6502 Lane

DO WANT

Mike — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 21:13:16 +0000

I was browsing the great photos over at RetroMacCast today when I came across this:

It kind of reminds me of those Apple III key cufflinks that came out a while back. (Sadly, they seem to be out of stock). Assuming this isn’t a mockup or nice Photoshop job, I want one. Really, really want one. Here’s a link to the full page.

Apple: Touch the Screen

Mike — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 12:59:06 +0000

Here’s a fun set of videos that were captured from a 1984 Apple Kiosk Laser Disc. Designed to be used in a touch screen kiosk, the disc goes over the latest offerings from Apple Computer, including the Apple IIe, III Plus, Macintosh, Lisa 2/10 and the brand new, portable Apple IIc. Other items covered include the ProFile 10 MB Hard Disk, the DuoDisk, Apple’s line of printers, Apple credit cards, and the AppleCare Extended Warranty program.

Interestingly, this is one of the only pieces of Apple III advertising, other than scanned magazine print ads, that I’ve been able to find.

Part 1 of 3

Part 2 of 3

Part 3 of 3

KansasFest 2011 Announced

Mike — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 19:11:07 +0000

Apple II Forever!

The dates for next year’s “Summer Camp for Geeks”, KansasFest 2011 were announced today. The annual celebration of all things Apple II will once again take place at Rockhurst University in Kansas City, Missouri. Make sure you mark off your calendar for July 19 – 24. No further details have been announced yet – hey, it’s still 11 months away – but stay tuned! KansasFest has happened every summer now for more than 20 years and is still going strong, and as an Apple II hobbyist and lover, you really have no excuse not to be there.

Prices haven’t been posted, but if KansasFests past are any indication, saving for registration will cost you just over a dollar a day, if you start putting your pennies away now. And really, what can you buy these days for a dollar? Not much, that’s what. Where else will you have the opportunity to rub shoulders with your fellow Apple II geeks and luminaries past and present? Nowhere, that’s where. So start saving today, so you won’t have to come up with empty excuses next July.

Need more convincing? Take a look through the KansasFest Photo Galleries for a peek at what you’ve already missed.

To paraphrase one of my favorite Apple II geeks, there won’t always been a KansasFest, so make sure you get there!

Apple Graphics Tablet

Mike — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 19:16:50 +0000

The pictures of the Apple Graphics Tablet next to an iPad, taken by Ken Gagne at KansasFest and intended as a tongue-in-cheek look at Apple’s design trends, have certainly been making the rounds. It’s a great photo essay and you should definitely take a look. I just wanted to take a moment to point out that Tony Diaz’s AGT wasn’t the only one to make an appearance at KFest. This one, generously donated to me by another KFest’er, was also there. The overlay is part of the Designer’s Toolkit, an option add-on that Apple sold.

Tuesday Trivia

Mike — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 00:50:22 +0000

One of the problems with coming up with a trivia item for something like the Apple II is that it’s been out for more than 30 years. Quite possibly, everything that can be known about it, already is and by a lot of people. This makes finding interesting, obscure information a bit tricky to say the least. That’s one of the reasons I’ve been posting Apple /// trivia instead. It wasn’t on the market long, and was largely ignored even then. Still, coming up with fun questions for it has been difficult. So, Tuesday Trivia this week will be a bit late. I’ll post it as soon as I can find something interesting.

Tuesday Trivia, Round 2

Mike — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 00:51:52 +0000

Okay, this should be an easy one – no chance of a technical inaccuracy like last week. Everyone knows the Apple /// was a colossal failure for Apple. Even so, it still managed to make a few appearances on the big and little screen, probably the most famous of which was in 1982’s TRON (see last week’s Tuesday Trivia). For a hundred geek creds (sorry, I don’t have anything else to offer), from what 1980s-era TV show was this screen capture of an Apple /// in action taken? (No sneaky Googling for it!)

Got Lamp!

Mike — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 05:07:23 +0000

Jason Scott’s latest epic documentary “Get Lamp” arrived in my mailbox this afternoon. Needless to say, life has been put on hold while I delve in. I’ll post a full review later this weekend. For now, I’m enjoying the return ride through the Great Underground Empire! Thanks again, Jason! Oh, and my coin? #0571. Not too bad, I think.

Edit (8/12/10): my review is now scheduled to appear in the upcoming issue of Juiced.GS.

Tuesday Trivia

Mike — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 15:38:55 +0000

A quick Apple /// trivia question: what’s wrong with this picture?

The Apple /// made a brief appearance in the 1982 film "TRON".

STFU

Mike — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 16:36:42 +0000

You know, I need to hire a full-time assistant to follow me around all day whose only job would be to intervene whenever I forget who I am and try to volunteer for public speaking, interviews, or anything that might involve interfacing with more than two people at a time. All he or she would have to do is politely interject whenever such an opportunity arises and remind me that I’m a terrible public speaker and will probably regret it in the morning. Case in point: my KansasFest report with the guys over at RetroMacCast. Now recorded and posted for posterity, the latest RetroMacCast podcast includes a ten-minute discussion with myself and the hosts James and John, during which I basically forgot everything that goes on at KansasFest. In a voice that grows increasingly strained with tension and higher in pitch as the interview wears on, I also skip most of the things and people I wanted to mention. Epic…

Suffice it to say, between the interview and the recent Apple /// presentation debacle, my communications with the retrocomputing public will be restricted from here on out to this blog (which no one reads, fortunately) and the occasional error-filled post on comp.sys.apple2. Assuming I can keep my mouth shut next time someone asks for volunteers. Yeesh…

KansasFest 2010 Pictures

Mike — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 23:40:49 +0000

My photos from KansasFest 2010 are now available to view in my Picasa Web Album. The images are from Friday and Saturday. Also, my report on Friday’s activities at Rockhurst is up over at A2Central – you can read it here. I’ll try to do write ups for the rest of the convention over the next few days.