Hello from Columbus Ohio

[jsixis]

 Hello everyone;
My name is John Six and I have been playing with Commodores longer then I want to admit.
(84 or 85).
I have a C= 64 and 1541 system that is basically a game machine sitting upstairs.
My main intrest is the C=128 systems. I have 2 rel64's input/output boards and I also bought a brand new design off ebay that is way better and it cost less then the rel 64's.
I'm not very good at programming but now as I am working towards self retirement I plan on learning.
I'm hoping to use one of my 128's with the I/O board to control a solar project I am working on.

Later, thanks for the board.

[RobertB]

Hi, John,

My name is John Six and I have been playing with Commodores longer then I want to admit.
(84 or 85).

Join the club.  I've been into Commodores since '83. 

My main intrest is the C=128 systems. I have 2 rel64's input/output boards and I also bought a brand new design off ebay that is way better and it cost less then the rel 64's.

A new design... I haven't heard of that one.  (I have the older, original one.)  Who was the seller?

I'm hoping to use one of my 128's with the I/O board to control a solar project I am working on.

Ooo, sounds good.  At the Saturday night dinner after the day's Vintage Computer Festival East, we were tossing around ideas about making a Commodore control other items.  I had my idea of a Commodore controlling one of those USB foam-missile launchers.  Cut off the USB connection and wire the launcher to the user port of the Commodore; then write a program to control swivel, inclination, and firing of the launcher.  The others at dinner thought it was a good idea; another thought it would be better to have joystick control of the launcher.  Have 2 Commodores with missile launchers and then there would be warfare between the players.    Now we need a programmer to develop such a program. 

                    Truly,
                    Robert Bernardo
                    Fresno Commodore User Group
                    http://videocam.net.au/fcug

[Hydrophilic]

Welcome jsixis!  The C128 is pretty easy to program in either BASIC or machine language.  You're project sounds like fun.

@RobertB,
That's pretty neat you could connect a USB device to a commie.  I guess it will work on low baud rates?

Using joystick control of your solor panel would be a good start.  I'm guessing jsixis would then want to add to the program to automatically track the sun based on time and date?

[RobertB]

That's pretty neat you could connect a USB device to a commie.  I guess it will work on low baud rates?

You misunderstand.  It has not been done... yet. 

                    Truly,
                    Robert Bernardo
                    Fresno Commodore User Group
                    http://videocam.net.au/fcug
                    The Other Group of Amigoids
                    http://www.calweb.com/~rabel1/
                    Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network
                    http://www.sccaners.org

[jsixis]

 All it says on the board is commodore power relay board. I'll load the disk this weekend and see if his name is on there.
It is beefier then the older units.
I bought some opto 22 relays off ebay to power the 120/240 voltage. They close on 5-30 volts and being optical relays there is no chance of voltage flowing back to the 128

[jsixis]

 I won't be doing any sun tracking. I'm using a parobolic trough system. I just need a light sensor and 2 tempature sensors to start the pump and the fans.
It will be awhile as I did not get the system built this summer so another wait till spring.

[gsteemso]

Welcome number Six. Who is number Two? </obPrisonerRef>

Don’t feel too old for being into Commodores since the mid-eighties; I think most of us were. I started using the family SX-64 in 1984 at the age of 7, and I don’t think I’m at all unique in that. I might be a little unusual in that I still have it, mind you. :¬)

[jsixis]

the guy that sells the new commodore relay board has a listing on ebay his ebay name is rufusinohio 270472207714 is the item number

[RobertB]

     Oooo, very interesting.  Thanks for the info.

                Truly,
                Robert Bernardo
                Fresno Commodore User Group
                http://videocam.net.au/fcug
                The Other Group of Amigoids
                http://www.calweb.com/~rabel1/
                Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network
                http://www.sccaners.org