A little help with my new C64 find..

[DarkSoul]

I finally came across a C64 at a good price (Free- A co-worker put it in my chair today after hearing I liked this kinda thing), and have got it up and running..

It came with 3 carts, Centipede, Q-Bert, and Kickman. I've been unable to convince the latter two to load. Cleaning an option?

As for Centipede- It loads, but I can't seem to find any keys on the keyboard that DO anything once it's running, and when I plug in an Atari controller ('cause I've read they're compatible), all I can do is pause (via the button, corresponds to the space bar on the keyboard), and start the game by wiggling the joystick funny ("Press F1 to start")

Er... Any ideas? Thanks!

[DarkSoul]

If you didn't guess, I don't have an instruction manual, and from what I've seen so far online, it seems like it SHOULD work... =)

[Mayhem]

For the two carts that don't load... yep clean the contacts. You'd be amazed at the condition I get some games in sometimes. Break out the Q-tips and alcohol and give them a swap. Also check out the cart port and give that a quick once over with a Q-tip (no alcohol here), just to clean any dirt that might be in there.

As for Centipede (and any games in general), make sure you try the joystick in both ports. Most games use port 2 (the one nearest the power switch) but some use port 1. The only way to start the game is to press F1. Why you are able to start the game by wiggling the joystick is because port 1 partially crosses the keyboard reading chip circuitry. They both handle the same thing. Turn the C64 on normally, have the stick in port 1 and wiggle. You'll notice characters on the screen. Just part of Commodore's cost cutting and cheap ass manufacturing techniques :P

Nah can't complain... it's a damn well build machine that goes wrong far, far less than anything in the last 15 years...

[congobongo]

What a pain in the ass that whole swapping joystick port thing was. Another reason why I love my new DreamFrodo DC disc :-D .