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The ZX81 Turns 40

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Re: The ZX81 Turns 40

#51

Post by JNRowe »

nickcw wrote: post #49
JNRowe wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What is the keyboard in your photo? The lack of oversized keys has me confused. Also, love that it is a 3,284,741 byte image of a ZX81. And the ,/< because -- presumably -- a dog ate your 1 ;)

It is a cast off relay keyboard - easy to wire up to the ZX81. I don't recall where it came from, but I don't think it ever had a 1 key as was common on typewriters back then (you just used l instead).

Oh, I had absolutely no idea about that. I naively assumed the current number row was original. You've sent me down a rabbit hole that so far includes using f and L to produce a £ too, thanks!

For others like me the qwerty page¹ has some info, and some examples of original layouts without a 1 key².

¹ https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qwerty

² https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:QWERTY_1878.png

Re: The ZX81 Turns 40

#52

Post by nickt »

MaxBarraclough wrote: post #29
FabHK wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Incredibly, the ZX81 hardware and software scene is still alive. Indeed. Here the German ZX81 User group: http://www.zx81.de/ http://www.zx81.de/zxcms/English.html They’ve managed to turn a ZX81 into a web server: http://zx81-siggi.zx-team.org/ZxTeaM (I hope it survives being HN‘d…)

> (I hope it survives being HN‘d…) Looks like we sunk it.

Again!

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25638936

Re: The ZX81 Turns 40

#53

Post by nickt »

TheOtherHobbes wrote: post #30
criddell wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I asked for a TI-99/4A because that's what my best friend had and we would make games and share them with each other. When I think back to the microcomputers of the early 80's, I'm kind of astounded that they sold in the numbers they did. They were pretty useless.

They were imagination amplifiers. The computer itself didn't do much so you had to fill in the gaps by imagining the things it wasn't doing - often guided by some exciting cover art on books and games packaging. You could also expand your imagination by thinking of the things you might do if you worked hard at it, or if it was only slightly bigger/faster/better. Modern computing is the opposite. It does so much it do…

> imagination amplifiers

Thank you for that, yes - that explains them perfectly. Probably explains why I've always felt more at home in the terminal.

Re: The ZX81 Turns 40

#54

Post by nickt »

ourcat wrote: post #22

I had one of these at age 10. I still have it (at age 50) and it still works. Also the printer and a roll of paper. Whenever people ask me what my earliest memory is, I say the 16k RAM Pack. :)

I recently restored a ZX Printer, bit of a pain but mostly because the belts disintegrate on touch. You can buy new ones though [1] and you see them on eBay too sometimes.

Worth the resto for the wonderful noise they make!

[1] https://www.sellmyretro.com/offer/details/zx-printer-replace...

Re: The ZX81 Turns 40

#55

Post by nickt »

TMWNN wrote: post #14
nickt wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Commodore had the largest warehouse of these in North America by 1984 That sounds like a story, have any more details?

sys_64738 is referring to Commodore running a tradein program for $100 off a C64 with any computer or videogame console. People purchased the Timex Sinclair for $45 solely to trade in ( https://dfarq.homeip.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/timex-co... supposedly, Commodore used them as doorstops.

Thanks! I had no idea.

Re: The ZX81 Turns 40

#56

Post by nickt »

sys_64738 wrote: post #39
TMWNN wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

sys_64738 is referring to Commodore running a tradein program for $100 off a C64 with any computer or videogame console. People purchased the Timex Sinclair for $45 solely to trade in ( https://dfarq.homeip.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/timex-co... supposedly, Commodore used them as doorstops.

The C128 from 1985 had a Z80 built into it. Where did those come from I wonder?

Great point. I just had a look in my C128 and they are just regular branded Zilog Z80s. I sure there's a story there too...

Re: The ZX81 Turns 40

#57

Post by nickt »

spongeb00b wrote: post #37
nickt wrote: post #11

In terms of ROI, the best £69.95 I ever spent (I still have the receipt from WH Smith). It wasn’t the first computer I ever used, but it’s the first one I ever owned at age 9 and it led me down the path that’ll be familiar to many here... I’m glad I still have it, and the Spectrum and Amiga’s that followed. Incredibly, the ZX81 hardware and software scene is still alive. You can get parts for it quite easily, includi…

Even Blu-Tack for holding on the RAM expansion is still available to buy (sorry, too hard to resist)

Real coders use Velcro ;)

[EDIT] actually, the Memotech units shipped with a piece of velcro to eliminate wobble. I think that Memotech kit had a great aesthetic.

https://www.nightfallcrew.com/27/09/2013/memotech-memopack-1...

Re: The ZX81 Turns 40

#58

Post by TacticalCoder »

cesaref wrote: post #25
TacticalCoder wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I’m glad I still have it, and the Spectrum and Amiga’s that followed. I wonder how many of us still have them all... I probably sound like a broken record at this time but I still have my Atari 600 XL, Commodore 128 (which I was only using in C64 mode) and Commodore Amiga. The 600 XL and 128 are still working and the Amiga is probably easy to fix.

I ditched almost all my old computers as I upgraded, but i've still got my ZX-81 with a dk'tronics graphics rom, that was a killer combination in 1982 or whenever! The ones that have left the building include C64, C128D, Amiga 1000, Amiga 500, before I got my first 'proper' computer, a Mac IIcx which I had for many years running Logic. I'd like to say those were the days, but actually i get much more done and have mo…

Oh totally: I'm not using them and much prefer my modern setup and its 3840x1600 monitor ; )

I just found these old machines of mine in a garage during the first Covid lockdown and decided to try them out and found out they were still working (still had an old CRT TV laying around).

Re: The ZX81 Turns 40

#59

Post by j11m »

My grandfather, who worked in electronics and ham radios, bought one of these. He didn't care for programming and gave it to me. "Here's the computer, the manuals, the wires and a black-and-white TV. You might like this. I didn't."

I grew up in a modest-income household and didn't get a lot of good guidance from my parents. My dad literally told me that I should not learn to work with computers because they would "think for me".

I learned it despite my father. I consider his hand-me-down gift as one of the most significant gifts in my life, as building computer software has been my career for over 25 years.

Re: The ZX81 Turns 40

#60

Post by nickt »

Theodores wrote: post #47
amelius wrote: post #16

I grew up on the Apple ][ but I can certainly relate to some of the stories here. Except now I hate Apple for turning into such a snob company :(

Imagine a Sinclair laptop. With options for a monochrome screen and a flat membrane keyboard. There would be no internal battery, just a wedge shaped power brick. The case would be black. RRP? 99.99

The Z88 came pretty close to that, though the keyboard was better. It's 34 years old, wow.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambridge_Z88

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