A big hug to all chiptuned lovers✌🏾

We are really opened to all your comments about our vintage baby.

You can learn more on our projet on our web page.

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From Belgium with ❤️

Hi everyone,

I’ve just released C64 Keyboard Bridge 0.1.0. It lets you use your C64 Ultimate’s keyboard to type on a Mac, Windows or Linux computer over your local network.

There’s a desktop app with a keyboard mapping editor and tray controls, plus a CLI. A C64 program reads the keyboard and sends the key presses to the computer. No hardware modification or firmware replacement is needed.

I’ve tested typing, shortcuts, repeat and recovery with my C64 Ultimate on macOS, Windows and Ubuntu. I haven't tested on other Linux distributions.

It’s free and open source under GPL-3.0-only. Downloads, source, instructions and screenshots are here:

https://github.com/batuhanoktem/c64-keyboard-bridge

If you try it, I’d appreciate feedback about your setup, especially from Linux users.

There's a new Android chip tune player on the Play Store. Full disclosure: I was a beta tester and received the app for free to test (it costs $5). I'm not being compensated to post about it. Honestly, I was pleasantly surprised. The search works pretty well. Songs on HVSC, ASMA, and Modland are all indexed. VGMRips has some search capabilities. JoshW's archives are browse-only. I was able to queue up a bunch of my personal favorites... Delta, Last Ninja Wasteland, and Star Soldier. One thing I thought was pretty cool is that you can switch the playback speed right in the play screen (between PAL and NTSC). Star Soldier sounded slow to me on most players because it defaults to PAL timing, but when I switched it over to NTSC on the app, it sounded perfect. Anyway, I liked it, just thought I'd share.

Just now I came in possession of this adapter, and immediately thought of C64 (which I don't have yet). I have a friend who tried a similar one with his Commodore, but his computer is a bit broken and didn't accept any game or program. Thoughts?

You played a shaggy prisoner rolling around cubes with numbers and math symbols to make equations. When you made one they cleared the cubes. A policeman chased you around the room to catch you. You could block him with the cubes. After you made enough equations, you could exit the jail cell room. I looked through several lists of math games/educational games and could not find it, searched the Internet, and even tried the dreaded useless AI. Please help if you remember this game, thanks!

I want to run some engineering code on the C64. But I was disappointed to learn that cc65 can't handle floats. I want to multiply numbers like 1.235 * 3.867 in for loops. Bonus if I can create arrays and 2D arrays and loop over them.

I know there are some fortran compilers for the c64, but hoping there is something like cc65. I want to be able to copy/paste code instead of typing in manually in the emulator..

In effort to get my kids off of doomscrolling, I have slowly introduced retro consoles (2600) and older educational games (jump start, math blaster, etc).

I have debated getting a C64U or old Atari computer, as these can both play games and provide some utility. What educational games, or even "thinking games" (lke Atari's Adventure) would you suggest for someone new to the C64?

Not sure how many of you figured this one on a real C64 but the random number generator sucks on C64. If you ran (for example) for a=1to10:print rnd(0):next, then write down the 10 random numbers. Power cycle the C64 and run the same command. The number on my real C64 always matched. I've played CBM's Lemonade Stand game and if I started from fresh, the number always came up the same, allowing me to really cheese the game for best money score.

I've learned long ago to flush the RNG. When I typed in BASIC (or modified existing BASIC) for games, I added this line after displaying title screen

100 geta$:x=rnd(0):if a$="" goto 100

this runs the RNG for however long a user waits at the title screen and gets better random number seed. A$ and X is any variable not used in the game.

I don't know if replica C64 of any kind like C64 Ultimate has proper RNG or if they copied the original lazy RNG. Emulator (that I've used) does seem to have real RNG

I was expecting it to create some machine language executable that would run lightning fast. This is running the same as BASIC. So does cc65 just compile to BASIC and not ML?

A playable demo of V8RMS (a Worms style artillery shooting game) was released on itch.io.

Working features:

• 2 player mode - 1 or 2 joysticks
• team color picker
• player damages and health
• fall damage
• dynamic wind, can turned off
• explosion knockbacks
• players die when falling in water
• random player tombstones
• 8 predefined levels on disk (keys 1-8) - see the attached images
• random online levels when running on a C64U with configured network access (atm 12 custom levels)
• currently 1 weapon only
• fastloader on real HW (or on full 1541 emulation)

Work in progress, not implemented yet:

• random generated terrains. Now it's both ugly and slow :D
• custom levels loading. Currently the maps are simple Koala images, you can load your own picture if you change an existing level file on disk. A custom fileselector is WiP. This will make possible to everyone to make their own levels.
• more sounds
• more weapons
• more more

I'll add some tech specs when I arrive to my home pc, until then: have fun! 😄 Every feedback, ideas, bugreports are welcome!

https://jmp-ea31.itch.io/v8rms

The video on Itch is very outdated, the downloadable demo is more advanced than that.

I've tried to recreate those basic hardware joystick testers that have been around for decades and this one runs on GUI64.

- Two square panels, port 1 and 2, CX-40 style: fire top left.

- Both ports monitored at the same time (reads the CIA registers at $DC00/$DC01)

- On a THEC64 Maxi you can live-swap ports 1 and 2 with the controller-swap keys and watch the state flip between boxes

- It's not much and but I've put it here: github.com/gpowerf/JoystickTester64

It's deliberately simple: it just polls the joystick and the virtual LEDs light up.

Question for the crowd: anything else you'd find useful for this?

PS: And when your joystick is in port 2 the mouse arrow does move! Nothing I can do about that :) That's how GUI64 works...

But not ninja. You play a tough guy. I think there were surprisingly decent car racing levels between other labels.

For me, it’s the number one racer on the C64, it’s fast, colourful, easy to control and the sounds banging. Any memories of Power Drift or other racers? Played on C64U, datasette, and with Master System controller.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51zQTIcdxjM&t=42s

I have just come across a second Commodore 64 250407 board with white sockets for the pair of 74LS257 chips.

I don't think it's a manufacturing fit (I presume?) so does anyone know if there's an official backstory?

At the moment I am guessing it's either a stock official repair or perhaps both boards went through the same shop or person for fixing?

Just wondering.

For many of us retro enthusiasts, the Commodore 64's MOS Technology SID chip (6581 and 8580) is regarded as one of the most iconic sound chips in audio history. (Modern) Software emulation gets close, but nothing truly replaces the analog filters and warm distortion of real vintage hardware.

I am LouD (short for loudness) and I created USBSID-Pico to bridge real SID silicon directly to modern workstations, phones, and media players over USB (CDC/WebUSB/WebSerial), MIDI and ASID. Powered by the Raspberry Pi Pico microcontroller series (rp2040 and rp2350), the board acts as a flexible controller for up to two physical SID chips or modern hardware replacements.

Demos

• Raster Bar by LukHash
• Outerversal, dual SID stereo

Software

• Browser, no install: DeepSID (WebUSB or ASID), USBSID web player
• VICE 3.10, JSIDPlay2, Denise, Acid64 Pro, sidplayfp 2.16, Phosphor
• Trackers, USBSID forks: SID Factory II, GTUltra, LoadTracker
• USB MIDI device (beta)
• Linux, Windows, Android (browser)

Hardware (v1.5c)

• MOS 6581, 6582, 8580
• SIDKick-pico, ARMSID, FPGASID, SwinSID
• Mixed voltage: 6581 (12V) next to 6582/8580 (9V)
• Jumperless: 9V/12V, filter caps, 6581 shunt, 8580 digiboost set automatically per socket from the detected chip
• Open source hardware, OSHWA certified (v1.0 NL000035, v1.3 NL000045)

Links

• Source, firmware, PCB, docs: GitHub
• Website and web player: usbsid.loudai.nl
• The whole journey from SIDPod to v1.5c: build log
• Discord and GitHub Discussions

I do this stuff in my free time for my enjoyment. Since I like to share my joy in creating this with everyone I try my best to provide a working PCB and Firmware. That being said, have fun!

It seems this was one of the earliest demos on the C64. I believe it is an uncorrupted version because it loops properly where the versions on CSDb simply end (with READY) or give a return without gosub error. I converted it to D64 but can't upload it to CSDb myself as I don't have an account, perhaps someone else could do it if interested.

A new Classic Repair Toolbox (CRT) version has seen the light, version 3.0.0.

GitHub project page:

https://github.com/HovKlan-DH/Classic-Repair-Toolbox

This is a major release with (minor) breaking changes in the data files. It is by far the biggest update I have made, as it includes an entirely new method for contributing data, which includes a new backend system for managing this. Now you will be able to contribute even a new system from within the application itself, but you can also easily update many data on an existing board without too much hassle. A board will be able to have one or more board maintainers, who then will be the responsible ones for reviewing incoming contributions from the community.

Also, with the new version you will get the amazing Commodore 128 (Open128) KiCad project from Johan Grip, https://codeberg.org/jgrip/Open128 - it is really worth taking a look at this, if you have any C128. There are many other changes so look for yourself in the long changelog:

The Last Ninja series, now in a convenient package. For people with EasyFlash or EF compatible carts.

https://csdb.dk/release/?id=264954

A little close-up that somehow works perfectly as a desktop background imho. Classic button for retro desktop vibes.

I picked up this breadbin a few weeks ago, untested and as-is. It had a blown fuse, both RAM chips were bad, as well as the character and kernel ROMs. I’m guessing it got zapped pretty good at some point. It came with the original power supply and the voltages from that tested fine so I don’t think it was the culprit. Anyway, I thought it was all good when it finally booted to BASIC and I was able to load a few demos from my SD2IEC. Then I loaded up SIDPLAY64 and the result is what you see in the 2nd pic. I thought maybe I was still having memory issues so I swapped the chips around and also installed two different 41464s but no change. I wrote DesTest Full to my test cartridge and that successfully ran all of the tests on the full 64k, so no issues reading or writing to any specific area of RAM. I’ve also ruled out the PLA, the replacement character and kernel ROMs I installed, and as I said the RAM itself. I didn’t go over the entire board but I did briefly poke around the 3 ROMs and I don’t think there’s a broken trace or short.

Also when running DesTest Full I get bad checksums for the BASIC and character ROMs that change every time it starts a new test. The kernel ROM checksum is usually good but does also sometimes change. I’m sure that means something but I’m not smart enough to know what. My guess at this point is a bad logic IC but I’m hoping someone that knows more than me has some other ideas. I do have an oscilloscope and have looked at all the address and data lines coming in and out of all 3 ROMs and the activity looks correct so I do think my issue lies elsewhere.

There were many magazines that covered C64 (and many other computers) including Run, Compute!, Family Computing, and more. I am looking for one specific issue, but I can remember which one. It had a 64 programming to show a way to manipulate the graphics to display more color by mixing foreground character color and background color. I am pretty sure the front color showed multi-color graphics as an example.

Normally 64 can only display one background color due to VIC having only 4-bit RAM for character colors. But with a little ML, you can switch background color in each of the 8x8 background characters, and when using a certain character that looks like checkerboard, mixing foreground and background could give the illusion of having more than 16 colors on a C64.

Anyone remember which issue it may have been? TIA!!

I have released Calculator64, a decimal calculator for GUI64 on the Commodore 64. As far as I am aware it is the first calculator written for the GUI64 desktop. It gives you nine significant digits and true decimal arithmetic, takes mouse or keyboard input, and switches to scientific notation when the numbers get big. Free and open source:

https://github.com/gpowerf/Calculator64

If you find any bugs please let me know 😄