[Coco] Fantasy Football = CoCo Five.

[Francis Swygert]

You have a great outline, and it all sounds good! A few thoughts:
1) Something like the CoCoSDC built in. Yes, you can use one of the cartridge slots for one, but without it the only "provided" external storage is via a DriveWire server. Not a bad way to go, but requires a complete system. If implemented on a SBC like a RaspberryPI or Stick PC a DW server wouldn't take much room, on an older mini PC it wouldn't cost much, but it's still additional equipment.

2) PS/2 or USB keyboard support without an additional interface. I know having a CoCo style keyboard makes it feel more like a CoCo, but it's an upgraded CoCo anyway -- an upgraded keyboard that's cheap and easy would be nice.
3) Having it in a CoCo-like case (and using other than a readily available keyboard) just adds an unnecessary expense. Every upgraded system that started with a single keyboard/system unit migrated to a separate system case and keyboard. If these were being made by a large manufacturer en-mass there might be some cost savings in doing so, but in small quantities (not thousands!) it just adds costs with no benefit except for nostalgia.
Other than that I like everything you've outlined. The only big hurdle is writing the control software to make it happen. The hardware shouldn't be too difficult, though it would require a not inconsiderable amount of time and money to fully develop. As noted, some things, like the 6809 FPGA cores, have already been developed. There is work in progress on a GIME replacement, but you don't really need that since the GIME is already in the CoCo3 FPGA cores. 

I never have seen any real reason to have CoCo 1/2 compatibility. There will be some due to the need to make it CoCo3 compatible, but there are a few functions that were dropped with the CoCo3 and some that were retained but really aren't needed. That little bit of ROM space might come in handy for advanced functionality. But maybe not -- the way you have it outlined with a control core operating a separate CPU in CoCo compatible mode may make it trivial to include CoCo1/2 compatibility. 

========== original message ====================
Date: Fri, 09 Sep 2022 14:35:07 -0400
From: coco at jechar.ca


Back in 1994 ( I had got my first CoCo a CoCo 3 in late 1990 ) deciding 
that no attempted Color Computer 4 had really been sufficiently 
successful at capturing what I thought a proper successor should 
accomplish,I wrote down what my dream CoCo would do.

I think it was partly inspired by the idea of having multiple TC9's in a 
Tomcat and later by Sock Masters CoCo 4 idea ( 
http://www.6809.org.uk/twilight/sock/cocofile/coco4.html ).

Later I realized that my CoCo 4 concept was far to complex and if it 
ever happened it would be only after one or more intermediate steps. So 
I now call the evolved version of this concept the CoCo 5.

For many years I would write down ideas about the CoCo 5 on scraps of 
paper.When getting ready to move I gathered these papers together in one 
binder and a scribbler at the time I had half a mind just to throw them out.

Of the later attempts to create a CoCo4 with FPGA's  the Matchbox Coco 
came very close but the lack of a CoCo Cartridge Slot definitely  
disqualified it in my mind.
News that FPGA's were now capable of replacing Multi-core processors and 
Zipsters CoCo2 plus complete with  Cartridge Slot and also Zipsters 
GIME-X gave me the feeling that a CoCo 4 and perhaps even a CoCo 5 might 
be possible.

So about 4 or 5 months ago I decided to revisit the ideas I had written 
down and compile them into a consistent specification presented as a web 
site so I started creating the CoCo Five website at
http://jechar.ca/coco/5 .

In the process I weeded out many inconsistencys and contradictions an 
came up with some new ideas and extensions of old ideas and was 
supprized to find that the result filled 30 web pages many of them many 
pages in length. Much of this is because rather then just a list of 
specs I wanted to create a complete vision of what a CoCo 5 would be 
like.

The thing is that I would hope that anyone seriously considering 
creating a CoCo 4 would look at the ideas for the CoCo5 and consider how 
much of that they might be able to accomplish.

The site at http://jechar.ca/coco/4 looks at what some partial 
implementations of the CoCo5 idea might look like. And includes a table 
comparing current and possible future cocos with the current CoCo3+ and 
the probably forever a pipe-dream CoCo5.

Over the years some improvements such as the 6309 drive wire and 
affordable IDE hard drive interfaces and finally the GIME-x have allowed 
the CoCo3 to do more then ever but not near what "my 1994 CoCo4 Idea" 
envisioned.

List of links to look at.

Zipster:
https://thezippsterzone.com/the-coco2-plus-a-coco1-2-clone/
https://thezippsterzone.com/2019/03/27/gime-x/
Sock Master:
http://www.6809.org.uk/twilight/sock/cocofile/coco4.html
My Pages:
http://jechar.ca/coco/4
http://jechar.ca/coco/5

So If you decide that you are curious what the ultimate CoCo might look 
like.
Read , Enjoy and feel free to send me any comments at coco at jechar.ca

Charlie




Frank Swygert
 Fix-It-Frank Handyman Service
 803-604-6548