2025

Sep 26 - Sep 28, 2025

Springfield, OH

CALL FOR SPEAKERS!


If you have an interesting topic you would like to present or talk about and will be coming to Tandy Assembly, we would like to hear from you. Please use this form to register for a presentation and send to tandyassembly@gmail.com. We would like to get presentations for all of the Tandy platforms: Coco, Model I/III/4/4P, Model II, pocket computers, Tandy 1000, MC-10, Model 100 and any other computers produced by Tandy in the 70's and 80's.



Speakers



Joel Hilliard

"Downpoly"



Joel will talk about the music he created using the Orchestra-90, and MIDI/80, a fusion of Synth meets Electric Rock all created using a few TRS-80 Model IIIs and 4/4Ps. He will give a presentation on the methodology used to create the music, hardware and sound setups, CDs of the initial release, along with a Limited Release Color Vinyl and more!


Bio: Born and raised in the Dallas/Fort Worth metropolitan area since the 1980s, Joel developed a deep interest in computers and music at an early age. He holds a bachelor's degree in Cybersecurity from ITT Tech and currently serves as a manager at a Fortune 100 company in Dallas. Computers have profoundly shaped his life, and it was at RadioShack stores that he learned about electronics and technology, which inspired him to collect and restore various vintage machines, including the full line of Z80 microcomputers. When he's not busy tackling complex cybersecurity issues, or the necessary repairs and maintenance these classic machines require, Joel enjoys merging his love for the classic TRS-80 with music, creating a unique sound and experience.


Jim Brain

"Beyond 512kB: Enhancing the CoCo Memory Management Unit"



With the introduction of the Tandy Color Computer 3 came a versatile memory management unit allowing up to 512kB of physical RAM usage and support for multiple MMU mappings. Let's look at how the CoCo3 squeezes 512kB of RAM into the 6809's 64kB address space and how we can expand that support. We also will show how we can retrofit an MMU into the non MMU CoCo1 and 2 and Dragon systems.


Bio: In high school, when Jim's family went to the mall, they dropped him off at the local Radio Shack, where he spent hours selecting and re-selecting bubble packs of resistors, capacitors, transistors, and integrated circuits in order to build ever increasingly complex digital and analog circuits based off his Forrest Mims engineer mini-notebooks (which he purchased at Radio Shack as well). Growing up in the home computer era, Jim picked a career path early, pursuing a B.S in Computer Engineering at the University of Illinois and enjoying a 30+ year career in Information Technology and Security. He's spent the last 21 years ensuring classic systems not only continue to function but can take advantage of new technologies, while ensuring these solutions remain available through open source licensing.







Guidelines for Tandy Assembly Speakers and Presentations


  1. If we need to reach out to you about schedule changes, the topic of your presentation, etc, its important that you respond to us in a timely manner.
  2. Tandy Assembly is a family friendly conference. Some people bring their children to the event. Keep this in mind when putting together your presentation and refrain from inappropriate language and content.
  3. We use YouTube to live stream and record Tandy Assembly presentations. Please do not include music that exceeds “fair use” standards or may otherwise be flagged for copyright violations.
  4. Always be supportive of the other speakers. We're all friends, be supportive and don't speak negatively about other speakers at the event.
  5. We each have our own religious and political beliefs, but a Tandy Assembly presentation is not an appropriate place to express these. Please refrain from political and religious content in your presentation.
  6. Presentations should be relevant to Tandy / Radio Shack computers. This does not mean that your presentation must be technical, but you should always keep Tandy/Radio Shack computers in the context of your presentation.
  7. Please stick to the time allotted to you for your presentation and allow time for Q&A. If there are more questions when your time is up, you can handle these one on one outside the speaking area. Please respect other's by staying within your allotted time.