Retro Computing Archives

Commodore 64 value

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing October 12, 2017October 9, 2017

The Commodore 64 is the most popular computer model of all time. That also means it’s the most common vintage computer, but high demand and parts scarcity drives up its value. If you’re wondering how much your Commodore 64 is worth or want a price check on Commodore 64 value, read on.

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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Commodore 64 vs IBM PCjr

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing October 6, 2017April 20, 2022

In early 1984, IBM released its first home computer, the IBM PCjr. Commodore soon responded with one of its best advertisements, pitting its Commodore 64 vs IBM PCjr.

Dave Farquhar

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Advantages and disadvantages of MS-DOS

Dave Farquhar DOS, Retro Computing September 26, 2017April 29, 2024

MS-DOS was the dominant computer operating system of the 1980s and early 1990s. It was the operating system most people loved to hate, yet it remained a bestseller. It formed the foundation of Microsoft’s market dominance of the 1990s and beyond. What were the advantages and disadvantages of MS-DOS?

MS-DOS stood for Microsoft Disk Operating System. It also licensed it to IBM, who branded it PC DOS, for Personal Computer Disk Operating System. The differences between the two were relatively minor and they are more or less interchangeable, especially at versions 5.0 and lower.

Dave Farquhar

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How to use a Commodore 64

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing September 20, 2017January 29, 20191980s, apple, atari, commodore, commodore 64

The Commodore 64 is rather unlike modern computers. It has a CPU and memory like a modern computer does, but the operating system and overall user experience is alien to someone used to computers that run Windows or Mac OS. So to modern eyes, it’s not completely obvious how to use a Commodore 64.

Commodore had a dominance of the market in the 1980s that would have made Apple jealous at any point in its history, but ultimately Commodore lost, so the Commodore 64’s bloodline is extinct.

Dave Farquhar

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Commodore 64 operating system

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing September 14, 2017September 12, 20171980s, apple, apple ii, commodore, commodore 64, unix

The Commodore 64 didn’t have an operating system in the traditional sense that we now think of one. It most certainly did have a method of interacting with the user and handling I/O, including disk files. But the way it all worked seems strange today. Here’s what made the native Commodore 64 operating system different, and the alternatives that surfaced during the 64’s long life.

Dave Farquhar

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Al Pedrique: RBI Baseball mystery man

Dave Farquhar Baseball, Retro Computing September 11, 2017September 10, 2024

RBI Baseball was the first hugely popular baseball game to appear on the Nintendo NES. It featured real baseball teams who’d done well in 1986 and 1987 with actual player names, so kids could replay the 1986 and 1987 postseasons. It also featured two All-Star teams. The National League All Star team included a mystery man: Pedrique, a shortstop. His real life counterpart was Al Pedrique, who briefly played shortstop for the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Al Pedrique was the starting shortstop for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1987, and the manager of the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2004. Today people probably remember him best for his appearance in RBI Baseball.

Dave Farquhar

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Thank you, Jerry Pournelle

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing September 9, 2017Jerry Pournelle, journalism

Longtime computer columnist and science fiction author Jerry Pournelle died on Sept 8, 2017. I count Dr. Pournelle as one of my influences.

I was never a big sci-fi fan, so I’ve never read any of his novels. I really enjoyed his computer journalism, however. He was a tech curmudgeon, and he was blunt, but frequently that was what we needed, especially in those early years when computers didn’t work as well as they do today.

Dave Farquhar

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Commodore RAM expansion units

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing August 25, 2017August 24, 20241541, 1980s, 1990s, 6502, commodore, IBM, quantumlink, ram disk

The 6502-family CPUs in Commodore 8-bit computers famously used 64K of RAM at a time. But in 1985, Commodore introduced a cartridge that added up to 512K of RAM to the 128. Commodore followed up soon after with a 256K cartridge for the 64. How did Commodore RAM expansion units work?

Dave Farquhar

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What is the purpose of a screen saver?

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing August 15, 2017December 16, 20201990s, atari, best buy, blank screen, malware, spyware

What is the purpose of a screen saver? Screen savers served both a technical and a marketing purpose. From a technical perspective, the purpose of a screen saver was to keep an image from permanently being engraved in a CRT-based monitor’s phosphors. But it wasn’t long before screen savers started serving a vanity or entertainment purpose.

Dave Farquhar

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Commodore computer models

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing August 14, 2017September 15, 2025

The Commodore 64 is by far the most famous and successful computer Commodore ever made. But there were numerous Commodore computer models over the years. Some were also successful. Some were complete flops. Overall Commodore had a good 18-year run, but it could have been so much longer and better.

Let’s take a walk through the Commodore computer models from the beginning in 1976 to the bitter end in 1994.

Dave Farquhar

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