JB

VHS or Beta?

Ironically, that's a "transporter malfunction does bad things" episode. Sadly, I recognized the episode instantly.

That sounds like a terrible recipe.

They actually still make X10 modules, and this is a task that is well-suited to their simplicity. It is also a well-documented and easy-to-implement protocol that isn't dependent on a remote server controlled by someone else. I wouldn't build a full smart home with X10, but for a simple remote power switch, there's a compelling case to be made. I'd use two appliance modules, one dedicated to the P-Box and the other connected to a short power strip so the console and monitor can be on one module. As a bonus... *puts on mad scientist hat*... With X10 having RS-232 interfaces available, you don't need any TIPI updates. You could have a master TI running without a display monitoring CHATTI, and when it sees a message, it could hit the RS-232 card/sidecar to send out X10 commands to turn on the slave system's PBox, then a second later send the command turn on the slave's console and monitor. One TI turning on another remotely, the way absolutely no one ever intended. And then when you're done, you can have the TI you're using send out commands to turn off the same X10 modules, "killing" itself until the next time... if you're lucky, and the timing works out right. All this done by a real mainframe-grade processor, instead of letting some silly ARM toy designed for cellphones take over the show. *takes off mad scientist hat* There IS an X10 wifi module now, but... it doesn't really look like a good option.

Instant techno album!

My thoughts were more that our board isn't very deep, so there's a lot of room in the keyboard area for additional stuffs, we only have one chip that needs heatsinking, and the power supply board being separate means we don't have to hack things as much to get power from a new source. I guess it WOULD be a bit of a wide portable by modern standards. But think of how much space we have for a battery! We could throw in enough lithium cells to run for DAYS!

It'd actually be fairly easy to tuck a 4a into a laptop-style case. I'd assume a custom-designed case, either 3D-printed or old-school machined.

If I recall correctly, they provide heat management both by ducting air across the card AND by working as heatsinks for the hotter components. Not that any part of the TIPI will run near as hot as the classic boards did, except possibly the Pi CPU(which will reduce speed to maintain a safe temperature, because it is the twenty-first century). My impression is that the assembly is low-power enough for any case to be purely cosmetic. Arcadeshopper: You know, it is a funny coincidence, but I was thinking just last night about how best to make something like that. I was tending towards a block of wood and a chisel, because 3D printers are expensive.

The TI Defender really impresses me. Especially when you compare it to the Colecovision version. Same AV hardware, but the difference is night and day.

Man, the yellowing on that C64 is AWFUL. Get the peroxide!

Thank you for bumping this, as it brought information I needed to my attention. And thank you for bringing the Micropendium article to my attention. It is EXACTLY what I needed. Yes, I could have thrown money at the bootstrap problem with a disk emulator and a flash drive full of files, or an HDX card, or so on and so forth. But I wanted to do this with only period hardware on the TI. It was supposed to be a fun project, before everything went wrong(basically every problem I had was related to learning TE2 is "quaint" at best, and figuring out how to get files on the system). This gets the train back on the tracks.

I believe the provision was there. Can't swear to it off-hand, though.

I always played Zero Zap with the keyboard. Not because I didn't have joysticks,just because ZZ was better without them.

Even on an old CRT, the 4a just has a nasty video output. Which is to say, that image quality looks normal. Though the TV's stretching and aggressive overscan cropping are issues, they aren't the TI's fault.

You know, I like the TI sticks, in all their stiff, mushy inglory. I grew up on the things, and they have an innately familiar presence in my hand. ... That said, I wouldn't mind rigging one up with microswitches or silicone domes.

Don't have one. I'm just here to poison the poll results.

Nope. Judgement has been issued. He must be deleted.

99ix? Or steal naming inspiration from a DIFFERENT child of Unix and call it Plan99. Perhaps a little misleading, but I'm sure people will figure it out.

I assume RGB over SCART. In which case... may as well use VGA again.

Aaaand out of stock by the time I see.

Change the code so instead of status text, it shows the Parsec ship.

Digitizer tablet. Someone's gotta replace the Super Sketch. Analog joystick.

I was... about ten. And wrote a little Extended BASIC program that asked the user to input their name, then used CALL SPEECH to cuss them out. ... And then I got sent to my room for cussing. My insistence that I said nothing fell on deaf ears.

Firecracker's RS-232, you could hook it to a TI-side serial controller. Just need the proper command set to feed it.

It could do... anything a Pi running Linux can do? I mean, you could install X and a desktop environment and your TIPI would be a full modern PC.