0051 SCSI on a laptop and an 8-bit dance party that IS NOT on a C64

On today's video, we have a couple cool items. One is a super versatile laptop and hard drive interface which I'll definitely be getting a lot of use out of. Thanks to all my viewers for sending stuff into the basement!
-- Video Links
Coco 8-bit Dance Party:
github.com/misterblack1/8bitd...
Adrian's Digital Basement Merch store:
my-store-c82bd2-2.creator-spr...
Support the channel on Patreon:
/ adriansdigitalbasement
Adrian's Digital Basement (Main Channel)
/ @adriansdigitalbasement
-- Tools
Deoxit D5:
amzn.to/2VvOKy1
store.caig.com/s.nl/it.A/id.16...
O-Ring Pick Set: (I use these to lift chips off boards)
amzn.to/3a9x54J
Elenco Electronics LP-560 Logic Probe:
amzn.to/2VrT5lW
Hakko FR301 Desoldering Iron:
amzn.to/2ye6xC0
Rigol DS1054Z Four Channel Oscilloscope:
www.rigolna.com/products/digi...
Head Worn Magnifying Goggles / Dual Lens Flip-In Head Magnifier:
amzn.to/3adRbuy
TL866II Plus Chip Tester and EPROM programmer: (The MiniPro)
amzn.to/2wG4tlP
www.aliexpress.com/item/33000...
TS100 Soldering Iron:
amzn.to/2K36dJ5
www.ebay.com/itm/TS100-65W-MI...
EEVBlog 121GW Multimeter:
www.eevblog.com/product/121gw/
DSLogic Basic Logic Analyzer:
amzn.to/2RDSDQw
www.ebay.com/itm/USB-Logic-DS...
Magnetic Screw Holder:
amzn.to/3b8LOhG
www.harborfreight.com/4-inch-...
Universal ZIP sockets: (clones, used on my ZIF-64 test machine)
www.ebay.com/itm/14-16-18-20-...
RetroTink 2X Upconverter: (to hook up something like a C64 to HDMI)
www.retrotink.com/
Plato (Clone) Side Cutters: (order five)
www.ebay.com/itm/1-2-5-10PCS-...
Heat Sinks:
www.aliexpress.com/item/32537...
Little squeezy bottles: (available elsewhere too)
amzn.to/3b8LOOI
--- Links
My GitHub repository:
github.com/misterblack1?tab=r...
Commodore Computer Club / Vancouver, WA - Portland, OR - PDX Commodore Users Group
www.commodorecomputerclub.com/
--- Instructional videos
My video on damage-free chip removal:
• How to remove chips wi...
--- Music
Intro music and other tracks by:
Nathan Divino
@itsnathandivino

[@LGR]

A different Clint?! Inconceivable!

[@adriansdigitalbasement2]

LOL -- I'd say you're the most famous one in this space, so I figured I'd clarify 😂 for clarity

[@jessewgeek]

You keep using that word ;)

[@dant5464]

Plot twist: that Clint is the Christmas clone

[@bcostin]

Clone gone rogue?

[@ObiWanBillKenobi]

Anybody want a peanut? 🥜

[@50shadesofbeige88]

That 8 bit dance party in the CoCo is really a testament to how amazing the SID is.

[@sprybug]

Yep. However Zippster has created a new more capable MPI (Multi-Pak Interface) that has a built in OPL3 chip in it so you can play OPL music right on the CoCo with a player made for it, plus if anyone wanted to they could program something to use it as well.

[@Eyetrauma]

Industrial design on even the Lenovo-made Thinkpads is so dang good

[@senilyDeluxe]

With all the progress made in the last 2 weeks, I expected the 8 bit dance party to run on the NABU.

[@nilswegner2881]

Me too

[@SenileOtaku]

Nah, I'm waiting to see how someone implements "Bad Apple" on the NABU. ((a co-worker has a podcast on the CoCo, and I suggested he needed to make Bad Apple work there too, but making use of the CoCo sprites and sound).

[@Qyngali]

IIRC, the Adaptec card requires that 1 of the connected devices provide Termination Power, not just termination. The adapter does NOT provide termination power as that would drain the battery of the laptop. I suspect the Conner drive is not set to provide it. Edit: I checked the documentation and the adapter does indeed NOT provide term power.

[@fixitalex]

Oh my! SCSI is really part of history! We are old!

[@BaronVonJace]

You pronounced Ukiah correctly. Glad you like the CoCo3. Makes me happy someone will be using it instead of collecting dust in my collection. I also did get my 1084 fixed and its amazing!

[@techtomek5062]

You can retrofit the thinpads with LED backlighting, there are ready-made kits. I did this with an X200t, also because the AFFS panel was really great.

[@EvilTurkeySlices]

Would that be possible on my PowerBook Pismo? The backlights are starting to go as the image is fairly dim and has a yellow tint to it. If not that I want to see if I can replace the ccfl tubes.

[@techtomek5062]

@@EvilTurkeySlices Yes that's possible, there are such kits on ebay for all monitors you just have to cut the LED bar. once paid 8€ for it. But the problem is the connection and replacement of the inverter. Since kit for all types must check someone with knowledge if the voltage and polarity is correct.Alternatively, you can also buy new CCFLs, but installing them will be tricky, they can break quickly.

[@techtomek5062]

@@EvilTurkeySlices Postscript: so the LED voltage regulation board, comes with wide input voltage , with my up to 30V. I would connect the LED strip before and test, that should be easy to test. Problem is that possibly the brightness regulation does not work, so the LED runs at 100% which is very bright.

[@twilliamc3]

It's a handle battery. :D Thinkpad folks like the extended battery since it doubles as a convenient handle.

[@volvo09]

I have a 13" dell with 3 row triangle "mega" battery that lifts it off the desk at an angle and makes for a sweet handle.

[@siberx4]

Those earlier X-series thinkpads were absolutely fabulous; nice and small/light/portable, but with the best-in-class keyboard (with almost no compromises for the size) and the trackpoint (the superior portable pointing device, for those accustomed to it). I used a couple of the tablet convertible versions (with a flip-around screen) through school (an X41T then an X220T from right after the Lenovo buy-out while they still had IBM designs in the pipeline), and paired with OneNote were an engineering student's best friend!

[@Wenlocktvdx]

CoCo 3, that brings back heaps of memories. The GIME chip was known as Gimme as in “gimme this, gimme that” or gimme more memory, gimme more graphics. GIME stands for Graphics, Interrupt, Memory Enhancement. Tandy/ Radio Shack literature called it ACVC which, from vague type memory, was Advanced Color Video Chip.

[@theuglycamel8122]

I think you may have opened a can of worms with that Thinkpad... You'll be getting 12 days of Thinkpads in the mail now that you've showcased one! I'm partial to the x-tablets myself. Writing this on an x230t actually... Great Video!

[@djdoo]

Wow! A lot of effort has been put on this old Thinkpad to be as useful as possible congrats to the unknown Clint! First time I saw Debian running on a computer, looks neat! This CoCo is just beautiful although being a audiophile I just love the C64 with the legendary SID synthesizer... Keep up, best wishes from Greece!!

[@jefflavenz7285]

The thing you referred to as micro XP is called Mini XP iirc, my dad and I use it when we need to get onto hard drives and copy the data over. It's included in Hiren's Boot CD.

[@rawr51919]

there is also an unofficial MicroXP you can find if you look in the right places _smirk_

[@horusfalcon]

Mini XP also figures prominently on the Falcon Four UBCD... very useful stuff - a lot of the tools from Microsoft DART made their way into it.

[@soteful9949]

I always look forward to your videos. I have rewatched a lot of them.

[@robertbond3319]

Hey Adrian, I'm so jelly of that Coco 3. Once upon a time I had a Coco 2 & a Coco 3. I did RAM expansions on both of them and installed a power-on LED on the Coco 2. I also installed a 3 1/2 " diskette driive on the FD-502 dual diskette drive. Replaced the stock round drive cable with a ribbon cable so I could crimp on the connector. The Coco 3 really shines with OS-9 Level II !

[@BuddhaPhi]

I still have a couple of those Adaptec PCMCIA and CardBus SCSCI cards. They worked really well with laptops and peripherals of the era I had at the time. One card has an SCSI II cable permanently attached and the other has a detachable SCSI II cable. I really enjoyed working with computers, laptops and servers of the late 90s.

[@baremetaltechtv]

Awesome episode, been dying to see more Linux content on the channel, ESPECIALLY on older machines like that gorgeous Thinkpad.

[@Clavichordist]

In a company I worked for, the R&D department had an old laptop running Solaris on it that had the same SCSI card installed. The card wasn't very reliable, probably due to that miserable connector, and occasionally I was called in to take a look at the machine. The machine spent most of its life hooked up to something in the lab. While at Oracle, I supported a ton of those old T-series Lenovo laptops. I preferred either those or Dell Latitudes over anything else we had in stock. I agree they're rock-solid machines that never died. I remember the extended batteries and many managers requested those when we ordered laptops for the users. Unfortunately, being a decade ago I can't remember any real details about them other than they were solid machines.

[@four20team]

One of the first computer experiences I had was with a CoCo 3. I ended up frying it when I attempted a repair in my teenage years. Wish I could get my hands on another.... Great video Adrian

[@talideon]

19:15 - I mean, Commodore's industrial design often gets mocked, but that CoCo 3 is not a pretty machine. That said, it's nice to see a machine of that vintage in such good condition!

[@tinyBigGAMES]

18:27, ahh YES! This was the machine (had the CoCo 1-3) that started me on my computer journey. I learned how to program on this machine. Seeing this brings back fond memories. Good times, good times.

[@horusfalcon]

8-Bit Coco Dance Party! SCSI for laptops! Man, you make it look easy.

[@WalterGreenIII]

Also There are stereo sound processor cartridges, and speech cartridge that increase the music (and speech) capabilities of the CoCo1, 2, and 3. However, when using the speech cartridge in the CoCo you can use the high speed poke to double the clock / CPU speed. The cartridges can be modified for the faster clock speed however.

[@rodhester2166]

Funny those older laptops had more features than today models.

[@volvo09]

Older laptops had awesome features. Most new laptops are lifeless, they all look like MacBook copies.

[@admirerofclassicalelectron2858]

I used the same SCSI adapter to make backups of my laptop on a DDS tape streamer. Worked very reliably. But I remember the PCMCIA card was a little bit picky with some hard drives. Maybe your disk is still alive.

[@rpavlik1]

Wow that is such a clean CoCo. I have two (untested) CoCo 2's that are pretty clean inside but a lot more yellowed...

[@ultrametric9317]

That still has an IBM badge on the front - so it's made by Lenovo but before the buyout. Real computers have the badge right-side up when closed, not upside-down to impress people at the coffee shop :) My main computer is still a maxxed-out W520. Trackpoint forever babe!

[@RyeOnHam]

I've got the Lenovo X220. It was the last of the standard-key keyboards before the switch to the chicklet style. I did an SSD swap and that thing keeps up with modern chromebooks in standard surfing. Also has a headlamp for seeing the keys at night. It's small and light, so I've taken it on many a vacation, including to Europe for a month. Recently started using an HP Elitebook 840 with a touchscreen and backlit keyboard. Much faster and easier to use in low light.

[@csimet]

I had the Slim-SCSI at one time... all I remember is it cost a bundle! I used it for my old DAT drive (HP SureStore). I also had a number of the CoCos back then... the last was running a version of OS/9, well before the likes of Linux was generally available. It was UNIX-like and related to OS-9 68K later on. I joined a company in 1985 and we developed the first automated system based on CoCo hardware and Tandy Xenix 68000 for a local UULS (underground utility locating service), a multi-user system that took incoming notifications of requested digs and notified all the utilities. Ah, memories!

[@nynexman4464]

My X61T was one of my favorite thinkpads. I loved the trackpoint, so I didn't miss having a trackpad at all. I dropped it so many times and it kept on going. Hardly used the tablet feature, but it had a good pen so was nice for the occasional drawing. I think I finally broke the screen or something which is when I got rid of it.

[@GarthBeagle]

Love the new 8bit dance party CoCo edition!

[@redace01]

Love that Coco3! It was my last machine before swapping over to the PC world! :D

[@Bob-1802]

Did the same thing and got a Tandy 1000EX.

[@vopieq]

There are two official sound upgrades for the CoCo: The Ochestra-90 and the Speech/Sound Pak. The CoCo3 and the Orchestra-90 is more than capable of playing MOD files from the Amiga.

[@johng.]

Had a T20 (actual IBM) years ago. Replaced the backlight, which was a bit painful, but not terrible. Loved that old machine, slow as could be, but tough as rocks. Memories ...

[@wayland7150]

There is a 7kHz interrupt which would allow for tones up to 3.5kHz. If you build the waves for each channel before outputting it you can simply add the values together to send to the DAC.

[@maltronik]

You’re right. It is X61 and owned one.. thank’s for review😂

[@WooShell]

I had several X61 myself, and this looks very much like one.

[@michaelmartin684]

I've owned everything in this mail call during their original lifespan. That's a first for me!

[@evileyeball]

Makes me miss my old IBM Thinkpad R60 "Isaac Benjamin Maxwell" that I had circa 2006-2011

[@jkeelsnc]

Coco3 is a cool computer. One of the other nice features added with the GIME is an MMU which also allows it to run OS/9 level 2 for a fully multitasking environment on an 8 bit computer which is an impressive achievement.

[@adriansdigitalbasement2]

The 6809 and the addition of that MMU certainly makes it one of the most powerful 8 bit computers at the time, if not the most powerful.

[@itstheweirdguy]

At work I use a Thinkpad X220. It's very very nice. It has a backlight for the keyboard...but it's not below the keys, oh no. It's right next to the webcam, it's a tiny little white light that shines onto the keys! I love the feeling when you take a nice old XP laptop that has sata ahci, and getting xp installed with all the updates, and running in AHCI mode.

[@SimonQuigley]

That would be a frontlight for the keyboard :-)

[@itstheweirdguy]

@@SimonQuigley the only issue I have in windows 11 is that the welcome noise skips when I log in. I guess I could turn that sound off.

[@SenileOtaku]

The ThinkPad isn't really *that* old, comparably, as it has the 20v power adapter. Those started around the time of the T60-series ThinkPads. The T20 and T40-series ThinkPads used a smaller 16v adapter. The 16v also worked with a ThinkPad A22 (?) I once had.

[@TheShazbot]

Thinkpads are the best. I should start a video channel about the collection of them that I have, love to see them here.

[@CurtisBoyle]

A couple of notes about the Coco 3: It is twice as fast (1.78 MHz vs .895MHz) than a Coco 1 or 2... but it boots up in the slower speed for backwards compatibility. (One POKE 65497,0 will kick it into the faster speed). Most Coco 3 games, and the OS9/NitrOS9 Level II operating systems will always run at the faster speed). Also, the Coco 3 has a 64 color palette, so the same colors as EGA. There are some more impressive demos (and games) for background sound thanks to the GIME chip's programmable interrupt timer, of which I am sure you have some on your CocoSDC already. :) Just in case, I emailed you a DSK image with one music player with a song that you can try (the music in the demo's you used are using the old Coco 1/2 style software drivers, from what I heard).

[@Supadupanerd]

I supported thinkpads in the enterprise back in the days where the one featured in this video would have been new; and i for one can say that is definitely an X series thinkpad (unless the person that sent it in shoehorned a T series motherboard into that chassis) The main notable difference between the X and T series was that the X series was in the around the 11-12" form factor where as the T series was about 13-15" form factor. For the most part they are stout and hardy machines

[@dangerotterisrea]

That's a very cool laptop! I will keep an eye out for one of those! Did you get on well with that x250 I have had a little look and they are less than 200 quid these days, nice.

[@Antiwindowscatalog]

PCMCIA: "People Can't Memorize Computer Industry Acronyms."

[@c128stuff]

Famous last words in retro computing: "I recently used it"

[@BilisNegra]

Like a group of people in their eighties: "I talked to him just a couple of weeks ago"...

[@joelavcoco]

The CoCo 3 is in fact faster than the 1 and 2. All the chips on it are rated to run at 2 MHz instead of 1, and a simple POKE &HFFD9,0 will double the clock speed from .89 MHz to 1.78 MHz. Under (Nitr)OS-9 Level II, the CoCo 3 always runs in high speed mode.

[@francoisrevol7926]

The protrusion on the screen I believe is indeed to put antennas because the case including the back of the screen is made of magnesium.

[@kaitlyn__L]

Those ThinkPads are great. An ex of mine used to use Ubuntu on one on the couch or her giant beanbag a decade ago. It was nice to see you using Linux to interface with the old drive as well. Even though it was just happenstance, since as you pointed out it wouldn’t have mounted on XP! These old screens really are so dim. I’ve been tempted to install LED strips in my laptops of this vintage but it’s so fiddly.

[@fluffycritter]

"Debian" is pronounced like the names "Deb" and "Ian," as the project was founded by a pair of folks with those names (Debra Lynn and Ian Murdock).

[@NielsPaul]

With the Core [1] Duo CPU the board may be from an X60, a reverse Frankenpad so to say. sudo dmidecode -s system-version should show the model name under Linux, CPU-Z should be able to show mainboard infos under Windows as well.

[@shaynestephens]

Even modern laptops, like my ASUS ROG Strix Scar 15 have switches for wi-fi. It places the system in "Airplane Mode". It also cuts the Bluetooth signal.

[@aaroncheah2088]

Yes. That's the X61s. I have the X60s for XP apps. Both looked similar much thinner than my X61 Tablet.

[@slaapliedje]

Love your channel, and I really should see if you're willing / able to fix a narfed Atari SC1435 for me, but it is pronounced D-ehb-ee-un. Debbie was Ian Murdock's wife. Ha, pet peeve of mine!

[@technerd9655]

I think we might get to see an 8-Bit Dance Party on a 3rd platform in the near future!

[@martinjh999]

Adrian I'm with you about Gnome - I hate it too... KDE/Plasma is my goto desktop but I don't mind any of the others either!

[@WackyT08]

6 rows of keys on your widescreen vs. 7 rows of keys on the 4:3 one. More room for a bigger touchpad.

[@kaitlyn__L]

Also a lot of support circuitry for trackpads has shrunk, it wasn’t always possible to push it right to the edge before. (At least not without making it thicker!)

[@miss_gray]

I used to love GNOME back in the 2.x days, but now it's just.. too different. I now find myself using KDE more and more whenever I need to do Linux things.

[@sparcie420]

Tip for the X61: the middleton BIOS fixes most issues, i use it on my X61 tablet and t61

[@jstinn123]

YES! 8-bit dance party on a CoCo!

[@marvintpandroid2213]

Will the real slim Scuzzy please boot up.

[@frugalprepper]

That sounded like a 4 bit dance party!

[@kevin34ct]

I have a T430S and a T440p. I love the T440p with upgraded specs. I put the fastest processor in it (yes this model allows you to upgrade the CPU) a core i7 with 4C/8T and 16GB memory. Running Windows 10, Linux Mint and Batocera (retro gaming image). All on separate drives. I removed the DVD and put an SSD in a drive caddy, I have the one SSD full size and then a 2242 SSD as the third drive. Each OS has it's own drive. Total drive space is 2.5TB.

[@Colin_Ames]

Nice Coco 3.

[@s8wc3]

Wow that thinkpad is brand new. I haven't seen one that nice in a long time, most of them look really sad at this point. If it only has a Core Duo I think the sender meant that it has an X60s motherboard in the X61s case, all X61s models have a Core 2 Duo.

[@tw11tube]

It might be different on the X series, but a useful hint for T60 owners: The original 1.x BIOS of the T60 only supports the Core Duo, but the later 2.x BIOS for the T60 series also supports the Core 2 Duo. So before upgrading the processor, you should upgrade the BIOS. I found it out the hard way trying to replace the mainboard in my Core2Duo-equipped T60, and received a mainboard with a version 1 BIOS. As I also switched from ATI graphics to Intel graphics, I couldn't just take the BIOS chip from the old board. I ended up programming the BIOS chip for the new board using a parallel-port-to-SPI adapter.

[@W62315]

You're exactly right. The IBM marked palmrest gives it away as having an X60s motherboard inside.

[@bobbytheitguy4289]

I have an X61s, and looks like yours. The X61 (no S) is slightly thicker and has a thicker bezel around the keyboard.

[@Darxide23]

You totally pronounced Ukiah perfectly.

[@mcosta3810]

Very cool! I just watched another video of yours from a few months ago, regarding a USB SCSI adapter. With that adapter, you discovered hard drives set to ID 1 weren't working, and they only worked when you picked ID 0. Perhaps the same thing is happening here?

[@kins749]

Love that CoCo

[@wayland7150]

I remember MicroXP and Micro2003. Still useful for very old machines.

[@robertwest7633]

Thinkpads really are the best laptops. They're literally the only ones where I can actually use the builtin keyboard.

[@lexluthermiester]

@Adrian's Digital Basement ][ Even though it's in such great shape, check the caps inside anyway as those do continue to age even when not in use. It would be sad to see that beautiful retro system come to harm!

[@T3hBeowulf]

Heh, I also have a Thinkpad x250 and for good measure, a Thinkpad x270. I keep them because I have the docks, power bricks and batteries that are all interchangeable. Great machines and battery life for days.

[@prozacgodretro]

FYI the t60 and t61 had some cross-compatibility and a lot of people modify their old thinkpads to be able to upgrade the motherboards or swap the better display of the t61 to the t60 and vice versa. Maybe that's why he was saying it wasn't an actual t61?

[@ApertureLabs4194]

I have one of those laptops that have the barrel jacks, without the ibm branding

[@rog2224]

I think the Coco 3 handles OS9 (by Microware) with multi user and multitasking since the cpu supports level II)

[@billesposito3482]

I’d say the most noticeable difference between the two thinkpads is that the newer one’s bezels are significantly thicker.

[@adriansdigitalbasement2]

I think the top and bottom especially as it's a 16:9 screen versus the old 4:3, which better lends itself to notebooks.

[@kaitlyn__L]

It basically looks like a MacBook!

[@winstonsmith478]

Wow, a CoCo 3, the best version and in mint condition.

[@ford1546]

I have a lenovo thinkpad with the first intel i7 processor for portable computers. relatively decent computer. But mine has the older round power supply plug, 3 contact with a resistor between 2 contact points so the computer knows which watt power supply you connect. if you connect the smaller power supply, the computer becomes slower. But far too many computers used a TN screen which is not a good screen panel type!

[@bichela]

I think the drive needs to provuu is the term power and yes it needs to be set to drive zero, I believe

[@fattomandeibu]

Huh, I had a PCMCIA to SCSI adapter for my A1200's CD-ROM drive, and it is pretty different. The card actually protrudes out of the side of the computer and the SCSI connector is hard wired to the part of the card that hangs out the side of the machine.

[@nebular-nerd]

That would be the Hi-Soft Squirrel SCSI, they are pretty bulky but totally awesome for give the A1200 CD-Rom, Zip Drives and all sorts. The A1200 PCMCIA slot was mounted really shallow for some reason but did work with loads of stuff. I used to use mine with a CF card reader in the end for getting stuff on and off it.

[@fattomandeibu]

@@nebular-nerd PCMCIA socket on my A1200 has bent pins(somehow happened when it was in storage) these days, so I gotta use the old floppy transfer method. Do need to replace the hard disk with a CF card, but the 1gb hard disk still works and I'd feel bad throwing it out while still working, even if it don't sound too healthy.

[@nebular-nerd]

I recently donated my A1200 to a local computer museum, the 250gh Conner drive somehow still worked but did take offense to being cloned, took about 6 hours to image. Booted and worked just fine but really did not like being asked to do a sustained read of the entire contents 🤣

[@fattomandeibu]

@@nebular-nerd Yeah, drive on here is the same. Most of the time it runs fine, but ask to much of it at once and it'll take a couple of attempts. I dunno what kinda drive mine is, I just installed it. Keep in mind, I was 12 and didn't really even know what a hard drive was. I do remember before I got the hard disk, but after getting the Blizzard 030 with 4mb fast RAM, I would load into Workbench and hard disk install games and programs to RAM: to save on disk swapping. I think I read it in Amiga Format and my kid brain equated that to the hard disk being a massive block of battery backed RAM.

[@NebularNerd]

@@fattomandeibu Oh yea, mountains of ram were great, I used to make use of both RAM: and RAD: (RAD worked across reboots) to do some crazy stuff. Unpack a game to RAM: play it and then delete after with any saves backed up to the HD. I still do similar on Windows for some things 😁

[@abdulmoeedraja]

4:40 I think what they ment was "x60" instead of t60 its very common to use x60 motherboard in an x61 as its all same inside. Cool side note that x60 can be librebooted.

[@jeromethiel4323]

Adrian, you need a 16 bit and and up, dance party! Just for fun.

[@annareismith6843]

I have that one and a dock for it that gives you more port options. It was a good laptop for the time. I upgraded with max ram and the best CPU I could put in it and SSD. SSD does not help much with speed and I only use them because they are much more durable than HDDs. If I drop it. It will not damage the drive like HDD does easily.

[@ComputerClubShow]

If you like the X61 you can replace the LCD with a higher resolution IPS equivalent and put in an LED backlight. It is beautiful! I’ve got some videos on my channel.

[@nilswegner2881]

I'd Love to See eight bit dance party on the NABU some day.

[@twocvbloke]

I've a Sony CD-ROM Discman that supposedly uses and Adaptec-derived SCSI interface card, but to date I've yet to get it to actually install drivers and be operational, works somewhat as a CD player though, not always, cos it is old (and yes, I've cleaned and lubed its' workings!)... :\

[@stevenjlovelace]

6-bit dance party!

[@zaanpenguin]

@Adrian's Digital Basement ][ : Regarding the limited capabilities of the CoCo 1-3: the Dragon 32 was pretty much identical to the CoCo (save for the ROMs etc.) hardware-wise: 6809E CPU, 32K RAM, 6847 VDG, 6-bit DAC, etc. and the demoscene has come up with things like kzbin.info/www/bejne/m17bfYatrqafgJY. The machine is definitely capable of some cool stuff! 👍

[@joelavcoco]

Yes. And NTSC CoCos can make good use of artifact colors to get 4+ colors on a 256x192 screen. The CoCo 3 can use 8-bit values in pixel-pairs to do ~256 colors at an effective resolution of 160x200 on a composite monitor. Recent work by Sockmaster has increased the perceived spatial resolution of 8-bit artifacting on the CoCo 3 to produce some pretty spectacular full color images on a 640x200 screen using just 4 'real' shades of gray. Here's a slideshow I made up years ago showing the basic 8-bit artifact colors on a CoCo 3. This involves no palette switching tricks, page flipping, or any other CPU-intensive tricks. As far as the computer knows this is a 4-color screen. I need to do a new version of it using Sockmaster's new algorithm. Until then: kzbin.info/www/bejne/npvGhpeljJWlqMk

[@joelavcoco]

And if you want to dedicate the CPU to the best quality image display, and have an RGB monitor, Sockmaster's HiColor program can't be beat: kzbin.infowL6g7AvbOn0

[@jamessmith1652]

I love the T-series Lenovos. I love all all Lenovos!

[@piwex69]

I write it on X301! I had X61s and I remember it had very vivid display - so it sounds strange that yours is not IPS. I can send you some spare keycaps if you care to wait for the post to arrive from central europe ;) I have had misfortune event with mine and had to obtain the parts machine - with german keyboard layout!!!

[@EngineeringVignettes]

And here we have a package from Clint. In this package we have... ... a clone? O_o Christmaaaaassss!

[@MarkWaltersSeattle]

I wonder if 8 bit dance party would sound as good as a Commodore 64 if you were using the Orchestra90 card in the CoCo.

[@arcum42]

Got rid of my Coco 3 a long time ago when moving, and still miss it. It was a fun computer to play with. One fairly useless easter egg. Hold down ctrl and alt on it when powering it on or resetting it, and you'll get a picture of the programmers! You'll have to reset it to get it out of that mode...

[@nerdmeister2]

the internal battery of the X250 are prone to bulge, I'd check on that every once in a while

[@GreatLakesDrifta]

A six bit beep speaker, woot!

[@W62315]

Internally, that's an X60s, the IBM palmrest gives it away. Some sort of parts Frankenstein I assume. The X61s has an extra palmrest fan, which is incompatible with the x60s palmrest. And no X61s machines had an IBM logo. The T was likely just a typo.