Antic The Atari 8-bit Podcast

Vince Cate, The Critical Connection   In my last interview, I talked with the creator of SIO2PC, which let Atari users use a DOS computer as its disk drive and printer. This interview is with the creator a product which - six years earlier - let Atari users use a CP/M computer as its disk drive and printer (and keyboard.)   Vince Cate owned a company called USS Enterprises, with just one product: The Critical Connection. Critical Connection was a combination of a specialized cable and software for connecting an Atari 8-bit to a computer running CP/M. The long cable had an SIO plug on one end and a 25-pin serial plug on the other, and some chips in the middle, allowing the Atari and CP/M box to communicate at 19,200 bps.   The Critical Connection was released in 1983, six years before SIO2PC. They shared many similar features: with it you could: use an entire CP/M floppy disk as an emulated 600K Atari disk drive, create 92KB CP/M disk files which emulated Atari 90KB disks, and print from the Atari to the CP/M

Nick Kennedy, SIO2PC and the ATR File Format   Nick Kennedy is the creator of SIO2PC, the hardware and software combination that allowed Atari 8-bit computer users to use a PC as a peripheral. In 1989, this was unprecedented, a new way to connect the little Atari to the bigger world, to the (relatively) massive storage and speed of a computer running PC-DOS. For the first time, Ataris could use a PC as storage, RAM disk, and printer. Nick also created the .ATR file format, which quickly became the standard for using virtual floppy disks on Atari emulators.   Nick also created 10502PC, a cable that let you connect an Atari floppy drive directly to a PC; and AtariCOM, a less well-known utility that allowed two Atari 8-Bit computers to communicate using the SIO and joystick ports. And, he created Atari-based amateur radio tools: a terminal program for packet radio, and Morse code keyer software, which he and I talked about in detail in our previous interview.   This interview took place on November 1, 2024.   V

Rick Reaser, Current Notes Magazine's 8-bit Editor   Rick Reaser was the 8-bit Editor of Current Notes Magazine, a popular magazine dedicated to the Atari computers. He began in 1992, and wrote a column called 8-Bit Tidbits. Rick used his Atari 8-bit computer exclusively through his college years and for programming for grad school. He was also president of P3ACE - Pikes Peak Poke Atari Computer Enthusiasts - a user group serving the Colorado Springs area.   This interview took place on February 11, 2023.   Video version of this interview at YouTube   P3ACE newsletters   Rick's "Atari Revolution" quote   Current Notes at Internet Archive   The Current Notes issue Kay received from Rick   Art of Computer Programming by Donald Knuth   Rick's letter to Antic Magazine Volume 7 Number 11 "My kids love Talking Toddle"   Support Kay's interviews on Patreon

Bob Stein, Atari’s Encyclopedia Project   Bob Stein worked at Atari Research for 18 months beginning in 1981. He was hired by Alan Kay. He worked almost exclusively on an encyclopedia project, a potential collaboration between Atari and Encyclopaedia Britannica that never went anywhere.   I learned about Bob after he uploaded an item called The Atari Drawings to Internet Archive. It's a collection of nine colorful pencil drawings, drawn in 1982 by Disney animator Glen Keane. The drawings depict futuristic scenarios where people use a computerized encyclopedia to get information: for instance, "An earthquake wakes a couple in the middle of the night. The Intelligent Encyclopedia, connected to an online service, informs them of the severity of the earthquake and makes safety tips readily available." and "A mother and her children looking into a tidepool in Laguna ask the Intelligent Encyclopedia about the plants and animals that they see."   Bob described the collection of art in his introduction to the documen

ANTIC Episode 111 - “Is Kay Really Funny, or is it Just a Courtesy Snicker?” In this episode of ANTIC The Atari 8-Bit Computer Podcast… We go over the ABBUC Software Contest winners, we cover PRGE, Kay accelerates his interview publishing schedule, and we ask the question: Is Kay really funny, or are Randy’s snickers simply courtesy?  You decide … READY! Recurring Links  Floppy Days Podcast  AtariArchives.org  AtariMagazines.com  Kay’s Book “Terrible Nerd”  New Atari books scans at archive.org  ANTIC feedback at AtariAge  Atari interview discussion thread on AtariAge  Interview index: here  ANTIC Facebook Page  AHCS  Eaten By a Grue  Next Without For  What we’ve been up to PRGE - https://www.retrogamingexpo.com/  Priming the Pump: How TRS-80 Enthusiasts Helped Spark the PC Revolution by David and Theresa Welsh - https://amzn.to/40l4vv1 (sponsored link)  Recent Interviews ANTIC Interview 439 - Making Modern Atari Hardware  ANTIC Interview 440 - Ed Sabo, UltraBASIC  ANTIC Interview 441 - Nick

Nick Kennedy, Atari Morse Code Keyer   I was adding a batch of ham radio newsletters to the Internet Archive's Digital Library of Amateur Radio And Communications, and I noticed the word "Atari" on one of the pages.   In the September 2019 issue of Solid Copy, the newsletter of The CW Operators Club, Nick Kennedy had written: "Few hams who are both CW [morse code] enthusiasts and programmers of microcontrollers have been able to resist trying their hand at a keyer or two. I’ve done several in the past 30+ years, starting with one for the 6502 in an Atari 800 and on through PICs, AVRs and now...the Arduino."   So I contacted Nick, amateur radio call sign WA5BDU, to find out what his Atari project was all about.   First, a tiny bit of ham radio background: Morse code, that language of dots and dashes, can be sent over the radio waves using a Morse code key. Even if you know nothing about ham radio, I bet you picture a basic Morse code key: when tap the little lever, it makes an electrical connection that makes

Ed Sabo, UltraBASIC   Ed Sabo, with the help of his dad, founded UltraBASIC, a company that produced software for Atari 8-bit computers. UltraBASIC's software for the Atari 8-bits, which was all programmed by Ed, were:    Tank Math: "a tutored math exercise plus a bonus roman numeral quiz" FunSpeller: "use your own words or the fifteen word-sets included" SuperFrogs: "the 7 game arcade with over 10,000 variations” … and  Track Stack: a program launcher, "stack up to 15 machine language programs on the track stack disk"   Ed also created some unpublished software, including a bulletin board system and RC Total, a program to track results of radio controlled car races. The company also operated a commercial coin op route, with video games, pinball machines, jukeboxes, and so on.   Ed's UltraBASIC company still exists. Today, the company specializes in transmission rebuilds, custom headers, and other repairs for classic and custom cars.   This interview took place on August 8, 2023.   Video version of this inte

Two Interviews about Making Modern Atari Hardware   In this interview episode, there are interviews with two people creating today's Atari hardware: the Atari 400 Mini and other modern reboots of retro consoles such as the Atari 7800+.    First, an interview with Matthew Burnett, Vice President of Strategic Operations at Atari — the guy in charge of Atari's new hardware. We discuss how the Atari 400 Mini came to market.   Then, I interview Ben Jones, Commercial Director for Plaion, a manufacturing and distribution company that was involved with the creation of the 400 Mini and 7800 Plus as well as other retro computing hardware like the C64 Mini and the A500 (Amiga) Mini.   These interviews took place on September 27 2024 at Portland Retro Gaming Expo.   Atari 400 Mini: https://atari.com/products/atari-400-mini-1 Atari 7800+: https://atari.com/products/atari-7800

ANTIC Episode 110 - Are the Grandkids Listening!? In this episode of ANTIC The Atari 8-Bit Computer Podcast… Kay makes TI users unhappy, VCFMW recap, we drool over an Atari Home Computer Demonstration Center display, we bid farewell to an Atari podcast, and Randy uses a word he wouldn’t want his grandkids to hear… READY! Recurring Links  Floppy Days Podcast  AtariArchives.org  AtariMagazines.com  Kay’s Book “Terrible Nerd”  New Atari books scans at archive.org  ANTIC feedback at AtariAge  Atari interview discussion thread on AtariAge  Interview index: here  ANTIC Facebook Page  AHCS  Eaten By a Grue  Next Without For  Links for Items Mentioned in Show: What we’ve been up to TI Fest West 2017 - https://forums.atariage.com/topic/260465-fest-west-2017/page/15/  Kay as Radio Survivor podcast guest about Famous Computer Cafe - Podcast #342 – The Famous Computer Cafe  ComputerLand radio commercials: https://archive.org/details/ComputerLand_Radio_Commercials  https://archive.org/details/ComputerLand_

ANTIC Interview 438 - John Carlsen - Atari Summer Employee Hello, and welcome to this interview-only episode of ANTIC, The Atari 8-bit computer podcast.  I’m Randy Kindig, your host for this episode. John Carlsen worked at Atari only briefly, as a summer job for 6 weeks in 1987, between his final years of high school. Later, in 1988-1989, he worked for its founding president, Nolan Bushnell when he signed on to Nolan’s latest startup, called Bots, Inc.  They made pizza delivery robots (and a related customer-facing order entry system) for Little Caesars Pizza. John then worked for Axlon, which was created by former Atari employees to manufacture add-on products for the Atari computer, followed by Aapps Corp., which spun out of Nolan's offices.  In 1990-1991, John also worked for Mediagenic (Activision, Infocom, etc.) until a week after its hostile takeover. This interview took place on March 6, 2024. Links https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nolan_Bushnell   

ANTIC Episode 109 - Host Wars In this episode of ANTIC The Atari 8-Bit Computer Podcast… Brad and Randy cover VCFSE, Kay finishes archiving the Famous Computer Cafe and gets some great material from Dan Kramer and Larry Summers, and the hosts trade barbs… READY! Links for Items Mentioned in Show: What we’ve been up to Larry Summers:  Excalibur - https://archive.org/details/excalibur-2nd-manual-type-apx  https://archive.org/details/Functional_Specification_for_The_Arabian_Adventures_Packet_Technologies  https://archive.org/details/Out_of_Ataris_Game_San_Jose_Mercury_News_1982-06  https://archive.org/details/Chris_Crawford_recommendation_letter_for_Larry_Summers  https://archive.org/details/Atari_81_v1n4_1981-05  Superboots business plan - https://archive.org/details/superboots-business-plan  Dan Kramer:  https://archive.org/details/atari-management-recognition-award  https://archive.org/details/atari-controller-design-focus-groups-report-1981  https://archive.org/details/a-qualita

ANTIC Episode 108 - Randy’s Eyes Are Bleeding!  In this episode of ANTIC The Atari 8-Bit Computer Podcast… Kay visits VCFSW and the National Videogame Museum, tapes from the famous Computer Cafe are found, Atari acquires Intellivision, and Randy’s eyes start bleeding from watching YouTube videos 24x7… READY! Recurring Links  Floppy Days Podcast  AtariArchives.org  AtariMagazines.com  Kay’s Book “Terrible Nerd”  New Atari books scans at archive.org  ANTIC feedback at AtariAge  Atari interview discussion thread on AtariAge  Interview index: here  ANTIC Facebook Page  AHCS  Eaten By a Grue  Next Without For  Links for Items Mentioned in Show: What we’ve been up to VCF SW, National Videogame Museum - https://nvmusa.org  Titan - https://forums.atariage.com/topic/234684-atari-8-bit-software-preservation-initiative/?do=findComment&comment=5472194  Development disk for Tom Hudson's "Adventure at Vendenberg A.F.B." - https://forums.atariage.com/topic/234684-atari-8-bit-software-preservation-initiative/?

ANTIC Interview 437 - Dr. Kristina Hooper Woolsey, Atari Research Labs and Apple Multimedia Lab Hello, and welcome to this interview-only episode of ANTIC, The Atari 8-bit computer podcast.  I’m Randy Kindig, your host for this episode. Dr. Kristina Hooper Woolsey is an American scholar and cognitive scientist known as the "mother of multimedia" for her pioneering work at the Apple Multimedia Lab and Atari Research Labs, which she directed. Woolsey was a founding member of the Apple Human Interface Group.  She was named a Distinguished Scientist by Apple Computer in acknowledgment of her pioneering work in multimedia in education.  She was the executive producer of a range of multimedia titles in learning --- Life Story, the Visual Almanac, Animal Pathfinders, Disappearing Ducks, Countdown, Planetary Taxi and others --- that were produced when she was Director of the Apple Computer Multimedia Lab.  There is discussion during the interview about Cynthia Solomon and Brian Silverman, who were interviewed in a pr

ANTIC Episode 107 - 4 Times! In this episode of ANTIC The Atari 8-Bit Computer Podcast…we realize there are 4 times as many interview episodes as regular episodes and what that might say, Kay visits the Strong Museum, Randy attends the Indy Classic Expo, and Brad drools over a keyboard for the 400 Mini… READY! Recurring Links  Floppy Days Podcast  AtariArchives.org  AtariMagazines.com  Kay’s Book “Terrible Nerd”  New Atari books scans at archive.org  ANTIC feedback at AtariAge  Atari interview discussion thread on AtariAge  Interview index: here  ANTIC Facebook Page  AHCS  Eaten By a Grue  Next Without For  Links for Items Mentioned in Show: What we’ve been up to Strong Museum - https://www.museumofplay.org/  Atari BASIC Tutorial book - https://archive.org/details/ataribooks-atari-basic-tutorial  Indy Classic Expo, April 16 & 17 - http://indyclassic.org  80-column card for 1090XL - Brian Reifsnyder - https://www.tindie.com/products/5cfab/80-column-rpp-board-for-the-atari-1090xl1091xl/  Dis

ANTIC Episode 106 - Thom, do you ever sleep!? In this episode of ANTIC The Atari 8-Bit Computer Podcast… we cover all the recent contests involving new Atari software development, bring you all the other Atari news we could find, and marvel at the stamina of Thom Cherryhomes… READY! Recurring Links  Floppy Days Podcast  AtariArchives.org  AtariMagazines.com  Kay’s Book “Terrible Nerd”  New Atari books scans at archive.org  ANTIC feedback at AtariAge  Atari interview discussion thread on AtariAge  Interview index: here  ANTIC Facebook Page  AHCS  Eaten By a Grue  Next Without For  Links for Items Mentioned in Show: What we’ve been up to Atari’s 1986 prospectus and form S-1 - https://archive.org/details/atari-corp  Titan game - https://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-400-800-xl-xe-titan_6337.html  https://archive.org/details/tbace-thunder-bay-atari-computer-enthusiasts/TBACE-1985-01%20Minutes/  2.4A power supply for XL/XE from 8bitclassics.com - https://www.8bitclassics.com/product/atari-xl-xe-2-4a-

ANTIC Episode 105 - Secret Club Meeting with Andy Diller In this episode of ANTIC The Atari 8-Bit Computer Podcast… we pull together our secret club of Atari hackers, including special guest Andy Diller, and talk FujiNet, archiving disks, VCF SoCal, VCF East, listener feedback and more in an extra-long episode. READY! Recurring Links  Floppy Days Podcast  AtariArchives.org  AtariMagazines.com  Kay’s Book “Terrible Nerd”  New Atari books scans at archive.org  ANTIC feedback at AtariAge  Atari interview discussion thread on AtariAge  Interview index: here  ANTIC Facebook Page  AHCS  Eaten By a Grue  Next Without For  Links for Items Mentioned in Show: What we’ve been up to FujiNet Updates FujiNet has a cheatsheet- on the wiki - a wealth of info Wiki: https://github.com/FujiNetWIFI/fujinet-firmware/wiki  FujiNet GPT: https://chat.openai.com/g/g-QRB9PLLB4-fujinet  Virtual FujiNet in a File - virtual machine created for virtual box or vmware https://fujinet-vm.readthedocs.io/  FujiNet board f

ANTIC Episode 104 - You’re Gonna Label Me a Failure In this episode of ANTIC The Atari 8-Bit Computer Podcast…Kay plays with Pokey the AI chatbot some more, Kay’s cat tries to smack Randy in the head, we discuss what happens if we don’t meet our interview goals (hint: Randy will be labeled a failure), and we bring you all the Atari 8-bit news from the last month of 2023 READY! Recurring Links  Floppy Days Podcast  AtariArchives.org  AtariMagazines.com  Kay’s Book “Terrible Nerd”  New Atari books scans at archive.org  ANTIC feedback at AtariAge  Atari interview discussion thread on AtariAge  Interview index: here  ANTIC Facebook Page  AHCS  Eaten By a Grue  Next Without For  Links for Items Mentioned in Show: What we’ve been up to The genealogy program Max Derhak mentioned when he was interviewed in 2014 was just found - http://www.atarimania.com/utility-atari-400-800-xl-xe-adam-trace_42271.html  Antic Magazine v1n3, v1n4 and v1n5 (Aug, Oct and Nov 1982) software - https://www.atarimagazines.com/softw

Rodrigo Castro, Atari in Chile   Rodrigo Castro was one of the organizers of an Atari Expo that took place July 22, 2023 in Santiago, Chile. He told me it was probably the largest Atari show in that country to date, with an estimated 300 attendees. Panelists included Robert Jaeger, creator of Montezuma's Revenge, who attended via videoconference.   Rod and I talked about that event, as well as Atari's popularity in Chile, in this interview that took place on December 15, 2023.   Video from Expo Atari Chile 2023   Chilean Atari magazine and newsletter scans   ANTIC Interview 320 - Robert Jaeger, Montezuma's Revenge   Kay's XC-11 Program Recorder

ANTIC Episode 103 - POKEY The Atari Guru In this episode of ANTIC The Atari 8-Bit Computer Podcast…results of the ABBUC 2023 Software Contest, upcoming 2024 shows (and an Atari Party yet in 2023), and Kay has a great time testing out POKEY The Atari Guru… READY! Recurring Links  Floppy Days Podcast  AtariArchives.org  AtariMagazines.com  Kay’s Book “Terrible Nerd”  New Atari books scans at archive.org  ANTIC feedback at AtariAge  Atari interview discussion thread on AtariAge  Interview index: here  ANTIC Facebook Page  AHCS  Eaten By a Grue  Next Without For  Links for Items Mentioned in Show: What we’ve been up to QSO Today Episode 475 Kay Savetz - https://archive.org/details/qso-today-475  The 1056 Board -- Atari 400 1056k Memory Upgrade - https://www.ebay.com/itm/275939475102  News Version 6.4.0 of the RECOIL (Retro Computer Image Library) graphics browser - http://recoil.sourceforge.net  POKEY The Atari Guru by Andy Diller - https://chat.openai.com/g/g-t3fdHnbbK-pokey-the-atari-guru   Atari

ANTIC Episode 102 - Randy, You Used to be a Nice Guy! In this episode of ANTIC The Atari 8-Bit Computer Podcast… All the Atari 8-bit news for this month, Kay breaks his Atari mug, Brad impersonates Kay, Kay decides to start up a cable company, and Randy changes in retirement … READY! Recurring Links  Floppy Days Podcast  AtariArchives.org  AtariMagazines.com  Kay’s Book “Terrible Nerd”  New Atari books scans at archive.org  ANTIC feedback at AtariAge  Atari interview discussion thread on AtariAge  Interview index: here  ANTIC Facebook Page  AHCS  Eaten By a Grue  Next Without For  Links for Items Mentioned in Show: What we’ve been up to ICD Atari 8-Bit Info - https://archive.org/details/icd-atari-8-bit-info-flyer  ICD Multi I/O Board Manual - https://archive.org/details/icd-multi-io-board-manual  EPG Jr. thread on AtariAge - https://forums.atariage.com/topic/171349-prevue-guide-epg-jr-reverse-engineering/  The Atari 8-Bit FujiNet N: device, in Perspective by Thom Cherryhomes - https://www.youtube.