Bill Loguidice Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 Still, as you point out, even with the challenges, there are good development tools available today and a small, but very strong homebrew scene. I wouldn't call it "strong", but I would certainly call it dedicated. I don't know, I think the homebrew community is right up there. Obviously first is the Atari 2600, then a solid second is the Vectrex. I judge it more on quality than quantity, and certainly the commercial homebrew stuff that's been made for the ColecoVision has been top-notch, particularly over the past two to three years. I think a big part of that is the bump the ColecoVision gets from the MSX community, where certain architectural elements are similar and almost simultaneous development is possible (it's too bad the TI-99/4a can't get a similar boost or even that more Adam-specific stuff has not been developed). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Loguidice Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 If I can locate them, I'd be happy to share the images I've acquired over the years. It's definitely easier to get the cartridge images, but I do have a decent collection of disk and tape images. I also have the instructions for doing the transfer from a PC to an Adam, but have yet to try them. They seemed a bit complex, but in theory it's workable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
else Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 (edited) I ended up mostly playing with the super games and my collection of CV carts, and using SmartWRITER to write up all kinds of documents. You must have known about the SmartWRITER "1 blank line on the screen prints out 1 1/2 blank lines on the printer" bug and the work around for it then. I still can't believe to this day that Coleco never bothered to fix such a glaring bug. I mean this bug makes SmartWRITER all but unusable unless you know how to get around it. It makes me wonder how many people actually used SmartWRITER to write ANYTHING! I like Coleco a lot, but this was inexcusable.... Edited September 8, 2006 by else Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Loguidice Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 There were actually several ROM updates for SmartWriter, turning it into something much better than originally released (unfortunately, few got to upgrade). Still, even without it, despite the bugginess (lots of lock-ups and crashes), the heart of the system was the quality output of the printer, which was obviously superior to dot matrix systems at the time, when "letter quality" actually had meaning... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
else Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 (edited) There were actually several ROM updates for SmartWriter, turning it into something much better than originally released (unfortunately, few got to upgrade). Yep, but this bug is there -- right up through the last rev (Rev 80). Coleco never fixed it..... What good is a letter quality printer if the darn word processor screws up your printout!!! I always thought SmartBASIC was all but unusable too. I remember the bug were every time you listed your program it would insert extra spaces in you code. After a few listings, your code was all goofed up. Another bug that Coleco never fixed.... Edited September 8, 2006 by else Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 We were trying to figure out before if the ADAM can be powered by the CV's power supply. We know you can use an atx PC power supply.The CV's power supply can indeed be used to power the Adam's memory console (the one that doesn't require a CV attached, that is) because I have two such power supplies modified for just that purpose, and they work just fine. The black power block is the same, but the custom CV female plug is replaced with a standard 9-pin female plug. I also had doubledown add an on-off switch on the cable. One problem that I have is that the 9-pin plug is encased in a plastic case that prevents the plug from connecting into the Adam. You either have to chip a piece of plastic off the memory console, above the power connector (not recommended, although one of my memory consoles is altered like that), or simply remove the plastic casing around the 9-pin plug. The modded power supply powers the CV cartridge slot, but you can also press the computer reset switch and use SmartWRITER, and the keyboard works too! The data pack drives are offline, and you obviously can't print anything. Still, it kinda cool. One thing I'd like to know is whether a standard CV cart could access the Adam's 64K of RAM under this setup, or even under the regular power-from-printer setup... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Brasky Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 I noticed on the ADAM boards I have here, a surprising amount of eeproms. They must've been constantly making changes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuckwalla Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 I think many of us who are classic video game and computer collectors/enthusiasts would love to get a complete ADAM setup. Nostalgia is the first reason that comes to mind especially for those of us who are old enough to remember growing up in the early to mid '80s when home gaming and computing was blossoming (watching all those awesome commercials and being captivated by the magical marketing and cool artwork on console and game boxes, etc.). I agree it makes you think twice or more when you see the occassional MIB immaculate ADAM system on ebay, but with extremely limited hardware and software supplies, not to mention having to go through the pains of creating a new workstation (which for many of us is more a labor of love), the final result in usually to just pass it up. The potential of the ADAM was incredible (along with quite a number of other consoles and computers in those days as we all know well). You see the enormous potential of the Colecovision in its carts alone (Galaxian, Frenzy, Frogger, Qbert's Qubes, Turbo, Wargames, etc.). Plenty of bad business decisions industry-wide back then which sucked for us ultimately. BTW, I totally agree with the quality difference between the Colecovision and the ADAM (I have the beige game console with A/V hookup). The bottom line is that if you're a hardcore Coleco fan with that insatiable nostalgia for the system and its uniqueness, have the available space, and are willing to spend the time and money for largely rare hardware and software, then go for it! That's my $.02 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 You must have known about the SmartWRITER "1 blank line on the screen prints out 1 1/2 blank lines on the printer" bug and the work around for it then. I still can't believe to this day that Coleco never bothered to fix such a glaring bug. I mean this bug makes SmartWRITER all but unusable unless you know how to get around it. It makes me wonder how many people actually used SmartWRITER to write ANYTHING! I like Coleco a lot, but this was inexcusable.... That was a bug? I always figured the printer just spaced-out the lines of text to avoid mess-ups with superscript or subscript text as much as possible. Anyhow, this "bug" certainly never bothered me, but I was a kid back then, so I didn't notice this kind of thing, let alone complained about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Brasky Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 I think many of us who are classic video game and computer collectors/enthusiasts would love to get a complete ADAM setup. Nostalgia is the first reason that comes to mind especially for those of us who are old enough to remember growing up in the early to mid '80s when home gaming and computing was blossoming (watching all those awesome commercials and being captivated by the magical marketing and cool artwork on console and game boxes, etc.). I agree it makes you think twice or more when you see the occassional MIB immaculate ADAM system on ebay, but with extremely limited hardware and software supplies, not to mention having to go through the pains of creating a new workstation (which for many of us is more a labor of love), the final result in usually to just pass it up. The potential of the ADAM was incredible (along with quite a number of other consoles and computers in those days as we all know well). You see the enormous potential of the Colecovision in its carts alone (Galaxian, Frenzy, Frogger, Qbert's Qubes, Turbo, Wargames, etc.). Plenty of bad business decisions industry-wide back then which sucked for us ultimately. BTW, I totally agree with the quality difference between the Colecovision and the ADAM (I have the beige game console with A/V hookup). The bottom line is that if you're a hardcore Coleco fan with that insatiable nostalgia for the system and its uniqueness, have the available space, and are willing to spend the time and money for largely rare hardware and software, then go for it! That's my $.02 I don't know why so many here talk like it's hard to find an ADAM when they're all over ebay, all the time. I think it's funny though how people have this aversion to the ADAM or computers over consoles and are willing to pay $200 for a modded CV with A/v out but won't pay even $5 for an ADAM with A/V out built-in. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
else Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 (edited) That was a bug? I always figured the printer just spaced-out the lines of text to avoid mess-ups with superscript or subscript text as much as possible. Anyhow, this "bug" certainly never bothered me, but I was a kid back then, so I didn't notice this kind of thing, let alone complained about it. Oh yea, a big-time bug. And as a result, if you used fan-fold paper within a few pages your text would be all out of whack with where the perferations were on the paper. Ah, just talking about fan-fold paper takes me back...but I digress. Anyhow, the fix was to get rid of all the blank lines in your document by typing a CONTROL-6 on them. This would put a character on the line in your document, but it was a character that the printer was incapable of printing -- so it ignored it. Before the CONTROL-6 workaround was found, people would break off one of the seldom used characters on the daisy wheel, such as the "\" and then type that on their blank lines. The fact that they never fixed such an obvious bug really makes me question if Coleco ever took the ADAM seriously. Or maybe all Coleco's employees were too busy jumping ship at the time.... Edited September 9, 2006 by else 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Loguidice Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 I don't know why so many here talk like it's hard to find an ADAM when they're all over ebay, all the time. I think it's funny though how people have this aversion to the ADAM or computers over consoles and are willing to pay $200 for a modded CV with A/v out but won't pay even $5 for an ADAM with A/V out built-in. Again, I'm an Adam owner many times over, but there's a huge footprint difference between an Adam and a ColecoVision, as well as a huge maintenance difference. It's also unfortunate that the supply of modded power supplies to run Adam's without the printer are no longer available (and I don't mean the hack to just use the cartridge port). So while I personally don't practice the "pay more" for a ColecoVision (which I have one of too, of course) versus an Adam thing, I can totally understand the relative portability aspects of it all. I also think it's silly to mod for A/V, as an F type coax adapter does a good enough job cutting down on interference, particularly when the cable is looped once. Still, it's hard to argue with that kind of passion and hard to say that those particularly people would really be better off with the Adam (and yes, it is readily available). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
else Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 (edited) There's other, lesser things that Coleco shouldn't have done too. Ever wonder why the power supply for the Adam is SO huge? Because Coleco went with an older, bulkier (but cheaper) "linear" power supply, when everyone else was moving to the new, smaller (but more expensive) "switching" power supplies that Steve Wozniak had invented over at Apple. Had they gone with a switching power supply, they probably could have cut the size and weight of the printer in half. But Coleco was trying to shave cost any way they could.... Edited September 9, 2006 by else Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Psionic Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 There's other, lesser things that Coleco shouldn't have done too. Ever wonder why the power supply for the Adam is SO huge? Because Coleco went with an older, bulkier (but cheaper) "linear" power supply, when everyone else was moving to the new, smaller (but more expensive) "switching" power supplies that Steve Wozniak had invented while at Apple. Coleco tried to cut soooooo many corners in the name of making it cheap.... I'm guessing that's why the ColecoVision power supply was so big as well? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 And if you used fan-fold paper, within a few pages of printing your text would be all out of whack with where the perferations were on the paper. Ah, just talking about fan-fold paper takes me back...but I digress. You put fan-fold paper in your Adam printer? I always used standard 8.5x11 sheets and the mechanism that held the paper in place was so cheap that many times the paper would move slightly sideways while the printer was hammering away! Oh the memories THAT brings back... Suffice it to say I NEVER would have put fan-fold in there! Anyhow, the fix was to get rid of all the blank lines in your document by typing a CONTROL-6 on them. This would put a character on the line in your document, but it was a character that the printer was incapable of printing -- so it ignored it. Before the CONTROL-6 workaround was found, people would break off one of the seldom used characters on the daisy wheel, such as the "\" and then type that on their blank lines. Thanks for the tip. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
else Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 I'm guessing that's why the ColecoVision power supply was so big as well? Never taken one apart, but I would assume it's a linear-style as well. The other reason it's so big is that the Colecovision requires three voltages (+5, +12, and -5 if I recall). Contrast that with the Atari 2600, which just needs one voltage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
else Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 (edited) You put fan-fold paper in your Adam printer? I always used standard 8.5x11 sheets and the mechanism that held the paper in place was so cheap that many times the paper would move slightly sideways while the printer was hammering away! Yea, that's another problem with the ADAM, isn't it. It sucks that the promised "tractor feed" never saw the light of day to rectify the problem..... Thanks for the tip. If you've got your ADAM handy, give it a try. You'll wonder how you ever got by without it. Not that anybody uses SmartWRITER anymore for anything.... Edited September 8, 2006 by else Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inky Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 If I can locate them, I'd be happy to share the images I've acquired over the years. It's definitely easier to get the cartridge images, but I do have a decent collection of disk and tape images. I also have the instructions for doing the transfer from a PC to an Adam, but have yet to try them. They seemed a bit complex, but in theory it's workable. Please share the tape / disk images! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted September 8, 2006 Share Posted September 8, 2006 I'm going to have to go through my Adam collection and see what I have. I picked up a large box of ADAM tapes at AGE back in 2003 and never really looked through them. Tempest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rik Posted September 9, 2006 Share Posted September 9, 2006 (edited) The ADAM is A PIECE OF JUNK,ALWAYS WAS,power supply in the printer?what retard thought of that?.I wouldnt want to give myself headaches of owning one,except if it was all complete and working,id keep it for collectors value i guess.A buddy of mine had one back in the day,he SUMMED IT UP IN THREE WORDS,-----------"NOTHIN BUT HEADACHES"Besides,why screw around with an outdated piece of equipment when there's modern pc's and printers out there that out perform the ADAM to infinity.Sorry,but thats how i feel,and each to his/her own also.Thank you! Edited September 9, 2006 by Rik Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
else Posted September 9, 2006 Share Posted September 9, 2006 (edited) By the way, the fact that Coleco named both the word processor and the printer "SmartWRITER" seems like another blunder. What marketing genius thought that giving the same name to two different parts of the computer was a good idea? It means that you can never just say SmartWRITER -- you always have to qualify it with "the printer" or "the word processor" so that people don't get confused as to which one you're talking about. It's a minor screw up to be sure, but another in the long list of screw ups. I really like the ADAM -- but at the same time, it's also pretty easy to see why it failed.... Edited September 9, 2006 by else Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garak Posted September 9, 2006 Share Posted September 9, 2006 (edited) Besides,why screw around with an outdated piece of equipment when there's modern pc's and printers out there that out perform the ADAM to infinity. Outdated equipment? You do realize so is the Atari and various other computers and consoles discussed on this site? So, if you don't like "outdated piece of equipment" why are you on Atariage again? Sorry,but thats how i feel,and each to his/her own also.Thank you! Whatever. Garak Edited September 9, 2006 by Garak 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted September 9, 2006 Share Posted September 9, 2006 Besides,why screw around with an outdated piece of equipment when there's modern pc's and printers out there that out perform the ADAM to infinity. Outdated equipment? You do realize so is the Atari and various other computers and consoles discussed on this site? So, if you don't like "outdated piece of equipment" why are you on Atariage again? That's tellin' him, Garak! Young Ferengis can be so annoying... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
else Posted September 9, 2006 Share Posted September 9, 2006 (edited) I'll point out one more thing about the ADAM, then quit picking on it for a while. It's always bothered me how the Printer and the Memory Console / Keyboard / Disk Drives just don't "match". They were designed at different locations by different groups within Coleco, and it shows. The Printer is very square-ish, with straight sides and sharp edges everywhere around the outside. On the other hand, the Memory Console / Keyboard / Disk Drives have a much more rounded look to them. The Printer has a brown bottom, while the Memory Console and Disk Drives have a brown front. For a bundled system, the components just don't look all that nice together. It's like the two different design groups couldn't settle on a common theme. A consequence of being rushed to the market, I'm sure.... Edited September 9, 2006 by else Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted September 9, 2006 Share Posted September 9, 2006 I'll point out one more thing about the ADAM, then quit picking on it for a while. It's always bothered me how the Printer and the Memory Console / Keyboard / Disk Drives just don't "match". They were designed at different locations by different groups within Coleco, and it shows. The Printer is very square-ish, with straight sides and sharp edges everywhere around the outside. On the other hand, the Memory Console / Keyboard / Disk Drives have a much more rounded look to them. The Printer has a brown bottom, while the Memory Console and Disk Drives have a brown front. For a bundled system, the components just don't look all that nice together. It's like the two different design groups couldn't settle on a common theme. A consequence of being rushed to the market, I'm sure.... I always thought the same thing. It makes the whole package look kludgy. Like they slapped three unrelated pieces of equipment together and called it a computer. Oh wait, that's probably what they did... For what its worth, I always thought the ADAM keyboard was one of the nicest I've ever used. Tempest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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