ANTIC The Atari 8-bit Podcast

ANTIC Episode 117 In this episode of ANTIC The Atari 8-Bit Computer Podcast… lots of scanning talk, more new games for the Atari than you can shake a stick at, and how to win a kiss on the forehead… READY! Recurring Links  Floppy Days Podcast  AtariArchives.org  AtariMagazines.com  Kay's Book "Terrible Nerd"  New Atari books scans at archive.org  ANTIC feedback at AtariAge  Atari interview discuss...

ANTIC Episode 116 In this episode of ANTIC The Atari 8-Bit Computer Podcast… we talk about all the Atari things we did this month and discuss all the "AI-generated nonsense" going on in the Atari world…READY! Recurring Links  Floppy Days Podcast  AtariArchives.org  AtariMagazines.com  Kay's Book "Terrible Nerd"  New Atari books scans at archive.org  ANTIC feedback at AtariAge  Atari interview disc...

Stanley Trost, Electronic Arts Financial Cookbook    Stanley R. Trost wrote several books about early microcomputers, including Atari BASIC Programs in Minutes, Doing Business with VisiCalc, Multiplan on the Commodore 64, Useful Basic Programs the for IBM PC, VisiCalc for Science and Engineering, and others. He was also the creator of Financial Cookbook, which was published by Electronic Arts in 1...

Bill and David Lappen, Buy-Phone   It's a dangerous game in the computer history field to call anything the "first." But Buy-Phone is a very strong contender call itself the first online yellow pages. Years before before Yahoo!, before Craigslist, Buy-Phone was a text-based dial-up service — available at 300 and 1200 bits per second — that provided business listings, movie times, and personal ads,...

ANTIC Episode 115 In this episode of ANTIC The Atari 8-Bit Computer Podcast… we talk lots of contest news, Mr. Paint, a DIY Atari-themed monitor, and lots of other Atari 8-bit news.  Plus, we find a book on "exhausting" Atari games! READY! Recurring Links  Floppy Days Podcast  AtariArchives.org  AtariMagazines.com  Kay's Book "Terrible Nerd"  New Atari books scans at archive.org  ANTIC feedback at...

Steve Kranish, Parker Brothers Frogger   Steve Kranish is the creator of the Atari 8-bit and Atari 5200 versions of Frogger, the versions published by Parker Brothers. Parker Brothers had the rights to publish cartridge versions of Frogger. Sierra On-Line had already published versions of Frogger on floppy disk and cassette, so Parker Brothers bought the rights to use that version as the basis for...

ANTIC Interview 453 - Giann Velasquez, Atariteca Hello, and welcome to this interview-only episode of ANTIC, The Atari 8-bit computer podcast.  I'm Randy Kindig, your host for this episode. Giann Velasquez is the owner and curator of the popular, Spanish-language, Atari 8-bit news site, Atariteca.  Giann is a consummate Atari 8-bit fan and lives in Lima, Peru. This interview took place on June 30,...

ANTIC Episode 114 - Andy Diller Returns! In this episode of ANTIC The Atari 8-Bit Computer Podcast… we have special guest Andy Diller for a FujiNet update and to let us know about all the great things he's working on… READY! Recurring Links  Floppy Days Podcast  AtariArchives.org  AtariMagazines.com  Kay's Book "Terrible Nerd"  New Atari books scans at archive.org  ANTIC feedback at AtariAge  Atar...

ANTIC Interview 452 - Dean Garraghty Hello, and welcome to this interview-only episode of ANTIC, The Atari 8-bit computer podcast.  I'm Randy Kindig, your host for this episode. Dean Garraghty is the proprietor of DGS Software, which sold, and continues to sell, software for the Atari 8-bit computers since the 80's.  This is a very low cost, 191-disk set that includes an entire utility pack, games...

ANTIC Episode 113 - Feeling Fancy! In this episode of ANTIC The Atari 8-Bit Computer Podcast… The clear case Kickstarter doesn't make it, lots of FujiNet news, and we end the year 2024 with a bang by bringing you all the rest of the Atari news; all while Kay is feeling fancy… READY! Recurring Links  Floppy Days Podcast  AtariArchives.org  AtariMagazines.com  Kay's Book "Terrible Nerd"  New Atari b...

Daniel Serpell (dmsc), Creator of FastBasic   Daniel Serpell (dmsc) is the creator of FastBasic, a modern implementation of the BASIC programming language for the Atari 8-bit computers. He released the first version to the public in 2017. Today, the GPL-licensed language is up to version 4.6, and is a favorite of 10-line BASIC game contest entrants and anyone who wants a speedy, modern take on Ata...

Robert Leyland: AtariArtist, KoalaPainter, MicroIllustrator   Robert Leyland programmed AtariArtist, KoalaPainter, and MicroIllustrator (along with Steve Dompier) - the graphics applications that worked with KoalaPad, Atari Touch Tablet, and Chalk Board PowerPad drawing tablets. Prior to that, he programmed The Dragon's Eye (published by Automated Simulations/EPYX), Murder on the Zinderneuf (publi...

Tim Boehlert, Atari's WCI Labs Division   Tim Boehlert began at Atari in 1982. He worked at WCI Labs, the New York Atari subsidiary, where he worked on the broadboard of the 600XL, robotics projects, and mass storage devices.   This interview took place on June 4, 2022.   Video version of this interview   ANTIC Interview 65 - Steve Mayer, 400/800 Designer   ANTIC Interview 332 - Mike Matthews, Ali...

Frank Foster, Hybrid Arts   Frank Foster was one of the founders of Hybrid Arts, the company that made MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) hardware and software for Atari 8-bit and Atari ST computers. Frank was in charge of marketing for the company. After Hybrid Arts, Frank headed the music division at Atari, where he build marketing partnerships with Tangerine Dream, Fleetwood Mac, Peter...

Robert Moore and Paul Rother, Hybrid Arts MIDIMate   Robert Moore and Paul Rother were two of the founders of Hybrid Arts, along with Frank Foster and Alan Hart. Hybrid Arts created the MIDIMate, hardware that added Musical Instrument Digital Interface capability to the the Atari 8-bit computers; and various software for it including MIDITrack. Hybrid Arts continued on to make a wide variety of MI...

Mary Eisenhart, MicroTimes magazine   Mary Eisenhart was editor of MicroTimes magazine, a free, advertising-supported magazine that was distributed in California. The first issue was May 1984, and Mary remained at the magazine until 1998, producing more than 180 issues. MicroTimes provided interviews, computer industry news, rumors, and columns, and - of course - advertising. For most of its run,...

ANTIC Episode 112 In this episode of ANTIC The Atari 8-Bit Computer Podcast… we have several Christmas ideas for you, we tell you about projects that would allow creating a new reproduction Atari 800XL, and we wet our appetites for the current Atari's hot sauce while wearing their ugly Christmas sweater … READY! Recurring Links  Floppy Days Podcast  AtariArchives.org  AtariMagazines.com  Kay's Boo...

Vince Cate, The Critical Connection   In my last interview , I talked with the creator of SIO2PC, which let Atari users use a DOS computer as its disk drive and printer. This interview is with the creator a product which - six years earlier - let Atari users use a CP/M computer as its disk drive and printer (and keyboard.)   Vince Cate owned a company called USS Enterprises, with just one product:...

Nick Kennedy, SIO2PC and the ATR File Format   Nick Kennedy is the creator of SIO2PC, the hardware and software combination that allowed Atari 8-bit computer users to use a PC as a peripheral. In 1989, this was unprecedented, a new way to connect the little Atari to the bigger world, to the (relatively) massive storage and speed of a computer running PC-DOS. For the first time, Ataris could use a...

Rick Reaser, Current Notes Magazine's 8-bit Editor   Rick Reaser was the 8-bit Editor of Current Notes Magazine, a popular magazine dedicated to the Atari computers. He began in 1992, and wrote a column called 8-Bit Tidbits. Rick used his Atari 8-bit computer exclusively through his college years and for programming for grad school. He was also president of P3ACE - Pikes Peak Poke Atari Computer E...

Bob Stein, Atari's Encyclopedia Project   Bob Stein worked at Atari Research for 18 months beginning in 1981. He was hired by Alan Kay. He worked almost exclusively on an encyclopedia project, a potential collaboration between Atari and Encyclopaedia Britannica that never went anywhere.   I learned about Bob after he uploaded an item called The Atari Drawings to Internet Archive. It's a collection...

ANTIC Episode 111 - "Is Kay Really Funny, or is it Just a Courtesy Snicker?" In this episode of ANTIC The Atari 8-Bit Computer Podcast… We go over the ABBUC Software Contest winners, we cover PRGE, Kay accelerates his interview publishing schedule, and we ask the question: Is Kay really funny, or are Randy's snickers simply courtesy?  You decide … READY! Recurring Links  Floppy Days Podcast  Atari...

Nick Kennedy, Atari Morse Code Keyer   I was adding a batch of ham radio newsletters to the Internet Archive's Digital Library of Amateur Radio And Communications, and I noticed the word "Atari" on one of the pages.   In the September 2019 issue of Solid Copy, the newsletter of The CW Operators Club, Nick Kennedy had written: "Few hams who are both CW [morse code] enthusiasts and programmers of mi...

Ed Sabo, UltraBASIC   Ed Sabo, with the help of his dad, founded UltraBASIC, a company that produced software for Atari 8-bit computers. UltraBASIC's software for the Atari 8-bits, which was all programmed by Ed, were:    Tank Math: "a tutored math exercise plus a bonus roman numeral quiz" FunSpeller: "use your own words or the fifteen word-sets included" SuperFrogs: "the 7 game arcade with over 1...

Two Interviews about Making Modern Atari Hardware   In this interview episode, there are interviews with two people creating today's Atari hardware: the Atari 400 Mini and other modern reboots of retro consoles such as the Atari 7800+.    First, an interview with Matthew Burnett, Vice President of Strategic Operations at Atari — the guy in charge of Atari's new hardware. We discuss how the Atari 4...