L Break Into Program

Ah yes! There was an independent computer games shop in our village. They also sold music. It was either them or WHSmiths in town.

Very nice, and a cool visualisation too.

Just heard of Tony’s passing. Read an obituary on the Internet wondering how many times his sort algorithm had run before the text hit my phone. Also apparently invented null, later regretting it. If only I lived a life a tenth as interesting as his.

Durham Cathedral in LEGO - Durham Cathedral Durham Cathedral in LEGO returns, with the final brick placed the model will be on permanent display

They have something similar in Durham Cathedral. I often wondered if it contained a tiny brick representation of itself inside.

Me shoe-horning my retro computing hobby into all my presentations at work.

The original ZX Spectrum Mario Brothers game.

Happy MAR10 day to all those who celebrate.

Yeah that’s an old one. Very clever though.

??

I was thinking the very same.

Sadly not, yet I still ended up having an awkward conversation with HR.

Brilliant! Though awesome chip tunes were the norm in the 80s. So many good musicians including the Follins, Rob Hubbard, Martin Galway and so on. Though Tim would argue 1 bit is more than sufficient!

I wish! That box is a delight btw.

Nah, definitely remember that. One of our finer exports.

Grand! I think it’ll find a space on my phone, especially for the less familiar CPUs.

Looking good. How about the “undocumented” Z80 instructions and registers? IXL, IYH etc. They’re commonly used these days.

A board on the wall of the laboratory at RHS Garden Wisley listing Keith Weed as the President of the RHS since 2020

At Royal Horticultural Society Garden Wisley. Apparently a “Keith Weed” is the current president of the RHS. An obvious plant, if you ask me.

Yeah for sure.

Picture of my finger in a compression dressing.

Finger update. It’s still not right after I damaged the tendon three months ago. Feeling a bit fed up about it now tbh.

Yeah I know where you’re coming from there.

Yeah, I’m not into writing full games these days. I much prefer writing tools, utilities and library routines to give others a springboard for doing the same. The VideoBeast has so much potential, can’t wait to get my hands on one.

And like Andy said, retro posts are in danger of being drowned out at the moment. If you’ve got a favourite maker, then boost the heck out of them!

MicroBeast - YouTube A guide to assembling the MicroBeast

Here’s a link to my build. I’m looking forward to getting my hands on a VideoBeast next, another well considered project. Will be getting a couple of those when available, one for my Spectrum and another for the MicroBeast.

Retro computer enthusiasts: you might find this CPU opcode app useful. Please let me know of errors and omissions!

On TestFlight for iOS now.

testflight.apple.com/join/e3nSMedK

Z80, 6502, 8080, 6800, 6809, 1820, 2652

Boosting this for Andy - his kits are incredibly cool and well thought out. Really enjoyed building mine and it gets a fair amount of use. Website link below.

It is one of my all time favourites.

Photo of a CRT portable TV in the lion enclosure set at London Zoo.

Mrs B: “Did you take any photos at the zoo today?”

Me:

I’m amazed at how good new Spectrum games are.

Ah grand! I’ll see you there then.

Yeah, starting a new role does tend to sap one’s hobby energy. Having said that, I’m enjoying my new role more than I expected. You doing Swindon this year?