When we believe of retrocomputing, it’s extremely commonly the computers themselves that get all the glory. There’s nothing wrong with this of course- the computers of the late 70’s as well as 80’s were incredible machines that were chock full of hacks in their own right. however a few of the most fascinating hacks of the day occurred not in the computers, however rather in their peripherals. A devotee of such periphery is [Michael Steil], who was driven to compile years of research, knowledge, as well as difficult data into The ultimate Commodore 1541 Drive Talk which you can view below the break.
In the talk, [Michael] covers the physical disk structure as well as construction, the disk drives, controller hardware, as well as the development thereof. The bit-by-bit breakdown of the tracks, sectors, as well as header info on the disks themselves is fascinating, as is the discussion of different copy security methods utilized by vendors to prevent piracy at a time when sneakernet was in full swing.
The descent into the circuitry of the controller reveals a venerable 6502 CPU which powered many vintage computers. further discussion divulges the tricks for getting higher performance from the 1541 drive utilizing developments that are as recent as 2013.
A computer historian as well as archaeologist, [Michael] talks about exactly how utilizing modified vintage hardware is sometimes sufficient to save your old floppy collection. He likewise shows exactly how contemporary interfaces that checked out disks all the method down to the magnetic flux level can be utilized to reconstruct missing data.
[Michael] masterfully lays bare the complexity, engineering, as well as hackery that went into storing less than 200kb of data. Whether you’re a Commodore enthusiast or not, your appreciation for the 32GB USB stick collecting dust on your desk is bound to grow!
We’ve covered [Michael]’s exploits before, as well as you may desire to inspect out the ultimate Apollo guidance computer Talk or the ultimate Gameboy Talk. Do you have your own preferred retrocomputer hacks as well as insights to share? Be sure to let us understand via the tip Line!