Floppy Days Vintage Computing Podcast Randy Kindig

Post-VCF SoCal 2024 with Paul Nurminen
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/FloppyDays
Sponsors:
8-Bit Classics 
Arcade Shopper  
0 Floppy Days Tune
1 min 13 sec Vintage Computer Ads
1 min 43 sec Intro
2 min 53 sec bumper - Paul Nurminen
3 min 00 sec Discussion with Paul Nurminen
1 hr 20 min 00 sec Closing
Hello, and welcome to episode 137 of the Floppy Days Podcast.  I’m Randy Kindig, the host of this show.  This episode is an adjunct to and follow up to the last episode (#136) of Floppy Days.  In that episode, which covered the Grundy New Brain, I alluded to the fact that in the “What I’ve Been Up To” section of the podcast, I was going to publish a separate episode just for that.  I did that because I don’t like to have episodes over about 90 minutes, and having this segment in that show would have pushed it well beyond that.
So, for this episode I enlisted the aid of Paul Nurminen (aka Nurmix), who was also an attendee and exhibitor/vendor at the recent Vintage Computer Festival Southern California, to help me do a follow up discussion of that show.  We discuss our exhibits, other exhibits of note, our general thoughts about the show, and a whole lot more.
I hope you enjoy this.
Links
VCF SoCal - https://www.vcfsocal.com/ 
 Intellivisionaries Podcast - http://intellivisionaries.com/ 
White Flag Computing - https://www.whiteflagcomputing.com 
Episode 83 of Floppy Days about the Intellivision Keyboard Component with Paul Nurminen - https://floppydays.libsyn.com/floppy-days-83-the-intellivision-keyboard-component 
1090XL expansion unit and 320K RAM board - reifsnyderb 
Discussion - https://forums.atariage.com/topic/333084-swutils-simcheck-simtest-osdump/ 
Purchase - https://www.tindie.com/products/5cfab/1090xl-modernized-reproduction-main-board/ 
The VintNerd - https://thevintnerd.com/index.html 
Mega65 - https://mega65.org/ 
10-Minute Amiga Retro Cast - https://www.youtube.com/c/10MinuteAmigaRetroCast 
Aquarius+ computer - https://forums.atariage.com/topic/352635-introducing-the-aquarius/ 

Grundy NewBrain Peripherals thru Web Sites with Chris Despoinidis
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/FloppyDays
Sponsors:
8-Bit Classics 
Arcade Shopper  
0 Floppy Days Tune
1 min 13 sec Vintage Computer Ads
1 min 42 sec Intro
5 min 17 sec bumper - Chris Espoinidis
5 min 28 sec New Acquisitions
6 min 33 sec bumper - Gerald McMullon
7 min 16 sec Upcoming Computer Shows
12 min 01 sec bumper - Steve O’Hara-Smith
12 min 27 sec Peripherals
22 min 37 sec Using the Machine
33 min 14 sec User Groups/Newsletters
38 min 36 sec Books & Manuals
41 min 47 sec Software
44 min 11 sec Ads
46 min 45 sec Modern Upgrades
51 min 43 sec Emulation
59 min 07 sec Buying One Today
1 hr 02 min 52 sec Community
1 hr 04 min 50 sec Current Web Sites and Videos
1 hr 12 min 45 sec Closing
Hello, and welcome to episode 136 of the Floppy Days Podcast.  I’m Randy Kindig, the host of this show, and I’ll be your guide to a journey back to the year 1982, when a very interesting, low-cost machine entered the market in Great Britain.  This is the final episode on the Grundy New Brain, not a well-known machine, most particularly here in the United States where very few have even heard of it; let alone ever owned one.
If you want to know more, I’ve recently published interviews with John Grant, Steve O’Hara-Smith, and Gerald McMullon concerning their involvement with the New Brain back in the day.  I also, in the most recent episode, discussed tech specs around the machine with my co-host.
Regarding that, in that last episode, to help me talk about the machine, I enlisted Chris Espoinidis to co-host this episode.  Chris manages the New Brain Emulator site from his home in Greece.  Even though Chris created one of the premier New Brain emulators in existence, and that was the primary focus of his Web site initially, his site has become one of the best places (along with Gerald McMullon’s Website) to get any and all New Brain information (which quite honestly is quite sparse).
The focus of this last episode detailing the machine, Chris and I will cover things like peripherals, Web sites, books & magazines, software, using the machine, emulators and all of the topics that have become the standard for machine coverage on Floppy Days.  This episode will complete all the details we know on the New Brain, with the intent to impart every bit of information to you that I could find about this little-known machine.
Before we do that, I will talk about upcoming shows.
Upcoming Shows
Interim Computer Festival SPRING - March 23rd and 24th, 2024 - Intraspace, Seattle, WA - https://sdf.org/icf/ 
Midwest Gaming Classic - April 5-7 - Wisconsin Center, Milwaukee, WI - https://www.midwestgamingclassic.com/ 
VCF East - April 12-14, 2024 - Wall, NJ - http://www.vcfed.org 
Indy Classic Computer and Video Game Expo - April 13-14 - Crowne Plaza Airport Hotel, Indianapolis, IN - https://indyclassic.org/ 
The Commodore Los Angeles Super Show - April 13-14 - Burbank VFW Hall, Burbank, CA - https://www.portcommodore.com/dokuwiki/doku.php?id=class:start  
VCF Europa - April 27-28, 2024 - Munich, Germany - https://vcfe.org/E/ 
The 32nd Annual “Last” Chicago CoCoFEST! - May 4-5, 2024 - Holiday Inn & Suites Chicago-Carol Stream (Wheaton), Carol Stream, Illinois - https://www.glensideccc.com/cocofest/ 
VCF Southwest - June 14-16, 2024 - Davidson-Gundy Alumni Center at UT Dallas - https://www.vcfsw.org/ 
Boatfest Retro Computer Expo - June 14-16 - Hurricane, WV - http://boatfest.info 
Pacific Commodore Expo NW v4 - June 22-23 - Old Rainier Brewery Intraspace, Seattle, WA - https://www.portcommodore.com/dokuwiki/doku.php?id=pacommex:start 
Kickstart Amiga UK Expo - June 29-30 - Nottingham, UK - https://www.amigashow.com/ 
Southern Fried Gaming Expo and VCF Southeast - July 19-21,  2024 - Atlanta, GA - https://gameatl.com/ 
VCF Midwest - September 7-8 - NEW VENUE TBD - http://vcfmw.org/ 

Grundy NewBrain Tech Specs with Chris Despoinidis
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/FloppyDays
Sponsors:
8-Bit Classics 
Arcade Shopper  
0 Floppy Days Tune
1 min 14 sec Vintage Computer Ads
1 min 43 sec Intro
5 min 38 sec bumper - Chris Espoinidis
5 min 51 sec New Acquisitions
16 min 32 sec bumper - Gerald McMullon
17 min 15 sec Upcoming Computer Shows
21 min 26 sec bumper - Steve O’Hara-Smith
21 min 45 sec Interview with Chris Espoinidis
36 min 23 sec Tech Specs
1 hr 12 min 07 sec Closing
Hello, and welcome to episode 135 of the Floppy Days Podcast.  I’m Randy Kindig, the host of this show, and I’ll be your guide to a journey back to the year 1982, when a very interesting, low-cost machine entered the market in Great Britain.  This machine, if you've been following the show, was the Grundy New Brain.  This is not a well-known machine, most particularly here in the United States where very few have even heard of it; let alone ever owned one.
As you know, I’ve been hot on the trail of pioneers who were involved with development of this machine.  I’ve recently published interviews with John Grant, Steve O’Hara-Smith, and Gerald McMullon concerning their involvement with the New Brain back in the day.
In this episode I move more into discussing details of the machine and its impact on the home and small business market in the 1980’s.  To help me talk about the machine, I was able to track down Chris Espoinidis and convince him to co-host this episode.  Chris manages the New Brain Emulator site from his home in Greece.  Even though Chris created one of the premier New Brain emulators in existence, and that was the primary focus of his Web site initially, his site has become one of the best places (along with Gerald McMullon’s Website) to get any and all New Brain information (which quite honestly is quite sparse).
The focus of this episode, and the next, is to cover things like tech specs, Web sites, emulators and all of the topics that have become the standard for machine coverage on Floppy Days.  This particular episode contains an interview with Chris, and then goes into great detail concerning the technical specifications of the New Brain.  The next episode will cover all the other details, with the intent to impart every bit of information to you that I could find about this little-known machine.
Before we do that, I will talk about new acquisitions and upcoming shows.
 

VCF SoCal 2024 Preview with Organizing Team
Hello, and welcome to this bonus, interview-only episode of the Floppy Days Podcast.  My name is Randy Kindig; your host.  This episode is a discussion with most of the organizing team around the very first Vintage Computer Festival 2024 that is coming up February 17 & 18 in Orange, CA.  You’ll hear how the show came about, why the particular location and time were selected, and what you can expect to see at the show.  I’m excited to have a new VCF available in an area and time that should be fantastic to visit and be a part of.
Note that this interview occurred on Dec. 5, 2023, and you’ll hear several references to the show being “2 and a half months” away.
Links
VCF SoCal Website - https://www.vcfsocal.com/ 
VCF SoCal Organizers - https://www.vcfsocal.com/faq#organizers 
The VintNerd Website (Steve and Micki) - https://thevintnerd.com/index.html 
The VintNerd YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/thevintnerd 
Matt’s YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/@polymatt 
Pathways to Invention Film (Levi) - https://pathwaystoinvention.org/ 
Southern AMIS Projects (Rob) - https://www.southernamis.com/ 
Video version of this interview - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_y2zfRP8kyE&t=9s 
 

Grundy NewBrain History with Gerald McMullon
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/FloppyDays
Sponsors:
8-Bit Classics 
Arcade Shopper  
0 Floppy Days Tune
1 min 14 sec Vintage Computer Ads
1 min 43 sec Intro
6 min 33 sec bumper - Gerald McMullon 
7 min 15 sec New Acquisitions
13 min 55 sec bumper - Steve O'Hara-Smith 
14 min 13 sec Upcoming Computer Shows
17 min 26 sec Interview with Gerald McMullon
57 min 51 sec Closing
Hello, and welcome to episode 133 of the Floppy Days Podcast for December, 2023.  I’m Randy Kindig, your host on this vintage computer retrospective.
Hard to believe we’re coming up on the end of 2023.  It was Feb. 2013 when I took the first halting steps in producing a podcast, so we’re coming up on 11 years of Floppy Days very soon.
We are currently covering computers that were released in the year 1982.  We are very early in that year, with lots of other computers to be covered.
This episode is about a machine that was developed in the UK.  It was pretty much unknown in the United States and even in the UK didn’t get much traction.  The machine I’m talking about is the Grundy NewBrain.  There are a lot of unique things about this machine that you’ll discover through the history episode, these interviews and the episodes that cover the details.
I’ve been fortunate enough to be able to contact a few people who were involved in the development of the machine.  I’ve published interviews so far with John Grant and Steve O’Hara-Smith.  This episode is also an interview episode, but this time with another key member in its development: Gerald McMullon.  Gerald has a lot of interesting information to share about the NewBrain, including information about its development and support of the machine after its release.
I have been able to contact some other principals in the development of the NewBrain: Basil Smith and Mike Wakefield.  Unfortunately, Basil has had a lot of recent requests for interviews, so I’m waiting in line for that.  However, should I be able to talk with Basil and/or Mike, I will of course bring all of that to Floppy Days in future episodes.
This current episode is the end of the interview episodes around the NewBrain at this point in time.  Next month, and actually likely the next 2 months, we will be covering the details of the machine such as tech specs, emulators, software, newsletters, peripherals, web sites, etc.  That will happen with a special co-host that I’m going to leave as a surprise for right now.  
New Acquisitions
TI95 cassette interface - https://github.com/molleraj/ti95interface 
AquariCart + 32K RAM - https://www.ebay.com/itm/124471439128 
MC-10 3-button joystick pad - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzsGst8HAiI 
Upcoming Computer Shows
Vintage Computer Festival SoCal - February 17-18, 2024 - Hotel Fera Events Center, Orange, CA - vcfsocal.com 
Interim Computer Festival SPRING - March 23rd and 24th, 2024 - Intraspace, Seattle, WA - https://sdf.org/icf/ 
Midwest Gaming Classic - April 5-7 - Wisconsin Center, Milwaukee, WI - https://www.midwestgamingclassic.com/ 
VCF East - April 12-14, 2024 - Wall, NJ - http://www.vcfed.org 
Indy Classic Computer and Video Game Expo - April 13-14 - Crowne Plaza Airport Hotel, Indianapolis, IN - https://indyclassic.org/ 
VCF Europa - April 27-28, 2024 - Munich, Germany - https://vcfe.org/E/ 
The 32nd Annual “Last” Chicago CoCoFEST! - May 4-5, 2024 - Holiday Inn & Suites Chicago-Carol Stream (Wheaton), Carol Stream, Illinois - https://www.glensideccc.com/cocofest/ 
VCF Southwest - June 14-16, 2024 - Davidson-Gundy Alumni Center at UT Dallas - https://www.vcfsw.org/ 
Boatfest Retro Computer Expo - June 14-16 - Hurricane, WV - http://boatfest.info 
Pacific Commodore Expo NW v4 - June 14-15 - Old Rainier Brewery Intraspace, Seattle, WA - https://www.portcommodore.com/dokuwiki/doku.php?id=pacommex:start 
Kickstart Amiga UK E

Grundy NewBrain History with Steve O’Hara-Smith
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/FloppyDays
Sponsors:
8-Bit Classics 
Arcade Shopper  
0 Floppy Days Tune
1 min 14 sec Vintage Computer Ads
1 min 43 sec Intro
6 min 14 sec bumper - Steve O'Hara-Smith
6 min 32 sec New Acquisitions
22 min 53 sec bumper - Gerald McMullon
23 min 36 sec Upcoming Computer Shows
26 min 51 sec Feedback
30 min 19 sec Interview with Steve O'Hara-Smith
71 min 46 sec Closing
Hello, and welcome to episode 132 of the Floppy Days Podcast; a podcast about home computers in the magical years of the late 70’s through the 80’s.  I’m Randy Kindig, your host on this voyage.
We are currently covering computers that were released in the year 1982; a banner year for personal computers.  It’s actually going to take quite some time to get through this year in history.
This is the second episode about a computer that few in the United States know much about.  It was released in the UK and even there didn’t get much traction.  It was a unique beast, with its own personality and quirks; before it went quietly into the annals of history.  The machine I’m talking about is the Grundy NewBrain.
As it was so relatively unknown, I’m going to be spending a lot of air time talking about its history:
in the last episode (Episode 131) I summarized its history, including a short interview with John Grant of Nine Tiles, whose company did some work on the machine
This episode contains an very informative interview with Steve O’Hara Smith, who was involved with development of the machine
The next episode will have an interview with Gerald McMullon, also having done some work on the early NewBrain, as well as support after its release
Finally, there will be 1 or more episodes to cover the usual topics of tech specs, Web sites, emulators, etc.  I will have a special guest co-host for that.
So, as you can see, there’s a ton of upcoming information about the NewBrain.  Please join me in learning more about this unusual machine.
Before we get into this interview, I’ll let you know what I’ve been up to and have been able to acquire lately; which continues to grow seemingly beyond my control.
That brings me to some administrative news.  In order to provide maximum flexibility for my listeners, I’m going to start publishing a timeline in the show notes.  It will have a time marker for each section of the podcast, so that, for instance, if you want to jump straight to an interview and re-listen to just that section, you can do so.  This is an easy thing to provide, with the audio editing software I use, so from now on expect to see that information in the show notes.
New Acquisitions
TS2068/Spectrum group - https://groups.io/g/TS2068 
Wafadrive - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rotronics_Wafadrive 
mini-bus expansion board - https://www.andertone.com/product/ts1000-expansion-extender/ 
composite mod for TS1000/ZX81 - https://www.ebay.com/itm/175512970894 
64K RAM pack (Memopak) - https://www.andertone.com/product/memopak-64k-ram-pack/ 
TS1500 keyboard membrane - https://www.ebay.com/itm/304824623956 
Upcoming Computer Shows
Atari Party 2023! - Saturday, December 2, 2023, 1pm to 4pm - Quakertown Train Station, Quakertown, PA - https://quakertowntrainstation.org - organized by Peter Fletcher
World of Commodore - Dec. 2-3, 2023 - Admiral Inn Mississauga, Mississauga, ON - http://www.worldofcommodore.ca/ 
Vintage Computer Festival SoCal - February 17-18, 2024 - Hotel Fera Events Center, Orange, CA - vcfsocal.com 
Interim Computer Festival SPRING - March 23-24, 2024 - Intraspace, Seattle, WA - https://sdf.org/icf/ 
Midwest Gaming Classic - April 5-7 - Wisconsin Center, Milwaukee, WI - https://www.midwestgamingclassic.com/ 
VCF East - April 5-7, 2024 - Wall, NJ - http://www.vcfed.org 
Indy Classic Computer and Video Game Expo - April 13-14 - Crowne Plaza Airport Hotel,