Photo memories of 18 first computers

After the ZX81 I received a VIC-20 which was the Commodore Computer just before the C-64. I new wanted a C-64.

But, I have plenty of C-128s and things to go with them. Learned the 6502 OpCode and it had a Z80 also. Ran CP/M on it for some time.

With my first real job, one that I got myself, parents did not help at all. I used my second paycheck with my savings to buy and Atari 800 computer. Half the price of an Apple and I already owned an Atari 2600 Video game.

Then after playing only games or writing Atari Basic (very much like HP Basic) I started to use the 4 joystick ports as two 8bit I/O ports. After having them switch on/off red LED's (the only color in 1982). I hooked them to 8bit Digital to Analog converters to move motors to angle mirrors to aim laser beams like at the Laser Light shows. The audio input was from the cassette tape data recorder, it was only a 1 bit sampler but it input the beat rate of the music to change the mirrors (two angles) to aim the beams of red lasers. Later for a blue Krypton 5 watt beam that we aimed at the moon and could see at night. They had yet to make an affordable green laser so we could not do RGB full color.

I remember putting this computer together from a kit I purchased for $100.00.

After putting it together it did not work. Sent it in and Timex sent me back a working model.

Had fun peeking and poking the computer and learning Z80 instruction set all 156 OpCodes.