do it!
http://www.emulator-zone.com/

Be sure to send any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com.

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan.

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

Welcome to show #011, featuring the Atari 800 Home Computer!

Topics and links discussed in the podcast...

Demo Scene, including NTSC stuff for us North American folks...at the Driven site.
The full text of all 88 issues of ANTIC is available at Atari Magazines site.
The Analog project is in progress at Digital Analog archive.
See the Obsolete Technology Website, and make sure to check out the Atari 400/800 page!
As I've come to expect, Wikipedia has a great page on the Atari 8 bit systems.
The Atari Historical Society has a fun site, very colorful...including an Atari 800 page.
Loads of frequently asked goodness can be found at the Atari 8-bit FAQ page.
Atari Times is a fun Atari site with game reviews.
The Atari 8 bit USENET discussion group (can be found on Google Groups) is comp.sys.atari.8bit.
The Atari Peripheral Emulator package, and other Atari 8-bit retail products can be found at AtariMax.

I know I left out some Atari sites!  Sorry, I couldn't fit them all in!  There are so many, and there are sooooo many good ones...

Be sure to send any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com.

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan.

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

Almost to level 5 on Jumpman...what?  I've gotta do my podcast?  Where's that pause button?

Welcome to show #010!  Double digits!  This show is a variety program, followed by a brief recollection of my career as a teenage computer salesperson.

Topics and links discussed in the podcast...

Here's the correct link to Jeff Ledger's Guide to TelBBS!  Thanks Jeff!
E-mails came in from Alan, Thurston, Brian, Mike and Jeff!  Excellent, thanks!  You made my day.
This episode contains a promo for The C64 Take Away Podcast which features C64 remixes and classic SID tunes!
Check out the excellent CP/M programs in the Walnut Creek CDROM contents, online at the retroarchive.org site.
Have a look at Monochrome, a sophisticated, highly interactive, multi user messaging and conferencing system.
The SWRAP's Fall Commodore Expo is coming up in a couple of weeks!
The Atari800WinPlus version 4.0 final release is available.
I had a good customer experience with a product I ordered from Atarimax.

Be sure to send us any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

Aren't you glad you don't have to download this show at 300 baud?

Welcome to show #009!  Today we're focusing on computerized Bulletin Board Systems!

Topics and links discussed in the podcast...

Jeff Ledger's Guide to TelBBS will get you back in the BBS game in no time.  Miss the old BBS days?  They're back...  Be sure to check out the various links from this web page.
The BBS Documentary is one of the finest historical accounts of a computing phenomenon that I've ever seen.  Hats off to Jason Scott, this is a masterpiece.  Many thanks to Jason for licensing his work under Creative Commons, making it possible for us to provide excerpts of his work in today's podcast.
If you see the BBS Documentary and are hungry for more, you're in luck!  Additional footage can be found in the BBS Documentary section on the archive.org website.

Be sure to send us any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

64 bits?  Why, back in my day, we had to push our 8 bit computers uphill, 5 miles, in the snow...

Welcome to show #008!  The star of today's show is the CP/M Operating System.

Topics and links discussed in the podcast...

E-mails came in from Thurstan, Alan, JagMod, Mike, Chuck and Ryan!  Excellent, and fun reading!  Thanks, the e-mails make my day.

Wikipedia has a great entry on CP/M, including technical info and some links.  I am starting to use Wikipedia a lot.
The "Unofficial" CP/M Web Site has lots of technical information, source code and resources for the CP/M operating system.
Gaby’s Homepage for CP/M and Computer History has a wide variety of info on CP/M, and lots of excellent links!
The Computer Chronicles special on Gary Kildall is a must-see.

Be sure to send us any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

AT DT retrobits podcast
CONNECT 9600

Welcome to show #007!  Today's podcast focuses on making the connection between retro computers and modern-day PCs.

Topics and links discussed in the podcast...

E-mails came in from Alan, Ryan and Dave with Libsyn - thanks!  Always great to get e-mails regarding the show.

The C64 Take Away Podcast is, in their words, "Your regular fix of Commodore 64 tunes, remixes, news and whatever takes our fancy. Produced and presented by Jan Lund Thomsen of Remix.Kwed.Org fame".  Also check out the parent site, Slay Radio, for streaming retro remixes at various bandwidths.
Juiced.GS is a quarterly Apple II publication.
The X1541 series of cables connect Commodore computers and disk drives to the parallel port of a standard PC.
The Apple Disk Transfer program lets you take Apple disk images, and using a serial cable and real Apple II, turn those images into real disks!
Good old RS232 serial ports have been around forever, and can hook up the old and new with relative ease.  Here's a site with lots of technical goodness on RS232.
The 64HDD software package, both free and professional versions, allow you to turn a DOS-based PC into a floppy and hard drive emulator for Commodore computers.
The Star Commander is a DOS shell program that can handle C64 disk formats, and permits copying of files and disk images to a Commodore drive connected with one of the X cables.
The SIO2PC cable connects Atari computers to a PC.  The PC can emulate storage, printers, and more.
The Catweasel series of disk controllers are used in modern PCs, and can make your 3.5 and 5.25 drives capable of reading and writing foreign disk formats for retro computer systems.  Information on various Catweasel models is available at the Individual Computers site.

Be sure to send us any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

Who says 128K of RAM isn't enough?

This is show #006!  Today's podcast focuses on the Commodore 128 computer, a wonderful example of advanced 8-bit technology.

As always, here are the links discussed in the podcast...

The Lamp and other Apple II publications are available at A2Central.  The parent site is definitely worth checking out as well!
Want to see great pictures of retro computers, including many international models?  Have a look at the Home Computer Museum.
Do a Google search for the C64 DTV - a cute little joystick with the brains of a Commodore 64!
You can purchase GEOS and related applications at the cmdrkey.com website.  They sell hardware and software for Commodore systems, including the CMD line of peripherals.
The commodore.ca site has a great page on the Commodore 128.
Find out about the C65, an 8-bit that never saw daylight (except in prototypes) at the Secret Weapons of Commodore.
Good pictures and good information can be found at the Old Computers page for the C128.
VICE emulates the C128 (and many other Commodore systems).

Be sure to send us any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

A List of My Computers

A side note...here are the computers in my personal collection, in no particular order...

Commodore...
Vic-20
C64
C64c
SX-64
C16
Plus/4
C128 (flat model)
C128DCR

Apple IIe (enhanced, non-platinum model)
HP 41CX (programmable calculator)
TRS-80 Model 1
Timex/Sinclair 1500
Tandy MC-10 micro color computer
TI 99/4A
Atari 800
Atari 400
IBM Portable 5155
Apple Macintosh SE/30

And that's it! Wow, it's a wonder I have room to breathe :-)

Hello, lovers of computers old and new...

This is show #005!  Thanks for sticking around - hope you enjoy the program.

In addition to covering your e-mails and some interesting links, this show discusses a couple of my favorite (even older than show #003) computer languages, Fortran and COBOL.  If you'd like to dust off your old programs and give them a whirl, have a look at the links below!

Braeburn provides articles about the history of computing and technology in general.  They have a recent article on the history of the Apple Lisa.
The Replica I, a replica of the original Apple I computer!
The Retrocomputing 2005 challenge - test your retrocomputing abilities...
DOSBox is an environment to run older DOS games (and other programs) on modern systems and operating systems.
Tiny COBOL is a modern COBOL compiler that is open-source.
Salford FTN95 is a modern Fortran 95 compiler for Windows (with .NET support!).

Be sure to send us any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

Hi there everybody!

Show #4 - We're on a roll...

This episode of the Retrobits Podcast is a grab bag.  There are several things I wanted to talk about, none of which would make up a central theme, so this show is "potpourri".  Here are the URLs referenced in the show:

The Denial website/forum focuses on the VIC-20.  Missed this one during the VIC-20 show (#001).  Thanks to folks for pointing out this great resource!
Computer Chronicles, a television program that ran from the 80s until the late nineties, is available for download and/or viewing at the archive.org website.  It is really fun to watch these shows in our modern day context...
BBSMates is a website dedicated to online bulletin board systems (BBSes).  It has a searchable database of over 75,000 systems, from the 80s to modern day!
Classic Gaming Expo is an event dedicated to "the people, systems and games of yesteryear".
DigitalPress covers a wide spectrum of retro gaming.
The UCSD P-System is a computing environment from days gone by.  It's most famous component was the Pascal compiler.  There was a reunion of some of the original folks that developed it, and they made videos, which are available for download and viewing.
Fire In the Valley is a must-read book for those interested in the history of personal computing.  I will do a full book review in a subsequent podcast.  For now, if you've got some reading time to kill, run, don't walk, to buy this book.  I have read it twice, and will be reading it again soon.  You can get it on Amazon, among other places.
Also coming soon, a book on the rise and fall of Commodore.  I've noticed this book actively promoted in vintage computer settings, like the USENET groups.  It's not out yet, expected to go to press pretty soon.  Some impromptu reviews from some famous names in the Commodore fan realm have seen chapters, and they stated they like what they saw.  Even though it's kind of pricey for a casual read, I'll probably get it, given my long-term interest in Commodore, and the lack of historical information about the company.

Be sure to send us any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

Greetings, Retrocomputing Fans!

Happy to have you here for show #3!

This episode of the Retrobits Podcast focuses on a couple of popular languages from the 80s, and open-source languages in active development that carry on and extend the legacy of those languages.  Here are some of the URLs referenced in the show:

The magazine New Scientist had a great article on vintage computing.
Blake Patterson scribes the Byte Cellar Blog on retro computing.  Interesting stuff, and a very well-decorated retro room!
The Vintage Computer Festival is an international event that celebrates the history of computing. It's a show for retrocomputing! I'm hoping to go to the 8.0 event in November 2005.
The Computer History Museum is home to one of the largest collections of computing artifacts in the world.
Borland maintains a Museum where old version of the Turbo languages can be downloaded.
The Free Pascal project carries on Turbo Pascal and Delphi compatible legacy today.
The xHarbour project provides an extended xBase compiler.

Be sure to send us any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

Hello again!

Glad to have you back for show #2!

This episode of the Retrobits Podcast centers on the high-level view of vintage computing.  We talk about why people like retrocomputing, and how folks participate in the hobby.  Some specific websites and resources are discussed, and here is some follow-up information:

The Contiki OS is a full-fledged operating system, TCP/IP stack, and web browser designed for memory-constrained systems. It's an interesting look at the way people are stretching smaller/older technology.
Google Groups is a cool place to become familiar with USENET, or Internet News. comp.sys.cbm, comp.sys.apple2, and comp.sys.atari.8bit are some of the groups I have been reading recently. Watch out - conversations can get a little, shall we say, colorful? But the info is truly great.
The Vintage Computer Festival is an international event that celebrates the history of computing. It's a show for retrocomputing! I'm hoping to go to the 8.0 event in November 2005.
The Atari Archives site is one of the places archiving and making available reference material from the vintage days. Mostly Atari, but some general purpose reading. It's a great site.
You can Telnet to thecafe.dtdns.net, on port 8888, for Internet-based access to a real BBS! Many other such systems exist.

Be sure to send us any comments, questions or feedback to retrobits@gmail.com

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan

Thanks for listening!

- Earl

Hi there!

Glad to have you aboard.  This is the Blog entry for Show #001, our first effort!  I hope you find the show interesting.

Here are some show notes:

This episode of the Retrobits Podcast focuses on the VIC-20 computer.  The history, technology, and cultural backdrop of the computer is covered.  In addition, several programs and websites are discussed.  Here's a list of the websites referenced in the show:

The VIC-20 site at Old Computers dot Com (Site Home Page)
Rick Melick's VIC-20 Tribute Page
The VIC-20 site at Wikipedia (Site Home Page)
The VIC Tracker Synthesizer
The Star Commander software package
Commodore Key Dot Com (hardware)
VICE (Commodore Emulator)

Our Theme Song is "Sweet" from the "Re-Think" album by Galigan

Please leave comments on this blog entry if you have any suggestions for the show, or if there's anything at all you'd like to let me know!

Thanks for reading, and listening...

- Earl