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I was very surprised at how toughly it was built... and how heavy it was! The last 8-bit computer I had was the Commodore 64c. Although I thought it was an improvement from the breadbox design, the Atari 800 makes the C64 models seem cheap in build. In normal fashion of every game console/computer I get, I took it apart to not only explore it, but to also see what I was dealing with. The enclosure for the ram cards and the CPU card was super solid. Very impressive how well it was built. I didn't expect the CPU to be located there. You don't mind if I ask you some questions while installing my Incognito, do you? I may need some help and it would be nice to talk to another and compare notes.

That isn't the first time I heard this. I hear that everything is much clearer on the original 800 computer vs the subsequent models that came later in the 80's.

I ended up buying the SVideo cable as listed above. Thanks everyone for your help! If I was better at making professional looking cabling, I would have built it myself. Unfortunately, I'm not good at that. Now, as far as an assembler goes, what do people use nowadays? Also, is there a good way for me to transfer files to and from a PC? (IE: I'd like to be able to create sprites on the PC, but load them up on the Atari in whatever program I create.)

"edit: oh p.s. I just saw you asked about if it 'smoked' - no, no, it didn't smoke. I'll tell you - that I did not plug it in backwards, and I was very careful and meticulous. However, given the fact that it also didn't work - I'll never really know what happened. As far as I could eyeball things, I had connected all the wires in the right place, and did not short anything. I spent several hours on it - just going as slow as you can imagine. When it didn't power on at all - I asked on these forums about that - turns out I had the cartridge door open, and there is a switch to prevent the machine from powering on with the door open. Then, after I got past that hurdle - I turned it on - and I got a green screen - no display, just green. At that point I gave up. " lol.. the door was one thing I got hung up on when I brought the A800 home a few days back. Having never used one of these, I originally thought it was broken! Then I closed the door and things worked. Looking at the pictures I assumed the "smoke" wasn't let out of it. Things looked OK on the board and I didn't see any scoring, so I thought if worst case scenario, I'd be able to go to AtariAge and see who made the board to get it repaired.

@Rod: It looks like I have the REV D board, so the instructions you provided should work for me. Thank you very very much for that. I think I'll end up buying a cable vs creating one... Do you know where I'd buy one? @Toad: "But I sure wish SoilentGreen the best of luck with the card! and I'll be very happy to hear if you get it working. It's shipped, btw...heh, since I've got you here." Awesomeness! Can't wait to start working with it! Looked very impressive when I saw videos of it. If it wasn't for this board, I probably would have gone for an XL or an XE. "Btw, whether using coaxial or composite - neither implies using a 1980's tv set." Hence why I said Monitor and not TV. I have an Atari 520STM with one of the older monitors. Don't really like it, kinda small, bulky, sometimes hard on the eyes, even though I get good resolution out of it. RCA composite is much much clearer.

Hi Everyone, It's been awhile since I've been on the boards! After a bit of thought, I bought an Atari 800 computer system. I also bought an Incognito board from Ebay, which I'll be getting connected to the 800 system as soon as it arrives. Here's what I want to do with it: I'd like to learn and somewhat master assembler for the 6502. I'd also like to learn about video graphics from a low level, I/O, etc. This is all for the goal of building an 8-bit computer based on the 6502 processor from scratch. It's a long term goal.. So, I'm not in a hurry by any means. This is just for learning and for fun. Here are the questions I have so far.. Maybe some of you can help a guy out. 1.) I'd really like to use RCA cables for the video vs the Coaxial cables. Just a preference. I've always found the RCA cables to be clearer in picture and I don't care to buy a monitor from the 80's. Also, even though I like the "old school" look of the 800.. I hate the Coaxial connector coming out the back. Is there a way to hack the original 800 to use RCA cables instead? Maybe a way to modify the case to have connectors? 2.) Is there any way to connect the Atari 800 to a PC so that I can transfer files from one to another? I guess I could use the CF card for the Incognito, but the problem with that is that I don't want to always pull off the top of the 800's case whenever I want to add files to the CF card. Is there another way, maybe Ethernet or some serial cable, that I can connect to it with? 3.) What's a recommended assembler? I've seen the MAC/65 assembler and a few others floating around in cartridge format. I'd like an assembler, but at the same time, I don't want to use a disk unless I need to. I've heard people using the 6502 compilers for their operating system of choice (I'm using Fedora Linux 19). I don't know whether people tend to use their PC for the programming or if they still compile straight on their Atari. 4.) The Incognito unit I just bought was from a user on Ebay that had issues with getting it connected to their 800. It comes with no parts and no instructions. Are there instructions on how to install this? Also, if parts are fried on the board, is there anyone I can talk to about getting it repaired (It's the Atariage version)? I'm pretty handy with a soldering iron, so getting it installed once provided with instructions shouldn't be the problem. The problem would be if the person that I'm buying it from "let the smoke out". That's all for now! Looking forward to your responses! Thanks!

Well.. I'm not comfortable with anything just yet. I need to learn to crawl before walking, right? I've never coded on the Jag or in ASM. It sounds like fun though and there have many great strides since I've first looked into messing around with the Jaguar! As far as buying a BJL modified Jaguar (what I'm assuming you're getting at), I'm waiting first to see if I get a Jag for Christmas from my better half. If I do, I'm going to wait until then to hunt down the BJL setup. If I don't get one, I'll definitely keep that in mind. I've been forced to promise not to buy anything for myself for the next 2 months. "Right now I'm kind of in the information gathering I.E: what would it take for me to do this?" phase. What's the advantages/disadvantages of doing BJL vs using an Alpine board or a Skunkboard?

Hi, I was a pretty big Jaguar fan a few years ago, I lost interest in it and sold everything I had off. I came across an Atari ST 520m not too long ago and had my interest re-sparked. I have a few questions about how that would translate to coding on the Jaguar. I know that both are based on the 68000, even though the 68000 is only thought of as a manager on the Jaguar rather than being the main CPU. Am I better off coding on the ST and then transferring to the Jaguar? Would BJL work with my Atari ST? Thanks!

I didn't know there was even a second generation SGB..

That auction is for one of B&C ComputerVisions' machines, and as I think I've said before, I've bought several from them in the past and would gladly do so again. Forget that other listing and get a pristine machine from a seller you can trust. Ahh.. didn't see the shipping part on there. I should have looked at it. My mistake.. I'll keep my eyes open if I see a decent one.

The Dreamcast WAS a really great unit.. I still have mine. I still love it to death! :-) It was fairly well designed, had great animation for it's day, and some really great games.. The thing about Sega is that they set themselves up with the loss on the Dreamcast. Many say that if they had been more careful and not released products that didn't get much support (IE 32x, SegaCD.. ) and were better with their flagship products like the Saturn, things might have turned out differently. Atari did the same.. The constant changing of direction between Home Console and Computer market, the Tramiels, and some really bad business decisions (once again, the Tramiels) we would probably be seeing Atari as a hardware manufacturer today, rather than just a name that people put out products under with a cool fuji symbol.

What I thought would be way cool is if someone was to take the development concepts of the Commodore 64 or the Atari 800 and updated them to todays standards. Theoretically speaking, I think it would be an awesome unit! No operating system.. Maybe a small BASIC or Java console and allow the developer to have full run of the entire machine.

Not at all - I just had seen someones status update saying "what if atari sold consoles again" or something to that effect. There is a new box called the "pandora" which very likely accomplishes nearly everything I asked for above except the pretty LED's, and it almost fits in your back pocket to boot! The pandora is kinda cool.. But the only thing is that with something like that, you're more likely to get something that will just emulate games, rather than anything new. I have a Dingoo a320 which I was hoping there was going to be more development on. Unfortunately that's not the case. It seems people would rather have an emulator that steals games for them to play rather than actually spending their hard earned cash or their time to create their own games. we'll see though.. I will agree it does look like a cool unit. :-)

Hi, I'm looking for an Atari 800XL computer system! Anyone looking to sell an NTSC unit? Just looking for core unit and power supply for now.. Doesn't need floppy or Tape. Thanks!

Just replied to someone else.. Just saw this xegs on ebay.. eBay Auction -- Item Number: 280448310433 later!

By the way.. I love your bladerunner pic!

I just saw one on Ebay earlier today.. Check it out, price isn't bad either. eBay Auction -- Item Number: 280448310433

Thanks for the reply.. Would there be any place to get an alpine board? Do they ever come available? How much do they normally run?

Hi, I used to own a Jaguar, thinking about getting another one in the near future. When I had one, I always wanted to develop for this system, except.. I never quite got around to it, due to college and having a life. What was weird was that it was one of the things that kept me going through college. Now that I don't have either and I have a bit of time on my hands.. I've been thinking about going and giving it a shot. I was wondering, what would be the best and most feasible development set up that a guy can get his hands on. I don't necessarily care how much it costs as I'll buy it one piece at a time if I have to. I hear some people using falcons or ST's.. I've heard of the dev kit being for PC's.. I would like the best possible devkit.. What would I want? Thanks in advance!