Ever wondered what it’s like to reconnect with your Atari computer after decades away? That’s exactly what I faced earlier this year when I decided to revisit my Atari roots. I found myself in a never-ending battle to find the resources needed to get it up and running again. 

• How do I connect my Atari now? 
• Do I need to reconnect my 850 interface or dust off my MPP modem?
• And who would I call after 30+ years? 
• The internet has long taken over the role of BBSs, hasn’t it?

I quickly discovered an array of new hardware options, which left me feeling overwhelmed. What are all these new devices? What’s a Fuji-Net? What is SIO2SD or SIO2PC? What is an INCOGNITO? The list goes on…

Websites like CNET.com have been invaluable in helping me understand what’s what and which items best suit my needs, despite the multitude of choices for the land of Windows. I wish the Atari community had such a website to help with my Atari purchases.

Back in the land of the Atari, I’m still trying to figure out why I might need an Ultimate Cartridge or why SIDE2 might be better than SIDE3. At present, I want to run some SALT Cartridges but wonder if I really need to spend $25 on eBay to get that single-use cartridge or get an EPROM burner and learn to do it myself at a higher cost. Or should I get an A8Pico Cartridge? Will that work? These are the things I ponder as I consider my hobby. I will come to a decision, but not before Googling a lot and finding 2 or 3 pieces of key information that will help me take the plunge. Will I purchase the correct one? Time will tell.

As I publish my findings, I will document what I discovered along the way, thus giving you another resource to make a decision in case you want to do the same. Sign-up for the “Atari Insights” newsletter (below) where we will share discoveries every month.