UltimateMicro | Open Apple

Open Apple #60 (June 2016) : Sean Fahey, KansasFest 2016 Warmup

Posted on Jun 22, 2016Feb 8, 2022 by Quinn Dunki

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:18:33 — 63.8MB) | Embed

This month on Open Apple, we sit down with Sean Fahey of A2Central, major league collector, and member of the KansasFest Committee. It’s not too late to register! Go to kansasfest.org right now. If you listen to this show, you should definitely be there. The Garage Giveaway will be larger than ever this year. You won’t want to miss the amazing pile of free Apple II gear. The other classic traditions keep getting better as well- the cookout will be catered, and the prizes for the various contests are amazing this year. All the great Apple II community vendors have stepped up with a lot of hardware, tools, and software to give away.

KansasFest 2016 runs July 19th – July 24th at Rockhurst University in Kansas City, MO. The keynote speaker this year is Mike Harvey, best known in the Apple II community as the editor of Nibble magazine. He has some great stories about the business and culture of the early computing era.

We don’t just talk about KansasFest this month. We dive a bit deeper into the murky world of Apple II clones. Also marvel as Mike pretends to know nothing about KansasFest, and roll your eyes as Quinn continues to beat a dead horse joke about the eBay segment. Fear not, however, because the world is a better now that we all know the Lode Runner board game exists.

Z0DWARE WHERE ARE YOU?!

More information on everything discussed in this episode, after the jump.

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Open Apple #59 (May 2016) : Amy Kefauver, Lorri Hopping, Stuff4YourGS

Posted on May 31, 2016Feb 8, 2022 by Quinn Dunki

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:40:23 — 80.7MB) | Embed

This month on Open Apple, Kay Savetz sits down with Amy Kefauver and Lorri Hopping. Amy was the editor of Scholastic Microzine, an educational magazine focused on the Apple II. Lorri was a writer and editor for Microzine. They share many great memories creating lessons with computers, the nature of the educational market, and how computers can engage kids in ways that static media can’t.

After those interviews (thanks Kevin!), Mike and Quinn talk ear worm game introductions, crappy early advertising, and hardware with Bumper Stumper product names. It wouldn’t be a show if they didn’t mention UltimateMicro and Brutal Deluxe, so they make sure to do that too.

Bathe in the glory of 1980s video game box art, enjoy mobile versions of KansasFest memories, and roll your eyes at teenage boy whimsy.

More information on everything discussed in this episode, after the jump.

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Open Apple #58 (April 2016) : Huibert Aalbers, IIGS Stuff, Taiwanese Ham

Posted on May 3, 2016Feb 8, 2022 by Quinn Dunki

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:07:21 — 99.0MB) | Embed

This month on Open Apple, we sit down with Huibert Aalbers, author of Soundsmith. It’s hard to overstate what a platform-defining piece of software this was for the Apple IIgs. Few people appreciated what the audio system in this computer was capable of, until Huibert unlocked it for the world to hear. Games and scene demos would use his tool for the entire life of the machine. Other music trackers came along in later years, but Soundsmith was always there. It turns out platform jealousy can be a powerful force indeed.

Meanwhile, we talk oranges, Taiwanese ham, dying young, and cramming IIc parts in your Franklin. We blow the lid off the French pirate sneakernet and complain about kids today and their disrespect for bytes.

After that, Mike finds beta ROMs, Quinn loses her sense of humor, and they both find GS RAM cards everywhere. It’s a IIgs themed episode- all the Ensoniqs and FTAs you can stand. If you’re an Atari user*, see if you can spot the backhanded compliment.

You won’t want to miss Huibert’s amazing project involving IIgs Epluché!

More information on everything discussed in this episode, after the jump.

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Open Apple #55 (January 2016) : Henry Courbis, UltimateMicro, ProDOS conversions

Posted on Jan 31, 2016Feb 8, 2022 by Quinn Dunki

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:44:28 — 78.1MB) | Embed

This month on Open Apple we sit down with Henry Courbis, co-proprietor of Ultimate Micro, serial entrepreneur, and Open Source guy. Henry is boldly going where no hobbyist has gone before, by making Apple II hardware his real day job. If anyone can do it, Ultimate Micro can!

We talk massive modem phone bills, phreaking, warez, and statutes of limitations. You know… for a friend. Henry talks about how hardware first appealed to him, and how he has leveraged his hacking and resourcefulness into development of powerful & complex modern products. Henry is a nexus of collaboration in the Apple II hardware community, and helping to make a lot of things happen. Henry makes cloning the Transwarp GS sound easy, and goes into lots of detail on exciting upcoming UltimateMicro products.

Listen in amazement as Quinn is unable to realize that “qkumba” is a play on “cucumber”. Listen to Mike badger Henry for a Phasor clone, and listen to Quinn’s not-so-subtle attempt to be a beta tester for the IDEA2c. We’ve got emulators, we’ve got hardware vendors, we’ve got crackers, and we’ve got phony museums about to get sued into oblivion. Come on down!

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Open Apple #53 (November 2015) : David Schroeder, Phreaking, 8-bit Mice

Posted on Nov 28, 2015Feb 8, 2022 by Quinn Dunki

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:38:29 — 75.2MB) | Embed

This month on Open Apple we sit down with David Schroeder, author of classic Apple II games such as Crisis Mountain, Dino Eggs, and Short Circuit. We talk about the randomness of our passionate brand-loyalty, the logistical realities of early Apple II development, and the magical era of “one-person, one-game”. We get into a lot of the technical details of Crisis Mountain and Dino Eggs, so you might pick up some tips for your own Apple II projects! David also has great memories of the economic and design realities of the time, where everyone was scrambling to figure out what a computer game was, and what players really wanted. Game developers are still fighting that battle, but at least we have a definition of “video game” now.

We’re sharing David’s games in the show notes below, with his permission! In exchange, he asks that you patronize, share and support Dino Eggs: Rebirth.

After that we jam through some quick news, bask in the fallout (see what I did there?) of the GEOS episode, and we get down and dirty with rodents. Do you have the GS with the bigger Em Bees? Trust us, you want the bigger Em Bees.

You might notice that we’re continuing to tighten up the show. Let us know how you feel about this trend in our show length! Do you like the shorter episodes? Miss the epic three hour monsters? Email us at feedback (at) open-apple (dot) net. We have social media too, but we can never remember which ones.

More information on everything discussed in this episode, after the jump.

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Open Apple #52 (October 2015) : GEOS! Robert Bowdidge, and more GEOS!

Posted on Oct 31, 2015Feb 8, 2022 by Quinn Dunki

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:42:13 — 122.6MB) | Embed

This month on Open Apple we sit down with Robert Bowdidge, one of three interns at Berkeley Softworks who ported GEOS to the best line of 8-bit computers. We talk about what a great place Berkeley Softworks was, along with the power of good tools and proper software engineering. Robert has great memories of the culture there, the GUI technology they had built, and the brilliant people who built it. Apparently GEOS existed for some other 8-bit computer as well, but we imagine it was slow and child-like. Users probably bought it at K-Mart or something.

After the interview, Mike and Quinn delve into their personal memories of GEOS, along with a couple of new projects they both did with the environment. Mike works on GEOS file conversion, and Quinn sorts out all the drivers so you don’t have to. We’re even having a contest this month! Download Quinn’s Ultimate GEOS disk image and find the secret phrase. First person to do so and email us at feedback (at) open-apple (dot) net wins nothing at all!

We also talk some news- lots of really great hardware is coming down the pipe. You won’t want to miss Javier Rivera’s hands-on with Plamen’s IIc VGA adapter, and the Uthernet II is now available. Don’t miss out! We talk some Woz, we talk some French Touch, and we revisit KansasFest yet again.

Celebrate GEOS with Quinn and Mike this Hallowe’en!

GEOS Disk Image guide:

D1S1: Boot / Desktop disk
D1S2: Demos
D2S1: Drivers
D2S2: More Drivers
D3S1: GeoWrite
D3S2: GeoPaint / Desk Accessories
D4S1: GeoSpell / LaserWriter tools
D4S2: GeoDictionary

A quick sidebar on show length- yes, this episode is almost 3 hours again, but we really did try to make it shorter. We’ll continue to try and compromise a bit on this, so thanks for your patience!

More information on everything discussed in this episode, after the jump.

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Open Apple #49 (July 2015) : Laine Nooney, Technowarp, 4am

Posted on Aug 2, 2015Jul 3, 2023 by Quinn Dunki

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:53:11 — 130.6MB) | Embed

This month on Open Apple, we sit down with Laine Nooney, researcher of early computer and software companies. Laine has been digging into the history of such greats as Brøderbund and Sierra On-Line. In particular, they have done awesome research on the infamous Soft Porn Adventure, including behind-the-scenes details on the infamous advertising photo. We talk about broken microfilm projectors, we talk about printer stands, and we talk about revisionist small town historians. Trust us, it will all make sense in the end. Laine is going deep into the role of the microcomputer revolution in transforming domestic life (and the very layout of the houses we live in).

Listen and wonder why Quinn thinks it’s 2010, wonder how loud an ASR-33 really is, and why Mike reads local newspapers of small towns in Utah. Explore the lost art of naming computer user groups, witness the first pure hack of Rastan, and see what Woz thinks about… well, everything and everyone.

More information on everything discussed in this episode after the jump.

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