RobertB

Happy Labor Day, C= and Ami comrades! The next meeting of the Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network is Saturday, Sept. 9, from 2 to 5+ p.m. at Panera Bread Restaurant 19662 Nordhoff Street Northridge, California (818) 407-9400 For discussion we’ll talk about the Amigas at the October 12-15 Amiwest Show in Sacramento and the Commodores and Amigas at October Bay Area Maker Faire in Mare Island. Also I’ll be visiting Ray Carlsen in late October (after the aforementioned shows), so if you have any Commodore 8-bit equipment or monitors, bring them and I will give them to Ray for repair. Brush up on your DOS commands, because we’ll look at a Commodore PC20-III with 640K RAM, DOS 6.0, NEC v20 CPU, XTA-to-CF adapter going to a 2 gig CF card hard drive, CGA-to-VGA card, and Snarker Barker (Sound Blaster clone) 8-bit audio card. There is the re-repaired Amiga 3000, this time with Spectrum 24-bit video card running CyberGraphiX v4.3 software, an Ariadne-II Ethernet board, and a ZuluSCSI with 2 gig card replacing the mechanical hard drive, in addition to its Amiga OS 3.1 and 256 meg ZorRAM. If we have any extra time, we’ll look at the latest games running on the Ultimate 64, and/or if Bernie brings his SAM440ep, we’ll see his latest updates to Amiga OS 4.1. As always, feel free to bring any other Commodore and Amiga hardware/software that you wish to show off! Truly, Robert Bernardo Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network - http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan

After a long wait, Pacific Commodore Expo NW videos are being posted! Here are the first of the new batch -- Bernie Innocenti / Amiga for C64 Users - PaCommEx 2023 Stephen Jones and the NABU PC - PaCommEx 2023 Truly, Robert Bernardo organizer - Pacific Commodore Expo NW

After a long wait, Pacific Commodore Expo NW videos are being posted! Here are the first of the new batch -- Bernie Innocenti / Amiga for C64 Users - PaCommEx 2023 Stephen Jones and the NABU PC - PaCommEx 2023 Truly, Robert Bernardo organizer - Pacific Commodore Expo NW

Happy National Creamsicle Day, C= and Ami aficionados! The Fresno Commodore User Group has its next meeting from 11 a.m. to 2:30+ p.m., Sunday, August 20 at Panera Bread Restaurant 3590 W. Shaw Ave. (corner of W. Shaw Ave. and Marty Ave.) Fresno, CA 93711 (559) 271-0104 http://www.dickestel.com/met_loc.htm Our last meeting ran for 7 hours, a record! Let’s not try for another record this time. For discussion, we will talk about the October Amiwest Show in Sacramento, the October Bay Area Maker Faire in Mare Island, and C= repairperson Ray Carlsen. In presentations, I’ll go over the process of converting Paperclip word processing files (screencode files) on floppy disk to text files on SD card and readable on a PC. For that, I’ll be using Craig Bruce’s ZED 0.77 80-column text editor on the Commodore 128, a 1541/1571 disk drive, a SD2IEC card drive, and a PC laptop running DirMaster 3.1.5. Also we’ll try out a fully functional Commodore PC20-III, newly repaired and upgraded by Duncan M. of The Other Group of Amigoids. Upgrades -- NEC V20 CPU which replaces the 8088 CPU, DOS 6.0, a 3 1/2” floppy disk drive alongside the standard 5 1/2” floppy drive, a Snarker Barker sound card (Sound Blaster clone) with 3D-printed volume control wheel, a RGBI-to-VGA video card, and a Compactflash replacing the mechanical hard drive. On the CF card, we’ll try out some of the many PC games, especially games that use sound through the sound card. Finally, we try out an Amiga 3000, also repaired and upgraded by Duncan. The Agnus chip socket is replaced (due to battery damage), and the SCSI mechanical hard drive is replaced (too many errors on the old mech) by a CF card. Upgrades – Spectrum 24-bit video card with CybergraphX drivers, an Ariadne-II network card, and a fresh set of WHDLoad games. Still running Amiga OS 3.1, this A3000 also comes with a 256 meg ZorRAM. Is this another 7-hour meeting?! Robert Bernardo Fresno Commodore User Group - http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm

Oh, just digging up this older thread... Just before the June Pacific Commodore Expo NW, I bought the Dell SE2722H for $110 new. Yes, it scans down to 15 KHz. when I used my RGB-to-VGA buffered cable! I haven't tested all Amiga screenmodes with it, just Hi-Res. There is no audio pass-through on it; so when used in HDMI mode, I must use a HDMI audio extractor/splitter that will give me an analog audio output. Price now up to $140-150, Robert Bernardo Fresno Commodore User Group - http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network - http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan

Happy Space Exploration Day, C= and Ami aficionados! The Fresno Commodore User Group has its next meeting from 11 a.m. to 2:30+ p.m., Sunday, July 23 at Panera Bread Restaurant 3590 W. Shaw Ave. (corner of W. Shaw Ave. and Marty Ave.) Fresno, CA 93711 (559) 271-0104 http://www.dickestel.com/met_loc.htm For discussion, we will talk about the successful June 24-25 Pacific Commodore Expo NW 2023, the August Vintage Computer Festival West, the October Amiwest Show, and the resurrection of the Bay Area Maker Faire (also in October). In celebration of the new Barbie movie, we'll look at the classic Epyx game, Barbie! (Yeah, we ran the Barbie game several years ago at a previous FCUG meeting.) In celebration of the new Oppenheimer movie, we check out various C64 games and demos with an atomic theme, like SWIV Atomic Explosion, Atomic Isle, Cool Cat, and the classic WarGames. Even B-1 Nuclear Bomber on the VIC-20 (It's our own Barbieheimer!!!) Also on the VIC-20 with 16K RAM expander, one more time we try to run the games for the eXimietas VIC-20 Chip-8 emulator. I bring in THEA500 Mini, this time running the AMiNIMiga distribution. https://www.aminimiga.com/ Truly, Robert Bernardo Fresno Commodore User Group - http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm

Happy National Hot Dog Day, C= and Ami comrades! The next meeting of the Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network is Saturday, July 22, from 2 to 5+ p.m. at Panera Bread Restaurant 19662 Nordhoff Street Northridge, California (818) 407-9400 For discussion we’ll review the June 24-25 Seattle Pacific Commodore Expo NW 2023 and the upcoming Vintage Computer Festival West in August, the Amiwest Show in October, and the Bay Area Maker Faire also in October. In hardware, Bernie may be bringing in his Sam440ep which runs Amiga OS 4.1. I'll be bringing in a C64, Ultimate 64, or C128 in order to test out some floppy disks for Gary. Also I'll bring THEA500 Mini, hopefully running the AMiNIMiga distribution. https://www.aminimiga.com/ If that doesn't work out, the A600 is there as our back-up computer. As always, feel free to bring any other Commodore and Amiga hardware/software that you wish to show off! Truly, Robert Bernardo Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network - http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan

C64OS gets better and better! Version 1.04 has been released, the Multimedia Release. In this version, there is a new graphics file format called “Commodore Grafix” which has support for metadata, variable frame rate sizes, native/non-native video modes, multi-frame matrix images, including 3D models, panoramas, and animation sequences. There are the new and/or improved Creator Tool and C64 Archiver, and the new SID Preview Utility with a SID Search Service. Finally, the gfx.lib supports character-mode graphics. (Some new features only available with the use of a RAM expander) Whew! Check out the more complete descriptions of C64OS v1.04 and short videos of the Multimedia Release at https://c64os.com Truly, Robert Bernardo Fresno Commodore User Group – http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network – http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan P.S. Remember… to upgrade to v1.04, you must have upgraded to the previous versions, v1.00 to v1.03, in order. See https://c64os.com/c64os/softwareupdates

BackSID has been going through continual improvement. Released several hours ago, the latest firmware is at 2.1.2. To see the changes, go to https://backbit.io/downloads/Firmware/BackSID/Revisions.txt and to download the firmware, go to https://backbit.io/downloads/Firmware/BackSID/ Truly, Robert Bernardo Fresno Commodore User Group http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm

Thanks to PaCommEx attendee Michelle, we have even more show pics and a video. See http://blog.retro-link.com/2023/07/picsvideo-3-of-pacific-commodore-expo.html Truly, Robert Bernardo organizer - Pacific Commodore Expo NW

Thanks to PaCommEx attendee Michelle, we have even more show pics and a video. See http://blog.retro-link.com/2023/07/picsvideo-3-of-pacific-commodore-expo.html Truly, Robert Bernardo organizer - Pacific Commodore Expo NW

More have been posted! See http://blog.retro-link.com/2023/06/more-pics-from-pacific-commodore-expo.html and http://blog.retro-link.com/2023/06/more-videos-from-pacific-commodore-expo.html Truly, Robert Bernardo organizer, Pacific Commodore Expo NW

More have been posted! See http://blog.retro-link.com/2023/06/more-pics-from-pacific-commodore-expo.html and http://blog.retro-link.com/2023/06/more-videos-from-pacific-commodore-expo.html Truly, Robert Bernardo organizer, Pacific Commodore Expo NW

The first photos and first video from the June 24-25 PaCommEx are up! See http://blog.retro-link.com/2023/06/pacific-commodore-expo-2023-photos.html and http://blog.retro-link.com/2023/06/high-honor-at-pacific-commodore-expo-nw.html Truly, Robert Bernardo - organizer, Pacific Commodore Expo NW http://www.portcommodore.com/pacommex

The first photos and first video from the June 24-25 PaCommEx are up! See http://blog.retro-link.com/2023/06/pacific-commodore-expo-2023-photos.html and http://blog.retro-link.com/2023/06/high-honor-at-pacific-commodore-expo-nw.html Truly, Robert Bernardo - organizer, Pacific Commodore Expo NW http://www.portcommodore.com/pacommex

Yesterday I picked up the repaired hardware from Ray, four 1571 drives, three 1541 drives (I had to leave one because Ray needed further instructions on how much to repair on it), and the three CRT monitors. The Sony had a bad solder joint, the Hitachi had its yoke reconnected (the former owner had disconnected it for some reason), and the Sears LXI had a faulty RGB/composite/t.v. selector switch (Ray cured that by spraying some cleaner into it). Still on the road back to California, Robert Bernardo Fresno Commodore User Group - http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network - http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan Pacific Commodore Expo NW - http://www.portcommodore.com/pacommex

Wow! It was a very successful PaCommEx! Lots of happy Commodorians and Amigans! Thanks to all the supporting clubs which came to the show -- the Puget Sound Commodore User Group, the Seattle Commodore Computer Club, the Seattle Retro-Computing Society, and the Portland Commodore User Group. Big thanks to SDF.org for funding the show and to the Old Rainier Brewery for the use of their Intraspace. Photos and videos to come later, Robert Bernardo organizer - Pacific Commodore Expo NW

Wow! It was a very successful PaCommEx! Lots of happy Commodorians and Amigans! Thanks to all the supporting clubs which came to the show -- the Puget Sound Commodore User Group, the Seattle Commodore Computer Club, the Seattle Retro-Computing Society, and the Portland Commodore User Group. Big thanks to SDF.org for funding the show and to the Old Rainier Brewery for the use of their Intraspace. Photos and videos to come later, Robert Bernardo organizer - Pacific Commodore Expo NW

This is it! Set-up day is today from 4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.., tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.. Our room will be stuffed with 25 to 30 exhibits with computers ranging from Commodore 8-bit machines to Amigas (including a Sam440) to even a Nabu PC! The presentations are set, though the door prizes are in a state of flux. Whether ready or not, PaCommEx officially starts tomorrow (Saturday) at 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. when we head off to dinner. Hey, if people want to spend more time on Saturday after 5 p.m. at the show, we can do that! We repeat on Sunday but must close on time at 5 p.m., because another party will be coming in that evening. Truly, Robert Bernardo organizer - Pacific Commodore Expo NW http://www.portcommodore.com/pacommex

This is it! Set-up day is today from 4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.., tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.. Our room will be stuffed with 25 to 30 exhibits with computers ranging from Commodore 8-bit machines to Amigas (including a Sam440) to even a Nabu PC! The presentations are set, though the door prizes are in a state of flux. Whether ready or not, PaCommEx officially starts tomorrow (Saturday) at 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. when we head off to dinner. Hey, if people want to spend more time on Saturday after 5 p.m. at the show, we can do that! We repeat on Sunday but must close on time at 5 p.m., because another party will be coming in that evening. Truly, Robert Bernardo organizer - Pacific Commodore Expo NW http://www.portcommodore.com/pacommex

Yesterday with Ray Carlsen as I drop off a load of 1541's/1571's/monitors for him to repair...! Truly, Robert Bernardo Fresno Commodore User Group - http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network - http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan June 24-25 Pacific Commodore Expo NW 2023 - http://www.portcommodore.com/pacommex

We will have a Commander X16 on exhibit at the Pacific Commodore Expo NW this weekend. Not a Commodore, either, Robert Bernardo Fresno Commodore User Group - http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network - http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan June 24-25 Pacific Commodore Expo NW 2023 - http://www.portcommodore.com/pacommex

We will have a Nabu PC on exhibit at the Pacific Commodore Expo NW this weekend. Hey, that's not a Commodore, Robert Bernardo Fresno Commodore User Group - http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network - http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan June 24-25 Pacific Commodore Expo NW 2023 - http://www.portcommodore.com/pacommex

I like this one, because it has real dipswitches, a pass-through for another drive, and an optional 3D-printed case. https://www.ebay.com/itm/164212563483?hash=item263bd4de1b:g:Ip4AAOSwB5Fe0Q16&amdata=enc%3AAQAIAAAAwEV3yBQH%2BSwYX9kHqo7G38PlN2uL%2F9qH%2FJXVg4y9eFcs7W1I39MRnarMoK0EJzgICEkbJ2EW0gahlhj%2BFlZVBBRP%2B8al36o0VtsZdxngrRv2pMMYsWcKLj%2B%2FYer85%2B6MMENvPAx3gH2OJoGcVBCLgkhRokltrtYUzwhtwowRcAlT6oZ2ySDxPQNE85KPWku%2Bmv42V94LXKRJbbw8oTBahhxjEECIVrAWAvCp%2B6SduED0IQOl344Y4fIGsdBJL1C2Gw%3D%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR7a_5fWYYg Truly, Robert Bernardo Fresno Commodore User Group - http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network - http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan June 24-25 Pacific Commodore Expo NW 2023 - http://www.portcommodore.com/pacommex

To his great regret, David has cancelled the AGA initiative. Truly, Robert Bernardo Fresno Commodore User Group - http://www.dickestel.com/fcug.htm Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network - http://www.portcommodore.com/sccan June 24-25 Pacific Commodore Expo NW 2023 - http://www.portcommodore.com/pacommex