Episode 145 - Interview with Paul Terrell, The Byte Shop - Part 4

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Sponsors:

• 8-Bit Classics 

• Arcade Shopper  

• FutureVision Research 

Hello, and welcome to episode 145 of the Floppy Days Podcast, for November, 2024.  I am Randy Kindig, your host for this audio tribute to the amazing variety of home computers that existed in the late 70’s thru the 80’s, before the influence of Big Blue changed the landscape forever.

This month I’m continuing the series of interviews I’ve been doing recently with Paul Terrell.  As we have discussed, Paul Terrell is a name well-known in the annals of computer history; probably most famously for his kickstart of Apple Computer through the purchase of one of Steve Jobs’ and Steve Wozniak’s first batches of Apple I computers for his Byte Shop.  The Byte Shop was a very early computer store that was one of the few that existed in the world, at the time.

In this interview, we continue to focus primarily on The Byte Shop, how it got started, what it was like, and much more.  This is part 4 of a 4-part series on just that topic with Paul.  If you want to know what it was like to run a computer store in those early days, this is the interview for you!  Along the way, you’ll learn even more about just what the home and hobby computer scene was like in those days.

In future episodes, Paul and I will discuss other topics around his long and distinguished career, such as the aforementioned dealings with the fledgling Apple Computer, and other ventures in which Paul was involved after the Byte Shop, including a business that rented software.

New Acquisitions/What I’ve Been Up To

• Episodes 8 (https://floppydays.libsyn.com/floppy-days-episode-8-the-trs-80-model-i-part-i) and 9 (https://floppydays.libsyn.com/floppy-days-episode-9-the-trs-80-model-i-part-2), containing interviews with David and Theresa Welsh, authors of the book “Priming the Pump: How TRS-80 Enthusiasts Helped Spark the PC Revolution”.

• Lobo MAX-80 - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max-80 

• HP-97 Calculator and repair:

• https://www.hpmuseum.org/hp6797.htm 

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HP-67/97 

• https://www.ebay.com/usr/waterhosko 

Upcoming Shows

• Show list I maintain for the remainder of the current year - https://floppydays.libsyn.com/current-year-vintage-computer-show-schedule) 

• Silly Venture WE (Winter Edition) - Dec. 5-8 - Gdansk, Poland - https://www.demoparty.net/silly-venture/silly-venture-2024-we 

• Atari Party 2024 - Dec. 7 (noon - 4p.m.) - Quakertown Train Station, Quakertown, PA - http://atariparty.org/ 

• Vintage Computer Festival SoCal - February 15-17, 2025 - Hotel Fera Events Center, Orange, CA - vcfsocal.com 

• Midwest Gaming Classic - April 4-6 - Baird Center, Milwaukee, WI - https://www.midwestgamingclassic.com/ 

• VCF East - April 4-6, 2024 - Wall, NJ - http://www.vcfed.org 

• Indy Classic Computer and Video Game Expo - April 12-13 - Crowne Plaza Airport Hotel, Indianapolis, IN - https://indyclassic.org/ 

Interview with Paul Terrell

• (3) Apple-1 Prototype Polaroid Photographs Given to Paul Terrell of the Byte Shop in 1976 - https://www.rrauction.com/auctions/lot-detail/348985606984001-steve-jobs-3-apple-1-prototype-polaroid-photographs-given-to-paul-terrell-of-the-byte-shop-in-1976/?cat=3 

• Ray Borrill’s Data Domain blog - https://www.landsnail.com/thedatadomain/remember.htm