Профиль

New blog post: Changes to international shipping rules mean I now ask you to contact me and tell me what you want (and which options) and your address and I will get you an accurate price. blog.tynemouthsoftware.co.uk/2026/07/game... If you want to know why, read on, otherwise give this one a miss.

Yay, I now can't post to Germany without paying the 20% VAT up front as part of the postage costs. Thank you the world for making international trade increasingly expensive and increasingly complicated at every opportunity.

New blog post - Updates to the PET ROM/RAM board, and the places I sell things. blog.tynemouthsoftware.co.uk/2026/07/pet-... Lots of new options, as well as Tindie, I am starting to list things on Lectronz, SmallRun and SellMyRetro, or contact me and order direct via PayPal or UK bank transfer.

New blog post - the repair of a Commodore PET 3032 board with no video output. blog.tynemouthsoftware.co.uk/2026/07/comm... Also a capacitor that is looking decidedly unwell.

New blog post - Testing a not-quite-a-ZX-Printer on a not-quite-a-ZX81. blog.tynemouthsoftware.co.uk/2026/07/test... But an Alphacom 32 on a Minstrel 3 or Minstrel 4th is close enough, and works impressively well.

The ZX81 is missing a \ character, which stops it doing the standard 10 PRINT maze program. The Lambda 8300 is based on the ZX81, but does have two diagonal black and white boxes. That turned out quite nicely, not optimised for speed or anything. From blog.tynemouthsoftware.co.uk/2026/06/lamb...

New blog post - Adapting Lambda 8300 BASIC to run on the Minstrel 4th. blog.tynemouthsoftware.co.uk/2026/06/lamb... Getting it running, loading and saving, making sounds, playing games and even a 10 PRINT maze. Happen to need an excessively long blog post to read? then this is the one for you.

Lovely Minstrel 2 build by Electron Greg with added perspex covers and ZX80 logo. How are you going to customise your Minstrel 2? www.tindie.com/products/tyn...

So now we are going to see Billie Piper walking into number 10, followed by an announcement that they are resting the role of Prime Minister for the time being?

New blog post - Reverse Engineering the ROM on the Lambda 8300, a sort of ZX81 clone. blog.tynemouthsoftware.co.uk/2026/06/lamb... It is sort of a ZX81, but with quite a few differences. Full disassembly on github if you are interested. github.com/tynemouthsof...

Any recommendations for some good ZX81 programs which are written purely in BASIC? Nothing generated by Z88DK or similar. Nothing with machine code in REM statements etc. I have been using Perilous Swamp as an example, as this is BASIC only and quite a good game, but I am looking for some more.

Dear EU based people, sorry, but my postage is going to have to go up in about a week. New rules mean I will have to pay €3 (+ unspecified handling fees) per item in parcels I send to the EU from the UK. It's not clear how much that is going to work out, so be quick and buy at the current price.

I am intrigued by the computer at the start of this clip. It looks like an AI has had a go at making a picture of a Commodore PET and got it wrong. The keyboard is missing a few keys and the disk drives would be an aftermarket add on, and then a separate monitor? Anyone recognise it?

New blog post - Improving Tape Loading on Minstrels Episode 4 - A New Hope blog.tynemouthsoftware.co.uk/2026/06/impr... Which tape loading circuit did I finally go for, and how well does it work? The new Minstrel 4th with this circuit is shipping this week. www.tindie.com/products/tyn...