While it’s certainly not essential, a stereo card can add ‘flavor’ to your Apple IIGS experience. It’s also important to consider carefully which stereo card you use (if you can even find one), because reliability and sound fidelity can vary from brand to brand. That’s why we’re happy to see ‘Drew’ Webber is producing a second round of his high quality TDX ][ stereo cards. They’re reasonably priced, and offer GREAT stereo sound output from your Apple IIGS. I expect the estimated run of 25 to 50 boards to sell briskly, so get on the waiting list NOW or you might miss out.

This month on Open Apple, the Apple II community’s only monthly podcast, Mike and Ken chat with Evan Koblentz, producer of Vintage Computer Festival East. VCF East 9.1 is happening this spring, and Evan has an inside look at the event’s founding, growth, and lineup. Margot Comstock has been announced as the keynote speaker of KansasFest 2014, prompting us to reflect on the history of Softalk magazine. The Apple2pi card is now shipping, and it reminds us of other small devices that left a big impression, like the Replica-1 and even the Apple Newton PDA — which still has an active user group! Finally, Steve Jobs is appearing in all kinds of icons, from e-waste portraits to unlickable postage stamps. When will Woz get the recognition he deserves?

Find the show at the Open Apple Web site or in the iTunes and Zune podcast directories.

Koichi Nishida has Apple //c users on Facebook excited about the VGA adapter he is designing. Since the extremely limited run of Gregory Estrade’s Guimauve 2000, the Apple IIc has been without a viable VGA adapter option.

Thank you Koichi — we will be following your progress with enthusiasm!

The day is finally here! Ultimate Apple2 reopens today with exciting new products and carrying old favorites from ReactiveMicro and James Littlejohn. Available NOW: the Apple2Pi 4.4 for $59.99. Also available, A2Pi Accessory Pack for beginners or anyone wanting to get started with their A2Pi quickly.

You’ll also find previously sold out and hard to find products are now back in stock: LittlePower GS, 32K cache card and high-speed GAL kits for Transwarp GS, the cloned EDD4+ card and MicroDrives!

KansasFest 2014, the Apple II convention, is scheduled for July 22 –27 in Kansas City, Missouri. Margot Comstock, co-founder and editor of the much-loved Softalk magazine, will join us with a keynote presentation.

Comstock and Al Tommervik founded Softalk in 1980 to share the hardware, software, and people behind the Apple II. At its peak, Softalk had 250,000 readers and uniquely offered broad and deep coverage of everything Apple II related, including programming, game playing, business use, and home use. Later, Softalk Publishing produced magazines for the emerging Macintosh and IBM markets, ST.Mac and Softalk for the IBM Personal Computer. Softline, a game magazine begun by Ken William’s OnLine Systems and later renamed to ST.Game, was Softalk Publishing’s second longest-lived magazine. Softalk Books published several books by the magazine’s columnists and a Mac book by Doug Clapp.

The Apple II magazine ran for four years before industry changes and expenses led management to cease publication. In that time, Softalk earned many loyal fans, and a group of volunteers is working to archive and share issues. The Smithsonian Institution recognizes Comstock and Tommervik as pioneers of the microcomputer revolution and Softalk as a chronicle of that revolution.

KansasFest is an annual convention offering Apple II users and retrocomputing enthusiasts the opportunity to engage in beginner and technical sessions, programming contests, exhibition halls, and camaraderie. KansasFest was originally hosted by Resource Central and has been brought to you by the KFest committee since 1995. Any and all Apple II users, fans, and friends are invited to attend this year’s event. Registration details will be announced on the KansasFest Web site in early 2014. For photos, videos, and presentations from past KansasFests, please visit the event’s official Web site at http://www.kansasfest.org/.

 

Get it here.

This month on Open Apple, the Apple II community’s only monthly podcast, Mike and Ken chat with Sean Fahey, proprietor of A2Central.com and KansasFest committee member. Sean and James Littlejohn distribute a plethora of Apple II hardware and software every year to KansasFest attendees, and next year’s haul will be bigger than ever — we have the details why. Glenn Jones is working on a new Uthernet card, and we can’t wait to see what new software it makes possible. The Mac turned thirty years old last month, and we reminisce about the first time we added a non-Apple II Apple to our inventory. Madden NFL, the football game that got its start on the Apple II, is the subject of both preservation and litigation — but we’d rather be playing Silvern Castle.

Find the show at the Open Apple Web site or in the iTunes and Zune podcast directories.

George Ostrom, noted columnist for the Columbia Falls, Montana Hungry Horse News needs an Apple II to replace his (currently malfunctioning) machine so he can look up archived data and stories for his column. If anyone in the northwest USA region can help him out, please contact him. He lives in Kalispell, MT. You can reach him via feedback to his column, or through the paper.

Glenn Jones reports that he and Oliver Schmidt are working on the next revision of the highly successful Uthernet card. The appropriately named ‘Uthernet II’ will be based on the Wiznet W5100 chip, which will require a new packet driver and support software. Key developers Oliver Schmidt (Contiki driver), Jonno Downes (IP65 W5100 support), David Schmidt (ADTPro) and Ewen Wannop (Marinneti/Spectrum) are reported to have already added or promised support for the new card. Alpha/Beta boards are anticipated to be sent out to a few testers sometime in February.

Are you interested in getting your hands on a new Uthernet II card when they start shipping? Send Glenn an e-mail and get on the waiting list!