loadstar

John (RodneyLives) gives a history of Loadstar magazine at VCF Midwest 2025, gives demonstrations, and has a Q&A with the live audience. Due to a technical issue only the audio from the presentation is available.

Hello All, (If you don't want to hear my nostalgic ramblings, feel free to skip to close to the end for what I am trying to do.) ;) Loadstar is probably hands down my favorite reason for owning and using a C64 for as long as I did. I kept using my C64 well into the 90s, even as Amiga, PC and...

I've started thinking about whether I should give the Loadstar Explorer treatment to other Softdisk products. First obstacle is, I don't know nearly enough about them. The only non-Loadstar Softdisk product I've ever used is their PC port of my game Circuitry. I think I still have my 3 1/2"...

Commodore World - V2N4 - Page 13 - Loadstar Ad.png

Hello Fellow Loadstarites, Once upon a time, LS offered a novel on disk authored by Jeff Jones named SPORT. I recall wanting it back in the day, but just didn't have the funds. Then time occurred, and it fell out of mind. Reading through the LS Letters, I see the ads for it again. This has...

1986 print ad for Loadstar from Commodore Magazine. Highlighted was the 1986 "Best of Loadstar" collection and a free one-year subscription to Commodore Magazine with a new subscription to Loadstar magazine.

A review that was printed in Commodore World magazine issue #021 for the Loadstar "The Compleat Dave" collection of SID chip tunes music by Dave Marquis.

A print ad for Loadstar that was printed in Commodore World magazine issue #021. Highlighted in the ads are many of the Loadstar "Compleat" and extras collections.

My talk proposal at VCFMW 2025 was unexpectedly accepted! I had forgotten I'd proposed it! I suddenly have to make travel plans for early September! Hooray!

Hope this plays...

I've been brainstorming some Loadstar features that could be excerpted and just make available for use on the internet. One idea that seemed relative easy to accomplish (in that it only took about three days of work) is to pull out all of James Jones' recipes, on various Loadstar issues from 85...

As I work on setting up Loadstar related resources in different spots I realized I'm having a problem finding a squared logo that'll work. Besides the banner type logos that were used in the issue menus, and which changed over time, was there ever a set of official LS logos for branding? Any...

Long ago, I got a Frodo emulator, only to discover that Loadstar did not work as a compleat magazine. So I decided to write a Presenter. It worked fairly well, and I got an IDEA. I called Fender Tucker and said, "You know, we could put together a PC based Loadstar, 'harvesting' programs from the...

Three more videos: Spaceworm (LS126) is a simple game, but it has an evocative presentation! Fire Bug (LS129) is a machine code game about rescuing people from a burning building, while dodging KILLER GEESE. Thousand Miler (LS37) is an adaptation of the French card game Milles Bournes. It's...

Sorry for all the posts, but I have one more game to show off tonight, Forest Fire by Alan Poole. It's your job to limit the spread of four fires set in the forest. Intelligently put out the fires in such a way as to limit their spread, set backfires to hem them in, and try to save as many of...

I won't post too many of these in a row, but here's another for which I recorded gameplay, Zorphon, by Nick Peck, from Loadstar 39. It's a pretty polished spaceship shooter, and difficult enough that in my demo plays I didn't get past level two. In the past, long ago, I seem to remember...

I just uploaded video of Jed's Journey, by Jason Merlo, to Youtube. Find it on Loadstar 87, from your favorite source of Loadstar issues, either from the collection or itch, or however else you can find it. A fun little Zelda-like adventure. Control Jed as he explores the realm, slaying...

I wrote a script that uses VICE's 1541 emulator, c1541, to automatically check the issues to make sure my menu items are finding the right files. In the process, I discovered that the d81 version of issue 114 is missing some files! I think it's missing the files from Side 3, but I haven't...

One of the things I'm working on for my menu system is a short history of Loadstar, that also mentions some notable facts about it. Here's what I've got so far, if anyone wants to suggest additions. (It's not very well ordered yet.): -- Loadstar was an incredibly long-lived computer magazine...

From what I understand, almost all programs submitted to Loadstar needed to have their source code submitted as well. I believe I read it in one of the Diskovery texts somewhere. Does anyone know if all that source code still exists somewhere?

Loadstar CE submitted a new resource: Loadstar 64 Issue #201 - 2001: The year we make contact. Read more about this resource...

CategoryNameCreatorDescription 128wareBlockheads II (C128)Ron Slaminko, Kate SlaminkoNEW! New levels for this classic game for your 80-column trusty ol' Commodore 128. BrainwareLink-UpRon Slaminko, Kate SlaminkoPentominoes is one of the favorite games at the Tower -- and here is a version to...

CategoryNameCreatorDescription BrainwareChain LettersJathiah ClarkOur Four-Letter Word Wizard brings forth a thrilling three-in-one of Word Ladder puzzles. BrainwareLogic to GoKnees Calhoon, Clarence Alger, Bob Dallman, and Bill LaabsCalhoon's Log is back, loaded with nine nasty noggen...

When I was 11 years old, my mother bought the family a C128 when they first came out. She ordered it from an electronics store in NYC and it arrived a few weeks later when were back home in Michigan. I remember her being surprised that it had arrived early because she said they told her that...

So I've started going through all the issues from the beginning to compose a list of all the software that Loadstar published, and compile a list of highlights that might catch the eye of a current-day user. A lot of Loadstar software is, unfortunately, not hugely useful today. Like the...

Recently @gumpy gave me a heads up that there are different disk image versions of issues 45-74 out there. There is a question of which version is the original version that was originally used on the physical disks and some folks are reporting issues running the different versions. Below are...

It's taking me longer than planned to go through each of the disk images to grab the descriptions and to update them here; if there's a particular issue you're after, let me know.

CategoryNameCreatorDescription 128WAREShisen-Sho 128Ron Slaminko & Kate SlaminkoC128 80-column version of Shisen-Sho, a variation of the game Mah-jonng, originally published in Loadstar64 #195, with several enhancements. BRAINWAREAdventure Solution[Unknown]Walkthru for Adventure Colossal...

The original home of Softdisk publishing and the original fabled "Loadstar Tower". Located in Shreveport, Louisiana, USA, the Loadstar Tower was where Loadstar Magazine (for Commodore), Softdisk (for Apple), Big Blue Disk (for PC) and other Softdisk titles had their start.

This issue includes... Master File Backgammon Food Calc ESP Tester

This issue includes... Checkstar Brainpower Quickdraw Pedigree

This issue includes... Resume Writer Wreck of the Copernicus Storywriter Texturizer

This issue includes... Loan Shark Analyzer Fund Analyzer Gangster Label Designer Disk Doctor 128

LoadstarCE submitted a new resource: Loadstar 128 Number 3 - Quarterly for the Commodore 128 Enthusiast! Read more about this resource...

This issue includes... Font Maker 80 1989 Convertible Fontprint 80 Epic

LoadstarCE submitted a new resource: Loadstar 128 Number 2 - Quarterly for the Commodore 128 Enthusiast! Read more about this resource...

This issue includes... Grade Star Keno Polygons Disk Whiz Sound Machine

This issue includes... Chart 128 Boris Questor Potpourri Carbuyer's Scratchpad

Issue number 2 includes... Planet of the Robots Detective Cody Light Racers Middle Earth Quiz

LoadstarCE submitted a new resource: Loadstar Number 2 - The classic disk magazine Read more about this resource...

LoadstarCE submitted a new resource: Loadstar Number 1 - Publication on disk Read more about this resource...

From 1984, this first edition of Loadstar includes... Lunar Lander Disk Scanner Cows & Bulls Color Lister