Color 64 BBS got a facelift with version 8.1a! Numerous enhancements and corrections were implemented by Mike Newkirk and a support website is available for any installation needs.

This compilation is a prebuilt package to run on mac OS using a modified VICE environment (included with package). Just drop into a directory of your choice and follow the install notes.

Whatever sort of fun programs you want for your VIC-20, you'll find them in this great book. 

dfile-128 DBMS File Utility Programs is a companion utility manual for dfile128 that explains extra tools for managing Commodore 128 database files: PRINT FILE prints large record files directly from disk, MERGE FILES combines compatible record files into one larger file, CLONE FILE copies selected fields or records into a new structure, XPORT FILE strips dfile formatting so records can be used by other programs, and READ FILE displays or prints the structure of dfile128 record and format files. Overall, it extends dfile128 beyond basic database entry by making it easier to combine, restructure, export, inspect, and print large or specialized database files.

dfile-128 is a Commodore 128 database management system by Mike Konshak/michaelsoft that lets users create custom record files, define fields, add/edit/delete/view/sort/search records, and print information as lists, mailing labels, reports, or calculated reports. It is memory-based, so records are loaded into RAM for fast access, but database size is limited by available memory. It supports 40- and 80-column displays, 1541/1571 disk drives, printer configuration, backups, and conversion of older DATAFILE records, making it a practical low-cost C128 tool for organizing address lists, inventories, collections, memberships, and similar structured data.

Midnight Assembly System for C128 Addendum 2 is a short pre-release note for MAS-128, a Commodore 128 assembly development system. It explains startup, major features, RAM bank usage, built-in 1700/1750 RAMDOS, disk/file commands, source conversion tools, editor/search features, custom function keys, and BRK-based pseudo-opcodes for extending 8502 assembly programming.

Midnight Assembly System for C128 Addendum 1 is a short alpha/beta note for MAS-128, a Commodore 128 assembly programming environment. It covers legal status, startup steps, key features, RAMDOS support for 1700/1750 RAM expansion, disk/file commands, source conversion tools, editor/function-key features, and advanced BRK-interpreted opcodes for extending 8502 programming.

C128 Diagnostic Instruction and Troubleshooting Manual is Commodore’s service manual for using the C128 diagnostic cartridge and test harness. It explains setup, diagnostic startup, memory/ROM/I/O/sound tests, error meanings, and step-by-step troubleshooting for power, reset, clocks, video, RAM, CPUs, PLA, MMU, VIC, VDC, and CIA chips.

Troubleshooting and Repairing Your Commodore 128 by Art Margolis is a detailed hardware repair manual for the Commodore 128. It explains how to diagnose problems by symptoms, disassemble the computer, locate and replace chips, test logic circuits, troubleshoot memory, video, sound, I/O, clock, bus, and power-supply issues, and use test-point charts and schematics to track faults.

Commodore 128 Troubleshooting & Repair is a repair guide for diagnosing and fixing Commodore 128 hardware problems. It explains the C128’s main subsystems, basic electronics, troubleshooting tools, symptom-based repair procedures, video/keyboard/I/O problems, preventive maintenance, and reference appendices with pinouts, board layouts, ports, specs, and keyboard codes.

The Commodore 64 Book of Sound and Graphics is a 1984 Micro Press guide by Simon that teaches C64 users how to work around the machine’s limited BASIC by using memory locations, PEEK/POKE techniques, sound programming, graphics, sprites, and simple games. It explains the C64’s weaknesses plainly, then provides practical programs and examples to help users create music, graphics, utilities, and games.

Checkers v2.1 by David Slate - Who doesn't like a simple but classic game of Checkers?

Watson's Workbook 2 - Exploring Commodore 64 Graphics - Each book in the Watson's Workbook series has been designed to illustrate a particular aspect of computer programming. Following in this tradition Exploring Graphics has been specially written to teach the reader the fundementals of the C64's graphics functions. It offers not only an introduction to the use of graphics for a beginner but also for the knowledgeable programmer.

This book walks new Commodore 64 users through typing, editing, listing, saving, and debugging BASIC programs, then introduces sound programming through POKE commands, volume, pitch, waveforms, attack/decay, sustain/release, loops, variables, and random sound generation. Its examples include simple notes, random tones, looping effects, and simulated surf sounds.

The List Manager is a 1986 Commodore 64/128 list organizer and text outliner. It lets users create hierarchical “tree” lists, add/edit/delete items, mark items with checks/colors/highlighting, move/copy/collect entries, save and retrieve lists, print pages/trees/details, and manage large lists by splitting them into smaller files with a master list.

** You can find the software here.

The List Manager is a 1986 Commodore 64/128 list organizer and text outliner. It lets users create hierarchical “tree” lists, add/edit/delete items, mark items with checks/colors/highlighting, move/copy/collect entries, save and retrieve lists, print pages/trees/details, and manage large lists by splitting them into smaller files with a master list.

** You can find the manual here.

CCS64 v4.0 Released May 4th, 2026 - Advantages over previous versions: Reverse playback, improved time-travel debugging , rewritten DirectX rendering, increased cartridge support, improved compatibility.

You can find more information and the latest versions at https://www.ccs64.com/

Two disks (.d64 and .d81) to accompany The GEOS Column in the May 2026 COMPUTE!'s Gazette.

geoWrite tips and tools

C64 Dev Machine is a visual programming tool for making software on the Commodore 64, that beige home computer from 1982 that is still beloved by developers, musicians, and artists worldwide.
Instead of writing lines of assembly code by hand, you connect visual blocks called nodes together on a canvas.

You can find the software here.  Please consider supporting the author.

Lenkel Disk Edit v1.3 - Lenkel Disk Editor for Commodore 64 and 1541, 1571, and 1581 disk drives by D. Paul Luscher is a utility for examining data of a disk by track & sector.  Any T/S with the standard range can be viewed/edited.  The editor allows some text typing, moving the cursor, but it is meant to allow editing byte by byte of in-place bytes and is not a text editor in that sense. You can enter any value from 0-255 using PETASCII "screen-poke" characters and RVS on/off.  More information and the latest version can be found at https://www.lenkel.com/software .

In Quizam!, 1–8 players move around a space-themed board by answering multiple-choice trivia questions. The faster you answer correctly, the more spaces you move, but you must use the full move amount, so timing your answer is part of the strategy. The goal is to capture eight satellites, bring them to disposal stations, then return to Earth to complete the mission.

You can find the manual here.

Quizam! is a 1985/1986 Commodore 64 trivia game by Daniel W. Skelton, published by Interstel. Players answer multiple-choice trivia questions to move around a space-themed board, capture eight malfunctioning satellites, dispose of them, and return to Earth. The manual explains setup, player/difficulty/game options, controls, included trivia categories, and strategy tips. It also includes instructions for Quizzer, a companion program for creating custom question disks with up to 8 subjects and 85 questions per subject.

You can find the game here.

New Features:

• Support multiple resolutions U64E2
• Updated LED strip controller. Now supports WS2812 and APA102
• Added support for USB (boot) mice into 1351 mouse emulation (U64 / U64E2 only)
• Added support for PDsid (at least detection and maybe also 6580/8580 switch)

WiFi and Network Improvements:

• Network stack configuration; fixes modem disconnects
• Ethernet driver bugfix; fixes random TCP/IP stack corruptions
• DNS Server configurable and Time settings reenabled on U64 I
• Enabling / disabling DHCP now works (used to switch to 0.0.0.0)
• Delays in socket polling set correctly for LWIP 2.1
• Automatic network selection
• WiFi: Do not connect to unknown public APs
• Fixed UIChoiceBox for Authentication mode configuration (needed for open networks)
• Split Rx and Tx buffers to WiFi module to avoid Tx starvation (fixes WiFi lockups)

HDMI Improvements:

• Support multiple resolutions U64E2
• 1080p50 is now fully compliant (U64E2)
• Fix for HDMI CTS 7.33a (both U64 and U64E2)

Modem Improvements:

• ACIA compatibility improvements

Cartridge Emulation Improvements:

• Pagefox CRT [ISSUE-492]
• EAPI fix [ISSUE-495]
• Automatic mirroring of cartridge ROM area (improves compatibility)
• C64GS cartridge support

Web Interface Improvements:

• Update Live Monitor
• BASIC Editor, bug fixes and tokenizer improvements
• Web SID/PRG/CRT player: drag&drop support

JPL64 is a relatively new Commodore 64 emulator written by James Purcell, also known as JPL. According to the author, everything has been written from scratch using just his own knowledge and has not used any work from any other projects.

Jane 128 is a 1985 GUI-style productivity suite for the Commodore 128 that combined a word processor, spreadsheet, and simple database into one beginner-friendly package. It used icons, windows, and a pointer-based interface instead of typed commands, making it feel advanced and approachable for its time. While charming and historically interesting, it did not fully take advantage of the C128’s power, so it is remembered more as a neat early office-suite experiment than as a top-tier productivity tool.

You can find the manual here, and the keyboard shortcuts here.

This is the original firmware that came with the Commdore 64 Ultimate by Commodore.net.  Later firmware numbering scheme was changed.  The first update to the firmware [Version 1.10] can be found here.

Midnight Assembly System is a 1986 symbolic assembler for the Commodore 64 by Matthew Montchalin / Mountain Wizardry Software. It provides a full-screen editor, two-pass assembly, disk support, long symbolic labels, pseudops, expression evaluation, printer/listing output, and access to RAM under ROM, making it a complete C64 assembly-language programming environment rather than just a monitor/disassembler.

This booklet introduces Jane for the Commodore 128 as an easy, icon-driven productivity suite with three programs: JaneWrite word processor, JaneCalc spreadsheet, and JaneList database. It explains that the programs can work separately or together, highlights joystick/picture-based shortcuts, promotes Commodore peripherals, and includes a cut-out keyboard reference chart for using Jane without the joystick.

The Midnight Assembly System for C-128 (MAS-128) is a 1987/1988 symbolic assembler by Matthew Montchalin/Mountain Wizardry Software for Commodore 128 assembly-language programming. The manual explains how to load, customize, and use MAS-128, including its RAM 0/RAM 1 bank-aware object-code generation, full 80-column screen editor, Quick Keys, disk and RAMDOS support, immediate commands, expression evaluation, pseudo-opcodes, file conversion tools, and included sample/source utilities such as Breaker-128, S-128, Swirling Sprites, and Music Demo. Overall, it is both a user guide and technical reference for serious C-128 assembly programmers who want an integrated editing, assembling, disk-management, and debugging workflow.

Here is a link to the MAS-128 software.

Jane 128 is an all-in-one productivity suite for the Commodore 128 that combines three tools in a highly approachable, icon-driven interface: JaneWrite for word processing, JaneCalc for spreadsheets and calculations, and JaneList for organizing lists and records such as addresses, birthdays, or collections. Designed for home and personal use, it emphasizes ease of learning by replacing typed commands with joystick or mouse-controlled pictures, windows, and animated help screens. The manual presents Jane as a “home office helper” that makes everyday tasks like writing letters, balancing budgets, printing documents, and managing information simple and even fun for non-technical users, reflecting Commodore’s mid-1980s push to make computers practical for ordinary households.

Computer Diagnostic (1980s, Real Software) for the Commodore 64 is a utility disk designed to test and troubleshoot C64 hardware by checking key system components such as memory, keyboard, screen, and peripheral functions.

Here is a link to the manual.

Thanks to Edward T. for sharing the software.