Ya, Commodore 128 from the wild.

[Ya, Commodore 128 from the wild.]

Thanks Robert, I was just reading some of your posts over at commodore.ca. This C= is my best vintage computer find yet, I almost never buy hardware online and prefer the live discovery experience. Now to find some peripherals.

[AC or DC power supply? to save energy]

I wired a dynamo into a paddle controller. By playing Kaboom twice a week, I found that my energy bill drops by half (50%).

Maybe the dynamo could power the console. I always scream KABOOM! whenever I mention KABOOM! in a thread.

[AC or DC power supply? to save energy]

I tried my best to troll this thread, yet I did not get any bites.

You obviously suck at trolling.

[Ya, Commodore 128 from the wild.]

I'm excited to score a boxed C128 from one of my favorite thrifts today for $30. I had some classic comps in the past, most were a bust, others not that great. So now I got a better reason to hang in the classic computer forum other than jealousy. Throw up some of your favorite links or threads for the noob plz.

 

[AC or DC power supply? to save energy]

Is this for a lunar landing mission where efficiency is critical to life?

[AC or DC power supply? to save energy]

It may take years to recoup any savings (if you could determine any) after you count the pennies in electricity you save after you pay for any hardware mods.

[so how can we get NM crushed cib ets?]

Now that it's opened up, can we put the remaining E.T. carts in there and bury them all.

[Vader 2600: Can't Quite Bring It Back to Life]

Or point me at the right thread/resource. I haven't tried to fix a Stella in long while.

[Vader 2600: Can't Quite Bring It Back to Life]

I gambled on a Sears heavy last Saturday from the Mobile, AL flea market. It doesn't work of course. I have a few light fours though. How interchangeable are the IC's? if it turns out that one or more is defective. I won't have time to take a closer look inside for a few days, but I did notice the RF cable had exposed copper near the stress relief where it comes out of the back, so I'll start there naturally.

[Forget T-handles, it's time for Hotdog handles!]

That's awesome!

In a weird, obsessive nerd kind of way.

I think up goofy things while under the influence sometimes.

[Forget T-handles, it's time for Hotdog handles!]

My Fast Food cart broke a few years back. So I came up with this little bit of flair for the true Fast Food fanboys and girls out there. Originally I thought I could find a dog toy shaped like a hotdog but never got around to looking. Last year I decided to get some polymer clay that sat on the shelf till last weekend. I still have to fix the inside of the cart which is the part that broke but I'm satisfied with it so far. A chili pepper or pickle as well as a mouth were also considered. I went with the toppings from the game art and almost spelled out "Fast Food" in mustard. Light up "Fast Food" neon would be super trick if that were possible.

 

Enjoy.

 

 

[My new addiction... Beamrider]

I think I have this in my "to play" pile of games acquired over the past few years. I should get ON my ass and play some games.

[Best City to Buy Classic Games]

Anytime you can go somewhere new is great. Grab those business cards and call ahead before you go next time. They may have stuff you want in storage.

[Any fans of classic Koei games here?]

I've played lots of Nobanoga's Ambition. I'm not very good at the early stages when everyone gangs up on you, so I cheat and play as more than one Shogun till I get my fiefdom up and running.

[Line filter.]

Be careful, that power strip may have ONLY a line filter in it and no surge protection. Back in the day, the FCC was very tight about computers emitting RF noise that could cause interference on TVs. Hopefully, it has both, but the only way to find out is look up the specs by part number, or take it apart and look for MOVs (Metal Ovide Varistors) as in the photo They look like capacitors, but are typically thicker.

 

Hope this helps.

 

I assumed it was to filter the computer from interference not the other way around. Makes sense though with antennas and all that. I only picked it up for the odd configuration, but wonder about the different current ratings and may just throw it in a box. If I have any question about anything unusual, I'll err on the side of caution and not use it.

 

Looks similar to Radio Shack,

It is Radio Shack

[Line filter.]

So picked this up for a five spot and realize its for a TRS-80 when I get home. Was the power quality that fickle way back when? Or was it for the combination of the unpredictability of power quality as well as the sensitivity of the hardware.

 

What does "EL" mean?

 

[Atari 2600 Select, Reset, and Pause from NES controller]

This should be done with a more comfortable controller.

[VCS In Music Video]

I want a refund. I didn't see a cobra.

[Grand Theft Auto V]

I've played through the missions and they are classic GTA with the occasional annoying menial tasks thrown in to mess with you like fixing malware and seeing your shrink. Put a beard and sunglasses on Trevor so you don't have to look at his ugly mug. You can't run on stairs for some reason so jump. I go on rampages for fun a lot throwing grenades out the window is great since you can aim them. Throwing sticky bombs out in front to clear out the road blocks is great fun. I think the ocean and all the underwater terrain is a big waste of space. I like how you can climb up on most buildings. I just wish there was more interiors instead of nearly useless ocean terrain. I feel that GTA IV is not liked very much because of the intrusive phone blowing up all the time the overcrowded cramped and gloominess of the Northeast and the barely likable main character. Where in GTA V is set in LA with wide streets and a city made for cars and speeding and is the home of the high speed chase. If you get tired of a character just switch. The smartphone is smart and not intrusive and even useful. Mission select is available though I never used it. The cars are great. This series is constantly evolving.

[Quirky Daulshock 3]

My controller's L stick is stuck. When I activate it gets stuck in a constant right direction. IIRC it(or the other one) was doing this when the battery was dying a few years back, maybe it was an intermittent fault. I think from now on I'm going to physically mark the controllers.

 

Has anyone had a similar problem, got a thread or know of a good video?

 

I'm bored so I'm gonna just take it apart.

[10 Best Activision games for Atari 2600]

No love for Boxing. I know It's kinda hard to find a 2nd player most of the time, but when you do lure a victim into your game lair this is the game to pummel them with. Gamepads are recommended if you don't wanna get crippled.

[Which Deoxit for cleaning INTV cartridges?]

I use the contact cleaner spray from Radio Shack. I spray it in a little baby food jar with a paper towel to trap the fumes and splatter then dip a q-tip. I've heard of others using model railroad track cleaner that I believe comes in a liquid.

[How much should I expect to pay?]

Depends on how soon you want them. One can go to the bay and just buy them for asking retail price. I personally don't see that as collecting, just buying. Or spend time networking in the online community (I know you're doing that now:) ) and around your town thrifts, fleas, friends, family and pawn shops. Always ask if they have stuff else ware get a business card and do follow ups, like calling flea market people on Friday to let them know you'll be around on Saturday to check out what they got. I've run into people who mentioned they have Atari stuff packed away due to lack of interest over the years. Don't mention specifics just a general idea. Friends of friends are great too, I've just mentioned games and gotten tons of free stuff or tips to new sources. l know this is ambiguous and doesn't really answer your question, but most of what I've found, I wasn't looking for. Set your own budget and determine your own value.

 

PS Pitfall 2 is one of the most common broken/failed carts out there due to the way its manufactured or something. I don't recall exactly why, maybe another member can chime in on that one. But you can use this as a bargaining chip when buying games that you can't test in person before purchase.

[What's your favourite substitute controller?]

Another vote for the Genny. I refer to the CX-40 as the crippler. Tac-2 is Ok if it was bigger.

[Sunnyvale 4-switch VCS]

I wasn't aware 4-switch models were ever made in America.

Me neither unless I just forgot. I had to stop collecting hardware variants and focus on carts. I do like those switches.