Arduino Mega2560 floppy drive controller

In other words, finding a more creative use for the Arduino Mega than a neon clock: to be able to read all sorts of old data storage media and send’em over USB, blending old technology with the new.
Originally inspired by the ArduinoFDC project, I have decided to try a different approach: instead of using the Arduino to talk to a floppy drive directly, why not leave the hard work on… [more]

KeybJr

As a follow-up to my previous article about the IBM PCjr and its quirks and features, I have decided to create KeybJr – a small open-source project, that allows the PCjr to use a regular keyboard of the era, through both cable or the infrared link. This is because the system did not contain any provisions of connecting a normal PC keyboard… [more]

USB DVB-T Dongle

In mid-2010, Slovakia had been converting into DVB-T and analog terrestrial TV transmitters were continually phased out. On April 30th, a new DVB-T transmitter, located just a few kilometers away from me, was put into service. I was already using an IP TV with two receivers… [more]

Using 8-inch diskette drives with a PC

I have once stumbled upon an interesting article from 2018 published on retrocmp.de, discussing about provisions on connecting an 8″ floppy disk drive to a PC. You know, those huge “boat anchors” that accept flexible disks just four inches shy of an LP record, in exchange of a couple of hundred kilobytes data storage. That sort of type.… [more]