Blast from the Past: I'm a longtime Atari Enthusiast.

This photo is a reminder of when when home computing was in its infancy, a realm of excitement and endless possibilities.

The vibrant red backdrop of the Atari banner sets the stage for the photo of this part of my collection. The logo is a symbol of innovation and the golden age of gaming and home computers.

Front and center, the Atari 130XE computer proudly displays its sleek, grey casing, ready to boot up classic games and educational software. Beside it, the Atari 1050 disk drive, a technological marvel in its day, hints at hours spent loading programs from floppy disks. An Atari 1010 cassette drive sits alongside the 1050 (now we're really talking about hours). Next to it is the Atari 1027 letter quality printer. The iconic Atari Touch Tablet, an early foray into touch-screen technology, lies to the right, inviting creative exploration.

A joystick, its red button poised for action, rests near the keyboard, hinting at countless battles fought in pixelated worlds.

Yeah, I'm a passionate Atari enthusiast, and I've happily preserved these relics of computing history. Countless hours were spent exploring virtual landscapes, writing my first lines of code, and creating digital art on the touch tablet.

It's a snapshot of a bygone era, a reminder of the technological leaps that paved the way for the modern computing world. It evokes a sense of nostalgia in me, reminding me of the joy and wonder of early home computing experiences. This photo is my affirmation of the enduring legacy of Atari and its groundbreaking technology.

#retrocomputing #atari

36 minutes ago

Not-So-Great moments in my computing history.

January, 1981. My first full-fledged computer game programming effort comes to a successful fruition. I had, of course, "programmed" games before that; however, they were either laboriously entered from magazines like COMPUTE!, ANTIC, or A.N.A.L.O.G. or they were simple things done up in the vein of that type of program (not to imply that the magazine programs were simple, just that my efforts were.).

January saw me complete a program that I was quite proud of. It was in Atari 8K BASIC, but it incorporated machine language routines loaded dynamically into Page 6 as needed, display list interrupts, Player Missile graphics (known as "sprites" on other systems), original graphics, "music" and sound effects.

I no longer have the program, so I can't give any screen shots or anything, but it was basically a variation of Space Invaders. The name of this awesome first programming effort?

Save Your Sister From the Alien Sperm!

I am simultaneously proud and shamed.

13149 days ago, I purchased my first computer.

This is four days old now, so technically, it was 13153 days ago.

New item: MOS Technology MOS 6502 tee

Are you a fan of the MOS Technology 6502 or one of the many variants? Atari, Apple, Commodore and many others used this chip in their 8-bit computers. It was also used by consoles such as the Atari 2600 and Nintendo's NES.

I cut my teeth on variants of the 6502. I well remember poking code into page 6 to add machine code to my Atari 8K BASIC programs.  I still have some of my Atari Macro Assembler programs floating around on cassette and 5.25" floppies.

This design is currently on sale for 25% off of the regular price.  It's only $11.99 and bulk discounts are available.  Check it out at:
http://thewitsend.aliboom.com/MOS_6502_tee/p3224001_13871179.aspx

You can also request a special order, if you desire your own color of shirt and ink.