Category: Retro Computing History
It was uploaded to the Internet Archive the only issue of Databar Magazine, a publication that tried to offer type in programs for its readers in a very innovative way. Instead of the traditional listings with source code in the pages of the magazine, Databar presented the programs in the form of a barcode. The proprietary Databar OSCAR scanner was…
Today, I came across this blog post on Ken Shirriff’s blog where he describes how to print a Christmas card on an IBM 1401 mainframe, a pretty popular low-end computer sold throughout the 60’s. Driven by the Reddit’s Retrobattlestation challenge for this month, the blog post is super interesting not only for the Xmas card itself but because it gives us a…
The backers that opted in to get the ZX Spectrum Next board were happy to see their packages waiting for them at their doorstep but as soon some of them hooked it up, they were surprised by some unforeseen problems. The main issues are related to the keyboard, HDMI, and problems with the screen. Early this morning, Henrique Olifiers wrote a…
For all of us that have overlapping interest in game design and retro gaming, the GDC 2018 will hold an interesting presentation: Classic Game Postmortem: ‘The Bard’s Tale I and II’. Michael Cranford, the designer of the iconic RPG series first launched in 1985 will be the speaker. This session will explore the conception and development of Interplay’s ‘The Bard’s Tale…
The December 2017 edition of TRS8BIT is now available from the downloads page, with well over 60 pages of news, reviews and general chit-chat for you to enjoy. There is news about the ‘Super Card Pro’ from cbmstuff.com, Ian Mavric has 4 articles, ranging from Tandy’s work with agriculture, down under, a review of his visit to the TA in Ohio, further…
We were contacted by Robert Hurst about a project he’s behind aiming the revival of a BBS Door game. Here is what he has to say about it: “One of the first BBSes we had in our state of Rhode Island was The Roundtable, which was more of an online game for social networking rather than the files & posts that…
Arcade Attack has published an interview with Al Alcorn, the designer of PONG, which we can all agree, is a landmark in the video-game history. The short, but entertaining interview focused on the time Al started at Atari and was tasked to create the arcade that helped to create the video game industry as we know it. You can check…
In Inception, Leonardo DiCaprio would get into people’s dreams to steal their secrets and, at some point during the movie, they would go into the dream’s dream in order to unlock more secrets. Although not as fantastic as the movie, the Internet Archive has made available (via Computer Applications, Inc) an Apple II emulator that is running in a browser-based Mac emulator….
A new text adventure game has been released for the TRS-80 Color Computer: Forest of Doom, a Fantasy Role Playing Game. Only the bravest souls enter, only the most cunning return! Defeat innumerable monsters to ransom the king’s scepter, stolen by the evil wizard and kept deep in the Forest of Doom. Your sword, shield and wits are your only…
CPCRetroDev 2017 submissions deadline was October 31st and a total of 29 entries made on time for the game development competition for the Amstrad CPC 464. The jury is now working hard to analyze and judge all the awesome games and getting ready for the award ceremony that will be held on next Friday, November 10th, around ~19:00h (CEST time). The…
