Major_Tom_coming_home

I was wondering if anyone has tried both the AtarI Flashback Portable 2016 and 2017 models? Is it worth an upgrade? Is the Rom capability any better? How about the screen and form factor? etc. Thanks much!

Just wanted to come here and say for no real reason that I am a Yank who has been educated about 1980's British Microcomputers by Kim Justice, The Nostalgia Nerd, and many more. The Spectrum on paper is not well suited to games but that never stopped them from being made in huge quantities. While Nintendo had their boot on the throat of our video game market, British gamers had all kinds of gaming options with Sinclair, Dragon 32, Oric, Amistrad, Amiga, Atari XL, C64, etc. etc. etc. We had a monopoly that crushed all competition and did things we would today consider illegal. Gaming in the 1980's on the other side of the pond must have been very interesting experience. If not for all the Voltage and video signal incompatibilities I'd import a 128 but emulation is the only practical options. I wonder what would have happened (assuming it was technically possible) if the North American market received a Spectrum 100% compatible with the UK Spectrum and was sold by our big retailers of the day: Sears, Kmart, Wal-Mart, Woolworth etc. Sir Clive may have made Bill Gates amounts of money. An newly released NES game was $50 while a Spectrum game I'm thinking was $10-$15 in USD assuming it wasn't pirated for free.

I took a computer class in 8th grade and we used these machines. I'm dating myself but not as badly as it sounds - it was around 1989 or 1990 and even then they were ancient. We did some learning but mostly played video games of course. There was a very good lunar lander clone. Sadly, even if I get the one I got today working it doesn't have disk drives and cassette would be my only option. Realistically though, this was a business computer back in the day and today probably best at being a display piece...But I'd still try to hunt down the lunar lander game on cassette.

Bought a TRS-80 Model III for $15 at a yard sale today (the monochrome all-in-one, not the COCO). I can see a brief faint flicker when I turn it on but nothing displays. I did manage to get it to the cass? command prompt once but lost it after a few minutes. When I turn it off I see the display powering down (a vertical line and then a point of light that fades out - I think this is normal for this model of computer.) I've tried playing with the brightness dials and booting it up with the break button held down but that did not help. I'm thinking it probably needs capacitors to be replaced - likely on the power supply. Does anyone have suggestions about what the problem may be, and where I might be able to get replacement parts? To be honest, I'd like to get the thing working if doing so is economical and to give myself some practice replacing capacitors on a machine that isn't worth much, but if that isn't possible I wouldn't mind using it as a display piece or passing it along as a fixer upper to someone who is more into this type of computer. I've played games on this model of computer back in the day, but it isn't exactly a Vic-20, Apple II, or Amiga. Just an interesting curiosity.

Thanks, I just purchased the drive you linked to. Do I need anything like cables, scsi terminator, etc. to get it working? It's going to be installed in place of the original hard drive that was removed.

would this be the drive I need (along with some kind of adapter I assume). My concern is that I don't think my SE can run 7.6 but presumably I can reformat it? Thanks http://www.ebay.com/itm/800MB-Apple-Int-HARD-DISK-DRIVE-for-Mac-OS-7-6-Centris-Quadra-Mac-LC-580-LC-630-/282678426039?hash=item41d0f279b7:g:cYoAAOSwrFJZxV6v

I do have a Power Mac G4, would that allow me to patch the necessary software? Could the hardrive from a G4 be installed in the SE? If so, what kind of scsi adapter would be required?

Would a HD from a Power Mac G4 Work? If so, what kind of Adapter do I need to install it in a SE?

I recently picked up a functional tested working Macintosh SE on Ebay for $60 shipped. It does not have a hard drive, and I would like to add one using the cheapest method possible (it's only a $60 computer after all). On youtube the 8-Bit guy tried to install an SD to SCSI adapter on the exact same model but he couldn't get it to work. 20 Megabyte 50 pin Apple SCSI drives are stupid expensive for what you get. 80 pin SCSI drives don't seem to work with an adapter, but what about a 50 to 68 pin adapter along with a SCSI 68 pin HDD? I'm linking the adapter and HD I'm looking at as well as the Ebay auction for the computer. Any other advice about installing / formatting the hard drive and installing an OS (which I don't have) would be greatly appreciated, thanks. Adapter I am looking at: http://www.ebay.com/itm/50-Pin-Female-to-68-Pin-Female-Internal-SCSI-Adapter-NEW-/232491126550?hash=item36218d0f16:g:GZIAAOSwAydZvf8C 68 pin hard drive to use with 50 pin adapter - would it work???: http://www.ebay.com/itm/50-Pin-Female-to-68-Pin-Female-Internal-SCSI-Adapter-NEW-/232491126550?hash=item36218d0f16:g:GZIAAOSwAydZvf8C This is the SE I bought from Ebay: http://www.ebay.com/itm/1988-Apple-Macintosh-SE-M5011-working-computer-HD-not-included/122733012365?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649

I recently picked up a IIc (my first vintage Apple system) and have been doing a bit of research on some of the slightly more recent models of Apple computers, to figure out whether or not I wanted to get into them or not. It seems like Apple's product lines from the late 1980s and into the 1990s were convoluted to say the least, with the Apple II family and Macintosh family running concurrently into the 1990s. I was wondering how the game libraries of the GS and Macintosh (Quadra, LC, etc.) compare to each other as far as quality and quantity. I'm thinking most games available for Macintosh circa 1990 were probably PC ports since Dos/,Wintel then had a larger market share. On the other hand, I would guess that GS games would tend to be more exclusive and numerous considering the popularity of the Apple II line at the time. Thanks for any insights!

Thanks, Now that I have electricity and internet after Irma passed by I've joined the group

You may already know about this game, but the one everyone remembers from the COCO2 is Dungeons of Daggorath. The gameplay is ancient, the graphics are primitive, and reading directions is mandatory, but in my opinion the atmosphere, minimalism, and sound of Dungeons of Daggorath makes anything from the Resident Evil or Silent Hill series look like a Spongebob Squarepants episodes.

Using the same family of computers for that long must have been a great experience. On paper that's comparable to me using PCs from 1994 to present day, but the Wintel platform is so ubiquitous and de-facto computer platform that is kind of like saying "I've used electric stoves since 1994".

I'll have to get a copy of this book at some point. What I really like about it is that it is a modern book (2012) that documents and provides instruction a computer that hasn't been made for about 25 years. This is the first time I have ever seen anything like it.

I know exactly what you mean. I admittedly don't have nostalgia for any vintage Apple Computer model and can therefore base my decisions soley on capabilities and price. I do have nostalgia for the Tandy Color Computer II but not for the Color Computer III. The II happens to be much less expensive and more common than the III, so in my case nostalgia saved me a lot of money :-)

Thanks, I'll check it out!

AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!! I'll have to check but I think my imac has 9.x. When I think about it it is kind of funny that I would be using an Apple computer to emulate another apple computer. Assuming there is a good Windows GS emulator it would be the same as using an 9.x on paper, but doing what you suggest will basically turn my Imac into a GS. If it works well and has close to the same functionality, I could save a lot of money by skipping the real thing and pretending my I-Mac is a real GS - THANKS!!!!

Thanks for the info, your post was indeed very helpful. I actually just ended up getting a nice IIe on fleabay. I have to admit that my brain was telling me to get the IIe for expandability and flexibility, but my heart was telling me to get the IIc because I love the design. Now that I have the benefits of the IIe I'll keep an eye out for a fairly priced good condition IIc

UPDATE: I just won an Ebay auction for a tested / working IIe in very nice shape. Comes with 2 floppy drives, monitor, and even a printer for $230 shipped. I'll swap in the enhanced chipset for $25 and then good to go. I plan to get the IIc in the future and maybe a GS if the price is right. For my next acquisition, however, I'd like to get a Macintosh Classic or something similar in the Mac Family since I can check the 'Apple II Family" box on my want list. :-) As a side note / interesting observation - I'm sure I probably could have gotten a much better deal even just a few years ago. Old video games and computers have become more in demand as collectibles as of late with people such as myself getting on the bandwagon thanks to Atari Age, Youtube, etc. I've always had an interest in old computers - especially ones I grew up with - but it has only been recently that I have been obtaining them. Thanks to websites such as Atari and Youtube people have become more interested in these relics. Personally, I started obtaining vintage computers because I'm curious and want to experience these machines I've always heard of but never owned or even experienced. There weren't many kids or adults back in the day who simultaneously owned a Vic-20, C64, Apple II, TI-99, Tandy Color Computer, PC, Atari 800xl, Amiga 1200, and Aquarius at the same time but over the course of the past 3-4 years I've obtained all these (the only yard sale find was the Amiga for 1200, otherwise it would be outside my price range). These days, even though these machines are collectible they still only cost a small fraction of their original price and ordinary middle class folks like myself can get them. The prices have been going up, but the communities supporting these machines has grown and they are more respected for their place in history.

I have a theory that for senior citizens and people afraid to use computers something like an Apple II is a great way for them to experience computers. A modern OS is a complicated piece of software with lots of icons to click on and multiple ways to do anything. It's basically a huge open world with dragons, unicorns, and wizards. With old computers, for the most part you can only do one thing at a time and you can read, follow, and memorize the step by step instructions that do the same thing every time. It's a yellow brick oz road you can follow without getting lost.

I have that kind of nostalgia too. I have no reason to have the Atari 400/800xl/XEGS other than the fact they are 'cool'.

I'll keep this in mind. Would an Amiga 1200 monitor work an Apple II? I already own one of those.

I'm thinking the IIe is what I will end up with unless I can find a GS on Ebay that isn't price gouged. And yes, I will most likely branch out and get at least the IIc. I have a C64 and 128, Atari 400 800xl XEGS.so it wouldn't be the first time I have bought different versions of the same basic platform. :-)

Thanks for the info. Space is not a concern so I'm probably going to start with a IIe or GS. Then at some later point I'll get a IIc since I love the look and small size. Back in the day we could only have one computer at a time but as adults we can get every Apple / Mac ever made if we can afford it. :-)

I think the LC2 is a bit too modern for my tastes. I have an Imac G3 Slot Loader and a Power Mac G4.. I got the Imac for $15 at a garage sale and the next weekend I got the Powermac G4 for $5 at a different yard sale. Both work. I figure since I already have two late 1990's / early 2000's Apple computers I want to get something from the 1980s.