So every now and then I get really obsessive over something and within months to a year I notice that my interest is getting some attention from other people too. Now I don't know if this is some sort of collective consciousness syndrome or what but it's kind of cool. The latest such interest:
Microcomputers!
More specifically I've gotten interested in what modern replicas are out there. Because the microcomputers I was interested we're some of the first microcomputers and are collectors items they are too expensive to purchase just because you have a passing interest. The first thought is that you can just run emulators of them and I did do that but what's much more fun is a physical device that you can turn on connected to an old monitor and type into.
The first one I got interested in was the Apple I. There are two replicas that are available.
A-One
Replica 1
I looked at an Altair 8800 clone Altair 8800micro. I programed an Altair 8800 at MakerFaire it was a really cool experience.
Also at MakerFaire was the Digi-Comp II by Evil Mad Science Laboratories.
This weekend I noticed an Instructables blogged about by Ian at Dangerous Prototypes. It is Jeff Ledger's retro style microcomputer project using all off the shelf components. It is based on a propeller development kit that you can purchase for $80.
Will we start seeing more and more retro computing projects becoming trendy? With the abundance of powerful and inexpensive electronics and a generation that missed out on a whole period of computer history I think we might.
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