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Free concert in LA this weekend, bring your Apple II
Following the only logical path one can take after building a working 15x scale Atari joystick, Jason Torchinsky is pulling together all the Apple IIs that can be had for a quick concert. Those not already entranced by chiptunes will want to give LA neighborhood art space Machine Project a wide berth on Saturday, where participants will use a 16 step sequencer to get something like music out of the system's timer circuit. Those interested in checking it out can check the source link for details, but if you actually have an Apple II laying around (and aren't in the middle of a game of Oregon Trail, that's serious business) you'll want to show up around 6 p.m. to get things arranged.
Player piano rolls made on a Mac... and an Apple II
I'm a big fan of the Canadian TV series How It's Made, shown in the USA on the Science Channel. There's something hypnotic and soothing about all those lathes, molds, conveyors and such, producing the things that we all take for granted. One of the older episodes was on this weekend, featuring the manufacturing process for player piano rolls (yes, they still make player piano rolls). I was pleased to see the pianist recording his score on what appeared to be a PowerPC Mac running some vintage of Mac OS X -- and then quite stunned to see the next sequence, showing the roll punch codes being loaded onto an Apple II used to control the punching machine. Goodness gracious, as my grandma used to say. It's nice to see such persistence and reliability from this bit of Jurassic technology in a control system. Read on for the video.
Found Footage: The Oregon Trail-er
Were you one of the millions of American kids who grew up playing MECC's classic educational video game The Oregon Trail? Several TUAW bloggers remember spending hours in front of an Apple II coaxing their pioneers ever Westward, only to have them die of snakebite, dysentery, or cholera. Well, the witty folks at Half Day Today! Films created a trailer for a "film adaptation" of The Oregon Trail, which takes a potshot at many of the quirks of the game. If you grew up with this game and want a good laugh, check out the video above. Just don't go into the brush; you may get bitten by a snake! Thanks to Al for the tip
The Swan Station's Apple-II Plus and other Lost gadgets on the auction block this month
We don't want to spoil anything, but ABC's Lost is over and done with -- sorry, but it's really time to move on. Still can't let go? Apologize to your pocketbook and book a ticket to Santa Monica for the end of August for the official show auction. Literally hundreds of outfits and props are being sold off, including numerous gadgets from its six-year-run. Naomi's Iridium 9500 satellite phone with a then-futuristic UI? Suggested starting price is between $200 and $300. Brainwashing LED goggles? Also up for grabs -- although not functioning. Our favorite item has to be the Swan Station computer used to type the Numbers every 108 minutes, an Apple-II Plus system with an Apple III monitor, apparently re-used later for scenes in the Pearl Station. That'll set you back at least $1,000, but we'd be surprised if that price didn't skyrocket. We've gone ahead and made a gallery of the gadgets, but feel free to hit up the source if you want to see what else is going on sale. Not in the auction: the identity of those who shot at the canoe in Season 5's "The Little Prince." Seriously, would it have been so hard to tie that in somewhere? Sigh. %Gallery-98181% [Thanks, Michael T. and Walt... my Son]
Apple IIe hacked into Twitter station, still looks better than most digiframes
This project has all the hallmarks of a classic hack: obsolete hardware, a somewhat frivolous function, and thrilling 8-bit graphics. As you can imagine, getting to the point where this Apple IIe could display Tweets was no mean feat! Custom 6502 assembler code on the PC sends Twitter updates (and user avatars dumbed down to 8-bit) over a custom USB-to-joystick port interface on the Apple. One can even save the data to a 5.25-inch floppy -- you know, because most Tweets are worth archiving for later, even if you must do so in a dead storage format. See it in action after the break!
Apple II Digital Music Synthesizer available now for 8-bit die-hards
The last time we had occasion to feature 8 Bit Weapon in this space, our man Seth had hacked his Nintendo Power Pad into a music controller. Now the team is back with something a little less strenuous -- but no less musical -- for all of you budding chiptune artists out there. The Digital Music Synthesizer for Apple II is a wavetable synthesizer designed specifically for live performance. Not only does this bad boy come with ten voices (including bass, trumpet, square wave, sawtooth wave, and sine wave), but sequences can be recorded for a later time. But wait, there's more -- there is no monitor required. If you've ever had to lug an Apple II monitor to a dank performance space on a weeknight (and who hasn't?), you understand what a sweet setup this is. Supports your Apple IIe, IIc, IIc+, or IIgs computer with 80-column capability and at least one 5.25" floppy disk drive. Get yours now for $19.95 -- but not before checking out the demo after the break.
Apple's original tablet
In 1979, the Apple II Plus was a badass piece of hardware, and the Apple Graphics Tablet was a flashy accessory. At $650US, it let users sketch with a wired stylus. Measuring 3/4 in x 15 1/2 in x 15 3/4 in, the Graphics Tablet was eventually discontinued when the FCC discovered that it caused radio frequency interference problems. Sure, the wired stylus is a kludge, as is the general design (don't look at the back), but remember that 1979 was 5 years before the first Macintosh was released and computer mice became ubiquitous. Edible Apple has some additional photos and an old ad promoting the tablet and Utopia software. Go and check out an interesting piece of Apple history -- complete with vintage scotch tape!
Visua Mobile's old Apples collection
A couple of months ago I wound up in Paris and received a surprising direct message via Twitter from a young employee at Visua Mobile. Having nothing better to do in the City of Light, I wound up at their offices. I'm often suspect when a "mobile" development company rings me about their iPhone stable. Just like my tea, I prefer my developers steeped in Apple. Well, Visua Mobile is certainly made up of Apple fans. Just check out the gallery of their offices to see what I mean. Visua's raison d'etre would be iPhone apps. To my astonishment, none have been runaway hits. They are beautifully designed and generally work well (some 3.0 bugs crept up). Visua gained some noteriety around their app, Fracture, that would make the iPhone screen appear broken when pressed. But they make a host of already-approved apps, including Celebrity, which features a special magazine cover just for TUAW fans. %Gallery-67744%
TUAW Bookshelf: Apple II Reference Manual
TUAW BOOKSHELF Apple was kind enough to include a veritable encyclopedia of information with my Apple ][. Inside the big, red manual, you'll find complete step-by-step instructions for setting up the machine, adjusting a tape recorder for optimal use, plenty of programs to get you started, and a handy reference for the hardware inside.I found the manual easy to read, although given the constraints of typing programs by hand using a typewriter, some code was printed using a dot matrix printer. Mr. Wozniak includes excellent code to help you build your own programs, however, and code for interfacing with the likes of a teletype, should you need printed output. There are critical routines for floating point calculations, which I'm sure some will appreciate.Apple introduces a little design philosophy in the manual, which is a welcome break from the volumes used to learn the 5100, for example. Rumors on our sister site Engadget say Tandy is working on a consumer machine with BASIC and a human-readable manual as well, but I'll believe that when I see it. Anyway, the Apple ][ manual has some sample code for making actual audio tones using the built-in speaker (a novel idea, by the way). Why use audio in a program? Here's the design philosophy I found interesting:"Computers can perform marvelous feats of mathematical computation at well beyond the speed capable of most human minds. They are fast, cold and accurate; man on the other hand is slower, has emotion, and makes errors. These differences create problems when the two interact with one another. So to reduce this problem humanizing of the computer is needed. Humanizing means incorporating within the computer procedures that aid in a computer's usage. One such technique is the addition of a tone subroutine."It's like they want to make the computer more *personal*, somehow.Once you've seen how to make graphics, sounds and even interaction and I/O in code, the manual wraps up with a thorough examination of the included hardware. This is a hobbyists' machine, after all. The schematics and diagrams will have you fully understanding how the computer addresses memory and controls video, plus many other miracles I can't believe they crammed into such a small package.This valuable red book of data comes free with your Apple ][, but I wouldn't part with it! You'll find yourself referring to it time and again. Check out the photostat gallery below for a few sample pages.%Gallery-49007%
Why not: A Mac mini inside an Apple Disk ][ enclosure
During last night's talkcast, we debated the validity of the most recent Mac mini rumors. I was in the "No Way" camp. I'm sure there's a new mini in the works, but I don't think that's it. At least, the machine depicted in that video isn't what will be offered to customers. I mean ... five USB ports, Firewire 800, two display ports ... why stop there? Throw in SCSI! LocalTalk! Cans and string!Or better yet, cram the whole mini into an Apple Disk ][ enclosure. That's what one enterprising case hacker did, and the results are pretty sweet. This mini has been so carefully placed that even the optical drive lines up with the case's opening. The LED has even been rigged to glow when the Mac is running. We love it.[Via Engadget & Cult of Mac]
Apple Disk ][ enclosure used to house Mac mini, enhance lives
digg_url = 'http://digg.com/apple/Apple_Disk_enclosure_used_to_house_Mac_Mini'; We're still debating whether or not a new Mac mini really is just around the bend, but one thing's for sure -- this version is the gnarliest we've ever seen of the current iteration. In an exercise that will undoubtedly go down as one of the most incredible Apple mods of all time (okay, so we only partly believe that), Sir Charles Mangin has managed to squeeze a Mac mini into a ridiculously old disk ][ enclosure. Best of all, he even managed to align the single slot with the DVD drive in the mini, giving it a totally seamless look from the outside. We know, this will only serve to drive the secondhand prices of disk ][ cases through the roof, but at least you've found a new reason to love the mini that has served you so well for so long, right? [Via technabob]
Move over, OLPC -- the $12 Apple II-based PC is coming
Alright, so it won't be a laptop, adorable, or have a cheeky Linux-based OS that's eventually replaced by Windows, but unlike the OLPC or the too-good-to-be-true $10 laptop, the $12 PC currently being developed at MIT will probably hit its price target. The project, being spearheaded by Derek Lomas and Jesse Austin-Breneman, is centered around cheap Apple II-based machines currently on sale in India and other developing nations that plug into televisions, and the goal is to update the systems with more memory, web access through cellphone tethering and actual storage. Considering we've already seen Apple IIs updated with Bluetooth and USB, and the less-powerful Commodore 64 can be used at LAN parties, we'd say all that stands between this project and reality is manpower -- any Apple II hackers out there ready to help?
Apple II: Put the Zoid back in Zoidberg
Dr. John Zoidberg is my TV Boyfriend. My husband knows, accepts, and understands. So imagine my surprise when TV Squad's Richard Keller posted about how Futurama's Zoidberg got his name. Sure, yadi yadi background stuff and then...Apple II assembly language? Wow cool! Futurama creator David X Cohen wrote Zoid back in the rocking '80s, when Brøderbund was a gaming force to be reckoned with--although it never actually was released to market. Instead they passed on the software and Cohen was forced to entertain us with cryogenics and one-eyed mutants and, well, you know the rest of the story. "Zoid" inspired the name for my darling Zoidberg, the Dr. McCoy with a mail order medical degree. Now here's where it gets interesting and TUAW-ish. Cohen still actually has his original Zoid game on a 5.25-inch floppy disk and, according to TV Squad, wants to find someone capable of ripping it for use on an Apple II emulator. Any volunteers? We at TUAW have no idea how to get in touch with Cohen but, hey, we thought we'd throw this one out there and see if we can make Internet magic happen! Now open your mouth, and lets have a look at that brain!
BlueFlash puts USB and Bluetooth on your Apple II
Do you keep revving up your Apple II to check your email, update your contacts and sync your mobile phone only to discover that you can't get Bluetooth up and running because the computer is actually from 1978? Well don't worry, because thanks to a very clever man who goes by the name Vinchysky, you can now utilize the a custom-designed disk controller card to interface with all your Bluetooth (and USB) capable devices. The ingenious design takes advantage of the card by bussing data from the single USB port (with attached Bluetooth dongle) to a CF card wired to the controller, thereby allowing information to be swapped on the card and disk images to be executed wirelessly. The card will be available in the near future for $160, plus an additional $10 for the dongle. If you really want to get a scope of what went into this hack, direct your browser and be awed by the results of three years' hard work.[Via TUAW]
BlueFlash: Bluetooth for the Apple II
Never say die to the old Apple II. A hacker named Vinchysky has melded a Disk ][ controller card with a Xilinx FPGA, which in normal-person-speak means he's enabled you to plug a Bluetooth dongle into an Apple II.The hookup itself is basically just a USB connection, so you could conceivably transfer in any files you wanted from either a USB drive or a Bluetooth connection to any PC (or any Mac, or any iPhone... or anything with Bluetooth at all... Mind boggled yet?). The writeup of how Vinchysky created it is interesting, while a little on the technical side. Then again, the guy is working technical magic, so we'll let him have his jargon.And the best part is that we're told this thing will be offered for sale-- he's planning to send them out at a tidy $160, within the next few weeks. If you've got an Apple II sitting around that you're just jonesing to get hooked up to a Bluetooth device, this is what you've been waiting for.[via MacBytes]
Apple leads PC World's 50 Best Tech Products of All Time
Everybody likes lists and rankings; there's just something that fascinates people about them, and they're always good for an argument or, as the case may be, selling magazines. Squarely in this latter camp is PC World's list of the Best 50 Tech Products of All Time, which editor Harry McCracken writes in to tell us features seven Apple products, more than any other singe company. These are: #2 - Apple II (1977) #6 - iPod (2001) #14 - Mac Plus (1986) #21 - iTunes 4 (2003) #30 - OS X (2001) #34 - Original Airport Base Station (1999) #41 - Hypercard (1987) One thing that jumps out of this list to me is that only one of them, Hypercard, came out of Cupertino during the period that Jobs was gone from Apple (well maybe the Mac Plus, too). In any case, it clearly shows how much Apple has been on a roll since Jobs' return. I also think that at least one more product should be there: the original Powerbook 100, which more or less established the notebook computer form factor we have to this day. So let the debates begin, dear TUAW readers, what did the PC World editors screw up?
Widget Watch: Apple][Go
My grammar school memories are filled with many happy hours spent in the computer lab staring at a green monochromatic Apple ][e with dual floppy drives. I can't tell you how many times I died of dysentery, or where the heck Carmen Sandiego was but I had a great time. Now, my misspent youth is only a keystroke away, waiting in the Dashboard. Apple][Go puts the power of an Apple ][ onto your modern day Mac.Now, the needed ROMs and disk images are not public domain, so make sure you have the proper rights to use them and then meet me in 1985.
Blast from the Past: Apple II Commercial with Dick Cavett
It's the "appliance for the '80s". Or so Dick Cavett would have had us believe. This is an actual Apple II commercial from waybackwhen(TM), pointing out all the advantages an Apple computer could make in our lives. Like balancing the budget. And tracking recipes. Fortunately, the commercial's writers had a pretty good sense of humor and there's a nice comic punch at the end. Check out the two external floppy disk drives, that awful keyboard and the teeny screen in the big case.
Apple II game server
I was just looking into buying an Apple II for a nefarious project of my own when Eliot, of Hackaday, sent us a link to this post. An Apple II game server? How sweet is that? All you need is the Java program, a null modem cable, and the ability to make the Apple II accept serial commands.After that, you're good to play any game that is on the Apple II on the connected computer.You'll excuse me while I try to track down a cheap Apple II in mint condition.
Flickr Find: Old Apple wrench
How's this for vintage Apple hardware? While looking through the Macintosh Flickr group, I came across this gem that fits in perfectly with our vintage Mac theme. The photographer, jotefa, writes that it's a 5mm wrench that came with the serial interface card for his Apple ][. Hold on to that, jotefa. It's pretty cool.
