HereBeDragons
@heredragons.be
Also known as @herebedragons3 on the other site. Collector of all things Dragon - and much else beyond. Occasional fixer of computers, more commonly a breaker of them. See also https://retrofest.uk/ and @shortcircuit.org.uk for exciting events info!
Day 359 - #retrorandom - Santa's been! Happy Christmas everyone!
December 25, 2025 at 9:40 AM
Day 359 - #retrorandom - Santa's been! Happy Christmas everyone!
Not quite a #retrorandom, as I always post this picture at Christmas ... it's my Spectravideo CompuMate running its Christmas demo (built in!). The Compumate is cute, and makes the Atari into an almost unusably bad computer. But wait, the demo gets better ...
December 24, 2025 at 6:43 PM
Not quite a #retrorandom, as I always post this picture at Christmas ... it's my Spectravideo CompuMate running its Christmas demo (built in!). The Compumate is cute, and makes the Atari into an almost unusably bad computer. But wait, the demo gets better ...
Day 355 - #retrorandom - It's a family of Sharps from 2023's Made in Japan at @computinghistory.org.uk - my Japanese MZ-80K2E, an MZ-80A and the gorgeous MZ-2000.
December 21, 2025 at 6:53 PM
Day 355 - #retrorandom - It's a family of Sharps from 2023's Made in Japan at @computinghistory.org.uk - my Japanese MZ-80K2E, an MZ-80A and the gorgeous MZ-2000.
Day 353 - #retrorandom - It's my Triumph Adler Alphatronic again! Sold only through TA's typewriter outlets, this rather expensive 64K Z80 machine was bought by almost no one (and has little to no software either). However, it's a pretty good CP/M machine if you can find the floppy drives for it.
December 19, 2025 at 6:29 PM
Day 353 - #retrorandom - It's my Triumph Adler Alphatronic again! Sold only through TA's typewriter outlets, this rather expensive 64K Z80 machine was bought by almost no one (and has little to no software either). However, it's a pretty good CP/M machine if you can find the floppy drives for it.
Day 352 - #retrorandom - You can never have too many Cefucoms ...
December 18, 2025 at 5:27 PM
Day 352 - #retrorandom - You can never have too many Cefucoms ...
Day 351 - #retrorandom - Sometimes you need to show the machine who's boss ...
December 17, 2025 at 6:45 PM
Day 351 - #retrorandom - Sometimes you need to show the machine who's boss ...
Day 350 - #retrorandom - Who needs the internet when you have Micronet on your ZX Spectrum?! Sadly, the Spectrum turned out to be poorly so I got no further than this ...
December 16, 2025 at 6:45 PM
Day 350 - #retrorandom - Who needs the internet when you have Micronet on your ZX Spectrum?! Sadly, the Spectrum turned out to be poorly so I got no further than this ...
Day 349 - #retrorandom - Here's the box to my Prologica CP400, a Tandy Color Computer clone from Brazil. I love the enormous floppy drive, which until recently I thought was just a mockup and wishful thinking on behalf of Prologica ... but no ...
December 15, 2025 at 5:45 PM
Day 349 - #retrorandom - Here's the box to my Prologica CP400, a Tandy Color Computer clone from Brazil. I love the enormous floppy drive, which until recently I thought was just a mockup and wishful thinking on behalf of Prologica ... but no ...
Day 348 - #retrorandom - The problem with buying a bigger car (back in 2023) was that I could take even more stuff to shows. Here I am, off to Made in Japan, I think. Then again, best to not to speak about the years I've hired a van ...
December 14, 2025 at 6:51 PM
Day 348 - #retrorandom - The problem with buying a bigger car (back in 2023) was that I could take even more stuff to shows. Here I am, off to Made in Japan, I think. Then again, best to not to speak about the years I've hired a van ...
Day 347 - #retrorandom - NOTHING is going to stop me being able to program this EPROM!
December 13, 2025 at 7:31 PM
Day 347 - #retrorandom - NOTHING is going to stop me being able to program this EPROM!
An emotional evening installing SunOS 4.1.3 for the first time in 30 years! I've been getting nostalgic for Sun workstations - if the ZX81 was my first home micro, the Sun was my first work machine. My first job as a junior systems manager was to install a server and network of diskless clients ...
December 13, 2025 at 6:00 PM
An emotional evening installing SunOS 4.1.3 for the first time in 30 years! I've been getting nostalgic for Sun workstations - if the ZX81 was my first home micro, the Sun was my first work machine. My first job as a junior systems manager was to install a server and network of diskless clients ...
Day 346 - #retrorandom - It's the Made In Japan Festival at the @computermuseum in 2023. Who (aside from @loudscotsbloke, whose table this is) can name all the computers in this row?!
December 12, 2025 at 6:05 PM
Day 346 - #retrorandom - It's the Made In Japan Festival at the @computermuseum in 2023. Who (aside from @loudscotsbloke, whose table this is) can name all the computers in this row?!
Day 345 - #retrorandom - It all started here. On the right, the first home computer I ever saw. On the left, the first one I ever used. It brings a tear to my eye to see them together!
December 11, 2025 at 5:52 PM
Day 345 - #retrorandom - It all started here. On the right, the first home computer I ever saw. On the left, the first one I ever used. It brings a tear to my eye to see them together!
Day 344 - #retrorandom - I may be biased, but I do think the Dragon 200 is one gorgeous computer. This Dragon 64 in a funky case wasn't enough to save Spain's Eurohard - too little, too late - but it's still a beauty.
December 10, 2025 at 10:58 PM
Day 344 - #retrorandom - I may be biased, but I do think the Dragon 200 is one gorgeous computer. This Dragon 64 in a funky case wasn't enough to save Spain's Eurohard - too little, too late - but it's still a beauty.
Day 343 - #retrorandom - It may be naked, but I'm sure you all know what this - it's a VIC-20! Or actually it might be my German VC-20 ...
December 9, 2025 at 6:15 PM
Day 343 - #retrorandom - It may be naked, but I'm sure you all know what this - it's a VIC-20! Or actually it might be my German VC-20 ...
Day 342 - #retrorandom - Setting up for the Retro Computer Festival in 2023 and if it's not obvious, the theme is French computers! So much AZERTY! And before anyone points at the interloper Dragon, it's also French, modified to have the RGB SCART output you see on all French machines ...
December 8, 2025 at 7:21 PM
Day 342 - #retrorandom - Setting up for the Retro Computer Festival in 2023 and if it's not obvious, the theme is French computers! So much AZERTY! And before anyone points at the interloper Dragon, it's also French, modified to have the RGB SCART output you see on all French machines ...
Day 340 - #retrorandom - Well, that doesn't look like the usual Dragon graphics - and it's not! The board on the right with the SCART connection is the clue. It's actually an MSX2 chipset, but powered by the Dragon's 6809!
December 6, 2025 at 9:13 PM
Day 340 - #retrorandom - Well, that doesn't look like the usual Dragon graphics - and it's not! The board on the right with the SCART connection is the clue. It's actually an MSX2 chipset, but powered by the Dragon's 6809!
Day 339 - #retrorandom - Here's my Tandy Coco 3 back in 2022 demonstrating the power of the 6809 processor as it runs a perfect transcoding of the original Donkey Kong (translated from the original Z80)
December 5, 2025 at 10:38 PM
Day 339 - #retrorandom - Here's my Tandy Coco 3 back in 2022 demonstrating the power of the 6809 processor as it runs a perfect transcoding of the original Donkey Kong (translated from the original Z80)
As anyone who went to the Retro Computer Festival at @computinghistory.org.uk can testify, it's probably the most maddening game ever created.
Getting ready to entertain / frustrate shoppers with Flagon Bird on the Dragon at ShortCircuit (it's late night shopping and Christmas lights turn on, on Sandgate High Street tonight!)
December 5, 2025 at 4:20 PM
As anyone who went to the Retro Computer Festival at @computinghistory.org.uk can testify, it's probably the most maddening game ever created.
Day 338 - #retrorandom - I think I could have included this in my recent run of French computers - the Phillips VG5000. Yes, I know Phillips are Dutch, but it was designed, built and sold only in France with an AZERTY keyboard. I won't rant about the surreal keyboard design for once!
December 4, 2025 at 10:58 PM
Day 338 - #retrorandom - I think I could have included this in my recent run of French computers - the Phillips VG5000. Yes, I know Phillips are Dutch, but it was designed, built and sold only in France with an AZERTY keyboard. I won't rant about the surreal keyboard design for once!
Day 337 - #retrorandom - It's been a while since we've had a Sharp, and this is one of my faves, an MZ-1200, sold only in Japan. Basically an MZ-80K in an MZ-80A case. Funky orange numberpad is the giveaway.
December 4, 2025 at 12:26 AM
Day 337 - #retrorandom - It's been a while since we've had a Sharp, and this is one of my faves, an MZ-1200, sold only in Japan. Basically an MZ-80K in an MZ-80A case. Funky orange numberpad is the giveaway.
Day 336 - #retrorandom - After all that fun in France, let's go for something quintessentially English - the Memotech MTX512. A very handsome machine, easily repaired by just pushing things back into their sockets.
December 2, 2025 at 10:02 PM
Day 336 - #retrorandom - After all that fun in France, let's go for something quintessentially English - the Memotech MTX512. A very handsome machine, easily repaired by just pushing things back into their sockets.
Day 335 - #retrorandom - And let's end this trip to France with probably the most gorgeous 8bit machine ever made - the delectable Alice 90!
December 1, 2025 at 5:54 PM
Day 335 - #retrorandom - And let's end this trip to France with probably the most gorgeous 8bit machine ever made - the delectable Alice 90!
Day 334 - #retrorandom - Another random French computer, the Thomson TO9 from 1985. Another stylish case and, like all Thomsons, with a light pen included. If anyone is looking for Christmas present ideas for me, I would love a TO9+
November 30, 2025 at 9:15 PM
Day 334 - #retrorandom - Another random French computer, the Thomson TO9 from 1985. Another stylish case and, like all Thomsons, with a light pen included. If anyone is looking for Christmas present ideas for me, I would love a TO9+
Day 332 - #retrorandom - Another day in France, another stylish French computer. This time the Texas Instruments powered, infra red controlled Exelvision EXL100 ...
November 29, 2025 at 9:52 PM
Day 332 - #retrorandom - Another day in France, another stylish French computer. This time the Texas Instruments powered, infra red controlled Exelvision EXL100 ...