Episode 782: RCA Home Computing (Patreon)

Kevin: One of the more surprising aspects of the early era of gaming at home is how much trouble established companies had making a place for themselves. Semiconductor and consumer electronics companies like Fairchild and Magnavox managed to carve out their own niches, but the most surprising “flop” may have been from RCA, one of the biggest corporations in the United States in the mid-20th century, and one that dominated radio, television, audio recordings, and even educational materials. Despite employing some of the smartest people in the electronics industry and having practically unlimited funding to support their efforts, the common history is that their home game console, the Studio II, was a mere blip that came and went in the blink of an eye. Except…

The Studio II and its computerized counterparts like the COSMAC Elf and VIP were part of a much larger effort and an ecosystem within RCA around its microchip business, one that really showcased just how rapidly technological advances were taking place. It’s the story of the 1802 microprocessor, initially conceived by RCA engineer Joe Weisbecker. Joining me to tell it is his daughter Joyce Weisbecker, a pioneering game developer in her own right. I met up with Joyce at the Vintage Computer Festival East back in April so she could share her insights from seeing her father take a self-designed, homemade computer from his basement to the central component of a microprocessor family. Even today the 1802 and his COSMAC Elf design have a thriving community of fans, and if you can get past the very tech-heavy talk, you’ll learn a ton about its creation that hasn’t been published anywhere else, such as how it dates back to designs Joe started in the 1950s and how he had to fight to get any visibility on the device at all. If you’re interested in following along, I highly recommend checking out Marcel van Tongeren’s Emma02 emulator, built to emulate practically every machine that uses an 1802 or one of its predecessors.

A recording note: About 20 minutes into our interview, someone called in a bomb threat to the Infoage Museum where the event is held, forcing us to evacuate and reconvene in my car. You’ll probably notice a much quieter acoustic setting at that point, but the conversation stays strong.

12:00 - Styx "The Grand Illusion"

24:15 - Gooitzen van der Wal "Little_Fugue"

46:20 - Gooitzen van der Wal "Suite_for_Orchestra_2"

1:07:05 - Andy Modla "Hey_Jude" | Mel Richman "Mexican_Hat_Dance"

1:20:00 - The Jacksons "Goin' Places"

1:32:30 - Pink Floyd "Dogs"

Finale - Joe Weisbecker "Maple_Leaf_Rag"