Commodore 64

In 1985 I bought a Commodore 64 and began to learn to programm in machine code (really) followed by the much more comfortable assembler and did some experimental codings - nothing usefull.

Soon I began making music with my synthesizers which where MIDI-connected to the "64" and controlled by software from C-Lab and Steinberg. After my third Commodore 64 was broken I prefered to buy a (very expensive) Commodore Amiga 1000.

The C64 faced a wide range of competing home computers at its introduction in August 1982. With an impressive price coupled with the C64's advanced hardware, it quickly out-classed many of its competitors. In the United States the greatest competitors to the C64 were:
- the Atari 8-bit 400 and 800,
- the IBM PC
- the Apple II.

All four machines had similar standard memory configurations in the years 1982/83: 48K for the Apple II+ (upgraded within months of C64's release to 64K with the Apple IIe); 64K for the IBM PC; and 48K for the Atari 800.

At upwards of US$1200, the IBM PC and Apple II were more than twice as expensive, while the Atari 800 cost $899.

Due to its advanced graphics and sound, the C64 is often credited with starting the computer subculture known as the demoscene. The C64 lost its top position among demo coders when the 16-bit Atari ST and Commodore Amiga were released in 1985, however it still remained a very popular platform for demo coding up to the early 90s.

Related:
Computer History
Operating Systems

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