I am curious, what sparked your interest in retro computers in general?
"Retro" computers were where I started my journey into modern information technology, and I always had a "retro" system around, 15 years ago it was my Amiga, now it's a collection of 6502 based machines.
I am curious, what sparked your interest in retro computers in general?
I started out with 8bit systems when they were cutting edge, and then went into programming at a higher level and then went off into other pursuits, but kept occasionally pencil sketching things to do with my old C64 ... and then found out that what I had been doing back in the 80s was now retro computer programming and was a thing, so I took a look at it.
I am curious, what sparked your interest in retro computers in general?
I've always been interested in how everything actually works, which started as a curiosity but it now feels invaluable as an engineer. I dabbled a bit with x86 assembly on linux which was very helpful for debugging compiled programs and security research but not super enjoyable on its own due to the complexity of modern hardware and operating systems. I tried raw assembly on the Raspberry Pi too but I'm gonna leave RISC assembly to the compilers!
Then I started looking at the "Nerdy Nights" series on assembly programming for the NES and wow, so much more enjoyable. I like being given all the power and that super direct access to the address and data buses, even if I don't accomplish much in the process ?
I've actually been in it since I was a kid. Back in elementary school, my school built a computer lab, filled with Commodore 64 and VIC-20 computers. I spent about half an hour going through the VIC-20 manual, learning to program it... and I was hooked. I came home and begged my parents to buy me a computer. They said no, but I could work for it... and so I spent the next two months earning the money to buy a VIC-20.
That was 1982 - basically the beginning of the home computer revolution. So I've had a computer in my house ever since. I graduated to a Commodore 64, then a 128, and later to a PC running DOS - specifically so I could run Borland Turbo C++, in 1990 or so.
I kind of ignored the 8-bit scene, however, until a few years ago, when mother was cleaning out her storage unit. She brought our family's Commodore 64 to my house... I couldn't get it to work (it had bad RAM), but a few days later, a former co-worker called and said she wanted to give away a Commodore 128... needless to say, I took her up on the offer.
and now I have an Ultimate 64, 64C, 128, Mini PET, Spectrum 128, and a Tandy 102...
I got into retro computing (though it wasn't called retro yet) when my tiny school acquired three Commodore PET 4032 computers and assorted peripherals. A teacher was supposed to start teaching a class the next year but she left for greener pastures and the computers sat in the back of the math classroom for three years. I was often allowed to play with the computers after getting math done and started reading all the manuals that came with them. By the time we had a computer teacher just in time for my senior year I had already gone further than the class would take me after buying my own C64, but at least it was an easy credit!
For me, it is having some of my childhood history preserved. C64, Amiga 500, 486SX33. Working in IT, everything seems complex. I like going back to the 8-bit and 16-bit computers to understand more of what is happening. I have the skills to program and perform electronic repairs on this level of equipment. Also now I can afford computers I/family couldn't. I now have Amiga 1000,500,600,2000,1200 and Commodore 64SX, 128D, and many C64 and disk drives. I am still looking to flesh out my early PC collection.
I had an almost finished project from my university days sitting on some old disks and disk images and, this turned out to be important, as a binary upload on a few ftp sites. I had always wanted to finish it some day, and in the summer 2019 I received a nudge via facebook asking about that project that finally got me to pick it up again. It led to https://github.com/pzembrod/cc64 and my contributions to https://github.com/pzembrod/VolksForth.
I'd previously been more of a fan of the retro videogaming subsection, having grown up beside a number of consoles from Atari, Nintendo, Sega, and Sony. In particular, I own at least one of every generation of Nintendo console, most of which were the original devices I had growing up (I sold the original NES and library as a child, and found the experience both unsatisfying and unprofitable, and I quickly came to regret it -- I have since purchased replacements, though my classic NES games library is still not quite what it once was).
The 8-Bit Guy definitely catalyzed my interest in more general retro computing, however, and I've found his love of the Commodore 64 to be somewhat infectious. It's definitely a part of why I've been interested in the Commander X16.
