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Commodore Plus 4 and Commodore 16

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing July 29, 2018October 26, 20221980s, amiga, apple, apple ii, atari, Bil Herd, commodore, commodore 128, Commodore 16, commodore 64, commodore vic 20, Dave Haynie, IBM, jack tramiel, loyalists, motorola

Dan Bowman kindly pointed me to former Commodore engineer Bil Herd’s discussion of the ill-fated Commodore TED machines on Hackaday. Here in the States, few remember the TED specifically, but some people may remember that oddball Commodore Plus 4 that closeout companies sold for $79 in 1985 and 1986. The Commodore Plus 4 was one of those TED machines. So was the Commodore 16.

What went wrong with those machines? Commodore miscalculated what the home computer market was doing. The TED was a solution to too many problems, and ended up not solving any of them all that well. Arguably it’s more popular with vintage computer enthusiasts today than it was in the 1980s. Read more

Dave Farquhar

David Farquhar is a computer security professional, entrepreneur, and author. He started his career as a part-time computer technician in 1994, worked his way up to system administrator by 1997, and has specialized in vulnerability management since 2013. He invests in real estate on the side and his hobbies include O gauge trains, baseball cards, and retro computers and video games. A University of Missouri graduate, he holds CISSP and Security+ certifications. He lives in St. Louis with his family.

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Computers in 1985: It was a very good year

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing June 22, 2017May 19, 20201980s, 6502, amiga, AOL, apple, apple ii, atari, atari st, Bill Gates, commodore, commodore 128, commodore 64, Commodore Amiga, compaq, Digital Research, IBM, intel, jack tramiel, macintosh, New Wave, nintendo, quantumlink, radio shack, Steve Jobs, Tandy, tandy 1000, unix, video game

In some ways, 1985 was a really pivotal year for computing. The industry was changing fast, but in 1985, many relics from the past were still present even as we had an eye for the future. Here’s a look back at computers in 1985 and what made that year so interesting.

I think 1985 was interesting in and of itself, but it also made the succeeding years a lot more interesting. A surprising amount of the technology that first appeared in 1985 still has an impact today.

Dave Farquhar

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The Atari 2600 CPU: The MOS 6507

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing May 29, 2017October 1, 20181980s, 6502, amiga, apple, apple ii, atari, atari 2600, Chuck Peddle, commodore, commodore 64, intel, jack tramiel, macintosh, MOS, motorola, NES, nintendo, nintendo nes, radio shack

The Atari 2600 CPU was a nondescript MOS 6507 chip. Neither Intel nor Motorola had a CPU chip in the early 1970s that could meet Atari’s price point. MOS Technology didn’t have one either, but they asked Atari what they could afford. Then they made one.

The 6507 is so nondescript, some of them don’t even have the number “6507” anywhere on them.

Dave Farquhar

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Why Jack Tramiel left Commodore

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing March 17, 2017June 5, 2022amiga, atari, atari st, Bil Herd, CES, commodore, Dave Haynie, Digital Research, irving gould, jack tramiel, motorola, unix

Retro computing fans, especially Commodore and Atari enthusiasts, all know the story. Jack Tramiel left Commodore, the company he founded, in early 1984 at the height of its success. Then, within a few months, he gained control of Commodore rival Atari.

But why?

Dave Farquhar

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Meaning of the word commodore

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing January 24, 2017April 9, 20171980s, 1990s, commodore, jack tramiel

Commodore was a high-flying 1980s computer company that imploded in the early 1990s. But the name is a bit curious. What is the meaning of the word commodore?

Dave Farquhar

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Commodore financial history, 1978-1994

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing September 1, 2016September 12, 20231980s, amiga, Canada, commodore, commodore 64, compaq, interest rates, irving gould, jack tramiel, kmart, markup, Packard Bell

Commodore’s rise and fall are legendary, at least to people like me who grew up using their computers. Putting numbers to that rise and fall was more difficult. I dug up the Commodore financial history from 1978-1994 to help quantify that spectacular rise and fall. Read more

Dave Farquhar

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Irving Gould and Commodore

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing July 28, 2016September 4, 20181980s, 6502, apple, Apple Computer, atari, Canada, commodore, commodore 64, IBM, irving gould, jack tramiel, Mehdi Ali, MOS, stock scam, Texas Instruments, TI

Irving Gould was a Canadian financier and chairman of Commodore International. Although it’s an oversimplification, journalist Robert X. Cringely dismissed the once high-flying computer company, which had 60% of the market in 1984, as Irving Gould’s stock scam.

Gould was a bit of an odd fit to be running a computer company. He knew finance, but admitted in 1988 that he didn’t know how to use a computer.

Dave Farquhar

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The first successful home computer: Commodore VIC-20

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing June 24, 2016April 5, 2024apple, apple ii, CBM, commodore, Commodore 16, jack tramiel

What was the first successful home computer? Some people would argue it was the Apple II, the TRS-80 Model I, or perhaps even the Apple I. But I argue it was Commodore’s VIC-20.

Maybe I’m biased. I was a Commodore fan growing up and my first experience with a computer was probably on a VIC-20. But I think I can make a case.

Dave Farquhar

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Commodore 64 vs VIC-20

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing December 7, 2015October 26, 20221541, 1980s, 6502, amiga, atari, atari st, commodore, commodore 64, jack tramiel, Microsoft Basic, MOS, power brick, public domain

How do you compare the Commodore 64 vs VIC-20?

The Commodore 64 and its predecessor, the VIC-20, look a lot alike, and the VIC-20’s design certainly influenced the 64. The 64 is the best selling computer model of all time, and I argue the VIC-20 was the first really successful home computer. The success of the two machines allowed Commodore to surpass Radio Shack as the sales leader in the computer industry. Yes, both Commodore and Radio Shack outsold Apple.

But even though the two machines are closely related, there are significant differences between them. It’s important to remember that in the 1980s, two years was a comparatively long time because the market was moving so fast. Plus, the VIC-20 was always supposed to be an entry-level machine. In 1982, the 64 was supposed to be fairly high-end. Let’s compare and contrast the two venerable machines.

Dave Farquhar

dfarq.homeip.net

How the Amiga could have lived to age 30 and beyond

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing July 25, 2015February 18, 20171980s, 1990s, amiga, amiga os, apple, atari, Bill Gates, commodore, commodore 128, commodore 64, IBM, intel, irving gould, jack tramiel, macintosh, Mehdi Ali, Microsoft Basic, MOS, motorola, nbc, os x

It was 30 years ago this week that Commodore released its landmark, long-time-coming Amiga 1000 computer–the first 1990s computer in a field full of 1970s retreads.

Yes, it was a 1990s computer in 1985. It had color and sound built in, not as expensive, clunky, hard-to-configure add-ons. It could address up to 8 megabytes of memory, though it ran admirably on a mere 512 kilobytes. Most importantly, it had fully pre-emptive multitasking, something that previously only existed in commercial workstations that cost five figures.

It was so revolutionary that even NBC is acknowledging the anniversary.

Being a decade or so ahead of its time was only the beginning of its problems, unfortunately.

Dave Farquhar

dfarq.homeip.net

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