Skip to content

Atari Projects

Fun projects for your Atari 8-bit home computers and video game consoles

  • Welcome
  • Projects
  • About
  • Contact

Category: Hardware

Purchase and Install an Ultimate 1MB Board for Your Atari 800XL (1-3 hours)

December 30, 2020 moorejh Hardware, Modifications

Task: Purchase and Install an Ultimate 1MB Board for Your Atari 800XL Needed: Web browser, soldering iron, drill, U1MB board Time: 1-3 hours Introduction Modifications or mods are a great way to expand what your Atari 8-bit computer can do. The Ultimate 1MB (U1MB) mod

Read more

Purchase a Hyperkin Ranger Gamepad for your Atari 8-Bit Computer or Console (10-15 mins)

December 27, 2020 moorejh Hardware

Task: Purchase a Hyperkin Ranger Gamepad for your Atari 8-Bit Computer or Console Needed: Web browser Time: 10-15 mins Introduction Finding a solid controller for your 8-bit computers and consoles can be a problem. This is especially true since the original controllers can break or

Read more

Connect an Atari 2600 to a TV via an RF to Coaxial Cable Adaptor (10-15 mins)

December 12, 2020 moorejh Hardware, Video

Task: Connect an Atari 2600 to an TV via an RF to Coaxial Cable Adaptor  Needed: Web browser, RF to Coaxial Cable Adaptor Time: 10-15 mins Introduction The Atari 2600 outputs a Radio Frequency (RF) modulated TV signal which can be quite difficult to convert

Read more

Purchase a SIDE3 Cartridge for Atari 8-Bit Computers (10-15 mins)

November 27, 2020 moorejh Hardware, Software, Utilities

Task: Purchase a SIDE3 Cartridge for Atari 8-Bit Computers Needed: Web browser, Atari 8-bit computer Time: 10-15 mins Introduction The ability to load files on an SD card and boot them on original Atari 8-bit computer hardware is very desirable and I have covered several

Read more

Purchase a FujiNet (10-15 mins)

November 7, 2020 moorejh Hardware, Software, Utilities

Task: Purchase a FujiNet Needed: Web browser Time: 10-15 mins Introduction One of the most exciting aspects of Atari 8-bit computers is the emergence of new devices which expand our fun and simplify our experience. Flash-based cartridges and SIO devices were revolutionary in that way

Read more

Purchase a RetroTINK for Conversion to Digital Video (10-15 mins)

October 25, 2020 moorejh Graphics, Hardware, Video

Task: Purchase a RetroTINK for Conversion to Digital Video Needed: Web browser, RetroTINK Time: 10-15 mins Introduction I have previously posted about the challenges of converting the composite signal from the Atari 8-bit computers to HDMI for display on an LED monitor or TV. I

Read more

Fun with the Atari Light Pen (15-30 mins)

October 11, 2020 moorejh Graphics, Hardware, Software

Task: Fun with the Atari Light Pen Needed: Web browser, Atari Light Pen, CRT monitor or TV Time: 15-30 mins Introduction One of my favorite things to do with my Atari was making art. I had an Atari Touch Tablet and several other graphics programs

Read more

Watch Jay Miner Give a Talk from 1989 (30 mins)

September 26, 2020 moorejh Hardware, History, Video

Task: Watch Jay Miner Give a Talk from 1989 Needed: Web browser Time: 30 mins Introduction Mr. Jay Miner led the design and development of the graphics chips used in the Atari 2600 and the 8-bit computers. This included the Television Interface Adaptor (TIA) used

Read more

Explore Atari Computer Sales Brochures and Catalogs (10-15 mins)

September 6, 2020 moorejh Hardware, History, Magazines, Web Resources

Task: Explore Atari Computer Sales Brochures and Catalogs Needed: Web browser Time: 10-15 minutes Introduction One of my favorite things to is to explore sales brochures and catalogs for the Atari 8-bit line of computers. Fortunately, my packrat father saved a number of these so

Read more

Make an Atari 8-bit Computer Cartridge (1-2 hours)

August 2, 2020 moorejh Hardware, Modifications, Programming

Task: Make an Atari 8-bit Computer Cartridge Needed: Cartridge parts, EPROM programmer, soldering station or iron Time: 1-2 hours Introduction As I have mentioned in previous posts, I had tons of fun making my own Atari 2600 game called Gene Medic. I sent the binary

Read more

Purchase a Soldering Station for Atari Electronics and Hardware Projects (10-15 mins)

August 2, 2020 moorejh Hardware, Modifications

Task: Purchase a Soldering Station for Atari Electronics and Hardware Projects Needed: Web browser Time: 10-15 mins Introduction I took a year of electronics in high school and did a lot of soldering. In fact, I used to fix tube televisions people from the community

Read more

Burn an Atari Binary File on an EPROM Chip (30-60 mins)

August 1, 2020 moorejh Hardware, Modifications, Programming, Software

Task: Burn an Atari Binary File on an EPROM Chip Needed: EPROM burner, EPROM Time: 30-60 mins Introduction Read Only Memory (ROM) integrated circuits (IC) or chips were routinely used in the Atari 8-bit computers and video game consoles. For example, the Atari 800XL included

Read more

Tips for Troubleshooting a Defective Atari 8-bit Computer (15-30 mins)

June 27, 2020 moorejh Hardware, Troubleshooting

Task: Tips for Troubleshooting a Defective Atari 8-bit Computer Needed: web browser Time: 15-30 mins Introduction I have always been impressed with how reliable Atari 8-bit computers are. I have more than a dozen and they all work. What do you do if you get

Read more

Interact with Atari’s 6502 Processor in BASIC XL (10-15 mins)

March 14, 2020 moorejh Demos, Hardware, Programming, Software, Utilities

Task: Interact with Atari’s 6502 Processor in BASIC XL Needed: A BASIC XL cartridge or Altirra emulator Time: 10-15 minutes Introduction The 6502 processor developed by Chuck Peddle and his team at MOS Technology was the first inexpensive CPU available in the 1970s. This CPU

Read more

Assemble a Minimal Atari 8-Bit Computer (30-60 mins)

January 16, 2020 moorejh Hardware

Task: Assemble a Minimal Atari 8-Bit Computer  Needed: Components listed below and about $200 to $225 for purchasing Time: 30-60 minutes Introduction I have a colleague at work who I have been helping set up his first ever Atari computer rig. I have been thinking

Read more

Purchase a Retron77 Gaming Console for Emulating the 2600 (15-30 mins)

December 31, 2019 moorejh Emulators, Hardware

Task: Purchase a Retron77 Gaming Console for Emulating the 2600 Needed: Web browser Time: 15-30 minutes Introduction One of the most frustrating aspects of retrocomputing and retrogaming is getting old hardware to play nice with HDTVs over HDMI. This is especially true for the Atari

Read more

Purchase a CRT Monitor (15-30 mins)

December 30, 2019 moorejh Hardware, Video

Task: Purchase a CRT Monitor Needed: Web browser Time: 15-30 minutes Introduction I started out on an Atari 400 and 410 cassette recorder connected to a color television in our family room in the early 1980s. We upgraded to an Atari 800 and 810 disk

Read more

Purchase an Atari 7800 (15-30 mins)

October 25, 2019 moorejh Hardware

Task: Purchase an Atari 7800  Needed: Web browser Time: 15-30 minutes Introduction The Atari 7800 ProSystem was everything the Atari 5200 should have been. Released in 1986, the 7800 was smaller that the 2600 and was backward compatible with the 2600 cartridges and joysticks. This

Read more

Purchase New Power Supplies (5-10 mins)

September 28, 2019 moorejh Hardware

Task: Purchase New Power Supplies Needed: Web browser Time: 5-10 minutes Introduction I have previously posted about the need to go through your collection and purge dangerous power supplies that can fail and take your Atari out. Further, you may not trust the ones that

Read more

Replace Rubber Feet (5-10 mins)

September 21, 2019 moorejh Hardware, Modifications

Task: Replace Rubber Feet Needed: New Rubber Feet Time: 5-10 minutes Introduction I have had several problems with the little rubber feet on the bottom of Atari hardware. First, some of the feet degrade over time and the chemicals damage the finish on my desk

Read more

Conduct Experiments with AtariLab (30-60 mins)

August 11, 2019 moorejh Hardware, Utilities

Task: Conduct Experiments with AtariLab Needed: AtariLab Starter Set Time: 30-60 mins Introduction One of the coolest peripherals for the Atari computers was the AtariLab that was developed by Atari in collaboration with Dr. Priscilla Laws who was a professor at Dickinson College. I never

Read more

Watch Joe Decuir on YouTube (1-2 hours)

August 3, 2019 moorejh Hardware, History

Task: Watch Joe Decuir on YouTube Needed: Web browser Time: 1-2 hours Introduction Joe Decuir was hired by Atari to debug the prototype for the Atari 2600 and then went on to help design and build the Atari 400 and 800 computers. He has had

Read more

Tips for Managing the Size of Your Collection (10-15 mins)

July 6, 2019 moorejh Collecting, Hardware

Task: Tips for Managing the Size of Your Collection Needed: strategy and willpower Time: 10-15 mins Introduction I amassed a pretty big Atari collection back in the early 2000s when hardware and software was easy to come by in flea markets and thrift stores. Looking

Read more

Make Floppy Disks Double-Sided (5-10 mins)

June 28, 2019 moorejh Hardware

Task: Make Floppy Disks Double-Sided Needed: floppy disks, notcher Time: 5-10 minutes Introduction When floppy disks first came on the scene they were single-sided and had a single notch or hole on the right side that you could cover with tape to write-protect the disk.

Read more

Posts navigation

«Previous Posts 1 2 3 4 Next Posts»

Search the Projects

Project Categories

Advice Books Collecting Competitions Demos Documentary Emulators Events Games Graphics Hardware History Magazines Media Modifications News Newsletters Podcasts Programming Software Sound Troubleshooting Utilities Video Web Resources Welcome

Links

Antic The Atari 8-Bit Podcast

AtariAge

eBay

Internet Archive

Vintage Computer Center

Copyright (c) 2022 Jason H. Moore, Ph.D.