Mike Willegal has publicly released the source code for the Wozanium pack (the code for the Brain Board) and a Wozanium ROM image suitable for Apple II emulators. Now, you can run and edit Apple 1 programs in your Apple II emulator.

The Brain Board gets its own web page, a beta manual and an announced ship date. Obviously, we want one (maybe two) and so should you. :)

Here it is, ready for testing — Mike Willegal’s Brain Board.

Marc Ressl (AppleIIGo project developer) has just announced he’s in the early stages of creating a new project called OpenEmulator. The project site states the current goals of the project are to implement an Mac OS X interface, and get Apple-1 and MOS KIM-1 emulation working.

Prolific reproduction enthusiast Mike Willegal is bringing his talents to the Datanetics Keyboard. See Mike’s announcement (attached) for details.

The Datanetics keyboard was the most common keyboard used with an Apple 1. You can see several of them in photos of original Apple 1. I am working on a reproduction Datanetics PCB.

There were several versions of the Datanetics keyboard. In fact early Apple II keyboards were made by Datanetics and have basically the same design as the Datanetics keyboard. The version of the original Datanetics keyboard that I am working on is the Rev B.

This board has no solder mask or silkscreen, so it looks rather primitive. Parts are extremely hard to find, especially the MM5740/AAE keyboard encoder. Keyswitches are also nearly impossible to find, except by parting out early Apple II Plus keyboards. Keycaps are another problem, though the Apple II plus keyboards used similar keycaps. Because of this parts problem, I am planning on building only 1 batch of probably 10-20 PCBs. My current plan is to sell only bare PCBs, and the purchaser will have to deal with finding components.

If you are interested in obtaining one of these bare PCBs, let me know, The artwork for the PCB is nearly done, so I may be pulling the trigger on this batch fairly soon. What I can’t sell right away, I might possibly try moving on ebay. At this time, I’m thinking of a price of around $75 to $100 for one of these bare PCBs. This is subject to change.

A couple of things about this PCB:

1) there is an error on the original PCB, that requires a couple of cuts and a jumper. I’m leaving this error in my reproduction.

2) The matrix of vias in the upper left corner of the PCB should not have plated through holes. Plating some holes and not others results in a special order that costs extra time and money. In order to save money, I have decided to have the holes made plated and also drilled smaller than the original. In order to make this board work, the plating will need to be drilled out of these holes.

Speaking of components, the stiffeners are kind of a unique problem for me, because I haven’t had to deal with sheet metal fabrication, since junior high school. If one of you has experience with sheet metal fabrication, let me know — we can possibly work out some kind of special deal for you.

A picture of an original Rev B and some information about it, including schematics and the dimensions of the stiffeners can be seen on the datanetics keyboard page on my website.

http://www.willegal.net/appleii/apple1-datanetics.htm

If you are interesting in this project let me know, so I can build the right number of boards to suit demand.

Regards,
Mike Willegal

Mike Willegal wrote in to announce he was taking pre-orders for his Apple 1 cassette interface. We’re a bit late posting it here, as we received it during the Pre-KFest rush. Mike’s complete announcement is attached:

Fellow Apple 1 and II fans,

Many of you may know that I have been working on a replica ACI (apple cassette interface) for the Apple 1. Some info on the ACI and my replica progress may be found on this web page:

http://www.willegal.net/appleii/aci.htm

In order to move ahead on this project, what I have decided to do is to accept pre-orders for kits at a reduced price of $75. This is the original price for an ACI, something that I really wanted to hit, but the high cost of some of the components make it a difficult price to maintain with the low quantities of stuff I normally sell. I will take pre-orders at the $75 price up through Oct 1, 2010. Around Oct 1st, I’ll start ordering components for kits and expect to be able to ship kits by late October or early November.

Once the pre-order phase is over on October 1st – I’ll be raising price to $100, with the exception of those who buy a Mimeo 1 kit at the same time. Those would buy a Mimeo kit at the same time, will get the special $75 price.

Send an Email to me at mike@willegal.net for pre-ordering information, before sending money.

Regards,
Mike Willegal

Antoine Vignau and Olivier Zardini’s Brutal Deluxe Software site has a huge collection of Apple program cassettes. In addition to over 230 Apple II tapes, they have just added 15 Apple I cassettes. Pictures and audio extracts are provided. And we thought floppies were old school…

The Apple 1 has been replicated and cloned several times but Mike Willegal’s Mimeo 1 promises to be the most authentic recreation to date. Pricing for the Mimeo 1 is USD $666.66 for the kit, or $150 for just the mainboard. Click here for ordering instructions.

Apple 1 enthusiasts have a new web site to check out: Apple-1.org, run by Cameron Cooper. It’s new, so it’s light on content but otherwise it’s off to a great start focusing on Mike Willegal’s Apple 1 clone project.

According to the latest posting on the KansasFest web site, Vince Briel has volunteered to host an interactive workshop on assembling a Replica 1 kit. The Replica 1 is a functional clone of the original Apple-1 designed by Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak. For only the cost of the kit ($149 USD), attendees will have the opportunity to build their own Replica 1 under Briel’s expert supervision.

KansasFest is the worlds largest annual gathering of Apple II enthusiasts. Come join us!