RC2014

When you get the chance to pick up an Atari ST as cheap as this, you don't stop to ask what colour it is. Luckily this one is an orang brown colour which matches my desk perfectly :-)

It's a 1040 STe and everything seems to work too. I don't yet have a mouse or an RGB monitor lead. Or any games. But they'll come.

So, I guess now that I'm an ST owner I need to see if anybody has tooted nice things about the Amiga so I can explain why they're wrong!

Sep 26, 2025 at 4:34pmWeb
Show threadRC2014Oct 1
I utterly failed to write any ST formatted discs from Linux. So decided to go all in with a Gotek. Initial testing is good... although my driving game skills are severely lacking.
Show threadRC2014Oct 1
Sorry for all the yellowness. The wall is painted yellow, the desktop and ST are both yellow, and the warm yellow LED lighting aren't helping much either.
Show threadPaolo AmorosoOct 1
@rc2014 LOL It reminds me of my cataract days.
Show threadThe Penguin of EvilOct 1

@rc2014 It should work fine providing you are using 720K media. You may need to format them on the ST however because the early ST OS only understands a subset of FAT.

I can confirm it does work though as I swap floppies between my STFM and Mega-ST and Linux just fine.

ROMWBW's FAT/DOSFS tools should also work.

Show threadRC2014Oct 1
@etchedpixels I think the image I was using (the only one I had) wants an 800k floppy.. https://retroracing.itch.io/faster-atari-ste
I spent many hours on Friday trying to get things working, but just ended up frustrated. I will try to fit the Gotek in there along with the original floppy so that I can choose either in the future. That involves totally stripping it down to unsolder the floppy cable. Sigh.
FASTER for Atari STE by Jonathan Thomas

A new racing game making use of the enhanced hardware of the Atari STE

itch.io
Show threadThe Penguin of EvilOct 2
@rc2014 800K requires you play with the FD utils and set it to 10 sectors per track.
Show threadRC2014Oct 2

@etchedpixels Yeah, I found tutorials about that and superformat. However, I had no luck whichever one I followed.

I might come back to it in the future. But, for now, the Gotek is much simpler and probably much more reliable too.

Show threadzxmOct 1
@rc2014 reminds me of dell boy and the luminous paint 😄
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iBe3BQ0xMU
Trigger's Luminous Paint | Only Fools and Horses | BBC Comedy Greats

YouTube
Show threadMatt LaceyOct 1
@rc2014 It's a tough game!
Show thread@haitchfiveOct 1

@rc2014 It's hard to get a lot of the ancient electro-mechanical storage to work right. Sometimes also due to magnetic media.

Gotek's magical.

Show threadRC2014Oct 1
@haitchfive I want both. Does that make me greedy? :-)
Show thread@haitchfiveOct 1
@rc2014 That only makes you thorough and historically accurate 🙂
Show threadBredrollOct 3
@rc2014 ST should work ok with a VFAT floppy
Show threadHeddersSep 26, 2025
@rc2014 still the prettiest of the 16 bit machines.
Show threadRC2014Sep 26, 2025
@hedders Yeah, although I do have a bit of a soft spot for the Archimedes, particularly with green function keys.
Show threadHeddersSep 26, 2025

@rc2014 the A3010 was a good-looking machine.

So was the X68000, come to think of it.

I think basically what we’re saying here is that the Amiga was ugly.

Show threadGary Sep 26, 2025

@hedders @rc2014 absolute, pardon my language, horseshit 🤨

Exhibit for the defence. It’s questionably 16-bit (32-bit internal, 8-bit bus), but it’s of the era, and a serious looker.

Show threadGreem (Graeme. Not Graham!)Sep 26, 2025

@WiteWulf @hedders @rc2014 I had a double page advert for the QL as a poster on my wall.

And then the Mac arrived...

Show threadHeddersSep 26, 2025

@WiteWulf @rc2014 Yeah, I look the look of the QL too. A Rick Dickinson design, I believe?

But the ST still takes it, I think (or maybe the Falcon). Something about those dramatic slanting angles on everything.

Show threadMatt LaceySep 26, 2025
@rc2014 Oof, that is a yellow one! I fixed up an STF earlier this year that was pretty bad, not sure it was quite that bad though!
Show threadKarl Matthias 🇺🇦Sep 26, 2025
@rc2014 Always wanted one!
Show threadBarney LivingstonSep 26, 2025
@rc2014 Actually they're both wrong, the correct five letter computer starting with A is of course Acorn.
Show threadWintermute_BBSSep 26, 2025
@rc2014 wrong?! 🤔 🤣 🥳
Show threadanjuneSep 26, 2025
@rc2014 Some selective yellowing on the keys…
Show threadhkzSep 26, 2025
@rc2014 I actually love how this one looks!
Show threadPaula MaddoxSep 26, 2025
@rc2014 spooky, I've just ordered a new keyboard and ROM for my ST.
Show threadRC2014Sep 26, 2025
@PaulaMaddox I haven't looked in to things too deeply yet, but what advantages does a new ROM bring?
Show threadPaula MaddoxSep 26, 2025
@rc2014 not much, mine is currently spanish, so I've ordered an English (UK) TOS 1.04 :)
My spanish is rusty.
Show threadRC2014Sep 26, 2025
@PaulaMaddox LOL, yeah, I guess that's a good enough reason to upgrade :-)
Show thread48kRAM but with paritySep 26, 2025
@rc2014 @PaulaMaddox Yours looks like "Rainbow TOS" which should be fine. 1040 STe is really the best middle ground of Ataris. Welcome to the STe club!
Show threadEd BrindleySep 26, 2025
@rc2014 I love the STE. Give this new racing game a blast! Makes the most of the hardware. https://retroracing.itch.io/faster-atari-ste
FASTER for Atari STE by Jonathan Thomas

A new racing game making use of the enhanced hardware of the Atari STE

itch.io
Show threadRC2014Sep 26, 2025
@edbrindley Oooh, thanks. I guess now I need to find out how to write .st files to floppy!
Show threadEd BrindleySep 26, 2025
@rc2014 My preferred method is with the greaseweazle. Great for imaging discs and other systems too
https://github.com/keirf/greaseweazle/wiki/Purchase-a-Greaseweazle
Purchase a Greaseweazle

Tools for accessing a floppy drive at the raw flux level - keirf/greaseweazle

GitHub
Show threadRC2014Sep 26, 2025
@edbrindley I was going to get a Gotek at some point. That works great in my Amstrad PPC640. But as the floppy seems fine in this machine, and I have a LOT of discs, I may as well use them.
Show threadEd BrindleySep 26, 2025
@rc2014 Agreed, the gotek is great with flashfloppy firmware. For the ST I've got one of these that can do floppy disc emulation https://sidecartridge.com/products/sidecartridge-multidevice-atari-st/
SidecarTridge Multi-device for Atari ST

A multi-device emulator on Raspberry Pi Pico steroids for the Atari ST, STE, and Mega series

Show threadNiels MoseleySep 26, 2025
@rc2014 Finally a real processor!!
Show threadGary Sep 26, 2025

@rc2014 you could probably get high off the amount of nicotine that poor thing has absorbed over the years 😆

Give it a good long sniff!

Show threadindigoSep 26, 2025
Sorry, I couldn’t resist :) https://youtu.be/i9A1Wxaz6m8?feature=shared
Darth Frogger - Auf dem Tisch steht ein Atari (live at Anna & Arthur Lüneburg 3.12.2011)

YouTube
Show threadMike Coats 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🇪🇺🌍♻️Sep 26, 2025

@rc2014 I loved my 1040 STe back in the day.

That was my earliest bit of tech influencing - I convinced two of my friends to buy Atari rather than Amiga so we could all “share” our games. GEM punched above its weight for the time too. Shame about the silly mouse/joystick port location.

Show threadDavey CraneySep 26, 2025
@rc2014 beautiful. As a kid I had a 520ST (Never an Amiga!) and I absolutely loved it. Kick started my love of tech.
Show threadvadergbSep 28, 2025
@rc2014 when orangey is better than yellowing. She looks pretty damn cool.
Show threadaeberbachOct 3
@rc2014 the Atari machines always had great industrial design, from the 400/800 on. But the ST line was inferior to the Amiga in every way, unless you needed MIDI 😛
Show threadBredrollOct 3
@rc2014 I've still got my Falcon :)
Show threadWild Eyed Boy From FreecloudOct 3
@rc2014 I spy a PS/2!