kenb@mitisft.Convergent.COM (Ken Bright) (10/17/87)
I recently got a C-64 (actually for my 10-year old). I have an old color TV for display, but no tape or disk. I need some experienced advice on building a usable system that we will be satisfied with. This is a LOW BUDGET project. I need a floppy disk drive. Should I get a C-1541? C-1541C? any other vendors drive? What's a 1571/1581? Comments and opinions are needed! Please help! Any suggestions on software? Should I jump into GEOS? I'm interested in a good word processor and color graphic games. Recommendations on a modem? Is 300 too slow? Is 1200 reliable? Which ones break the most frequently? Will we outgrow our old color TV? Do most people end up with a color monitor? My experience has been mostly hardware related on larger computer systems running UNIX. I'm willing to hack. I just started to read this news group and Commodore Magazine, any advice is tremendously appreciated! Ken Bright kenb@Convergent.COM sri-unix!ctnews!kenb pyramid!ctnews!kenb
sentinel@killer.UUCP (The Sentinel) (10/19/87)
In article <254@mitisft.Convergent.COM> kenb@mitisft.Convergent.COM (Ken Bright) writes: >I recently got a C-64 (actually for my 10-year old). I have an >old color TV for display, but no tape or disk. I need some >experienced advice on building a usable system that we will >be satisfied with. > >This is a LOW BUDGET project. > >I need a floppy disk drive. Should I get a C-1541? C-1541C? >any other vendors drive? What's a 1571/1581? Comments and >opinions are needed! Please help! A 1541 of some sort will do nicely. The 1541C is basically a slightly improved 1541 in a different color case, with no real major differences from the regular old 1541. For a first drive, I would stay away from the third-party 1541-clones... while there are some which are very good, there are also quite a few which are not really compatible with the 1541 and will cause problems with copy protected commercial software. You don't need to worry about the 1571 or 1581 unless you plan to get a C-128 in the future. Both will work with the 64, but are really designed to work at their best with the C-128. Incidentally, the 1571 is a double- sided drive, and the 1581 is a 3.5" drive which holds 800k. The 1541 is single-sided, and holds around 170k. >Any suggestions on software? Should I jump into GEOS? I'm >interested in a good word processor and color graphic games. Well, if it's color graphic games you want, you've got lots of them to choose from. I am not a game player myself, so I can't really make any recommendations here. On word processors, I think the best is Pocket Writer 2 from Digital Solutions. Of course, there are plenty of other good ones available as well, so you can probably find one that suits your particular "style". If you can't decide on a commercial one, SpeedScript from Compute! magazine is pretty good for light-duty word processing... because of Compute's policies on distribution of their programs, I'm not sure if you can get it for free any more, but even if you buy it from them it's still only $10 or so. As for GEOS, whether or not you want to use it depends on exactly what you want it for. As you have probably figured out by now, all you get with the basic GEOS package is the operating system itself, GeoWrite, GeoPaint, and a few extra small accessories. The real value of GEOS is that it is a common base for a bunch of other applications, which are all similar in structure. GeoWrite can only just barely be called a word processor, although it is one of the few products that can easily print different fonts. GeoPaint is a pretty decent graphics editor, for a C-64 anyway, so if you like that sort of thing you'll be pleased. Using GEOS is a bit tight on one disk drive. You'll also need a joystick (which is, of course, also useful for game playing) or a 1351 mouse for input. I suggest you try it first, and THEN decide if you want it. >Recommendations on a modem? Is 300 too slow? Is 1200 reliable? >Which ones break the most frequently? Yes, 300 is too slow. You can now get 1200 bps modems for under $100, and in general they are quite reliable. Yes, the 64 does have some problems with 1200, but those problems can be corrected in software, and unless you plan to write your own BBS or terminal software you probably won't run into them. Personally, I would recommend using a good Hayes-compatible RS-232 modem, and a Commodore-to-RS232 interface. Not only will you probably end up with a nicer modem that way, but you can later use the modem with another computer if you wish. As far as I know, the only Commodore specific 1200-baud modem that is worth considering is the Commodore 1670... but they are currently very hard to find, as a new version is on the way. The new version is supposed to be much better than the original, so you might want to stay tuned and see what happens. >Will we outgrow our old color TV? Do most people end up with a >color monitor? The 64 does not require a monitor for any purpose, so you won't "outgrow" your TV. However, you may want a monitor anyway, since monitors generally provide a sharper display (especially if you use a Commodore monitor with the separated-video input) which will be easier on the eyes. In general, if you can afford a monitor, I would advise that you buy one. However, if you aren't sure that a color monitor is in your budget, you'll probably do just fine with your TV. >My experience has been mostly hardware related on larger computer >systems running UNIX. I'm willing to hack. I just started to >read this news group and Commodore Magazine, any advice is >tremendously appreciated! The only other piece of advice I can offer is to find a user group near you. Believe me, you won't regret it. >Ken Bright >kenb@Convergent.COM >sri-unix!ctnews!kenb >pyramid!ctnews!kenb -- Rob Tillotson ...ihnp4!killer!sentinel 3922-1 Newport Ave. -or- Fort Wayne, IN 46805 ...rutgers!unirot!sentinel (219) 483-2722 (top one preferred)