Retro Computing Archives

Atari 800 video cables

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing July 29, 2020July 29, 2023

The standard for video output on 8-bit computers is there was no standard. Well, oddly enough, a bunch of companies did something super similar, but there are enough gotchas that you have to be careful. At least Atari sidestepped the problem. Here’s my experience with Atari 800 video cables, which also (mostly) applies the XL and XE variants. And you can use the same cable with other machines in a pinch.

Dave Farquhar

David Farquhar is a computer security professional, entrepreneur, and author. He has written professionally about computers since 1991, so he was writing about retro computers when they were still new. He has been working in IT professionally since 1994 and has specialized in vulnerability management since 2013. He holds Security+ and CISSP certifications. Today he blogs five times a week, mostly about retro computers and retro gaming covering the time period from 1975 to 2000.

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7805 switch mode replacement

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing July 27, 2020September 12, 2022

One of the best things you can do for heat dissipation in vintage computers and consoles is replace the 7805 voltage regulator with a modern switch mode replacement. Here’s why that helps and where to get one.

A modern 7805 switch mode replacement regulator runs cooler than the original 7805. This reduces the need for heat dissipation and helps other components, such as capacitors, last longer.

Dave Farquhar

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Why do capacitors fail?

Dave Farquhar Hardware, Retro Computing July 22, 2020January 8, 2025

Bad capacitors are the bane of generations of consumer electronics. They plagued early 90s Amigas and Macs, early 2000s PCs, and cheap hardware even today. So why do capacitors fail? And how can you tell when a failed capacitor is a problem?

Capacitors fail when the electrolyte dries out, or when the gas inside them builds up to a point that it opens a safety valve and the electrolyte leaks out. A good capacitor takes decades to dry out, but a cheap capacitor can leak within a few short years.

Dave Farquhar

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Burn marks on a Commodore 64

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing July 8, 2020March 24, 2024

I’ve seen numerous people, including vintage computer enthusiasts on Youtube, find burn marks on a Commodore 64 and get confused by them. What causes these burn marks, and why are they more prevalent on Commodore computers than Apple or IBM? The answer is simple and it’s not that Commodore owners smoked a lot more than owners of other makes.

Dave Farquhar

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Wrinkled traces on a Commodore 64 motherboard

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing July 2, 2020May 17, 2022

A frequent question that I see come up on vintage computer forums is whether wrinkled traces on a Commodore 64 motherboard cause problems. Not all boards have this so it’s easy to see why this could be concerning.

The wrinkled traces on old PCBs like Commodore 64 motherboards is an artifact of the manufacturing process. It’s normal and it rarely causes a problem.

Dave Farquhar

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History of Western Digital hard drives

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing June 30, 2020December 5, 2024

Western Digital is one of only three hard drive manufacturers remaining in the computer industry. But their history didn’t start out with making hard drives themselves. Let’s take a look at the history of Western Digital hard drives and what led them from making accessories to making the drives too.

Dave Farquhar

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IEEE-488 and Commodore

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing June 17, 2020July 1, 2024

When Commodore introduced its PET line of personal computers in 1977, they needed a bus to connect peripherals. Rather than do something proprietary, they chose an industry standard, the IEEE-488 bus originally designed by HP. It suited Commodore’s needs at the time, even though it’s pretty obscure today.

Dave Farquhar

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Commodore 8-inch floppy disk drives

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing June 16, 2020May 1, 2024

We don’t typically associate the ginormous 8-inch floppy disks with Commodore. But Commodore produced no fewer than four different models of 8-inch floppy drive for its PET/CBM line of computers.

Dave Farquhar

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What does Unisys do?

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing June 11, 2020December 25, 2024

Unisys was once the second largest computer company in the world, and the name of one of its products, Univac, was briefly synonymous with the word “computer.” It’s no longer the force it once was, but Unisys survives today, in a slimmed-down form.

Unisys still produces computer hardware, including mainframes. But like its rival IBM, it makes most of its money in software, service, and integration.

Dave Farquhar

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Is Windows Unix based?

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing, Software June 9, 2020February 2, 2022

At least two of the most popular operating systems of today are based on Unix. But what about Windows? Is Windows Unix based?

While Windows has some Unix influences, it is not derived or based on Unix. At some points is has contained a small amount of BSD code but the majority of its design came from other operating systems.

Dave Farquhar

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