I write about the past, present, and future of technology across three sites. imapenguin.com explores retro computing and programming fundamentals, milkcrunch.com covers modern software development and engineering culture, and evadot.com examines commercial spaceflight and the new space movement.
Posts
RSS- Super busy with day job today, but this evening starting to layout my first crack at the world’s worst paper tape reader, KIM-1 powered.
- Well, I do have a CNC and a lot of aluminum. Paper tape punch might even be doable.
- I’ve got it in my brain to build an 8 dot 1 inch paper tape reader. Because… science? I dunno.
- Going back through my own Cipher series for fun. I figured Vigenère cipher is a good one to port to the KIM-1. BASIC first, next ML and making use of the seven segments and keypad somehow #commodore
- Well @8BitShowAndTell has me down another rabbit hole. I suspect this one will be MUCH better than that time I had to endure watching Slipstream…
- Had this tool more than a year and still use it all the time. Super useful.
- April snow brings May flowers?
- I AM SUCCESS! Now using my PET clone as the TTY terminal for one of my KIM-1 Clones with PETTERM. Both 40 and 80 columns look pretty good! Kudos to @K0FFY_Radio @tynemouthsw @ChartreuseK @svenpetersen191 and @HutchCA for the moral support ;-) #commodore
- Exploring different ways to do visualizations over a slow TTY/Serial terminal. #commodore
- Proof that older computer books (1976) just did it better.
- Cutting my teeth on the TTY ROM routines on KIM-1 (clone). Here's my version of hello world: count 0-9 and newline after each. I've definitely got the hang of these now. Soooo what to make with it... #commodore
- Right on the edge of being slightly dated, but still the best primer for this subject.
- Sometimes I need to use a modern computer instead of a vintage machine as a serial terminal for KIM-1 (clones mostly). So I figure a retro font (Thanks Style!) and amber color at least get me in the right frame of mind. #commodore
- Truck tailgates… endless uses. #1455- Camp stove platform.
- First day of trout season. Haven’t found any trout but I have figured about where a half dozen smallmouths are.
- A little ice on the tent is no excuse for coffee to be skipped. All good, I put my hands in the cooler to warm them up.
- Tent camping near a creek in the mountains this weekend with Julie. Only going to get down to 31F tonight ;)
- On today’s episode of learn something every day: RISC-V core running on a Lattice FPGA at 50 MHz driving a Max7219 with a 10x10 LED matrix using 100% open source tools. Building and deploying from a headless Raspberry Pi so completely portable. Feels pretty good :)
- My colour Maximite has developed a RAM fault for no particular reason. It's surface mount, which I have a negative desire to try and remove and replace, so it is dead to me. Please, no more "modern retro" projects with surface mount. Bleh.
- Another breadbin saved by a PLAnkton #commodore