Welcome to my 8 bits dreamshttps://idreamtin8bits.com/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/vdcmaniac/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/vdcmaniac/vdcmaniac is a Commodore 128 demo built entirely around the VDC -- the 8563/8568 80-column video chip most C128 owners only ever saw render text. Underneath its familiar 80x25 display sits up to 64 KB of dedicated video RAM and a set of bitmap modes far beyond what the chip is…Sat, 22 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/heartbeat-demo/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/heartbeat-demo/heartbeat-demo is a demo for the Ultimate 64, built around a song composed in the Heartbeat Soundtracker. The core of the project is not the demo itself but what sits underneath it: a full C port of Heartbeat Soundtracker's standalone player, taken from licensed 6502 assembly…Thu, 30 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/oricdemo2026-release/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/oricdemo2026-release/oricdemo2026 is a HIRES-mode demoscene production for the Oric Atmos, built with the Oscar64 cross-compiler. v1.0.0 is the first public release: twelve sections, real AY-3-8912 music, real converted photographs, and two independent, fully-playable distributions built from the…Wed, 15 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/oric-screen-editor-loci-release/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/oric-screen-editor-loci-release/Oric Screen Editor for LOCI (OSE-LOCI) is a character-set-aware screen editor for the Oric Atmos, rewritten from scratch in Oscar64 C. It is based on Oric Screen Editor V1 (CC65, 2022) and extends it with LOCI mass-storage support, canvas-edit undo/redo, and several new editing…Mon, 06 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/locifilemanager-v2-release/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/locifilemanager-v2-release/LOCI File Manager v2.0.0 is out: a full-screen, two-pane file manager for the LOCI mass storage device on the Oric Atmos. It is not an update to v1 -- it is a complete ground-up rewrite, and the most interesting part of that rewrite happened before a single file-management…Sun, 14 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/ultimatedemo2026/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/ultimatedemo2026/The question behind UltimateDemo2026 was straightforward: how far can pure AI-assisted coding take you on genuinely uncharted technical ground? Not a tutorial platform with abundant examples, but a specific combination that sits well outside the mainstream -- the Ultimate 64's…Sun, 31 May 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/gatsby-to-astro-with-claude/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/gatsby-to-astro-with-claude/By Xander Mol, xander@xandermol.com Introduction When the time came to overhaul IDreamtIn8Bits.com, I had two goals. The first was practical: move away from a stack that had grown inconvenient and add features I had wanted for some time. The second was more of an experiment:…Tue, 19 May 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/c128-ultimate-ii-plus-guide/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/c128-ultimate-ii-plus-guide/If you spend any time in the modern Commodore 64 scene, you already know that Gideon Zweijtzer’s Ultimate II+ (and the newer Ultimate II+L) is practically mandatory equipment. It's the gold standard for cycle-exact floppy drive emulation, cartridge emulation, and memory…Sat, 09 May 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/UBoot64-v2-release/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/UBoot64-v2-release/UBoot64 v2 is not an update — it is a complete ground-up rewrite of the C64 Ultimate boot menu, swapping out the original cc65 toolchain for the Oscar64 C compiler by drmortalwombat. That single architectural decision cascades into a significantly more capable program: tighter…Wed, 29 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/ArchBAS-release/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/ArchBAS-release/The Acorn Archimedes arrived in 1987 carrying the first commercially available ARM processor — then standing for Acorn RISC Machine — running at 8 MHz and delivering performance that embarrassed the 68000-based competition. Paired with RISC OS and BBC BASIC V, it gave hobbyist…Wed, 10 Dec 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/retro-computers-hdmi-signal/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/retro-computers-hdmi-signal/By Xander Mol, xander@xandermol.com Introduction As a child I was lucky enough to have access, through my father, to most of the 8-bit computers that appeared in the 1980s — he sold them in his shops at the time, and naturally everything had to be tested before it went on the…Sat, 14 Jun 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/locifilemanager-release/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/locifilemanager-release/The Oric Atmos is a 6502-powered British microcomputer from 1984 that has sustained a passionate owner community long past its commercial lifespan. What it has never had, until now, is a proper file manager for the LOCI mass storage device — the modern SD/USB storage accessory…Wed, 21 May 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/GeoUTools-release/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/GeoUTools-release/GEOS on the Commodore 64 and 128 is one of the most sophisticated pieces of software ever written for a 6502 machine — a full graphical operating system with pull-down menus, proportional fonts, overlapping windows, and a printer spooler, all running in 64KB. The Ultimate II+…Sun, 18 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/Oscar64Test-release/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/Oscar64Test-release/The Commodore 128 is a peculiar machine to develop for in C. Its primary processor, the 8502, is a speed-doubled 6510 variant running at 2 MHz — broadly familiar territory for cc65 developers who know the C64. But the C128 also includes a Zilog Z80 for CP/M compatibility and,…Sun, 30 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/VDCScreenEditor2-release/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/VDCScreenEditor2-release/The Commodore 128's MOS 8563 VDC chip is one of the most underused pieces of silicon Commodore ever shipped. Running the 80-column display through its own independent VRAM — 16KB in the standard C128 and 64KB in the DCR variant — the VDC offers a 16-colour palette, hardware…Tue, 11 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/CPMUTools-release/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/CPMUTools-release/The Commodore 128 is the only mass-market home computer of its era to ship with two complete operating systems built in: the familiar C64/C128 BASIC environment driven by the 8502 CPU, and CP/M Plus (3.0) running on the onboard Zilog Z80 at 4 MHz. That second operating system —…Sun, 12 Nov 2023 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/UBoot64-release/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/UBoot64-release/The Commodore 64's power-on experience is iconic: the blue screen, the blinking cursor, READY. — but for anyone who uses a C64 seriously in 2023 and beyond, that blank slate means navigating through menus or typing LOAD commands before any real work can begin. UBoot64 changes…Fri, 22 Sep 2023 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/oric-screen-editor-porting-a-screen-editor-for-the-c128-to-the-oric/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/oric-screen-editor-porting-a-screen-editor-for-the-c128-to-the-oric/Introduction (Article published earlier in CEO Mag 367 (only downloadable for CEO members) ) 24 August I released my new utility, Oric Screen Editor via the Defence Force forum and the Facebook Oric groups. In his article I like to tell why I created this tool and explain my…Mon, 12 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/oric-screen-editor-released/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/oric-screen-editor-released/After releasing the C128 and Commodore Plus/4 versions of my Screen Editor, VDCSE and TEDSE, I now have also ported my screen editor to the Oric Atmos. Oric Screen Editor is an editor to create text based screens for the Oric Atmos. It fully supports using user defined character…Mon, 12 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/my-screen-editors-for-the-commodore-128-and-plus-4-vdcse-and-tedse/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/my-screen-editors-for-the-commodore-128-and-plus-4-vdcse-and-tedse/Why I Created VDC Screen Editor When I was making my Careers boardgame conversion, I was looking for a program that would enable me to edit screens for the Commodore 128 80 column mode, that would also support custom character sets and a bigger canvas size than just a 80x25…Fri, 27 May 2022 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/ludo-game-released/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/ludo-game-released/Wrote a version of the game Ludo for the C128 in 1992 (in Dutch, so called 'Mens Erger Je Niet'). In 2020, decided to convert this game to the Oric Atmos. First in BASIC, later in C using CC65 to gain a speed bump and enhance the game further. In 2021 I also ported the C version…Wed, 16 Feb 2022 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/modern-mass-storage-for-8-bit-computers/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/modern-mass-storage-for-8-bit-computers/Introduction Loading software from old fashioned floppy disks or even tapes feels very nostalgic, but is also slow and cumbersome compared to loading from an USB stick or SD card. So modern solutions of bringing storage via disk images or files on an USB stick or SD card make…Wed, 16 Feb 2022 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/my-c64/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/my-c64/The C64 is another computer I grew up with. Great machine, terrific for gaming, iconic in the breadbin design (for me the breadbin is the only real C64). Was less enthousiastic about the BASIC, so used mainly my Spectrum and Oric for programming, but dabbled in programming the…Tue, 15 Feb 2022 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/my-commodore-plus-4/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/my-commodore-plus-4/Latest aqcuisition is a Commodore Plus/4. Used one briefly in my youth, remember it for its great design and many colors in its palette. Better BASIC, but alas no SID sound and no sprites. Limited software support, but still very nice machine. Configuration Present…Tue, 15 Feb 2022 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/my-commodore-128/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/my-commodore-128/My Commodore 128D is the computer I value the most and my only original one surviving. This machine I used for a long time, only getting a PC relatively late. This is the machine I did most of my programming on. This is also the machine that rekindled my 8 bit passion when this…Mon, 14 Feb 2022 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/my-ti-99-4a/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/my-ti-99-4a/The Texas-Instruments TI-99/4a was also one of the very first computers I used. Did not have a tape lead for that machine, so did not use it very often as I lost everything everytime I powered it off. But did some programming with it. Re-acquired the TI-99/4a two years ago.…Mon, 14 Feb 2022 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/my-zx-spectrum-128-toastrack/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/my-zx-spectrum-128-toastrack/The ZX Spectrum is one of the first computers I got at home. At first the gummy key 48KB model, later the ZX Spectrum+ 48k model. Learned programming with it, allthough I did gaming predominately on my C64. As both Spectrums broke in my youth, I moved on to the Oric Atmos for…Mon, 14 Feb 2022 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/my-8-bit-computer-retro-setup/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/my-8-bit-computer-retro-setup/(originally posted 2020-09-10) How It Started Recently started my 8 bit hobby again by starting to get the two machines from my parents attic that I still owned from the past: my original old Commodore 128D and the ZX Spectrum 128 I aqcuired a decade after. As a youth there…Fri, 11 Feb 2022 00:00:00 GMThttps://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/my-oric-atmos/https://idreamtin8bits.com/blogs/my-oric-atmos/(Originally posted 2020-10-03) My Oric Story The Oric Atmos is one of the machines I used a lot in my youth. Alas my old one broke down and we swapped it away. Also alas so far have not found back tapes of the programs I wrote back then. One of the best looking 8-bits ever made.…Fri, 11 Feb 2022 00:00:00 GMT