Thirty years ago, in August 1982, a new phenomenon entered the world of personal computing, when the Commodore 64 was born. With 16 colours, 64kb of RAM, a mere 320x300 pixel display, a 1.023MHz processor and what seems like inordinately long cassette tape loading by today's standards, this doesn't exactly sound like Earth shattering stuff, but this particular home computer captured the hearts and minds of a generation to become the highest selling, and by that definition, most successful computer of all time.
The C64, as it became affectionately known, brought joy literally to millions selling over 17 million units and transforming the lives of a generation.
Brainchild of Jack Tramiel, who sadly died in April earlier this year, the C64 was the follow on to the successful VIC-20 which in itself was the first computer to sell over a million units. Jack chose the name 'Commodore' because he wanted something military sounding (both Admiral and General were already taken) and coined the famous phrase 'We need to build computers for the masses and not the classes'.
So do you have any fond memories of either the C64 or the games you used to play (Buggy Boy, Mission Impossible, Pitstop II etc)?
If so, please add to this and tell us your stories here.
