PETSCII – A Character Set and a Creative Platform

• Authors: Markku Reunanen , Tero Heikkinen , Anders Carlsson
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

PETSCII is the built-in character set used on 8-bit Commodore computers, such as the PET, C-64 and Plus/4. The character set and the BASIC environment provided an entry point to rudimentary graphic editing for a generation of hobbyists. Over the years PETSCII has been used for a variety of creative purposes: for example games, demos, telecommunications, videos, books and fine art have been created using the graphical symbols. Through the analysis of existing art works and our own hands-on project – a graphics editor – we dig deeper into the specific properties of the character set. In this article we show how the fixed symbols set the frame for what is possible and how, on the other hand, they provide grounds for creative experimentation, display of skill and recognizable styles.

Keywords

EN

text art; digital culture; retrocomputing

• Publisher: Uniwersytet Łódzki. Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Łódzkiego
• Journal: Replay. The Polish Journal of Game Studies
• Year: 2018
• Volume: 5
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 27-47

Dates

published

2018-11-22

Contributors

author

Markku Reunanen

• University of Turku and Aalto University

author

Tero Heikkinen

• University of the Arts Helsinki

author

Anders Carlsson

References

• Bagnall, B. (2005). On the edge: The spectacular rise and fall of Commodore. Winnipeg: Variant Press.
• Carlsson, A. (2017). Beyond encoding: A critical look at the terminology of text graphics. WiderScreen, 20(1–2). Retrieved from http://widerscreen.fi/numerot/2017–1-2/beyond-encoding-a-critical-look-at-the-terminology-of-text-graphics/
• Carlsson, A., & Miller, A.B. (2012). Future potentials for ASCII art. In: K. Zreik, & R. Gareus (Eds.), Postdigital art – Proceedings of the 3rd computer art congress (pp. 13–24). Paris: Europia.
• Danet, B. (2003). Pixel patchwork: ‘Quilting in time’ online. Textile, 1(2): 118–143.
• Franke, H. W. (1971). Computer graphics – computer art. London: Phaidon Press.
• Giraldo Arteaga, M. (2014, September 3). Generative ebook covers [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://www.nypl.org/blog/2014/09/03/generative-ebook-covers
• Hardagon, M. (2011). Like city lights, receding: ANSi artwork and the digital underground 1985–2000. (Unpublished master’s thesis.) Concordia University.
• Heikkinen, T., & Reunanen. M. (2017). Rock, joka tiesi liikaa [Rock who knew too much]. WiderScreen, 20(1–2). Retrieved from http://widerscreen.fi/numerot/2017–1-2/rock-tiesi-liikaa/
• Higgins, H. (2009). The grid book. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
• Lindsay, C. (2003). From the shadows: Users as designers, producers, marketers, distributors and technical support. In: N. Oudshoorn & T. Pinch (Eds.), How users matter: The co-construction of users and technologies (pp. 29–50). Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
• Maher, J. (2012). The future was here: The Commodore Amiga. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
• Manovich, L. (2001). The language of new media. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
• Meyers, R. (2017). Keys of fury – Type in beyond the scrolling horizon. WiderScreen, 20(1–2). Retrieved from http://widerscreen.fi/numerot/2017–1-2/keys-of-furytype-in-beyond-the-scrolling-horizon/
• Moe, H., & Van den Bulck, H. (Eds.). (2016). Teletext in Europe: From the analog to the digital era. Gothenburg: Nordicom.
• Montfort, N., Baudoin, P., Bell, J., Bogost, I., Douglass, J., Marino, M.C., Mateas, M., Reas, C., Sample, M., & Vawter, N. (2012). 10 PRINT CHR$(205.5+RND(1)); : GOTO 10. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
• Musturi, T. (2017). Unplanned blocky puzzles – Creating PETSCII for the Commodore 64. WiderScreen, 20(1–2). Retrieved from http://widerscreen.fi/numerot/2017–1-2/unplanned-blocky-puzzles-creating-petscii-for-the-commodore-64/
• Paul, L.J. (2013). Text-mode and the live PETSCII animations of Raquel Meyers: Finding new meaning through live interaction. Leonardo Electronic Almanac, 19(3). Retrieved from http://www.leoalmanac.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/LEAVol19No3-Paul.pdf
• Polanyi, M. (1966). The tacit dimension. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
• Reas, C., & Fry, B. (2014). Processing: A programming handbook for visual designers and artists (2nd ed.). Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
• Saarikoski, P., Suominen, J., & Reunanen, M. (2017). Pac-man for the VIC-20: Game clones and program listings in the emerging Finnish home computer market. Well Played, 6(2): 7–31.
• Schön, D. (1991). The reflective practitioner: How professionals think in action. Aldershot: Ashgate Publishing.
• Silvast, A., & Reunanen, M. (2014). Multiple users, diverse users: Appropriation of the personal computer by demoscene hackers. In: G. Alberts, & R. Oldenziel (Eds.), Hacking Europe: From computer cultures to demoscenes (151–163). Berlin: Springer.
• Xu, X., Zhang, L., & Wong, T. (2010). Structure-based ASCII art. ACM Transactions on Graphics, 29(4): 52:1–52:10.

Identifiers

DOI

10.18778/2391-8551.05.02