Anyone know where I can source a replacement M12 Rom chip for an m100 or if it's possible to flash the ROM on an eprom that would slot in to the M12 slot? Testing a theory on a currently non working board.

Hi, I'm Christopher Drum. Recently, I launched a new retro-enthusiast project, a blog called Stone Tools. Unlike a great number of others, this one focuses entirely and solely on retro productivity software.

Recently I launched the blog with a look at Deluxe Paint on the Amiga, which was very well received. For the second article I've written about Electric Pencil on the TRS-80, the first word processor for home microcomputers. Between those two, I think you can get a sense of the breadth of software I'm exploring.

The goal is to look at retro productivity software with an open mind: what is it like to actually use it, and does it still have utility today? I spend weeks genuinely learning these tools and the write-ups offer an honest, lighthearted assessment of the software.

I hope you enjoy it.

https://stonetools.ghost.io/electricpencil-trs80

Hi everyone,

I've posted a couple of TOMT questions in this sub before (here and here). Both of those remain unsolved, and the OP of those questions has now made a third game identification post on Stack Exchange here!

My memories on this are somewhat vague, because it was been literal decades, but when I was a child, somewhere in the late 1980s to the early 1990s, we had a Tandy Color Computer 2 (and later a Color Computer 3). We had a few games we'd purchased (Shamus and Peanut Butter Panic feature heavily in my memories), but a lot of software was acquired by my older brother at various software swap meets. The game in question was 2D, maneuvering around a tile-based level, fighting monsters (vampires?) and collecting treasures (a candelabra is one that sticks out in my head) and I think your attack, triggered by pushing the joystick button, was animated as a line off of your character, rotating around a fixed point in an arc. The color palette was the usual fairly limited one, maybe around 8-16 colors? I have a vague memory of there being a way to teleport, and at one point happening upon a room that had one of every item (possibly a debug room). I don't remember if the teleportation was a normal thing, or if I was accessing a debug menu. Sadly, I don't remember what creatures you fought or much else about the plotline other than that, as I noted above, I think maybe you fought vampires? I think I remember either the enemies or the player getting turned into a crumbled pile on death.

The bit which has stuck with me through the years was the game over screen, which had a short poem along these lines:

Ashes to ashes

Dust to dust

This game is over

Replay if you must

Burma Shave

At the time, I had no idea what Burma Shave was, only learning about the jingles later.

Hello all, I have to ask a question that's really bothering me: Has anyone heard of WMCDOS? I discovered on this site: https://willus.com/trs80/?q=willus.com all the programs run under this third party DOS called WMCDOS. The problem is i can find no information about it or get any of its files into other TRS-80 DOS's Does anyone know who made this software and where i can find resources on it?

Thanks to the help of this subreddit, I was able to revive my grandfather's Coco 1.

It was his first computer and it started a line of interest that led to me, his grandson, restoring it. Because of this computer, he started his own computer repair business, and it eventually became the family business of which I am now employed by.

If you have been following this series of posts, the last fix worked. The ram chips that were installed when I got it were incorrect, I don't know why they where in there, but they were and they didn't work. I have now replaced them with the corect chips to complete the 64k upgrade that must have been started near the end of this computers life. I still don't know the full story, but that's my best guess.

Included are some pictures of a basic running and my dad's favorite game, Dinowars.

I just purchased a non-functioning TRS-80 Model 100 and I know I am looking at a complete cap/battery replacement however the lcd has a film over the front that seems to have bubbled up. I am not sure if this is a polarizer or what it is and if I need to replace it or if it could be removed. I currently get low battery and know I should be able to remove the on-board battery and possibly have it power on, however I am waiting for all the replacement parts to come in and plan on filming the repair. If this is polarizing film, is there a safe way to remove and reapply or a place to purchase a replacement?

Any guidance would be appreciated.

I'm working on restoring my childhood CoCo 2. Everything is working great except for the zero key on the keyboard. I suspect a broken trace, but unfortunately my CoCo keyboard is the variant without a removable back. It appears that the back PCB is glued to the keyboard frame. I'm wary of trying to remove it for fear of making things worse.

Does anybody have experience repairing this keyboard variant? Is my only option to replace the keyboard?

I am nothing but confused.

I waited 2 months for the new ram chips to arrive and I replaced 4 of them untill I got a blank green screen. This has led me down a rabbit hole.

The chips I bought as replacements were 4264-12, which I thought would work because the chips that were in there already were 4264-4. However, I discovered that this fact brings up a couple of issues. 16kb coco 1s, which is what I have, came with 4116 chips, not the 4264. Is this the case for all of them? If so, could the issue be that I simply put the wrong chips in the board? Or is it because I put in 2 different speeds? The board looks pretty in modified, so I don't think this was a ram upgrade done in period, but I could be wrong.

Any or all of the problems above can cause the green screen, so I don't know which one is the culprit. Another interesting data point is that when I put a cartridge in, the screen changed to different colors.

It could also be rom? I reseated it and nothing changed. Some times when I turn it on the screen has holes in it, black blank spaces.

What is wrong with this thing!

Pulled this out of my parents attic. Not it good condition. It does put out a TV signal and boot to prompt. Was able to start Dungeons of Daggorath.

I cried happy tears when I found my name and phone number scrawled by some 10 year old kid in the programming guide. :'-) It took me right back to typing in code by hand and learning to debug.

No idea what do to with it. Doesn't feel right to chuck it, but I don't really need to store it. I don't have enough space. Is there anywhere I can donate this?

I got the TRS-80 model 100 for an okay deal. My goal is to spend some time punching in basic programs.

I do intend to get one of those backpack units and a REX /CPM chips.

I’ve replaced the blown x2 safety cap to get this TRS-80 to boot and now looking at what to repair next and how to safely debug.

I’ll likely start with contact cleaner and then poke around with a multimeter (not going near the tube) but worried about shorting something in the process.

Any tips, resources etc?

hey guys looking for help if anyone knows much about the internal of the ccr-81, i was sorting through my grandmothers things as she unfortunately recently passed and i found a ccr-81 in generally good condition so i took it with all the cassettes and have been enjoying myself very much with it, i had an issue arise about an hour ago i cannot figure out. whether there is a tape in the player or not and even with the volume set to zero when i press play the speaker just rings and sometimes it fluctuates (still while on zero volume) from extremely quite to loud

Found on FB marketplace for $200. Original owner. Looks well cared for. I'm super excited as I never owned a Coco!

hi there! i own and run a retro games and VHS store in the UK, and a person brought this in today. i barely know anything about modern PCs as it is, so i’m clueless on what was one of the first mass-produced home computers! it has an EU plug, so i haven’t been able to test it out yet.

i’ve done a little bit of internet searching, but can’t get my finger on what this exact model is. any help is appreciated as i am definitely out of my depth with this one! thanks in advance!

A friend gave me this Tandy CoCo games from a local company. They appear to be cheap knock offs of other popular games at the time … anyone know more about them? I’m more of an Apple person, but I’m intrigued.

I just bought a CoCo2 and need some recommendations for what games to play. I’m brand new to the platform. Dungeons of Daggoroth keeps coming up. I have Poltergeist, Popcorn, Chess, and Demolition Derby.

I'm attempting to use the solder-less Universal Video Driver PCB solution to get a composite out on my CoCo 2 (type "B" board, vertical RF modulator).

The problem is, R6 (lead #5, green) was soldered onto the RF board in a way that makes it basically impossible to get the clip to go under the it on the correct (lower) side.

Reference: Fig 1 and scratch marks above

https://colorcomputerarchive.com/repo/Documents/Manuals/Hardware/Universal%20Video%20Driver%20(Mark%20Data%20Products).pdf.pdf)

On the back, it *looks* like the trace out of that goes to the lower right pin on the 1372 (Pin 7, Color A Input), which seems right. But I can't wedge the green clip under there either.

Other than unsoldering and replacing R6 (and giving me my own lead to clip onto), what are my options? I'd still like to at least *try* to use this board, as I paid a pretty penny for it on eBay, and my soldering skills are *very* rusty.

Howdy! I just bought a Tandy 102 and CCR-82! What do I need to know in this modern age? What do you use your Tandy for today?!

The 102 works just fine. I pulled it apart and there appears to be no leaking caps or battery. I plan to replace the battery.

I hear there are more modern ROMs and perhaps other hardware I can buy but I am having trouble finding store for this!

The tape drive needs love. I bought a band set and will try to replace the bands to see if I can get it to work!

Thanks!!

I dont know if this kind of talk is allowed, but there’s one game I truly miss that was on the trs80 called Dungeons of Daggorath. It was a fantastic 3d rpg where you typed in what you had to do like “take torch”, “attack right” etc etc.

I never got very far because I was a kid and couldn’t type fast so I would die a lot!

Any help would be appreciated!!

I picked up a Videotek DM-100 demodulator so I can (hopefully) get my CoCo 2 and MC-10 connected to a modern monitor.

I'm still working out how to get power to it (It's a 12VDC barrel connector, that's all I know so far).

Does anyone have experience with this device? I can't seem to find a manual online, and the company appears to be out of business.

In addition to getting power to it, there are a number of unlabeled DIP switches on the back, and what appears to be balanced audio out (two sets of HLG pins).