Announcing RetCon 2025 - the Retro Computing festival!

[martyn_hill]

Good morning all and happy Sunday!

Just a short announcement that this year's RetCon event is taking place on Saturday May 31st in West London - details and ticket sales available via the links further below.

RetCon 2025 flyer

We're dead excited this year to be welcoming members of the Spectrum Next team - including our own Phoebus Dokus! Moreover, the team have kindly donated a White Spectrum Next for the Raffle! The Next team expect to have some news on the KS3 project as well as announcing some highly anticipated new Cores...

I myself will be demonstrating QL and Spectrum Networking - using the ZX/QLAN network and a Q68 to deliver user-selectable games for guests to play on the ZX Spectrum, QL and Next/QL-Core platforms (thanks to Rich Mellor and Tom Dalby for their support!)

I will also be delivering a short talk and Q&A on everything Sinclair Networking for anyone interested in the topic.

I also hope to demonstrate Leon's amazing QLion card, time permitting, as well as the latest features of the Next/QL with its enhanced graphics driver (courtesy of Mr Goodwin!)

You can read more about the event itself on the website: https://retconfestival.co.uk/ or else on FB https://www.facebook.com/RetConFestival

Tickets can be purchased on the door or online (advised) at the EventBrite site: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/retcon-the ... 0499530759

Wishing you all a warm and sunny week ahead!

[martyn_hill]

Hi again everyone!

With less than 2 weeks to go before the RetCon event on Saturday 31st May in West London, I thought to say that, if you are planning on attending the event, feel free to drop me a PM beforehand, so I know to look out for you on the day, when I'll be hosting a table with QL, QL/Next and Spectrum hardware all networked with a host of games to play on them!

It's promising to be a full and fun event - family friendly, with lots of retro systems and games to play and several 'celebrity personalities' from both the retro and modern-day computing scene!

Hope to see you there!

[Magicuk]

Great to meet you at RetCon Martin.
(Allan)

[Derek_Stewart]

HI,

Nice video of the Spectrum Next talk:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8eMABF1hD8


I wish there would sort out the KS2 Spectrum Next Manual, as the Contents page is at the back of the book in front of the Index pages, which is not how all books are presented.

Also when is the documentation for the QL core going to done?

[martyn_hill]

Hi Allan!

Great to meet you at RetCon Martin.
(Allan)

Likewise! Did you enjoy the event?

Did you happen to stay for the later talks (Sinclair Networking and the SpexNext team)?

I'd be interested in your feedback!

[martyn_hill]

Hi Derek!

I wish there would sort out the KS2 Spectrum Next Manual, as the Contents page is at the back of the book in front of the Index pages, which is not how all books are presented.

It is a bit odd, isn't it!

Phoebus who wrote the manual sometimes reads here, but I'll pass on your feedback when I next chat with him.

Also when is the documentation for the QL core going to done?

For the time being, the QL-Core (aka, the QL/Next) documentation is only online here:

https://www.specnext.com/sinclair_ql-qs/

But I believe that Phoebus intends to publish a downloadable version once the dust settles on the evolving Core specifications (Leon continues to enhance it, alongside his parallel QLion project with which the Core shares a lot of common design features.)

[Derek_Stewart]

Hi Derek!

I wish there would sort out the KS2 Spectrum Next Manual, as the Contents page is at the back of the book in front of the Index pages, which is not how all books are presented.

It is a bit odd, isn't it!

Phoebus who wrote the manual sometimes reads here, but I'll pass on your feedback when I next chat with him.

Also when is the documentation for the QL core going to done?

For the time being, the QL-Core (aka, the QL/Next) documentation is only online here:

https://www.specnext.com/sinclair_ql-qs/

But I believe that Phoebus intends to publish a downloadable version once the dust settles on the evolving Core specifications (Leon continues to enhance it, alongside his parallel QLion project with which the Core shares a lot of common design features.)

I have moved the Table of Contents in my manual, to where it shoukd be at the start.

I suppose thus the Greek way of doing, always at the back for guidance

I have QLion Board with VGA output, like the QL Next no idea about the various commands, so I do not use that or the Next. I use its main rivial according to the last talk on You Tube.

The online link to the QL Core is instructions, leaves a lot out if the way the QL operating looks for QLWA files in the first 16 FAT32 entries, once this is known, everything is easy.

I do notlike the lack Fuction keys on the Next keyboards, so use a PS/2 keyboard. Works well and the XberryPi...

[martyn_hill]

The online link to the QL Core is instructions, leaves a lot out if the way the QL operating looks for QLWA files in the first 16 FAT32 entries, once this is known, everything is easy.

Yes, I have submitted some further suggested text to the Next Team which I understand they are considering adding - let's see...

Phoebus is adamant that native FAT-32 SD-Card access is really the way to go, potentially side-stepping the whole WIN Container challenge. We have a prototype driver available, though I myself haven't yet had time to test it out...

I do notlike the lack Fuction keys on the Next keyboards, so use a PS/2 keyboard. Works well and the XberryPi...

I sympathise! It was explained to me the technical reason for the slightly less than intuitive FN key mapping, but whilst I often use an external PS/2 keyboard with my Next, I have now gotten used to going without it.

Fortunately, the 'feel' of the native Next keyboard is very good (to my mind, anyway.)