How the Amiga could have lived to age 30 and beyond
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...
View ArticleCommodore 64 vs VIC-20
The C-64 and VIC-20 look a lot alike, and shared some of the same designers, but there are a number of differences between these two vintage computers. The post Commodore 64 vs VIC-20 appeared first on...
View ArticleThe first successful home computer: Commodore VIC-20
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...
View ArticleIrving Gould and Commodore
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...
View ArticleCommodore financial history, 1978-1994
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...
View ArticleMeaning of the word commodore
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? Commodore was a rank in the Navy. In other...
View ArticleWhy Jack Tramiel left Commodore
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...
View ArticleThe Atari 2600 CPU: The MOS 6507
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...
View ArticleComputers in 1985: It was a very good year
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...
View ArticleCommodore Plus 4 and Commodore 16
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...
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