John Keoni Morris, the creator of the Applesauce Floppy Disk Controller has announced the release of the WOZ disk image specification. The update, version 2.0 of the specification, includes a host of updates and fixes including: Better 3.5 inch floppy disk support Emulator hints Fixes an issue with extremely long tracks Also announced was the impending release of the next version of the Applesauce FDC software. Version 1.1 will allow users to begin creating WOZ 2.0 floppy disk images. Two…
The Apple II DiskBrowser, a java based disk image utility for Mac OS X, has been updated. Created by Denis Molony, DiskBrowser Version 1.0.30 was released with features to support A.P.P.L.E.’s hybrid Pascal/DOS and CPM/DOS type floppy disks. You can download the latest version of DiskBrowser from Github at:https://github.com/dmolony/DiskBrowser/
In his latest video, Chris Torrence does a video review of the wDrive, a new floppy disk emulator from KbooHK. The wDrive supports copy protected formats such as WOZ, EDD/EDF, and NIB, as well as DSK, DO, and PO disk images. Check it out!
John Morris has announced that he is now taking orders for the 2nd run of the Applesauce Floppy Drive Controller. The Applesauce FDC allows users to digitally image their floppy disks (both personal and commercial) in the original format of the disk as it was created. These disk images are then stored in WOZ format (an emulator format), DSK format (old emulator format) or as a raw or A2R file. Built into the Applesauce FDC Software is support for both…
In 1979, Jeff Finn submitted a program to the A.P.P.L.E. users group for inclusion in its Diskpak 2. It was the Holiday Greeting Pak, a program which utilized the low resolution graphics capabilities of the Apple II computer. Included in the Holiday Greeting Pak were 9 different screens covering both the Christian and the Jewish holidays, giving users a variety of screens which could be personalized as well. Originally written in Integer Basic, not only was it formatted for the…
Option8 also known as Charles Mangin has released a new Apple II game, BlockChain. Fresh off his recent success of his new game DropBlock which came in two flavors, single and double player, he now has released a game which gives a new twist to the idea of placing falling blocks. One of the twists on BlockChain is the fact that combines blocks change color making it harder than DropBlock. According to the BlockChain blurb on the Option8 website, Match…
The Eaten by a Grue Infocom Podcast episode 24 is now available. This months podcast takes a deep dive into the game, Zork III: The Dungeon Master. The Eaten by a Grue podcast is hosted by Kevin Savetz of Atari Archive fame and Carrington Vanston, long time Apple II fan and Kansasfest regular. In this episode, they talk about whether Zork III can be completed without cheating and have a few surprises for the listener. You can listen to the…
The Epple II Emulator installer has been updated. Epple II is an Apple II and II plus emulator written in C++ and is buildable to either Linux or Windows systems. The Epple II emulator was created and is maintained by Christopher Mosher. Some of the features of Epple II are: Cycle-accurate: emulates all MOS 6502 CPU cycles including “phantom reads” Video display is synchronized with CPU NTSC video signal emulation: all video quirks emulated accurately Revision 0 motherboard (optional) Multiple…
James and john have been busy at work on the latest episode of the Retro Mac Cast. In this episode, “James and John discuss eBay finds: ColorClassic II, Quadra 700, and AppleInteractive Television Box. They get a visit from David Greelish and talk about his new Lisa project,and news includes a conceptual iPod case for Apple Watch,and more on Apple sneakers.” David Greelish is known for his Retro Computing newsletter, “Historically Brewed” as well as other Apple related retro computing…
The Applewin Apple II Emulator has been updated. Version 1.27.13.0 was released with two main changes within the program. They include: “[Bug #599] Fix for Ultima V not loading in Authentic Speed mode (regression introduced at 1.27.9.0). [Change #205] Added support for Apple II/II+ custom 2K video ROMs. Extended command line switch: -videorom. If the ROM size is 2K, then it replaces the video ROM for the Apple II/II+.” Applewin is an Apple II emulator for Microsoft windows and the…
Further On Apple’s latest iterations The Spy notes that Apple parts suppliers have been notifying shareholders of massive reductions in their order books. Stocks have fallen, and Apple shares in turn have led the whole premium high tech stock sector into a deep downward spiral. Indeed at this writing, Apples market cap, having lost some 20% was below that of Microsoft for the first time in many moons. Should anyone be astonished? Christmas buying season is well advanced and Apple…
The Apple IIix project, curated by Aaron Culliney of Deadcode.org, has been updated. Apple IIix is an Apple II Emulator for POSIX devices. Currently, the Android Release Candidate for version 2.0 is available on the Apple IIix website. For more infromation or to download the latest version of Apple IIix, go to the github page at: https://github.com/mauiaaron/apple2
Seattle, Washington — November 26, 2018 — Apple Pugetsound Program Library Exchange (A.P.P.L.E.) and Jon F. Baxley are proud to announce the immediate availability of the book for his classic game Lordlings of Yore: The Game of Knights, Knaves and Necromancers. Lordlings of Yore was originally published in 1983 by Softlore Corporation, a company run by Jon. The newly-designed manual by Brian Wiser includes remastered art for the cover and interior. The cover even showcases more art than the original…
Seattle, Washington — November 24, 2018 — Apple Pugetsound Program Library Exchange (A.P.P.L.E.) and Alan Bird are proud to announce the immediate availability of the new manual ProBASIC: Professional Modular BASIC Programming. ProBASIC enhances the Applesoft BASIC that is built-in to your Apple II computer. New commands and functions can be added to your programs. Programmers familiar with structured languages such as Pascal and C will quickly see the similarities between a ProBASIC module and a procedure or function….
James and John at RetroMacCast have been busy boys this past week with the release of two episodes of the RetroMacCast podcast. Episodes 482 and 483 have both been released and are available for your listening pleasure. In Episode 482, James and John discuss eBay finds: Macintosh brochure, prototype TechStep, and Macintosh Picasso dealer sign. They talk with Derek from Macintosh Folklore Radio, and news includes an upcoming Apple Event, and the Apple Museum Cafe. In Episode 483, they look…
The AppleCommander Apple II data conversion software has been updated.AppleCommander has long been a go to tool for many users converting data from Apple II disk images to standard files on the Mac and Windows. The program includes support for all standard disk sizes and formats as well as 32mb HDV type hard disk images. AppleCommander version 1.5.0 was released with a number of changes including: New images Updates to AppleSingle support. Also see the asu utility for direct manipulation…
Seattle, Washington — November 23, 2018 — Apple Pugetsound Program Library Exchange (A.P.P.L.E.) and Jeff Koftinoff are proud to announce the immediate availability of the first manual for his 1984 game Cater Killer. Cater Killer is a multi-level action arcade game for the Apple II. The scenario is that you are alone in a world populated by Cater Killers which are very hazardous to your health. You must take food away from the baby Cater Killers and if you…
Chris Torrence reviews the new book “The Nostalgia Nerd’s Retro Tech: Computer, Consoles and Games”. From the blurb: This book celebrates the most exciting period in the history of technology – the arrival of the home computer and home gaming console. For a time, an exciting and ever-changing array of different companies fought for supremacy, leaving a lasting legacy of great gameplay and surreal design we’ll never experience again. Features screenshots of nostalgic games that will bring joy to the…
The Applewin Apple II Emulator has been updated. Applewin version 1.27.12.0 includes a few changes to the program including: [Change #574] Add support for PAL/European or custom 8K video ROMs: Added new command line switch: -videorom <file> Replaces the video ROM for the Enhanced //e. Support video ROM sizes of 4K, 8K and 16K (top 8K only). NB. The rocker switch is set to the European video ROM position. F10 (for //e or Enhanced //e models) emulates the PAL //e’s…
When Hackaday held their Supercon, they gave electronic badges to all of the attendees. Well, this in turn has produced a number of hacks and additions, including this one which caught out eye — An Apple-1 Emulator running on the badge https://hackaday.io/project/3620-l-star-software-defined-6502-computer/log/155608-l-star-as-a-supercon2018-badge-add-on
