
*************************************
       Commodore Free Magazine
    http://www.commodorefree.com/
*************************************

        Issue 43, August 2010

      Free to download magazine
  dedicated to Commodore computers
  Available as PDF, HTML, TXT, SEQ
         and D64 disk image

=====================================

*************************************
              CONTENTS
*************************************

* Editorial
* NEWS
  - Amiga/C64 Forever 2010.1 Released
  - IDESERVD For OSX
  - SIDIN Issue 13 Released
  - WinUAE 2.2.0 Available
  - PC World - Inside The Amiga 1000
  - Vintage Computer Festival
  - Cottonwood BBS Update
  - RGB Video Update
  - C64 - Archiv Updated To V3.2
  - CBM-Command Special Release
  - OpenSSL 1.0.0a for AmigaOS
  - Amitopia TV 11th of July
  - C64 Memories Frontend
  - Silo 64 Game
  - SEUCK Vault Update News
  - WookieChat For Amiga OS Update
  - ASCII -- PETSCII Converter
  - 4GB CF IDE Hard Drive
  - BASIC point
  - UFE Floppy Drive Emulator
  - A-Eon Rev.2 Nemo Motherboards
  - AmigaOne X1000 Beta Test Update
  - Not Another Sprite Editor V1
  - Press Play On Tape
  - "The Unofficial CMD Homepage"
* Interview with Trevor Dickinson
* Interview with Gregory Alekel

=====================================

*************************************
              EDITORIAL
*************************************

COMMODORE BUST

The Commodore Amiga really started
some heads turning when it was
initially released. Commodore's
purchase of the Amiga hardware right
from under the nose of Atari must
have been upsetting; well for Atari
at any rate. The Amiga was a special
machine, with true multitasking and
a huge colour pallet, the machine
stood next to some high end so
called "workstation" machines and
towered over them. Commodore were on
a roll, a superb launch with
celebrity names like Andy Warhol and
Debora Harry poked fun at lesser
machines with Commodore shouting to
the press, "Weeee look at us!"

For me the Amiga's operating system
was a joy, having used many Pc
systems the Amiga seemed more
straightforward somehow. The Amiga
500 with workbench 1.3 seemed so
logically laid out and easy to use,
how could it fail to be a top
seller. I especially liked the way
the windows and desktop were
arranged and now looking back, I
liked how uncluttered and bloat free
the system was. A machine with very
little memory, just managed to do so
much with very little resources;
throw in the multitasking and the
fact you could if inclined run pc
software, you had a very powerful
machine. What then could possibly go
wrong for Commodore they were on
with a winner, a little marketing
and placing the machine in good
sales outlets it should as they say
"fly out the doors" The Amiga 500
received an upgrade to a 500+
Commodore then produced various
desktop versions emerging with the
1500 and 2000 the 3000 (ok so my
timing may be out on some but you
get the idea) the Amiga 1200 then
the A600 (With the 600 I never got
where commodore were going with this
model I know it seemed more girl
friendly as it was "cute" and did
possess a PCMCIA slot) then
Commodore released the A4000. I
purchased one of these 4000 machines
and was totally disappointed! how
can Commodore get it all wrong! the
Video chip upgrade was dropped the
DSP (digital sound processing chip)
was dropped the proposed midi
interface was missing. I seemed then
to have purchased an A1200 in a big
box with a fast processor and
slightly more upgrade options in the
form of Zorro slots.

It was then fairly obvious Commodore
were now in trouble. After Commodore
went bankrupt and various people
fought over the machines and name
these people also started to file
for bankruptcy leading to the term
"curse of the Amiga" I feel the
Amiga scene split into so many
fragments it would be impossible to
come back together. There were so
many options then in the end I
stopped really following the Amiga
scene. My A4000 was upgraded in its
time with a variety of hardware and
software but what now. Would
anything be able to take its place,
would the magic return for me?

MY LIGHT

This issue I tracked down and
interviewed Trevor Dickinson (A-EON
Technology CVBA) could this be the
next logical progression for the
Amiga, here is a man with a
passionate history about Amiga and
Commodore, could we really see some
light at the end of the tunnel? No I
am not putting down any other Amiga
like operating systems or machines
but to me I think I have with A-EON
Technology CVBA seen some light,
something to really get excited
about. Commodore Dead! Heck no, re
reading the interview and I feel
excited again, nothing like while I
was saving for my Amiga 4000 but the
excitement is still there I think
this is a real answer for me as to
what to do next with my Commodore
Hobby, see what you think after
reading the interview, Will the
Amiga make a comeback (assuming that
is you think its ever gone away!)

I AM THE SERVER

Fear not reader as this isn't just
All about Amiga, we still have some
Commodore news especially with the
interview I had with the creator of
www.commodoreserver.com this looks
like an exciting project web based
project allowing users to access
files over the internet with just a
Commodore 64 and a specially created
modem. "Wow how cool and geeky is
that" This is a very professional
setup and has been demo recently to
a crowd of Commodore users in
America where the software almost
left gasps (according to one of my
sources)

I have mixed in the usual news and
hope it's another worthwhile read of
course news and items are always
welcomed please contact me for
details, I am especially looking for
reviews and tutorials

Best Regards
Nigel

www.commodorefree.com

=====================================

*************************************
                NEWS
*************************************

*************************************
    AMIGA FOREVER AND C64 FOREVER
           2010.1 RELEASED
*************************************

Amiga Forever
(http://www.amigaforever.com ) and
C64 Forever
(http://www.c64forever.com) are the
easy to use emulation, preservation
and support packages published by
Cloanto, Commodore/Amiga developers
since the 1980s. Beyond nostalgia,
the packages make accessible to a
wide audience a wealth of content
and history that is engaging yet
casual, and which can still teach a
few lessons in game play.

Features of the new 2010 versions
include:

- Support for new emulated systems
  (CDTV, CD32, Amiga 600)

- Extended RetroPlatform Library
  (more than 20,000 titles) and
  content recognition code

- Support for Open RP9 format (packs
  multiple disk images and
  configuration in one file)

- CDTV/CD32 games run directly from
  original CD media, or from RP9 or
  ISO images

- Integrated printing via original
  Amiga EpsonQ drivers (via emulated
  printer)

- Optimizations for "power users"
  (content cache, performance, etc.)

- Hundreds of improvements to make
  the software more powerful and
  easier to use

For the new CD and printing support
we worked closely together with Toni
Wilen (http://www.winuae.net), so a
big thank you again goes to Toni for
his help.

The latest versions of Amiga Forever
and C64 Forever work side by side to
play games directly from a variety
of emulation sites, as well as from
some types of original media.
Content is recognized using the
built-in RetroPlatform Library
database, which helps identify and
automatically start the correct
hardware configuration (different
PET/CBM models, VIC 20, C64, Amiga,
etc.)

In addition to the hundreds of
titles which come preinstalled with
the software, tens of thousands of
games and demo scene productions
have been released by their authors
for publication on preservation
sites. And that's not just C64 or
Amiga content, as you can try for
yourself... Some of our original
favourites include a Space Invaders
clone for the PET 3032 (only 7 KB,
download or open to play directly
with C64 Forever):

http://www.zimmers.net/anonftp/pub/cb
m/pet/games/english/
(scroll down to "space
invaders.prg", right after the
simpler PET 2001 version)

Or what about this Galaga clone
written in 10 KB of pure machine
language:

http://www.wening.de/deutsch/spiele/p
et-assembler.html
(second from top - German page, but
software is in English)

The above were written almost 30
years ago. With C64 Forever 2010
they can still be click-and-played
today - no complex configuration or
technical knowledge required. If a
more modern system is preferred,
Amiga Forever 2010 can recognize,
auto configure and play most CDTV
and CD32 titles (Commodore's
Amiga-based game consoles). This
includes both original media, and
RP9, ISO and .bin/.cue CD image
files.

The 2010 versions of Amiga Forever
and C64 Forever had originally been
released a few weeks ago, and were
announced on private forums.
Features like the new Open RP9 file
format and CD support were so
successful among emulation "power
users" (who often have thousands of
games and gigabytes of CD-based
content), that we spent some more
time to optimize the experience when
the software is used under heavy
load. The updated 2010.1 versions,
released now and available as free
updates to existing 2010 users,
reflect this community feedback.

Amiga Forever and C64 Forever passed
official Windows 7 logo tests on
both x86 and x64 systems. Prices
start from $14.95 for C64 Forever,
and $29.95 for Amiga Forever
(downloadable Plus Editions, with
discounts for upgrades and for
bundles of both packages).

For more information:

Amiga Forever
http://www.amigaforever.com

C64 Forever
http://www.c64forever.com

RetroPlatform Project
http://www.retroplatform.com

-------------------------------------

*************************************
          IDESERVD FOR OSX
*************************************

IDE64 Mac users now catered for with
an IDESERV application to transfer
files to and from there IDE64
devices, The ide64 is a hardware
add-on for the Commodore 64 that
adds the ability to add standard
3.5" IDE hard disks and CD-ROM
drives to their machines, version
4.1 also adds a CF card reader.
http://www.jamtronix.com/blog/2010/06
/26/ideservd-for-osx/

-------------------------------------

*************************************
       SIDIN ISSUE 13 RELEASED
*************************************

http://digilander.libero.it/ice00/tsi
d/sidin/

General Index
Editorials
News
Goatracker at SF
ACID 64 Player 2.2-2.4
HVSC #49
Catweasel MK4plus
High Voltage SID Collection Search
v1.4
C64.sk Sidcompo 8 Radiostream
MSSIAH
C64.sk Sidcompo 8
iPhone Sid Player
GoatTracker v2.68/2.69
Sidplayw2.5
XSidplay 2.0.3
CGSC updates
ACID 64 Player Pro v3.0.0-3.0.2
HVMEC 0.9
HVSC #50
HVSC #51
HVSC #52
HardSID Uno/UPlay
HVSC #53
TSM & Freedom Interview!
JITT64 Tracker
Main screen.
Tracks.
Pattern
Instruments
Table of Values
Instrument examples
Conclusion
Inside JITT64
Init &Play (IRQ) routine
Play Pattern
Instruments definition
Play Instrument
Play Command
Play Hard-Restart
Conclusion

-------------------------------------

*************************************
       WINUAE 2.2.0 AVAILABLE
*************************************

Major Game Ports and Input GUI
update (finally!):

- Quick and easy Game Ports input
  event remapping support.

- Test mode, check built-in or
  custom key mappings quickly.

- Also includes simple auto fire
  configuration.

- Game Ports mappings are always
  merged with Input panel
  configuration modes (*). For
  example when configuring a game
  pad, you can use Game Ports GUI for
  basic configuration and remap extra
  buttons using Input GUI.

- Input GUI also includes quick test
  and remap options. Press any key,
  joystick or mouse axis or button
  and selected input target will be
  instantly ready for remapping, no
  more slow and manual searching.

- "Windows mouse" not supported in
  test or remap modes.

*) Possible compatibility issue with
old configuration files in
Configuration #1-3 mode. Workaround:
set Game Ports mouse and joystick to
none.

Other new features:

- (Pointless) Max 1G Chip RAM
  support.

- 7zip SDK updated, XZ and PPMD
  decompression support added.

- Triple/Double/No buffering option
  added to GUI.

- NTSC checkbox added to Quickstart
  GUI.

- WASAPI and PortAudio volume control
  support.

- 68030 data cache emulated (mostly
  useless currently).

- Save state when emulator is quit
  configuration file option.

- Show information window while
  scanning for ROMs.

- Monitor "bezel" overlay image
  support (configuration file only).

- Floppy sound channel mask
  (configuration file only).

Bugs fixed:

- CD32 on the fly CD changes, both
  images and real CDs.

- Autoscale top border position was
  incorrect in some situations.

- Directory file system crash in some
  situations when attempting to open
  non-existing files or directories.

- INTREQR returned bit 15 set in some
  situations.

- GUI custom CPU frequency was read
  incorrectly.

- More 68020 "cycle exact" timing
  fixes (interrupts and blitter).

- 68000 cycle exact too slow CIA
  interrupt timing.

- Audio filter emulation didn't
  always follow power led state
  correctly.

- Amiga to Windows clipboard image
  sharing failed to convert some
  image types.

Updates:

- Direct3D shader mode is more
  compatible with Intel integrated
  graphics cards.

- Custom chipset compatibility
  updates (for example Roots 2.0 /
  Sanity)

- 68020 "cycle exact" mode
  improvements.

- Direct3D "none" filter allows again
  all filter setting adjustments.

- On screen Power LED fade emulation
  improved.

and more, check winuaechangelog.txt
for (technical) details.

You can download the installer from
here:
http://www.winuae.net/files/InstallWi
nUAE2200.exe or the archive here:
http://www.winuae.net/files/WinUAE220
0.zip

-------------------------------------

*************************************
  PC WORLD WESBITE LOOKS INSIDE THE
             AMIGA 1000
*************************************

http://www.pcworld.com/article/200083
/inside_the_amiga_1000.html?tk=nl_dnx
_t_crawl

Commodore Free
Ahhhh the Amiga was a special
machine, with marketing glitz to
out-glitz the best, shunning the PC
by running Pc applications on a
bridge board, colours that could
only be dreamt of by other machines,
sexy designs that Apple must have
seen with envy. The Amiga had it all
he is homage to the machine by way
of a slideshow of its internals
(warning pictures of this machine
are shown without its casing.. View
at your own risk) I have reprinted
the text?

INSIDE THE AMIGA 1000

Twenty-five years ago, Commodore
released a revolutionary multimedia
machine. We take a peek inside this
classic computer to see what made
the Amiga so amazing.

1. MEET THE AMIGA 1000

In July 1985, Commodore released an
impressive new multimedia PC called
the Amiga. This system, once the
object of a legal fight between
Atari and Commodore, made waves in
the press with its high-resolution
colour graphics and stereo sound.
The Amiga supported 32 colours on
screen simultaneously (from a lush
palette of 4096), at a time when IBM
PCs supported only four colours and
the Macintosh supported just two
(white and black). The Amiga also
shipped with a multitasking user
interface that arguably rivalled Mac
OS in power and flexibility.

Join me as I take apart this
legendary machine to see what made
the Amiga unique in the computer
world.

Photos by Benj Edwards

2. THE AMIGA BASE UNIT

Commodore's first member of the
Amiga line, shown here, launched for
$1295 with a base unit, a keyboard,
and a mouse. The base unit included
256KB RAM and an 880KB floppy drive.
This system shipped under the sole
name "Amiga" at first, but Commodore
rechristened the machine the Amiga
1000 after the launch of the Amiga
500 in 1987.

The Amiga series ran a 32-bit
pre-emptive multitasking graphical
operating system known as AmigaOS.
However, AmigaOS also included a
command shell called AmigaDOS for
more-powerful keyboard-based input.

3. A SIDE VIEW

The Amiga shipped with two user
ports that could accept mice,
joysticks, or other pointing
devices. To the right of those, you
can see the Amiga's only official
means of expansion: a bus slot that
allowed complex add-on accessories
such as third-party RAM upgrades,
SCSI controllers, real-time clocks,
and even an IBM-compatible expansion
box.

4. I/O PORTS

Here you can see the left half of
the Amiga's rear panel, which
contains a nice array of ports. The
Amiga's responsive and well-designed
detachable keyboard tucked under the
bottom of the unit when not in use,
and it plugged into the socket here
via a phone cable. The parallel port
typically hosted a printer, the
serial port usually connected to a
modem, and the floppy port allowed
the Amiga to use a second (external)
floppy drive.

5. AUDIO AND VIDEO

Here you can see the ports that made
the Amiga a multimedia powerhouse:
stereo audio outputs and three
separate video-output connectors
that increase in display quality
from right to left.

Whereas the Atari ST line found its
niche in audio thanks to its MIDI
ports, the Amiga specialized in live
video production. Recognizing the
Amiga's graphical capabilities,
numerous TV studios used the Amiga
and its successors to generate
on-air weather maps, station logos,
captions, and other on-screen text
for live newscasts well into the
late 1990s.

6. LIFTING THE LID

Now it's time to take this unit
apart. After undoing a few screws on
the bottom, I've removed the lid and
set aside the metal RF shielding,
giving us our first view inside the
chassis. A long, bricklike power
supply dominates the left side of
the case, while the floppy drive
sits on the right. However, the
green stuff is where all the action
is.

7. A LITTLE MINER IN EVERY BOX

Like the creators of the original
Macintosh, the team who designed the
Amiga signed the molding used to
cast the top half of the computer's
plastic case. As a result, the names
of everyone involved are permanently
embossed within every Amiga 1000
shipped. Most prominent is the
signature of Jay Miner--the father
of the Amiga--and the paw print of
his dog Mitchy.

8. RAM EXPANSION

Commodore designed the Amiga to
accept a user-installed 256KB RAM
module, shown here, to raise the
system memory to 512KB. It plugged
into the front of the computer under
a removable plastic panel. With
third party add-ons (usually
connected to the external expansion
bus shown earlier), a user could
bring the Amiga's RAM up to 8MB

9. A MASSIVE KLUDGE

When it came time to ship the Amiga
in 1985, Commodore engineers found
the OS too buggy to include on
built-in ROM chips in the computer.
(And that's too bad, because it
would have allowed the Amiga to boot
instantly just as other early PCs
did.) Instead, the engineers devised
a workaround called the "Writable
Control Store" (WCS) that fit on a
daughterboard attached to the
motherboard via long multipin
headers where chips would normally
reside. The WCS included 256KB of
memory used specifically to hold a
basic OS that had to be loaded from
a floppy disk at boot time.

10. FACE OFF

With the daughterboard set aside,
I've now removed the front bezel of
the case, getting one step closer to
the ultimate goal: complete Amiga
dismemberment.

11. THE FLOPPY DRIVE

The Amiga 1000 shipped with a floppy
disk drive that could store 880KB
per 3.5-inch disk--an impressive
capacity for 1985. At the time, most
IBM PC floppy drives stored 360KB on
5.25-inch disks, while Macintosh
floppies held 400KB.

12. LIBERATING THE MOTHERBOARD

Here I've removed the motherboard
from the case and set it aside. The
motherboard contains all of the
circuitry that truly makes the Amiga
function. To the left, you can see
the Amiga's power supply sitting in
the lower half of the case.

13. THE 68000 CPU

On one side of the motherboard sits
the Amiga's 16/32-bit Motorola 68000
processor, which ran at a relatively
speedy 8MHz. To its left sits a pair
of MOS 8520 CIA chips that handle
serial and parallel communications
for the computer. Below those are
the Amiga's bootstrap ROMs, which
contain the firmware that tells the
computer how to load a complete
operating system from a floppy disk.

14. SISTER CHIPS

The secret sauce of the Amiga is in
its custom-designed co-processing
chipset, visible here in the form of
three chips with female nicknames.
"Paula" handles the computer's sound
and controls the floppy drive.
"Agnus" performs fancy
memory-management magic and a few
graphical coprocessor functions.
"Daphne" is an early version of a
later, more common chip named
"Denise" that generates most of the
Amiga 1000's impressive graphical
output. Together, these chips form
the heart and soul of a powerful
computer that, while quickly
surpassed by IBM PC clones in the
market, was far ahead of its time.
Legions of loyal Amiga fans still
cherish the machine today.

-------------------------------------

*************************************
      VINTAGE COMPUTER FESTIVAL
*************************************

The First Vintage computer festival
held place this year at Bletchley
park, Unfortunately I was not in any
state to attend due to ill health.
Still its nice to see the event had
some coverage, and here is a clip
from the BBC, showing amongst other
machines the ZX Spectrum, Oric,
Amiga and of course the commodore
64. Not sure about the comment
"Microsoft office coming on a floppy
disk and now its supplies on a DVD
but its just the same, from the use
I have with Microsoft office; I
would say the application has
changed a heck of a lot; almost
beyond recognition. ( Well Ok you
still type letters with word ), some
of the comments I found a little
strange, and I don't think retro
machine are all great, how many
times have you sat waiting for
something to load without a turbo
loader only to find the machine just
reset at the end. YES we have lost
something, I work in IT support and
some of the most basic, questions
are asked; It may be of benefit for
some of our users to own an 8-bit
machine anyway read some of the
Classic helpdesk calls I received
over my time

USER "my machine is dead"
ANSWER "have you turned it on!"

Is not an unusual question to be
asked on a Monday morning along with
the now famous?

USER "the fax machine has stopped
working"
ANSWER "is there any paper in the
machine"

I think user nowadays would have
gained so much from the older 8-bit
systems, I still shudder to think
about going round to peoples homes
to set there video recorder to
record a program, because I can
power on a machine, I am considered
an expert.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes
/click_online/8782344.stm

RETRO COMPUTERS ON DISPLAY TO FANS
AT FESTIVAL

More than 2,000 retro-computing fans
have descended on Bletchley Park for
Britain's first Vintage Computer
Festival hosted by the National
Museum of Computing.

LJ Rich reminisces about typing
lines of old code, discovers the
source of the multi-media
revolution, and finds out how old
PCs have inspired today's developers

-------------------------------------

*************************************
        COTTONWOOD BBS UPDATE
*************************************

For the past few years, I've been
running what has been, for most of
that time, the only Commodore-run
dial-up BBS anywhere in the world.
Borderline BBS has been running on a
C64 in my home in southern
California, and while it has never
received a huge volume of calls, it
has had calls from all over the
world. People have called in from
places like Australia, the
Netherlands, and even Israel. I
always said that I'd keep the BBS up
and running as long as people
continued to call. Well, for the
past two weeks, Borderline BBS has
not had a single caller. I hate to
keep equipment up and running if no
one is going to use it, so I've
decided to make a change. As of
today, Borderline BBS has been taken
offline, indefinitely. I may bring
it back online in the future if
there seems to be interest, but for
now, it's been taken down.

I have, however, brought a new BBS
online. It's called Cottonwood II,
and it's running on Colour 64 v7.36
software. I recently discovered a
way to get Colour 64 v7.xx and
earlier running via Telnet, so
that's what I've done. I've been
testing this setup for the past
couple weeks, and it's been running
in place of Cottonwood BBS. The
setup is rock solid, and I've
decided to run both Cottonwood BBS
and Cottonwood II via Telnet
simultaneously. Cottonwood BBS,
which runs on All American BBS
software, is now on the standard
Telnet port 23. The "new and
improved" Cottonwood II is now
running on port 6400 New users are
always welcome, and I hope everyone
will check out both of these BBSs.

Here are the addresses:

Cottonwood BBS
cottonwood.servebbs.com

Cottonwood II
cottonwood.servebbs.com:6400
(use a space in lieu of the colon if
you're using CGTERM)

New BBS setup photos and information
has been posted on the Cottonwood
Informational Website at
http://cottonwood.servebbs.com

EMail
From: Cottonwood BBS
To: Commodore Free
Subject: Update

I just added a new way to connect to
both Cottonwood BBS and Cottonwood
II. You can now connect from a web
browser with FlashTerm. This is a
great way to connect that does not
require any additional software to
be installed other than a
flash-capable browser, perfect for
when you're using a public computer
or are behind a firewall that has
ports 23 and 6400 blocked (as is the
case for me at work). The downside
is that FlashTerm, at present, does
not have PETSCII support, so you'll
be stuck in ASCII mode. Still, it's
better than nothing!:)

To connect using FlashTerm, just go
to the following addresses:

To connect to Cottonwood BBS:
http://cottonwood.servebbs.com/cotton
wood

To connect to Cottonwood II:
http://cottonwood.servebbs.com/cotton
woodii

-------------------------------------

*************************************
          RGB VIDEO UPDATE
*************************************

COMMODORE FREE
Ok everyone has done it before and
been using it for years, problem is
if you use it with anything like
GEOS or WHEELS you know the A22
board does have some problems, in an
attempt to get perfection from the
device Allan from
www.commodorescene.org.uk has been
working on the board and some other
options I have included some off his
emails about the unit .

        ---------------------

To: Commodore Computer Club
From: Commodore Scene
Subject: VGA Update

Hi Guys,

I finally have some time to myself.
I spent all yesterday trying to
simplify the C=VGA into a single
cable (RGBI>SVGA), unfortunately
schematics for the RGBI>SCART cable
do not work on the SVGA socket so
that has been shelved for now.

RGBI>SCART = Already several
schematics available, more testing
later to produce a good quality
output.
RGBI>SVGA = Not feasible yet, more
testing late - I WANT this one ;-)
RGBI>SVIDEO = Working, prototype
units later this week.
RGBI>Composite = Not viable as the
output signal quality is very poor.

As most LCD panels can be bought
with SVGA & SVIDEO I think the best
thing is to concentrate on the
SVIDEO adaptor we already have as
this seems to be the most workable
and adaptable. Despite my best
attempts I can't get the output 100%
correct but the current
configuration is pretty close so I'm
going to build a couple (from
Nigel's) and tidy it up a bit so it
looks nice. If its okay with you
Nigel I will send one to you and one
to Shaun. That leaves me with my
two, the one I butchered for the
test rig will stay that way for
future testing and the other one I
will try to make look like a
finished project.

I'm busy tomorrow but this afternoon
I'm going to set up the existing
adaptor test platform and remind
myself how it all works, then on
Wednesday I'm going to build several
units (hopefully boxed) and send
them to you both for testing later
this week :-)

Make sure you guys have access to an
LCD with svideo, preferably more
than one ;-)

Meeting up, I'm okay for a meet up
later this month but I just have to
make sure I'm not working or on kid
duty !

All the Best, Allan

        ---------------------

To: Commodore Computer Club
From: Commodore Scene
Subject: VGA Update

Hi Guys,

As you can see from the pictures the
unit is nearing completion.

This first unit is not quite right
as some of the holes are out of
alignment, your units should be okay
:-)

At the moment there are a couple of
small hold ups,

(1) my local Maplins didn't have the
required variable resistors so I've
had to order them,
(2) Maplins also only had one
enclosure (jeez they're useless),
again I've had to order some.

I'll do what I can but until the
parts arrive I can't finish the
units off. Good news though, I have
Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday to
myself next week again :-)

Other differences to the pictures
supplied, providing the variable
resistors actually work, the unit
will have a total of six adjustment
screws ! On the top of the unit will
be R G B (on the A22 board) - these
should not need altering as I will
set these up for optimum gain.
Probably on the right hand side will
be three further adjusters for the
intensity of the three colours Ri Gi
Bi - this is the bit that most
people will need to alter, again, I
will set the units up to function on
my monitor but they may need
adjusting to suit different LCD
panels.

Let me know if you don't have an
SVIDEO (male to male) cable or the 9
pin (male to female) cable and I
will make sure your unit comes with
one/both.

Also, make sure you have a 9v DC
power supply (I use the
CS-SuperPSU). The A22 board can use
anything from 9~12v but I have been
using it at 9v without any problems.

All the Best, Allan

        ---------------------

To: Commodore Computer Club
From: Commodore Scene
Subject: VGA Update

Hi Guys,

I can't tell you how excited I am
right now !

Just take a look at the attached
shots, these are the C128 in 80
column mode in Wheels128. Everything
is there - the desktop background,
the cursor are now visible even on
the washed out background, all the
shading is correct and even the
colours are 99% correct (I'll work
on the other 1% later).

After all the messing about with the
LCD monitor settings over the years
I forgot to reset them, when I did
it all came back into focus and a
bit of fine tuning the monitors
colour & contrast brought it to life.

You'll have to excuse the poor
photography and take my word for it
that they are crisp and clear. The
last picture shows the final
combination of resistors and diodes.

Please feel free to report on this
if you wish to and you can use the
pictures if you like. Once I get the
building procedure correct I'll do a
step by step article so anyone can
make one, although it will be a bit
fiddly.

Nigel : you'd better hold the front
page on a future issue of CF, we can
do an interim report on the testing
rig version if you want ?

Its only taken me the best part of 9
years to accomplish!

Right, I'm going to have a sit down
and calm down before I build two
finished units for you guys. I've
been at this for the last 5 hours
and I'm tired out.

All the Best, Allan

        ---------------------

To: Commodore Computer Club
From: Commodore Scene
Subject: VGA Update

Hi Guys,

Attached is a picture of the first
prototype production unit (this one
is Nigel's - 002, Shaun's will be
003).

I've ditched the 9pin socket in
favour of a direct lead from the
device, several reasons

(1) its less soldering for me
(2) it has better shielding
(3) less screen interference/noise
(4) less cable for the signal to
travel down.

I still need to make a tiny circuit
board for the additional resistors
and diodes but I should have both
your units done this weekend and I
will post them on Monday.

After testing I will cost out how
much each unit will be now that I
have a good idea which parts are now
needed. Each unit will have a serial
number with the persons name on it.
I am hoping to get some
professionally printed (very sticky)
plastic labels as paper sticky
labels will fall off the plastic
casings eventually :-( Anybody know
who does this ?

I also think we need to keep the
S-Video cable to a sensible length,
say 1/2 metre if you can get one.
This should reduce signal loss. At
the moment on my testing rig I have
an open circuit (no shielding), 9pin
cable running 1m and an SVideo cable
running 1m ! This is definitely
having an effect on the signal
quality so we need to shorten it.

The only real problem left is that
the socket to the A22 board and the
mini circuit board will have to be
built by hand - this is a real pain
for me as it is so fiddly and I can
only see myself building one or two
units a day - providing I have a
completely free day :-( Otherwise
I'll go insane.

One thing that would help immensely
is to find the correct plug
pre-wired so I don't have to make
them up. If anyone comes across
these then I would be most grateful.

Anyway, I'm off to do some soldering
:-)

All the Best, Allan

        ---------------------

To: Commodore Computer Club
From: Commodore Scene
Subject: VGA Update

Hi Guys,

Its been a busy and hot day
soldering and burning my fingers ;-)
But I've done them and they will be
in the post first thing in the
morning :-)

Building these two test units taught
me quite a lot and if you look
closely you will see that they are
different.
Nigel's was first (002), it has a
longer lead to the c128 and a
composite output, also, the internal
daughter board is not quite as tidy
as Shaun's.

After testing Nigel's I made a few
modifications

(1) I removed the composite output
as the quality is absolutely rubbish
and removing it made it easier to
insert the main A22 board and it is
also now possible to remove it too.
(2) The daughter board (which I have
to make) is neater and tidier. The
c128 lead is shorter but this is
only because its all I had left over
- all future units will have the
longer lead (its a standard cable
cut in half).

The final production models will
look like Shaun's (003) but with the
longer lead of Nigel's (002). I
still need to get a supply of nice
rubber feet (the current ones are
just ones I had lying around from
old kitchen unit doors). I need to
find a good way to make some nice
high quality stickers for the top as
the current stickers are just
printed on paper and glued on -
these won't last and are no good for
general units.

The great news is that they don't
need any adjustment and when I
plugged them in, they powered up
first time. Please note that as the
c128 80 column powers up slowly so
you won't see a display for a few
seconds. It usually takes between
5~10 seconds before you get a
display.

Please fell free to open them up and
take a look inside, just be careful
with the daughter board as it is not
secured to the casing, it can't move
if you leave the top on though.
Final production models will have
one of the screws covered to prevent
people opening up the unit and then
expecting me to repair it ;-)

Have fun and I hope they work for
you as well as they do for me, let
me know how it goes.

All the Best, Allan

        ---------------------

To: Commodore Computer Club
From: Commodore Scene
Subject: VGA Update

Hi Guys,

Important news :

1) I have found a couple of
electronics engineers who are going
to sit with me to perfect the
adapter :-)

2) The next prototype boards will
have a removable/plug in daughter
board so upgrades can be done just
by unplugging the old board and
fitting the new one :-)

3) I still need to get hold of some
more A22 boards, I might have to buy
some from China :-(

4) I will need your units back to me
for the upgrade - when you've
finished with them. No rush.

5) It appears that modern TV's that
'auto switch' between input signals
need a strong, clear and stable
signal to activate the onboard
circuitry. This explains why mine
keeps disappearing from time to time
and also why it doesn't work on some
TV's at all ! There is a way to
stabilise this issue but I need to
learn more about it before I can
correct it.

6) The next step (after perfecting
the SVideo) is to turn our attention
to the true SVGA adapter and it
seems that this should be do-able if
I can sort out the voltages but it
will need an oscilloscope apparently
so we can test the signals :-(

Things are looking up at last :-)

Did you have any joy with the
adapter in its current configuration?

All the Best, Allan

        ---------------------

To: Commodore Computer Club
From: Commodore Scene
Subject: VGA Update

Hi Guys,

I really should be in bed!

I've just completed the v3 daughter
board with better colours and ALL
the colours displaying (including
the tricky Medium Grey - 13). I have
also written a BASIC test colour
program so we can all be viewing the
same program when we test it, I'll
include it (along with a screenshot
of what is should look like) when I
upgrade your units. Your upgraded
boards will come with a 3.5" test
disk, information/guide sheet, your
upgraded unit & x4 daughter boards
(v1, v2, v3 & v4) - these will be
pluggable so you can try them all
out. The v3 board gives superb
results on my LCD display but the v4
board is a bit 'too much colour' for
me.

I've attached two shots of the v3
for you but as it is VERY difficult
getting accurate screenshots I had
to take one with the flash on so you
could see that the colours are all
okay.

Bed now !

All the Best, Allan

-------------------------------------

*************************************
    C64 - ARCHIV UPDATED TO V3.2
*************************************

Introduction

- Scans and stores your C64 (games)
  collection with only a few clicks

- Easily manages your C64-programs by
  creating your own categories and
  selections

- Starts the C64-programs in
  different emulators

- Delivers instructions for the
  emulators VICE, CCS64, HOXS64 and
  EMU64

- Works with tools e.g. 64Copy,
  D64Lister or DirMaster

- Stores the C64-programs from files
  with the extensions .D64, .D71,
  .P00, .PRG, .T64 and .CRT

- Stores files by name with the
  extensions: .TAP, .VSF
  (VICE-snapshot-file) and .C64
  (CCS64-session-file)

- Stores text and information files
  with the extensions: .TXT, .NFO and
  .DIZ

- Stores PDF files

- Searches archiv files with the
  extensions: .ZIP, .7Z and .CAB

- GameBase frontend with the
  possibility to download games

- GameBase view with up to 30 columns

- Supports multi-language (currently:
  English, French, Italian and
  German)

New in Version 3.2:

- NEW: PDF-files can be stored

- NEW: Search window in the Gamebase
  list

- NEW: Italian translation (Thanks to
  xAD/nIGHTFALL)

- NEW: The creation of profiles for
  tools was simplified

- FIXED: Improved display of the file
  size

- BUG fixed: Search window not closed
  at exit

- BUG fixed: Error with long
  filenames

http://www.purmike.de/documents/index
_en.htm

-------------------------------------

*************************************
     CBM-COMMAND SPECIAL RELEASE
*************************************

Download from here:
http://cbmcommand.codeplex.com/releas
es/view/48615

SPECIAL RELEASE

This release should only be
considered a preview release for
VIC-20 functionality.

NEW FEATURES

* 32K Expanded VIC-20 now supported

CHANGES

* (VIC20) Panels are not displayed
  side by side, only one panel is
  displayed at a time.

* (VIC20) D64 support is removed, the
  RAM was needed elsewhere.

* (ALL) The screen has been made more
  scalable.

KNOWN ISSUES

* (VIC20) CTRL-D and CTRL-E don't
  work.

* (VIC20) The launcher doesn't yet
  know about the VIC, so it loads the
  wrong version of CBM-Command.

* (VIC20) The configuration tool
  cannot save.

-------------------------------------

*************************************
 OPENSSL 1.0.0A (REV#2) FOR AMIGAOS
*************************************

OpenSSL for AmigaOS have been
updated (again)! The OpenSSL Project
is a collaborative effort to develop
a robust, commercial-grade,
full-featured, and OpenSource
toolkit implementing the Secure
Sockets Layer (SSL v2/v3) and
Transport Layer Security (TLS v1)
protocols as well as a full-strength
general purpose cryptography library.

OpenSSL is based on the excellent
SSLeay library developed from Eric
A. Young and Tim J. Hudson. The
OpenSSL toolkit is licensed under a
dual-license (the OpenSSL license
plus the SSLeay license) situation,
which basically means that you are
free to get and use it for
commercial and non-commercial
purposes as long as you fulfil the
conditions of both licenses.

The OpenSSL binary for AmigaOS is
provided fully native (no ixemul),
with support for the following
ciphers:

mdc2, md2, md4, md5, hmac(md5),
sha1, rmd160, rc4, des cbc, des
ede3, idea cbc, seed cbc, rc2 cbc,
blowfish cbc, cast cbc, aes-128 cbc,
aes-192 cbc, aes-256 cbc,
camellia-128 cbc, camellia-192 cbc,
camellia-256 cbc, sha256, sha512,
rc5, whirlpool, aes-128 ige, aes-192
ige, and aes-256 ige.

Developer material can be found in
the included devfiles.tar.7z file,
read first the devfiles.txt if you
want to check the provided files.
Tree structure is keep with
GeekGadgets compatibility in mind.
Static libraries are provided for
libnix and ixemul including builds
for 68020, 68040 and 68060 - more
info at the included
amiga.readme.txt file.

For further info and downloads,
please go to
http://amiga.sourceforge.net/OpenSSL/

NOTE: A WEEK AGO OR SO WE'VE
RELEASED 1.0.0A, THIS ONE IS A NEW
BUILD INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING
CHANGES:

1. Compiled using GCC 3.4.0 for
better speed (please report any
issue, I didn't trust so much this
compiler)

2. Optimized bzero/bcopy/memmove/
memcpy functions to achieve a
somewhat faster speed. (libnix)

3. Implemented alarm() to perform
the tests, we'll no longer have to
wait those long times.

4. Time spent on speed tests are now
calculated using ReadEClock()

5. OPENSSL_assert() will now open a
ReAction/Intuition requester (useful
for WB-only progs)

6. Enabled MD2 and RC5 which was
disabled by default..

7. Added 68040 build (user and dev)

8. Added new set of root certificates

9. Included Installation script.

-------------------------------------

*************************************
      AMITOPIA TV 11TH OF JULY
          GIANA'S EDITION!
*************************************

PROGRAM FOR 11TH OF JULY

17.00 Amiga News
17.05 Play! Giana Sisters
17.15 Play! Giana's Return
17.25 MusicBox

Watch or download:
amitopiatv website
http://amitopiatv.com/

ABOUT AMITOPIA TV:

Made for Amigans, by Amigans!
Created to Entertain everyone with
News, Reviews and Reports about
Amiga Today in living pictures.
Thanks to Pawel Stefanski for Titler
which have been used for 3D and 2D
animations. Also a big thanks to all
contributors which helps Amitopia TV!

-------------------------------------

*************************************
    C64 MEMORIES FRONTEND FOR THE
            COMMODORE 64
*************************************

I always wanted to make a frontend
for my favourite computer of all
time, the Commodore 64!

My main goal was to write a frontend
that can help me to build a
relatively small and personal subset
of games and applications starting
from the big and "chaotic" set that
is Tosec. So... here it is C64
Memories.

- Full support for Tosec naming
  convention: displayed data about
  games are taken directly from the
  filename.

- Supports nearly all C64 images:
  .D64 .T64 .TAP .PRG .P00 .D71 .D80
  .D81 .D82 .G64 .G41 .X64

- Comes with a C64 emulator: C64
  Memories uses a slightly modified
  version of Vice2.2 emulator.

- Directories display: the list of
  the content of a .D64 or .T64 file
  is displayed in automatic by C64
  Memories.

- Favourites folder: you can add your
  favourite games in the favourites
  folder (and every disk/tape of a
  sequence is added in automatic).

- Search filters: you can filter
  results for the first letters,
  substrings and you can show only
  the first disk/tape of a sequence.

- Snapshots galleries: your can take
  screenshots from inside the games
  and the pictures will be displayed
  in automatic in C64 Memories.

- Notes: you can add custom notes for
  every single game.

- Ratings: you can rate every single
  game.

- Search providers: you can easily
  find additional information
  (review, screenshots, remake,
  music) over the Internet for every
  single game just by pressing a
  button!

- Last but not least, C64 Memories
  fits perfectly on a Netbook screen!

Just download and install this file:
C64 Memories Installer. zip

Or, alternatively, you can download
the Special Edition: C64 Memories
Special Edition Installer. zip (the
special edition contains a pack of
games that are my favourites, one
for each letter of the alphabet, but
apart from that the main application
is the same)

REALLY IMPORTANT: Vista and Windows
7 users should run the frontend AS
ADMINISTRATOR or it hangs during the
splash screen.

C64 Memories is written in AIR 2.0
so you must have the AIR 2.0 runtime
installed: however it should be
automatically downloaded and
installed when you install C64
Memories. If you get any error
during the install process, try to
download and install the Adobe AIR
2.0 Runtime first:
http://www.adobe.com/go/getair

Right now I have only made the
Windows version: it is more than
likely that sometime in the future I
will make Mac and Linux versions.

If you find C64 Memories useful,
please consider making a small
donation to show your support!

http://www.genereavventura.com/hosted
/C64Memories/

-------------------------------------

*************************************
            SILO 64 GAME
*************************************

-----Original message------------
From: 8bitweapon
Date: Tues., July 6, 2010

Silo 64 is a two player,
simultaneous, action shooter
extravaganza for the Commodore
64/128 personal computer!
The Earth has been destroyed by
nuclear armageddon. Your family, as
well as other families in your home
town, took refuge in the local
underground fallout shelter, Silo
64. Only your trusty robo-companion
is all that's left of your life
before the blast. All your rations
and supplies have been depleted.
There's just one thing left to do?

Venture out, and seek your fortune
in the wasteland! Available on 5.25"
floppy disk version of the game for
your Commodore 64 / 128!

THE SOUNDTRACK:

This is the soundtrack to the
S.E.U.C.K. created 2 player post
nuke C64 / 128 action game "Silo
64". Pop this collection into your
media player to summon your inner
mutant and dance your half-life
away! The songs mutate to form a mix
of rock guitars, elektro beats,
electric bass, analogue synths, chip
music, and Industrial drums. As for
the game itself, you can play an
emulated version free! Check out the
game & download 2 free mp3's at
http://www.silo64.com

We opted for sound FX vs. music in
the game so we made a score to
accompany the game via cd/mp3 player.

TRACK LISTING:

1) Fallout in the Wasteland *
2) Rocktronic Plague *
3) Terraforming Time
4) Safety Comes First
5) Mutation (featuring NU-TRA)
6) Fallout in the Wasteland (8580
   remix)
7) Silo 64 Title Screen (8580)

*Free downloads at www.silo64.com

CD Soundtrack: $6.95
C64 Game Diskette: $4.95
CD & Game Set: $9.95
CD, Game & T-Shirt Set: $19.95

http://8bitweapon.com/store.htm

Enjoy~!
-Seth & Michelle

-------------------------------------

*************************************
       SEUCK VAULT UPDATE NEWS
*************************************

"The Shoot 'Em Up Construction Kit"
revealed the secrets of professional
games programmers and gave you the
power to produce games to rival the
biggest chart-topping blasters. You
didn't need any training or
programming experience to use the
selection of utilities designed by
Sensible Software. Using your
joystick you could build your own
Spacecraft and Weaponry, design your
own Landscapes, Sound Effects,
Levels and Attack Waves. You could
start from scratch or redesign one
of the 4 FREE games included in the
pack. SHOOT 'EM UP CONSTRUCTION KIT
was an essential part of every
Commodore 64 owner's collection,
with the Amiga and Atari ST versions
following soon after.

The aim of the SEUCK Vault is to
gather together the very best games
created with SEUCK on the Commodore
64 and the Amiga. We are also
looking for previously unreleased
titles, your stories about how you
used the Kit, and also the tips and
tricks that make using the Kit
easier.

JULY

More Amiga games
With thanks to Ricky Derocher for
his help
Archive fully updated

NEW PAGES FOR THE RAID SERIES

Andrew Fereday
Sector 1 and Intense
The Serene trilogy
Skyflyer 1 and 2
Tomcat and Super Tomcat

http://www.seuck.retrogaming64.com/

-------------------------------------

*************************************
   WOOKIECHAT FOR AMIGA OS UPDATE
*************************************

WookieChat allows you to connect to
Internet Relay Chat networks (IRC)
and chat with other users in a text
medium in real-time. Some of the
server groups are preconfigured to
join an Amiga chat channel upon
successful connection. Executables
are provided for AmigaOS 3.x, 4.0,
MorphOS and AROSWookieChat is
uncrippled SHAREWARE. If you like
this piece of software, please
register! Registration is NOT
mandatory! No feature is disabled!

LATEST NEWS

- Contacts list has been redone, with
  scaled avatars beside peoples names

- Multiline chat field, control +
  Enter to do a line break without
  sending the message

- Timestamped messages in the chat
  display telling you when someone
  has gone offline/online

- Tabs open in the background when
  you already have one open now

- Avatars can be scaled now

- New Settings window, with tabbed
  display. Takes up much less screen
  space

This version tries to introduce an
Empathy or Emesene style contact
list, with scaled avatars next to
people's names. Also, their personal
message or music is now shown
underneath the person's name, so
those details are visible on
skinnier windows.

The default "no avatar" image has
been replaced with something better.

The Settings window has been redone
with a tabbed style display. Saves
screen space. Especially when you're
not running 1920x1080 24" monitors
like me. :P

The all in one style interface (with
the contacts and chat windows
combined) has been removed, due to
not being able to test all 3
possible settings thoroughly.. and
the hassle of maintaining three
separate GUI modes. So now we have a
tabbed mode, and a windowed mode.
Keeps things simple think.

There's a few annoyances left in
this release. The display pictures
in already opened chat windows are
not re-scaled when you change the
scaling prefs (but they are updated
properly when using chat tabs). And
also, if you have a line of text,
and the cursor is positioned in the
middle of your text, when you hit
enter, the program doesn't catch the
Enter key press before the message
is sent and the message gets a
newline inserted there (effectively
getting split into two lines).I will
correct these hopefully minor issues
in the next release.. but this has
been getting tweaked for too long,
so I wanted to get something new out
the door.

-------------------------------------

*************************************
     ASCII -- PETSCII CONVERTER
*************************************

King Durin has released a windows
utility to convert to and from
PETSCII and ASCII test

ASCII -- PETSCII Converter
Rating: No reviews yet
Updated: by plbyrd
Dev status: Stable

Recommended Download

ASCII--PETSCII Converter Setup.msi
application, 455K, uploaded Thu - 4
downloads

Release Notes

Overview
Converts between ASCII and PETSCII
files in either direction.

Usage
Select source file (ASCII or PETSCII)
Select target file
Select target file type
Click Convert

http://cbmcommander.codeplex.com/rele
ases/view/49023

-------------------------------------

*************************************
        4GB CF IDE HARD DRIVE
*************************************

www.amigakit.com

AMIGAKIT

We are pleased to announce that we
have just secured a large batch of
4GB CF IDE hard disks
prepped/formatted ready for Amiga
1200, 600 or 4000 (specify on
ordering from AmigaKit store)

The advantages of our drives are:

- completely silent operation
- responsive drives that run cool
- fully prepped and formatted with
  our installation software
  pre-installed
- high quality media fully
  compatible with Amiga

DIRECT PRODUCT LINKS

USA Store:
http://www.amigakit.us/product_info.p
hp?products_id=883

UK Store:
http://amigakit.leamancomputing.com/.
..roducts_id=883

European Store:
http://amigakit.leamancomputing.com/.
..roducts_id=883

Canadian Store:
http://amigakit.leamancomputing.com/.
..roducts_id=883

www.amigakit.com Amiga Computer Store

-------------------------------------

*************************************
             BASIC POINT
*************************************

http://basicpoint.jamtronix.com/

Bringing the power of CBM BASIC to
the world of presentation software!

what do you want to present?

h1. BASICpoint
h2. Features
* list items
** indented list items
 *bold text*
 _emphasised text_

presentation uses the following
textile conventions:
h1. - creates a new page containing
just the heading
h2. - creates a new page with
heading at the top, and following
text below
*bold text* - bold text is in
inverse char set
_emphasised text_ - emphasised text
printed in black
* at start of line becomes list item
** at start of line becomes indented
list item

COMMODORE FREE although it looks
basic at the moment this could be
really useful, if development
continues, I will be watching this
project, as I have been looking to
do PowerPoint presentations on a
Commodore 64 heck it will amuse
people if nothing else

-------------------------------------

*************************************
      UFE FLOPPY DRIVE EMULATOR
*************************************

UFE is an SD/MMC floppy drive
emulator for old computers. It
connects to the floppy drive port of
the host computer and behaves like a
real floppy drive, except that the
data comes from the SD/MMC card

http://retromaster.wordpress.com/ufe/

FEATURES

- Read/Write access for Commodore
  AMIGA, Atari ST and Amstrad CPC
  computers.

- On-board support for ADF, DSK, ST
  and MSA images. No conversion on PC
  necessary.

- Standard IDC 34-pin floppy
  connector.

- Can emulate two floppy drives.

- Video overlay user interface: 72
  columns by 30 lines text mode.

- Allows use of host system keyboard
  to control user interface.

- Buzzer for emulating head stepping
  ticks.

- Can co-exist with other floppy
  drives on the same bus (not
  tested).

- Full FAT32 support (incl. long file
  names and directories) for the SD
  Card. SDHC support.

- Firmware updates can be made
  through SD Card.

- Completely solderless installation.

- PIC32 MCU @80Mhz, 16Mb SDRAM.
  Double-sided PCB.

-------------------------------------

*************************************
       A-EON UPDATES REVISON 2
        NEMO MOTHERBOARDS and
   AMIGAONE X1000 BETA TEST UPDATE
*************************************

We are pleased to announce that we
have finalised the design of the
revision 2 "Nemo" motherboard.
Following an extensive testing
programme, as well as implementing a
number of minor hardware fixes, we
have opted to specify an upgrade to
the "Xena" XMOS subsystem to provide
greater functionality and
performance.

The revision 2 standard will be the
version shipping under the AmigaOne
X1000 Beta Test Programme. With the
design finalised, Hyperion
Entertainment will soon be sending
out the Beta Test information pack
to everyone who registered their
interest in joining the AmigaOne
X1000 Beta

TEST PROGRAMME

In other good news, the Hyperion
Entertainment software developers
have made excellent progress since
the AmigaOne X1000's public debut at
the Vintage Computer Festival in
June, and AmigaOS4 is now running
stably at the fastest CPU speeds.
Two AmigaOne X1000 machines will be
on display at the "Amiga Event 2010"
in Essen on the 24th July,
demonstrating the latest
developments.

Trevor Dickinson
Director, A-EON Technology CVBA

-------------------------------------

*************************************
    NOT ANOTHER SPRITE EDITOR V1
*************************************

Yep looks like it a sprite editor
for the Commodore 64 for use in
windows the file is a self
executable and as such doesn't need
installing just saving somewhere and
running

Download :
http://noname.c64.org/csdb/getinterna
lfile.php/90388/notanotherspriteedito
r.exe

-------------------------------------

*************************************
  10 YEAR ANNIVERSARY CONCERT WITH
         PRESS PLAY ON TAPE
*************************************

Yeah, we know it has been quite low
on news from PPOT recently. We have
been focusing a lot on recording new
material for the next CD. There is
still a lot of work to do with
mixing it and recording the final
pieces, so we do not have a release
date yet.

In the meantime we have our 10 year
anniversary coming up so we thought
we would celebrate with a concert :)
We are planning something special to
celebrate the past 10 years of PRESS
PLAY ON TAPE so don't miss it!

The concert will take place at The
Rock in Copenhagen on Saturday 11th
of September 2010.

We will be back with more details
later. In the meantime put a mark in
your calendar and have a look at our
event page which will be updated
when we have more details:

http://www.pressplayontape.com/?pid=c
oncerts_therock2010

Regards, PRESS PLAY ON TAPE

-------------------------------------

*************************************
    "THE UNOFFICIAL CMD HOMEPAGE"
*************************************

Email
To: Commodore Free
From: Milo aka MacGyver

The page "The Unofficial CMD
Homepage" - http://www.cmdweb.de -
is a home page with information
about the most interesting CMD
products. It has been created by my
brother Malte (ThunderBlade) many
years ago because of the fascination
for the devices.

7 or 8 years ago I have taken over
the hosting and since then I have
been making some small updates from
time to time.

During this years I have completely
paid the costs for hosting by
myself. At no time there has been a
business relation between me and CMD
and/or the current holders of the
rights.

I have recently set up a PayPal
donation button and would be happy
if you could support the site and
thus me and my C64 activities with a
donation.

As the saying goes: "Every Euro
helps!" ;-)

Best regards,
Milo aka MacGyver

COMMODRORE FREE
Nice informational webpage about CMD
products, for the curious and owners
of these now highly sought after and
collectable devices

=====================================

*************************************
   INTERVIEW WITH TREVOR DICKINSON
        A-EON Technology CVBA
*************************************

Q. Please introduce your self to our
readers

Hello my full name is Robert Trevor
Dickinson but I've been called
Trevor as far back as I can
remember. I am British by birth and
have always been a Commodore
enthusiast since purchasing my first
computer, way back in 1981. At the
time I was the Technical
Applications Manager for the company
I worked for and one of my
responsibilities was to manage the
hardware and software development
team. The company provided a
real-time data acquisition service
for geological, engineering and
safety monitoring on offshore
drilling rigs and oil platforms.
Initially we used HP9821 & HP9830
desktop computers but were in the
process of converting all the
systems to Dec PDP 11/03 & 11/23
minicomputers. Although I had worked
as a Data Engineer with both systems
at the well site I knew very little
about computer hardware or software.
It was not really surprising; I had
trained as a geologist!

Q. How does your computing "past"
link in with Commodore and the Amiga?

OK there I was, Technical
Applications Manager, supposedly in
charge of all the company's computer
development but with very little
knowledge or experience. I decided I
needed to buy my own computer and
get up to speed in my own time.
Remember, this was 1980 and the home
computer business that we know today
did not exist. The Apple II was
available, as was the Commodore PET
and Sinclair ZX80 had just been
released in kit form. I was
initially tempted to build my own
Sinclair but soon realised if I
wanted to do any serious work then I
would have to go for either the
Commodore or Apple machine. In the
UK there was more support for the
Commodore PET which also came with
its own built-in monitor. So, in
early 1981 I took my Christmas bonus
and bought a Commodore PET 4032. I
taught myself Basic and Fortran,
dabbled with machine code and
generally got to understand
computers. Like many other Commodore
users I became attached to the
Commodore brand which had a very
strong UK presence. I followed the
usual "upgrade" path to C64, C128
then C128D and by this time I was
living in Houston, Texas.

In 1988 I acquired my first Amiga.
My C128D system had just been zapped
by lightning and I used the
insurance money towards purchasing
an A2000. I was really into GEOS on
my C128 so the move up to the
Amiga's "WIMP" system was an easy
and natural transition. During the
1990's I used A3000's and A4000's in
my business for DTP, graphics work
and video editing but eventually
moved to other platforms as software
and support for the Amiga dried up
following the collapse of Commodore.

Q. You have a huge collection of old
Commodore computers - do you still
use any of them regularly?

Yes, hmmm! Most of my time these
days is spent running, AmigaOS4,
Windows and various Linux distros
(Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora and Mint). I
occasionally get a little nostalgic
and fire up my PET 2001 or one of my
C64's. I also get a lot of fun from
tinkering with my Classic Amigas and
enjoy working with the big box Amiga
range 2000, 3000 & 4000. There is an
elegant simplicity to the design and
feel of the Classic Amiga hardware
and software that is very addictive.
I also use MorphOS, "Amiga Forever"
and play with AROS on my iMica Atom.

Q. What in your opinion is an "Amiga"

That's a very difficult question and
the answer is very long and quite
convoluted. In Commodore times the
question was very simple to answer.
An Amiga was an advanced multimedia
computer manufactured by Commodore
in whatever form or shape they
decided to build and market which
ran the multi-tasking AmigaOS. Since
Commodore's demise, the lack of
clear leadership and the failure to
produce a natural successor the
"Amiga" community has become
somewhat fractured. I wrote an
article for "Amiga Future" with the
title "What is an Amiga?" in which I
attempted to answer this question.
(See my expanded answer later on).

Q. What is your favourite Amiga game?

Again another difficult question! By
the time I acquired my first Amiga I
was playing a lot less games. My
most active game playing period
would have been on the Commodore 64
with games like "International
Soccer", "Superstar Soccer" and
"Commando". On the Amiga I have fond
memories of "Dragon's Lair", for the
graphics and "Sword of Sodan" for
the voice over "Hold Stranger" &
"Jump over Barrels". Not forgetting
the excellent platform games
"Superfrog" and "Zool" and of course
games like "Beneath a Steel Sky"
etc, etc - did I say I didn't play a
lot of Amiga games? ;-)

Q. What is A-Eon what is the
company's history and what is the
company's aim?

At last an easier question. A-EON
Technology was formed in 2009 to
fund the development of new AmigaOne
hardware for AmigaOS4 and beyond.
There are three principle owners,
Tony Moorley, my long term friend
and business partner, Ben Hermans of
Hyperion Entertainment, the
developers of AmigaOS4 and now the
effective owners of the AmigaOS name
& trademarks and, of course, myself.

Q. How many work for the company?

A-EON Technology is working in
partnership with a number of
contractors, suppliers and
consultants and as such does not
have or need a large workforce.

Q. Who are the company's partners?

We have negotiated agreements with
several companies. Our software
partner is Hyperion Entertainment,
the legally licensed owners and
developers of AmigaOS for desktop
computer systems. Our hardware
partner is Varisys Ltd, a UK company
based in High Wycombe, who has an
excellent track record designing
specialised PowerPC and FPGA
hardware for embedded, military and
industrial applications. Our
worldwide distributor is AmigaKit,
based in Wales, who is the
world-wide market leader in the
retail and distribution of Amiga
hardware and software.

Q. What is the spirit of the Amiga
hasn't this now gone?

OK back to the difficult questions
again. Sometimes when I read the FUD
and negativity on some of the Amiga
forums, I think the Amiga spirit
died out many years ago. However,
I'm soon uplifted and heartened by
the many personal messages of
support and encouragement I
regularly receive from the otherwise
silent Amiga majority. IMHO the
Amiga spirit is still very much
alive and well.

Q. Can you tell our readers about
the hardware specifications and
price point of the machine.

The A1-X1000 will be supplied with
the AmigaOS 4.1 Update in a branded
tower case.

The current pre-release specs*
include:

- Dual-core 1.8GHz PowerISA v2.04+
  CPU.
- "Xena" 500MHz XMOS XS1-L1 128 SDS.
- ATI Radeon R700 graphics card.
- 2GB RAM.
- 500GB Hard drive.
- 22x DVD combo drive.
- Customised case, keyboard and
  mouse.
- 7.1 channel HD audio.
- Ports and connectors:
- 4x DDR2 RAM slots.
- 10x USB 2.0.
- 1x Gigabit Ethernet.
- 2x PCIe x16 slots (1x16 or 2x8).
- 2x PCIe x1 slots.
- 1x Xorro slot.
- 2x PCI legacy slots.
- 2x RS232.
- 4x SATA 2 connectors.
- 1x IDE connector.
- JTAG connector.
- 1x Compact Flash.

Note -: Subject to change

We have added a couple of
enhancements to the Revision 2 Nemo
motherboard to provide even more
functionality. More details will be
revealed at a later date. The
initial sale price is still not set
in stone and depends on a number of
factors including the very variable
and unstable currency exchange rates.

Q. What is special about the
hardware in this machine that makes
it unique to lets say a PC clone.

Well, first of all there is the
extremely cool AmigaOS4 which is a
direct descendant of the original
AmigaOS. Throw in a special low
power, high performance 64-bit Power
CPU that until now has only been
used in embedded industrial and
military applications. Add "software
defined silicon" in the shape of the
Xena XMOS coprocessor and integrate
the whole package within the high
specification Nemo motherboard and
the result is the most powerful
custom built, next generation
AmigaOne computer. Needless to say I
will be buying one for my
collection. ;-)

Q. I paid 2000 GBP for an Amiga 4000
when they first appeared I remember
having to wait for the machines to
arrive, later I went for the company
that imported them into the U.K.
Silica (prodic plc) I was employed
as an Amiga specialist, today
however I seem to have lost my way
with the various systems that are
called Amiga can you comment about
this.

For the long answer you should
really read my "What is an Amiga?"
article published some time ago in
"Amiga Future" magazine. ;-) I also
purchased A2000, A3000 & A4000 at
full retail prices for my business
and personal use during the late
80's to mid 90's. I used the Amiga
as a business tool for DTP, graphics
and video work but I also used it
for fun (see the games I didn't play
- much ;-))

Today, there are only two companies
making new hardware for the next
generation Amiga market: ACube with
their Sam440 and new Sam460 range
and now A-EON with the officially
licensed AmigaOne X1000 computer.
Both run the latest version of
AmigaOS4.

MorphOS is another "Amiga-like"
PowerPC OS which runs on Pegasos &
Efika hardware produced by Genesi.
Unfortunately, Genesi left the Amiga
market several years ago and the
hardware is no longer manufactured.
MorphOS has since been ported to the
PowerPC Apple Mac Mini and eMac
machines which can be purchased
second hand on eBay. AROS,
originally the Amiga Replacement
Operating system, continues to be
developed as an open-source
"Amiga-like" OS. Although, it mainly
runs on x86 hardware. Several
individuals have been promoting
hardware to run AROS and in
particular "Icaros Desktop Live" but
to date only a handful of systems
have actually been sold. I know
because I bought most of them! ;-)

There have also been attempts to
recreate Classic Amiga hardware
using modern, FPGA technology. The
most successful to date is the
MiniMig, by Dutch electronics
engineer and Amiga enthusiast,
Dennis van Weeren. In 2005 he
undertook a secret project to prove
that the Amiga's Custom Chipset
could be emulated using a FPGA. The
MiniMig is his open source
re-implementation of an A500 which
re-created the Amiga's OCS and ECS
chipsets in the FPGA. An onboard
Motorola 68000 CPU ensured accurate
emulation of the original hardware
allowing most games and software
that were written for the A500 to
run normally. A standard SD memory
card is used to hold the Minimig
firmware together with the Kickstart
ROM image and ADF Game files which
have to be supplied by the user.
A more ambitious FPGA project is
NatAmi, being developed by Thomas
Hirsch. It is complete motherboard
which will be totally compatible
with the original Amiga computer
without emulation, abstraction
layers or legacy drawbacks. Then of
course there is Classic Amiga
emulation software with products
like "Amiga Forever", WinUAE, E-UAE,
PUAE, and the Amiga super distros:
AmiKit & AmigaSys.

Q. What level of compatibility with
old Amiga software are you aiming
for?

If possible, I would like to see
Classic Amiga software fully
emulated on the AmigaOne X1000.
Chris Handley's RunInUAE program has
removed all the complexities of
setting up UAE and allows simple
one-click play of many Classic Amiga
games under AmigaOS4. However, for
better all round compatibility we
also need JIT implemented for UAE. I
am in discussion with several Amiga
developers and hope to have a
coordinated approach to Classic
Amiga emulation which would
ultimately benefit all AmigaOS4
users.

Q. Do you intend to support multi
processors, and will they be able to
shut down for compatibility with
older software?

Yes, the intention is for multi
processor support to be added
although the first AmigaOne X1000
will not support this. We would wish
to retain compatibility with older
software.


Q. Will the machine run just version
4.1 of AmigaOS and will it feature a
kickstart chip like the original
machines?

The AmigaOne X1000 currently runs
the latest AmigaOS4.1 Update,
although it has been modified for
the A1-X100) hardware (just like
OS4.1 has been modified to run on
the A1, Sam & Pegasos II). Work is
still ongoing to optimise the
drivers and maximise the performance
of AmigaOS4.1 on the new hardware.
At the moment Kickstart is installed
on a separate compact flash card but
this may change in the future.

Q. Emulation and compatibility is
often reliant on knowing the
hardware tricks and illegal opcodes
- will the new machine cope with
that?

The whole emulation issue is still
under discussion.

Q. Will it still give a Guru
Meditation Error when things go
wrong?

AmigaOS4 introduced the "Grim
Reaper" which replaced the "Guru
Meditation" error messages. The Grim
Reaper will be retained.

Q. How relevant do you think Amiga
is to the modern computing community?

Having acquired my first home
computer in the early 80's I think I
may have a different perspective on
computer development and use. Early
adopters were at the forefront of
the embryonic home computer
business. It's fair to say that in
recent years the computer has become
more of commodity rather than a
speciality with hardware
manufacturers churning out products
with incredibly short shelf life
before they are dumped for the next
greatest thing. Against this
backdrop of fast turnover and
inbuilt obsolescent the Amiga
computer is really quite an anomaly.
I would hazard a guess than most of
the AmigaOne, Micro A1-C and Pegasos
machines are still in use today and
would fetch a reasonable price if
placed for sale on eBay. If you view
and treat your computer as a
commodity to be used and discarded
like last years fashions then the
Amiga, in whatever form it takes, is
not for you. However, if you are
looking for fun, interest and
community the Amiga is as relevant
today as it was 25 years ago.

Q. What software would you like to
see developed for the new Amiga?

Software is the life blood of any
computer system and fortunately we
still have a very active AmigaOS4
developer community. About four
years ago, I set up and funded a
Hardware Loan/Donation scheme to put
next generation Amiga computers into
the hands of talented developers to
enable them to produce quality
software for AmigaOS 4. In total,
I've donated about 16 or 17 systems
as I believe it is important that we
encourage talented software
engineers to produce quality
software for AmigaOS4. If you check
on OS4Depot there are now over 2,600
files available for download. Also
with programs like Timberwolf and
Open Office (4 kids) in the works,
the future is looking brighter than
it has for many years. I think we
will continue to encourage and
sponsor software development to
ensure that the new AmigaOne X1000
is well served. I would particularly
like to see software that takes
advantage of the AmigaOne X1000 new
features in particular the Xena and
parallel computing applications.

Q. Have you had any responses from
Amiga and none Amiga users?

We have been inundated with messages
of support and requests for
information from both the past and
present Amiga users. We also
received a surprising amount of
interest from the mainstream
computer world.

Q. Commercially do you think there
is respect for the Amiga name?

Yes, the Amiga name and brand is
still well known and respected. The
launch of the AmigaOne X1000 at the
recent Vintage Computer Festival at
Bletchley Park attracted a lot of
mainstream computer media attention.
The news even made the front page of
the Register and the Enquirer. Not
bad for a brand that was written off
years ago. I've always liked the
Amiga adaptation of Mark Twain's
famous quotation "News of the
Amiga's death is greatly
exaggerated!"

Q. I have been to some businesses
recently that still use Amigas for
video editing, I even found a
company that use the Amiga for video
titling, I am sure they are a dying
breed of if it isn't broke don't fix
it, Could you see a machine running
Amiga OS in a local business typing
letters and editing spreadsheets.

I don't really see the AmigaOne
X1000 as a general purpose computer
for office work. The specifications
are aimed at power Amiga users and
enthusiast who want something a
little more special that the
run-of-the-mill x86 box.

Q. Do you think you will become rich
or just make a living?

I think everyone now knows that the
Amiga computer is my hobby and
passion.

Fortunately I have a number of other
business interests which allow me to
devote time and money to the
AmigaOne X1000 development. However,
it is important to remain realistic
and focused. One of the main reasons
for bringing Tony Moorley into A-EON
Technology was to ensure we make the
right business as well as technical
decisions. We have worked together
in several successful businesses
over the past 35 years and he is not
a computer enthusiast.

Q. Did you think about using the
Commodore name?

Yes, but unfortunately even now it
is very expensive. Following the
demise of Commodore the rights to
the name and brand have changed
hands, on several occasions, for
many millions of dollars. Even now
there is a dispute about the
possible illegal use of the
Commodore brand and name.

Q. So how many units do you think
you will sell?

I've no idea. I know how many we
need to sell to break even. If we
exceed that amount, we will make a
small profit and will be able to
justify continuing with new hardware
development.

Q. You have written for a number of
Amiga related magazines, you will
have seen the rise and fall of both
Commodore and the Amiga; what do you
feel is left for Amiga as a machine?

I still think there is a good market
for people who do not want to be
part of the homogenised PC crowd and
hopefully they will see the AmigaOne
X1000 as a machine that really does
bring the fun and interest back into
computing. There is still an
incredible interest in the Amiga
platform and I believe the addition
of the Xena "customisable chip" will
appeal to Amiga enthusiasts and
developers alike.

Q. Do you feel A-EON would ignite my
love of the Amiga?

Like you, I purchased an Amiga 4000.
At that time it cost me 2,500. Over
the years I added a Cybervision 64D
graphics card, a Cyberstorm 68060
accelerator, CD drive, SCSI I/F &
HDD etc etc. I replaced the 68060
with a Cyberstorm PPC233/68060 and
the 64D with a Cybervision 64/3D. I
converted it form a desktop to a
tower system using an Ateo
conversion kit and up until 2000 it
was the system I used every day for
most of my business needs. I hate to
think what I spent in total on that
system. When I began collecting
Amigas I suddenly realised there
were thousands people, who like me,
had gone through a similar evolution
with their Amiga systems. Whether it
is an A1200 tower conversion or an
A500 with multiple attachments
hanging from every port, the Amiga
was not a computer that was simply
thrown away like so many discarded
x86 PC cast-offs. Check on eBay and
you will regularly see Amiga
enthusiasts paying several hundred
pounds to buy Phase5 PPC boards or
other pieces of Classic Amiga
hardware. Contrast this even with an
Apple eMac, which can be picked up
for 10 to 20 off eBay. What I'm
really trying to say is, Amigans
love their computers and it is my
hope that they will come to love the
AmigaOne X1000 - which is truly a
computer designed by Amiga
enthusiasts for Amiga enthusiasts.

Q. do you have any other comments
you would like to add

This year is the 25th anniversary of
the Amiga's birth and despite the
bankruptcies, disappointments,
mismanagement, flame wars and broken
promises there is still a small but
active and thriving Amiga community.
I think Eric Schwartz summed it up
brilliantly with "Still Alive", his
humorous and bittersweet animated
video tribute to the Amiga's
longevity and survival. However, my
wife recently read a quote that
claimed "there is a very fine line
between hobby and mental illness",
and that probably goes some way to
explaining the Amiga "condition".

Thank you for the opportunity of
presenting the AmigaOne X1000 to
your readers.

Q. I wish you the best of luck

Thanks, we will need all the luck we
can get ;-)

=====================================

*************************************
    INTERVIEW WITH GREGORY ALEKEL
 Creator of www.commodoreserver.com
             and Comet64
*************************************

Please introduce yourself to our
readers

Hi, many of you know me as "Goog" in
the Commodore scene. I spend a large
amount of my time tinkering with my
favourite computer - the Commodore
64 - and play around with it on a
daily basis. In my spare time, I am
a professional software developer
and Web developer from Portland,
Oregon, USA and have worked for
companies such as Hewlett-Packard,
Intel, and contracted out to
numerous government institutions.

I recently started a new Commodore
Users group in Portland (pdxcug.org)
which has been exciting - we are
working on some group projects that
will help the Commodore community.

It seems that I am always working on
something for the Commodore 64. I
created a game for Compute!'s
Gazette when I was about 15, but
never sent it in. I built an
answering machine that hooked up the
C64's user port and it controlled
two tape players and automatically
dialled phone numbers. I created a
C64 emulator in .NET, just for the
learning experience. Mostly I like
to dabble in electronics projects
for the C64, but I also write
programs and play lots of games (my
favourite is Dino Eggs).

How would you say Commodore has
changed your life

I owe my career to my parents' wise
decision to purchase a Commodore 64
in 1983 (even though $595 was a lot
in those days). That was the launch
pad for my successes in computer
science. My parents tell me that
when I received my computer, my
bedroom was suddenly transformed
into a clean and organized
environment. In my mind, I was
trying to mimic Matthew Broderick's
room in "War Games", one of my
all-time favourite movies. Of
course, his room was not nearly as
clean, but he certainly had the
goods.

You started working on a Commodore
emulator using .NET how far was this
project and why was the project
halted

Some might recall my discussions
about a C64 emulator that I wrote
simply for the joy and for the
learning experience and that I
attempted to port it over to
Parallax's Propeller Chip. My port
was unsuccessful, however. The .NET
edition was also never completed
because its speed requirements
couldn't be satisfied by the .NET
framework (back in 2005). The system
boots up, runs BASIC programs and
displays some sprites, but that is
where it ended. I may decide to
finish the project at a later time
when .NET can support the demand for
speed.

Do you still have your first
Commodore machine

Sadly, when I was younger and moving
around a lot, I stored all of my
possessions in a storage unit which
got broken into. Most of what I
would consider valuable was stolen,
and I was extremely disappointed to
learn that my Commodore equipment
was gone (except my 1701 monitor,
Datasette, and all of my disks which
happened to be in other boxes) -
especially since I had the first
generation C64 (silver label). I was
lucky enough that the monitor and
datasette were not stolen and I
still have them to this day.

Do you still own real Commodore
hardware, if so what machines do you
own

I started building up my collection
of Commodore-related computers and I
now own several Commodore VIC-20s,
C64s, 128s, various Amigas, a
Commodore 16, a Plus/4, a B-128, and
an Ultimax. I was able to acquire a
silver label C64, but it was not my
serial number :(

Personally I like this question;
"What did Commodore do wrong, why
did they close"

That is a good question indeed. I
like to think that Commodore was
innovative and ahead of the times in
many ways. Innovation is something
that Commodore was proud of. But
being innovative isn't enough. A
company like Commodore in its day
had to be forward-thinking enough to
realize that the home market
differed greatly from the business
market. I've personally always
thought that PC's, even to this day,
are not home computers. Commodore
typically released home computers
while the world demanded business
machines. Can a business machine
work in a home, too? Sure. But can a
home computer work as a business
machine? Not practically, anyway. I
think that Commodore should have
stuck strictly with the home market
instead of trying to compete with
IBM and other business machines. As
we can still see today, the home
game consoles are what drive the
multi-billion dollar video game
industry. If Commodore had enough
sense to see how beloved video games
were, they would have continued with
that trend and could possibly be
competing today with Nintendo,
Playstation and Xbox.

Can you tell our readers about any
software you created, I believe you
were saying you made a Commodore 64
answering machine! can you describe
how this worked, do you have any
pictures of the setup, and a
description of what was needed for
the software to work. Also for the
curious is this software still
available to download.

My first complete game was called
"Head On" and was written entirely
in BASIC. I created this for
Compute!'s Gazette, but never
submitted it. It had a custom
character set and looked very
professional, with a complete
animated intro screen. I just showed
this off to some fellow CommVEx
attendees and they were not only
impressed by its completeness, they
also recommended that I release it -
something I intend to do on
CommodoreServer.com, so stay tuned.

My next big project was an answering
machine hardware device. It plugged
into the user port and a BASIC
program controlled things like
turning on the tape deck with the
outgoing message and switching to
the tape deck that recorded. It had
a ring detector and was able to
determine when the phone was picked
up as well. Soon, I started playing
with SAM (the speech synthesizer) to
do the outgoing message instead of
the tape player. It was so cool that
in College, a friend of mine was
running for student body president
and he approached me with the idea
to use my device to campaign for
him. I changed some of the software
with an outgoing SAM message and an
appeal to "Vote for Mike." It called
every telephone number in all the
dorm rooms to make the announcement.
It was such great fun. He didn't
win, but he should have! Sadly, that
was in one of the boxes that got
stolen. But I just found some of my
original plans for the device and I
still have a lot of the original
software, so maybe I can put
something together to share.

Can you tell our readers about the
Comet 64 internet modem, who
designed it and how it connects to
the internet

The Comet64 Internet Modem is a
plug-and-play product that provides
RS-232-to-Ethernet (I've been using
the term "S2E", for
"Serial-to-Ethernet" to help
distinguish it from other Commodore
Internet devices). It plugs into the
user port on any of a Commodore 64,
VIC-20, or Commodore 128 computers.
It is simple to install and you can
get immediate results by opening an
RS-232 port and writing data to it.
By default, it is configured to
integrate seamlessly with activities
that are available on
CommodoreServer.com, such as D64
disk access and blogging. You can
configure the device to connect to
any other server and send data
through by using the equivalent of
OPEN2,2,2,CHR$(10):PRINT #2, "Data
to be sent":Close 2. It supports
baud rates from 1,200 to 230,400,
and can be configured to use any of
those baud rates, but with the
limitations of a C64, it is
currently set to communicate at 2400
baud, but this will likely change in
the future because we are working on
some faster drivers.

Sometime in the mid-2000s, I ordered
an MMC and RR-Net adapter. I was
very excited to get on the Internet
and start playing around with new
software for my C64. One of the
things I did first was to load
Contiki with some special
configuration disk to set your IP
address and such. I was able to hook
it up and get some basic Web text,
which was very cool. What I didn't
like was the frequent lock-ups and
the difficult configuration (being
new to the Internet on a C64, I
expected something a little more
streamlined). Apparently, Contiki or
the TCP/IP stack had a few bugs in
it. I was convinced that there must
be a better way.

In 2008, I was flipping through a
magazine and saw a device for
"RS-232 to Ethernet" and it
immediately triggered a thought that
a stock Commodore 64 could be hooked
up to it. Commodore has a native
ability to open the RS-232 port and
immediately write data to it. So I
ordered one and started dabbling
with it. After a long, long road of
learning all the ins and outs of
Commodore's KERNAL routines and how
it wasn't fully RS-232C capable, I
was finally able to get it working
smoothly.

By this time I knew that I was on to
something and I started developing a
server-side utility to aid in the
development of client-side software.
My goal was to streamline Internet
connectivity for Commodore users out
there - something where Contiki and
RR-Net left you wondering what to do
next. Therefore I thought I would
fill the gap and make an
easy-to-use, out-of-the-box
solution. The Comet64 does not
replace what already exists - it
simply adds a new option for
Internet connectivity. Along with
CommodoreServer.com, I hope to make
the Comet64 modem usage universal
enough so that new software can come
along and open the doors for anyone
to start programming games and other
Internet-based applications.

Has the "Comet 64 internet modem"
been tested with any other software?
I am thinking here about Wheels/geos
users and the wave or any Commodore
Comms software maybe something like
novaterm, can the device even be
used by other software

The Comet64 is a stand-alone product
that anyone can use or program
easily using the stock RS-232
routines. Cameron Kaiser has been
involved in hooking up his Commodore
to Gopher services. He recently got
a Comet64 and is now using it to use
the Gopher protocol. In his words,
"it's a simple protocol to speak and
Gopher menus are very easy to parse,
even with very little memory. A good
choice for a stock 64 or VIC-20.
There are still quite a few gopher
servers out there with Commodore
software."

At the time of this writing, it is
unlikely that it works perfectly
with most other existing software,
simply because it is an RS-232
device. I suspect that most, if not
all, current Internet software uses
the RR-Net or Swiftlink libraries
which run on the cartridge port.
Since the Comet64 is a user port
device, the software would have to
be able to open and use the RS-232
port and send the data in that way.
As far as terminal programs go, if
the terminal program is able to have
user-settable configuration strings
(like AT commands for modems), then
they could be used for basic
communication. I tried 4 terminal
programs from my 1980's collection
and 3 of them worked. I also tried
NovaTerm, but was surprised that I
couldn't get it to communicate
properly. Although any software can
be used, the Comet64 wasn't designed
to be used with terminal programs -
it was designed to be used with new
Internet software and also work
seamlessly with CommodoreServer.com.

Another area that remains untested
is the ability to connect to Telnet
BBS's. However, I am confident that
the Comet64 modem should work just
fine with these services, so long as
you have the proper software
(probably a terminal program) that
can speak RS-232. Most do, but they
are often modem-centric and have a
lot of hard-coding in them to work
with specific modems.

How much does the "Comet64 Internet
modem" cost

The modem comes in two
configurations: Internet Modem only
(U.S. $66.99 kit) and Internet Modem
232 (U.S. $72.99 kit) - Add $20 for
assembly. The 232 option allows the
device to be used solely as an
RS-232 device, so you can hook up a
null-modem cable to talk to other
RS-232 devices. It just adds an
extra option. If you don't need the
232, you can just use the Internet
Modem portion only.

How is the modem utilised

It is basically an RS-232 device.
You open an RS-232 port on the C64,
VIC-20, PET, or C128 and send data
through it. Whatever data you send
is automatically sent to the IP
address that is configured, whether
it be a server or another Commodore
64, or hooking it up to other RS-232
devices (I was able to use an RS-232
NULL modem cable connected to my HD
television and view and change
settings, change channels, etc. from
my C64). In its default
configuration, the modem is set to
communicate with CommodoreServer,
but can be changed with either a
PC-based utility, or by sending a
series of configuration commands
(like how modems do it, but the
commands are different). You can
configure the modem to point to your
own computer and send and receive
data easily. Cameron Kaiser is also
working on a configuration utility
for the Mac.

Also I see you have created a
Commodore TTF (True type font) is
this a full character set?

Although there were Commodore fonts
in existence, none of them were true
to the character set of a Commodore
64. The "CommodoreServer" font was
developed to also provide a more
accurate font mapping with
true-to-life character substitution
(i.e. a lower-case letter a appears
as an upper-case letter A on a PC,
and vice-versa). The font contains
all Commodore 64 characters, both
upper and lower case, character
graphics, and the reverse video of
each. No other font existed to do
the same at the time I started. I
will also be adding the ability to
display other fonts from other
Commodore computers in the same TTF,
but the mappings will be a little
bit different for those, since the
primary mappings will be for the C64.

Is the font Free to download and I
suppose it could be used with other
applications, I have 2 applications
that although they display Commodore
characters on screen there is no way
to print them out on a standard
printer due to the lack of a True
Type Font will this font help

The font can surely be used by other
programs and will print nicely to a
modern printer. I used it in a Word
document where I wanted to display
actual Commodore 64 text in my
V-1541 user manual. It is free to
use and you may also utilize the
font for your own Web site and
provide a download to the file, but
I ask that you provide a link back
to CommodoreServer.com, preferably
with the graphic that I created for
downloading the font.

Can you explain the idea behind
www.commodoreserver.com

CommodoreServer is a destination for
Internet-based programs, programming
resources for developing
Internet-based software for
Commodore computers, and a release
mechanism for new software (both
Internet-based and otherwise). The
goal is to build a community of
people who want to use or develop
new software (preferably
Internet-based) and have an easy way
to both distribute and find that
software.

CommodoreServer is a convenient
programming aid for developers, but
also provides a storage mechanism
for D64 files (other formats will be
supported at a later time). You may
store up to 2,500 of your own disk
images in your own private account.
You may share the disks with your
friends within the site - both
parties will be able to see the disk
image in exactly the same way. If
the "sharer" makes a change to the
disk, the "recipient" will also be
able to see those changes. Likewise,
you can publish a disk to the public
directory and anyone will be able to
see it - both from an Internet
browser and from a real Commodore
computer.

Quick features of
CommodoreServer.com: Upload D64s,
view BASIC files, Disassemble ML
code, view files as a Hex dump, view
sectors on a disk, download or
upload individual PRG or SEQ files,
download the D64, "scratch" files,
create snapshots (maintain a
complete history of a disk), create
newly-formatted disks with a click,
view an index of and search for
files on all disks, categorize disks
by folders, create a BASIC loader
for an ML program, and much, much
more with more to come!

One of the coolest things I am
working on is a set of protocols for
a game server and easy development
of network games. Programmers will
not have to be bogged-down with the
mundane tasks associated with game
servers so creating new
Internet-based games will be much
easier. Players will be able to meet
up in game rooms, chat, and start
Internet games with sync provided by
the game server. Watch for this to
be released soon.

The website looks very professional
how many people are involved in this
project, can you name them and list
there input

Thank you!

I have put thousands of hours into
the site, server, protocol, font,
client-side software and just about
every other aspect of the project. A
close friend of mine, known as
"Agent Friday", has helped me
greatly throughout the process -
mainly on testing, client-side
software development, and circuit
design and debugging. A few other
members of the Portland Commodore
Users Group (pdxcug.org) were also
helpful in testing and providing
initial feedback.

How does the website work, our
reader creates a logon for free then
does he/she have to pay for a
subscription, what does the
subscription entitle the to over and
above just creating a free logon

You can sign up for free - there is
no subscription charge for normal
use. You have access to all of the
Web site resources that I do -
uploading disks, viewing them
online, using development tools,
blogging, and more to come - all for
free. You can also publish your own
software from within your account
and release to the community.
However, if you wish to sell
software or hardware, there is a
modest $50/year subscription cost
which allows you to sell any of your
own products.

So you can as a user upload and
download D64 and Prg file directly
to your commodore machine?

After you upload disks to
CommodoreServer.com, you are able to
immediately work off of those disks
directly from your C64 using
software that is designed to
interact with the service (V-1541 is
used for disk access with LOAD and
SAVE, but more software may become
available soon). Of course, you'll
need an Internet device (such as the
Comet64) to connect to the Internet.
The software must be capable of
using "CSIP", which is the
CommodoreServer Internet Protocol.
At the time of this writing, I am
working on a utility for the
Commodore 64 to upload and a real
floppy disk to the server, which
will create a D64 format in your
account. It will also support the
ability to download a D64 disk image
to a real floppy. My initial tests
were successful and this software
will be available soon. Other
members of the Commodore community
are also working on integrating
CommodoreServer into their software.

Do you have to save the files to
disk before you can use them or do
the files work LIVE

You can SAVE files directly to the
Internet, just like you would save
them to disk. For instance, if you
have a BASIC program in memory on
your C64, you can type:
SAVE"MYGAME",2. Assuming you already
"virtually inserted" a disk, the
file will be saved to the disk on
CommodoreServer.com. You would then
be able to view the file from a Web
browser. If you shared the disk to a
friend or placed it in the public
directory, the file would be live
immediately to them.

Are you a Commodore Free reader

Only recently have I discovered the
Commodore Free magazine and have
only read 2 complete issues. But I
found it to be a wonderful magazine,
filled with a lot of great news and
contents and I am thrilled that you
folks are working on it - I am a
convert and will continue to view,
support and read each issue
regularly!

Is there anything else you would
like to add

I would just like to encourage
everyone to try CommodoreServer.com
- even without a modem. It is a
useful Web application on its own.
Upload some D64's, click on some
files, and see the powerful features
and programming utilities that are
available. One demo writer I spoke
with indicated to me that it was
extremely useful working on the PRG
level - without having to deal with
a complete D64. You can click on a
PRG/SEQ file and see its contents in
the Web browser or download the file
individually from the D64 image.

Finally why is there such a
nostalgic burst of interest still in
older machines, (especially
Commodore) users are still very
loyal to 8-bit systems, and still
get heated about the "my machine is
better than yours" would you like to
comment

Anyone who grew up in the 80s can
fully appreciate the era - there
were so many aspects of the 80s that
make it such a great decade - from
computers to music to the arcade to
new frontiers in sound generation.
All of these things tied together
formed a particular image that
people just can't let go. As kids,
many of us dreamed of being involved
in Commodore software or hardware,
or having our own software company
but were unable to at the time. Now
that we are all grown up, we know
how to do it and can fulfil our
childhood dreams. So we bring back
the machines and all of those
memories flood back. I have two kids
and I fully plan on allowing them to
grow up with knowledge of my
Commodore computers, but they will
never be able to appreciate it the
same way. This idea was revealed
true in a recent "after party" from
CommVEx where we were watching some
of the current demos, in awe of how
the graphics and sound are pushed to
the limits. Something my child would
not be impressed by with today's
powerful computers. And I would like
to say to all other non-Commodore
8-bit computer fans: "My machine is
better than yours" (Otherwise you
wouldn't be reading this Commodore
publication) :)

Thanks for your time and good luck

Thank you for taking the time to
learn more about my products and
share them with your readers. I hope
that what I have created will be
useful and fun for everyone who
tries it.

=====================================
