#vic 20

Commodore Computers at VCFSW 2025

Since my vic-20 post is getting a lot of attention, I'd like to share some of the things I have for it!

dont exist anymore.

Commodore was responsible for introducing low cost computers to generations of people with it's Vic 20 and C64, and taught countless people with Commodore Pets in classrooms. Now all their assets are just names split between different businesses.

Atari brought gaming home, and some of the first 8 Bit computers as well. Now their name is just a stain on the box of Plug and Play consoles.

Compaq was responsible for the first ever IBM clones, bringing upon the dawn of the modern personal computer and at much cheaper prices than IBM. Now they're a defunct subsidiary of HP.

Tandy was huge in the 8 Bit era, and they popularized a graphics processer that was so much better than any prior graphical solution on MS-DOS computers so much that it became known as Tandy Graphics and Sound, even though it wasnt made by them. Now Radio Shack entirely is gone.

eMachines is pretty much the entire reason computers are mostly cheap now, their aggressive pricing against the market's competition forced the entire industry to cut their prices. Now all they are is a footnote in Apple documentaries about brands that copied the iMac G3.

And like, you'll never have brands like this again. There's no such thing as an "iconic" computer anymore, theyre all reskins of eachother. Commodore had the Vic 20, the C64, the 128, the Amiga, all icons. Atari had the 2600 console and the 400 and 800 computers. Tandy had the TRS 80, Color Computers. Compaq had their portable series. eMachines had the eOne. All icons in their own right, all unique, all special.

I cant think of a tech brand today that anyone would notice was gone. But these. These were special to people. And now theyre gone. Nothing remains.