my_time_at_commodore
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my_time_at_commodore [2025/09/21 10:58] sausage created |
my_time_at_commodore [2025/09/27 12:10] (current) sausage [My time at Commodore] |
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| Younger readers probably have little idea of who this company was, why they were so special or what they made. But for the rest of us who grew up through the 80s and 90s, those days of the Commodore 64 and Amiga know all too well the magic of those machines and the community that surrounded them. | Younger readers probably have little idea of who this company was, why they were so special or what they made. But for the rest of us who grew up through the 80s and 90s, those days of the Commodore 64 and Amiga know all too well the magic of those machines and the community that surrounded them. | ||
| - | So how did I get to be at Commodore? | + | So how did I get to be at Commodore? And what was it like? |
| I grew up in a small cotton growing town in North West New South Wales called Wee Waa. It's not overly far from the Queensland border. I was in High School during the late 80s, and there was an opportunity to travel to Sydney and join a group of kids from various schools in a work experience programme. | I grew up in a small cotton growing town in North West New South Wales called Wee Waa. It's not overly far from the Queensland border. I was in High School during the late 80s, and there was an opportunity to travel to Sydney and join a group of kids from various schools in a work experience programme. | ||
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| Beyond that though, the legends were all true and I was very much in the proverbial Chocolate Factory. There were rooms full of Commodore 64s, 128s, and other 8-bit machines or Commodore branded PC workstations. | Beyond that though, the legends were all true and I was very much in the proverbial Chocolate Factory. There were rooms full of Commodore 64s, 128s, and other 8-bit machines or Commodore branded PC workstations. | ||
| - | There was the Amiga showroom, filled with Amiga 1000s, Amiga 500 and 2000 machines. This was the first time I had ever clapped eyes on an Amiga in the flesh. And the Amiga 500 no less, which I had only drooled over in the magazines. | + | There was the Amiga showroom, filled with Amiga 1000s, Amiga 500 and 2000 machines. This was the first time I had ever clapped eyes on an Amiga in the flesh. And the Amiga 500 no less, which I had only drooled over in magazines like the [[https://archive.org/details/commodore-user-magazine-43|April 1987 edition of Commodore User]]. |
| - | I spent probably most of the day in there becoming acquainted with Deluxe Paint and Instant Music. I'd never seen graphics as good as that, and the sampled audio pumping all afternoon sounded just like a real band. Eventually I was told to shut up. | + | {{ :commodore:commodore-user-april-1987.jpg?nolink |}} |
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| + | I spent probably most of the day in there becoming acquainted with [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RstCl1aacPI|Deluxe Paint]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D8xmTd8x1uY|Instant Music]]. I'd never seen graphics as good as that, and the sampled audio pumping all afternoon sounded just like a real band. Eventually I was told to shut up. | ||
| I remember a room full of Commodore 64s equipped with 1541 floppy drives and other peripherals in what I vaguely remember was a guest classroom. I spent a lot of spare time in here using the machine code monitor and working on game ideas. They gave me a few floppy disks to keep my work on. | I remember a room full of Commodore 64s equipped with 1541 floppy drives and other peripherals in what I vaguely remember was a guest classroom. I spent a lot of spare time in here using the machine code monitor and working on game ideas. They gave me a few floppy disks to keep my work on. | ||
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| On the last day, Jo gave me a bag full of swag (some I still have), and a hug goodbye. | On the last day, Jo gave me a bag full of swag (some I still have), and a hug goodbye. | ||
| - | Commodore's C64 and Amiga machines have very much shaped me as both a technical person and a creative. I didn't come from a mainframe computer science background but rather one where computing and technology in general were exciting. | + | Commodore's C64 and Amiga machines have very much shaped me as both a technical person and a creative. I didn't come from a background full of mainframes but rather one where computing and technology in general were fun and exciting. |
| Since starting this article, the news had come in regarding the new Commodore, so I'll talk a little about that. | Since starting this article, the news had come in regarding the new Commodore, so I'll talk a little about that. | ||
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| As I started to earn money with holiday jobs, I sold my Commodore 64 to progressively upgrade though to the Commodore 64C, Commodore 128, Commodore 128D and finally the Amiga 500 and 1200. | As I started to earn money with holiday jobs, I sold my Commodore 64 to progressively upgrade though to the Commodore 64C, Commodore 128, Commodore 128D and finally the Amiga 500 and 1200. | ||
| - | So today with the Commodore 64U (even though I've pre-paid for my unit) I'm saving for this machine just like back then. Any gigging money I make, goes toward the cost of it. | + | So today with the Commodore 64U (even though I've pre-paid for my unit) I'm saving for this machine just like back then. Any [[https://www.gaelwarning.com.au/photo-gallery|gigging money I make]], goes toward the cost of it. |
| This is a powerful nostalgic moment in history for those of us who grew up on these machines and loved them so much. If it was just a company and a machine, honestly it wouldn't be that much of a big deal. | This is a powerful nostalgic moment in history for those of us who grew up on these machines and loved them so much. If it was just a company and a machine, honestly it wouldn't be that much of a big deal. | ||
my_time_at_commodore.1758452309.txt.gz · Last modified: 2025/09/21 10:58 by sausage
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