Being a bit of a history buff (e.g. see my article on 'C64 Vintage and Virtual Hardware For Exploring The Past') I stumbled over a recent podcast the Amp Hour did with Chuck Peddle. If the name doesn't sound familiar it could be because main stream media often portrays the 1980s and 1990s as an epic struggle between Apple, Microsoft and IBM. This is perhaps because all three companies still exist today but the story is a lot bigger than that as companies such as Commodore and Atari and home computers like the C64 play a big part in that revolution as well. In the Amp Hour interview with Chuck Peddle, the leader of the team that designed the 6502 processor that would make home computing in the 1980s affordable for the masses, goes back to the times before and after the C64 and tells history from his point of view.
Peddle says that while Apple built in style and IBM for business, Commodore built for the masses. I more than agree with this statement as the C64 was the only home computer my parents could afford to buy me as a kid. Both Apple and IBM played in a totally different league from a pricing point of view. So if you want to spend a good time hearing about history, lean back and enjoy that podcast. And if you want to learn more, Brian Bagnall's 'Commodore – A Company On The Edge' is a great source for additional details and stories about the 1980s and 90s in computing.
Thanks for the link to the podcast Martin. It’s definitely worth a listen.
For those wanting to read more about the computing history of the 1980s and 1990s, the Digital Antiquarian blog by Jimmy Maher is well worth reading – http://www.filfre.net
Jimmy’s research into the computers and games of the past is exceptionally thorough. There’s been quite a bit of coverage of Commodore, especially the C64 and Amiga, which are clearly personal favourites of Jimmy’s.