New ZX spectrum!

[Rig Pig]

Sir Clive Sinclair and Retro Computers Ltd are pleased to announce the launch of the Sinclair ZX Spectrum Vega
Suddenly I feel like a small child again! I will have to treat myself to some nostalgic Manic Miner and Monty Mole.

 

[daleyd]

Hopefully they have improved the rubbery keys!! I wanted a spectrum +2 so much when they came out with a proper keyboard!!

 

[Rig Pig]

I still have a ZX81 in the loft - now that was a keyboard!

 

[daleyd]

When I did my apprenticeship we had to do programming for a stepper motor on a zx81 as part of our Digital Techniques module!! (In the early 90's - the Navy has always been behind the times!!)

I ended up with reams and reams of dot matrix printouts of the code - all it did was go twice clockwise and once anticlockwise!!!

If I never see one of those keyboards again it will be too soon

 

[Fintray]

I still have a ZX81 in the loft - now that was a keyboard!

Each key had about 5 funtions if I remember correctly!

 

[Rig Pig]

When I did my ONC we used Emma boards - a cut down BBC with a tiny keyboard, you had to programme it in Hex, I hated it with a passion!

 

[Rig Pig]

Each key had about 5 funtions if I remember correctly!

And several hours of typing would produce the worst game ever - if it ran!

 

[Wendelspanswick]

My pals dad was an electronics buff and my pal was getting a ZX80 for Christmas. I persuaded my Mum to get me one too and me and my pal spent the days leading up to Christmas being taught how to solder by my pals dad so we could assemble the kit of parts ourselves.
By Boxing Day 1980 I had my own working personal computer at the age of 13!

 

[daleyd]

And several hours of typing would produce the worst game ever - if it ran!

If I could like twice I would!

 

[cumbriasteve]

And several hours of typing would produce the worst game ever - if it ran!

And several hours of FAULTLESS typing would produce the worst game ever - if it ran!

What a nightmare it was going back looking for that typo.

 

[Wendelspanswick]

run

syntax error line 3

.
.
.

run

syntax error line 4

.
.
.

 

[rtbcomp]

I interfaced a ZX80 to an ex-naval Creed 7B teleprinter and published a book on Z80 machine code using the ZX80/81.

I then went on to be an official Sinclair/Amstrad service agent.

 

[Rocketman]

I think in the reality of modern games you will find the old spectrum games incredibly boring and poor. OK for a quick five minutes before you get bored.

You can play old spectrum games with a emulator on the PC. I would suggest you do that and save £100.

Game play wise (depth, what they look like and enjoyment) you need to get to late 90's tech to get enjoyment still.

 

[Wozzaaah]

I lost count of the number of hours I spent peeking and poking just to see a sodding dot travel across the screen.......or not as was often the case!
I'll give you syntax error you bleeping piece of bleep!!

 

[pedrobedro]

I bought a circuit board to convert my ZX80 to animated graphics. You had to solder all the components onto a 1"x1" vero board and join it into the circuit board in the computer with a ribbon cable by cutting tracks. I was amazed it worked after I'd done it. The keypad packed up on that and I bought a ZX81 with a 16k ram pack, those were the days.

 

[Wendelspanswick]

I think in the reality of modern games you will find the old spectrum games incredibly boring and poor. OK for a quick five minutes before you get bored.

You can play old spectrum games with a emulator on the PC. I would suggest you do that and save £100.

Game play wise (depth, what they look like and enjoyment) you need to get to late 90's tech to get enjoyment still.

Gauntlet with 4 players was a favourite but my all time favourite and the one I wasted the most time on was Elite.
I can still remember the hours and hours wasted playing the text based adventure games, the Scott Adams ones were the best.

You have killed the guard and are now faced with a large steel door and a security scanner...

>Open the door

Door is locked...

>Smash door

You bounce off the door and are bruised.

>Use dead guards hand on door

The Guard had led a sedentary lifestyle and weighed over 200lbs before you killed him, lifting him upto the scanner is impossible.

>Use chainsaw to chop off guards hand

The chainsaw coughs and splutters before bursting into life, the guards hand is quickly severed.

>Use severed hand to open door

There is a loud bleep, a grinding noise and the door slides open...

You are faced with ...........

 

[rtbcomp]

I used "Jetset Willie" to test Spectrums after I'd repaired them.

 

[pedrobedro]

I used "Jetset Willie" to test Spectrums after I'd repaired them.

You can get cream for that in Boots After the ZX81 I went on to Commodore then PCs starting with Intel 486. I wish I could have all the money back that I wasted on computers .

 

[rtbcomp]

.......... I wish I could have all the money back that I wasted on computers .

I paid £1000 for a twin-floppy CPM machine + £1000 for a Daisywheel printer and a few hundred for a VDU back in 1985. You certainly get more bang for your buck these days.

 

[Fintray]

And several hours of typing would produce the worst game ever - if it ran!

I remember my mate telling me a story about some electrical work he was about to do in his house, he went to the consumer unit to isolate the upstairs ring main only to hear a load scream when he flipped the breaker. Unknown to him his son had been typing in a game that you used to get the code for from a magazine and well you know what happens to your work if it hasn't been saved and the power goes off........