Apple II, best of the early micros? You bet it was!

[Apple II, best of the early micros? You bet it was!]

.. I didn't learn the basics of BASICS on the Apple. My first introduction to the language what through RadioShack book.

 

Hah! Same here. My father purchased me two books, several months before we got a computer. The first book was a collection of games in basic edited by David Ahl, yellow cover, which I bet a lot of ya'll have seen. The other:

 

[Apple II, best of the early micros? You bet it was!]

Oh, another Apple II vs TRS-80 debate! I'm in!

 

James,graphics, I don't think you should go there. You merely invite someone to display something like this:

 

 

TRS-80 is on left. Pet is better. Apple is on right and needs no further explanation.

 

There was always a version of Apple basic that would display the color graphics of the Apple II, be it the original Integer Basic or something else. The appearance of Applesoft in January of 1978 predates the TRS-80 level II basic by a few months, giving Apple users the edge for small time in non-graphic stuff as well. Further, the cost of a TRS-80 floppy drive with the required expansion port was far beyond the cost of the minimalist Apple floppy drive in 1979... Tandy was a great company, but Woz didn't work there.

 

That being said, there was a lot going for the TRS-80 and I think these are the things to praise it for: the entry level TRS-80 was affordable, widely available, had local support (via Radio Shack stores), and had (for a significant time) a stronger home user network (who provided a lot of free/inexpensive software). The lack of real graphics *killed* it.

 

The Pet never succeeded in the home, but did a good job for a while of providing industrial applications. I like that one a lot, too, but TRS-80 and Apple drove it out of serious contention in the U.S. market. It did well in the business community of Europe. Commodore came back with a great computer (Vic-20) and greater computer (C-64), but those are a different generation of machines. In a world of C-64s, Atari 400/800s, TI, and IBM-PCs, the Apple II (II+, IIe, IIc) showed its age. In a world of Pets and TRS-80s, Apple II made history. IMHO.

[THE OFFICIAL ATARI 2600 HEAVY 6-SWITCH LIST]

I saw a few varieties from Atari 2600s at the Dallas Goodwill computer resale store today for $10/each, ranging from a couple heavy sixers (Atari/Sears versions), a light sixer, a couple 4 switch varieties, and even a couple modern retro-productions. This is the one I purchased:

 

NTSC

Serial: 11374G

Sunnyvale

akochera, Dallas TX

A/B Channel Slot (Yes/No): No

A/B Channel Switch (Yes/No): No

Functional (Yes/No): Yes

 

I have a question about the label. As you can see, there are two dates stamped on it, both of which appear to be later than the serial number would suggest. Or am I wrong... is one of them a production date? What are those stamped dates for?