Guess i was thirteen I think and totally fascinated with the upcoming microcomputer market. Almost every boy on the “HAVO” (school of higher general secondary education), had one already, mostly a C64. But not me. They were quit expensive, and no way my parents would give me one. I got myself a job for the weekends and holidays in the local zoo (Burger’s Zoo). Worked every free hour which i could, i think for more than one and a half year, to get me that Commodore 64 and disk drive. Guess that the working rate at that age was like 1 euro per hour…
In the meanwhile…there was a little computer shop on the corner of the Cronjestraat and Sonsbeeksingel in my hometown. It’s not there anymore. I think it was spring when there was a notice behind the window that there was a programming contest, in which you could win a Sinclair Spectrum, probably the ZX80/81. But without a computer or actual programming experience it was an impossible task. Remembering my parents asking friends of them, they had some elder sons, if they could write a small program to for fill a certain task. The most compact and shortest online would win. I send in that program, and the whole summer…on a weekly basis i walked in that shop. Closed the door, cause they would publish the winner on that door and prayed that i would have won…
It took months…of visiting….just checking that list. Won’t be guessing what the guys in the shop must have been thinking. And of course i didn’t win 🙂
I think my dad got his first “pc prive” computer from work, a Corona. I remember endless playing of Leisure Suite Larry, programming basic and working in Lotus 123. My dad never worked on his computer, i actually claimed it. The Corona PC was from 1983 on. And not quit sure how this one, and my C64 ambitions fit the timeline correctly anymore.
Anyway, got my Commodore, disk drive and datasette. A small black and white television to connect to it. Started playing games (Boulder Dash, oh yes), copying games, I remember Hong Man, his parents had a Chinese restaurant on the Hommelseweg, and we shared and copied loads of tapes with games. And of course my buddy during those school years, Patrick Peren, my BFF back then 😉
He actually had *everything*, the MPS 802 printer, the Commodore monitor, a Powercartridge etc 😉 We enjoyed those years.
I was fascinated by the digital technology, the electronics, graphics and programming. I couldn’t understand a lot of it, but so much was possible and within reach. Got myself, I think, a Final Cartridge and later the Expert Cartridge. Bought the German magazine, the 64’er, and tried to type over the endless basic and machine language listings.
The freezer cartridges and the sprites, you could actually steal the sprites in those games. And i started working on my first big program, in basic and machine language. Spritehunter was born. I got to version 3.0 and i still have it. A never finished program to steal, manage and manipulate sprites in everyway possible. Decided on never ending new functionalities. The program still works, will publish later on this one. It still starts with a screen with all the bugs still needed fixing and unfinished functionality.
It is that box with floppies which made me started collecting again in 2017. Al those nice childhood memories, and all the tech stuff which was fascinating. There was always a lot on my wishlist what i would love to have, but no money for it. Now, having time and money, I can relive that period. I can actually now try working with all those goodies i can get my hands on and afford, all the Cat & Korsh stuff, eprommers and other exotic hacking cartridges. Fun to do!
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