hardware

GitHub – Antirez/c64-Hw-Simulator: Commodore 64 Hardware Simulator

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The c64-hw-simulator is a detailed pin-level hardware simulator of the Commodore 64 motherboard (ASSY 250407), allowing users to manipulate individual chip pins, pull chips from sockets, or open circuit elements to observe the resulting effects on the system’s behavior, including video output and signals. It models the board’s netlist and chip pin behaviors, integrating cycle-accurate cores for key chips and simulating electrical phenomena like drive strengths, floating nets with drift and noise, and power faults, enabling fault analysis and learning without risking real hardware damage. While comprehensive, the simulator runs slower than real time and does not simulate internal chip faults or analog components like the video output and power supply.

https://github.com/antirez/c64-hw-simulator

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The Tube Computer

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The Tube Computer is a modern 8-bit computer built from recycled 1950s vacuum tubes and germanium diodes, designed to run simple programs like an airship flight simulator or complex calculations. Its architecture uses only NOR gates, inspired by vintage designs like the IBM700 series, and emphasizes visible operation for educational purposes. The project, still in progress, highlights both the challenges and rewards of building and maintaining a large tube-based system, reflecting a blend of retro computing enthusiasm and personal storytelling.

https://www.thetubecomputer.com/

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Commodore Explains Its Modern Resurrection Isn’t “About Making Bank on Nostalgia” as Hardware Preservation Is Just as Important as Software Preservation

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Commodore officially relaunched in 2025 after years of fragmented ownership, making the iconic Commodore 64 hardware available again alongside new software like the Alien Breed 35th Anniversary Collection. The company emphasizes that its revival focuses not on profiting from nostalgia but on preserving both the classic hardware and software, highlighting the equal importance of maintaining physical devices as part of computing heritage.

https://frvr.com/blog/news/commodore-explains-its-modern-resurrection-isnt-about-making-bank-on-nostalgia-as-hardware-preservation-is-just-as-important-as-software-preservation/

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The BeBox: BeOS Hardware, Photos, and the Apple Deal That Wasn’t

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The BeBox was a dual-PowerPC workstation introduced by Be Inc. in the mid-1990s, designed to showcase BeOS—an innovative, multithreaded operating system with advanced features like the BFS file system that acted like a live database. Despite its technically ambitious hardware and OS, Be Inc. ceased hardware production after losing a major licensing deal with Apple in late 1996, when Apple chose to acquire NeXT instead of Be, leading Be to pivot exclusively to software before eventually disappearing.

https://www.jdhodges.com/blog/bebox-beautifully-overbuilt-computer/

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Key Symbols We Lost to Time, Pt. 1: The PC Side

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The article explores the history of unique key symbols on PC keyboards that have largely disappeared over time, highlighting how early computers from IBM and other companies used distinctive iconography to represent functions like Insert, Delete, and Print Screen. While most of these symbols faded as text labels became preferred by users, a few remain recognized today, and some of the older symbols survive in Unicode. This reflects a broader 20th-century tension between word-based and icon-based communication, influenced by regional needs and evolving technology design.

https://unsung.aresluna.org/key-symbols-we-lost-to-time-pt-1-the-pc-side/

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The Computer Museum of America Reclamation Project

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The Computer Museum of America’s collection, stored for 21 years in San Diego State University’s Love Library basement, is now being indexed and promoted following a 2025 grant. The extensive archive includes computers, hardware, software, magazines, and manuals, offering a vital resource for studying the technological innovations of the past 70 years and their profound impact on society. The museum aims to support future research across disciplines by preserving and sharing these artifacts that document the Computer Revolution and the Information Age.

https://computer-museum.org/wp/

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Commodore Is Bringing Back a Legendary ’80s Joystick, and I’m Hyped to See the Microcomputer Maker Delve Into Retro Controllers

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Commodore is reissuing the classic Suncom TAC-2 joystick, a popular 1980s peripheral, in five new colorways that complement its C64 Ultimate and C64C models, including a limited gold edition. The redesigned TAC-2 features a more durable steel shaft replacing the original tire valve and brass ball mechanism while preserving the precise, quiet operation gamers remember. This revival reflects Commodore’s ongoing push into retro gaming hardware, appealing to enthusiasts seeking authentic and enhanced vintage controllers.

https://www.gamesradar.com/hardware/retro/commodore-is-bringing-back-a-legendary-80s-joystick-and-im-hyped-to-see-the-microcomputer-maker-delve-into-retro-controllers/

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I Played These Special Edition C64 and ZX Spectrum Remakes to Settle the 8-Bit Feud Once and for All

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The reviewer compares special edition remakes of the Commodore 64 (TheC64 Mini Black) and ZX Spectrum (The Spectrum White Edition), noting improvements like a better joystick and a modern game selection on TheC64 Mini, while The Spectrum stays more authentic with a classic keyboard and nostalgic extras. Despite prior preference for The Spectrum due to its authenticity and fun, the updated games lineup and improved controls give TheC64 Mini Black the edge this time, making it the better buy for fans seeking 8-bit nostalgia.

https://www.stuff.tv/features/i-played-these-special-edition-c64-and-zx-spectrum-remakes-to-settle-the-8-bit-feud-once-and-for-all/

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Amiga 1000: Ten Years Ahead of Its Time – The Silicon Underground

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The Amiga 1000, introduced by Commodore in 1985, was a groundbreaking computer that featured advanced capabilities like up to 4,096 colors, stereo sound, a graphical user interface, and full preemptive multitasking on a Motorola 68000 CPU, placing it a decade ahead of its time. Despite its innovative hardware and operating system, the Amiga struggled commercially due to poor marketing, management issues at Commodore, and a high price point, ultimately leading to the company’s bankruptcy less than nine years later. Many enthusiasts who used the Amiga recall it as a uniquely powerful and forward-looking machine that outpaced contemporaneous PCs until the mid-1990s.

https://dfarq.homeip.net/amiga-1000-ten-years-ahead-of-its-time/

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