[ Retro Scan of the Week ] Thoughware JingleDisk

December 7th, 2015 by Benj Edwards

Thoughtware JingleDisk Jingle Disk Animated musical computer christmas card animation artwork Xmas - 1985Jingle disk, jingle disk, jingle all the way

Throughout the ages, fans of Christmas have found new and varied ways to express their love for the holiday. In the 1980s, personal computer users joined in the fun, using their machines to host a new breed of animated Christmas greetings that were distributed through magazines, BBSes, or even sold on disk like Thoughtware’s JingleDisk, seen here.

Upon inserting JingleDisk into your Commodore 64 or Apple II computer (It’s a double-sided disk with data for the different platforms on each side) and booting it up, the user is presented with a Christmas-themed animation set to various holiday musical standards. It’s fun to watch.

There is something about the warmth of the glow from a cathode ray tube screen that lends itself well to computerized Christmas celebrations — perhaps it echoes some primal link to prehistoric man sitting around the fire telling stories.

By the way, this JingleDisk came to me by way of a family friend who just turned 40 years old today. Happy Birthday, Chris!

[ From Thoughtware JingleDisk product packaging, 1985, front/back ]

Discussion Topic of the Week: Have you ever programmed a Christmas-themed demo or sent a computerized Christmas card? Tell us about it.



5 Responses to “[ Retro Scan of the Week ] Thoughware JingleDisk”

  1. Philip Says:

    I vaguely remember getting/using one of these disks. It must have been on a PC too, probably in glorious CGA graphics.

  2. Brian M. Says:

    I had the Jingle Disk! OMG I totally forgot about it!

  3. ecryder Says:

    I absolutely remember Jingle Disk. MANY fond memories from when I was 10.

    If anyone wants to see the glory:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZminmO11_Q

  4. Bill S Says:

    Lazy Game Reviews on Youtube has a great review of the disk! Check it out.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUnb-AoFyTY

  5. Justin M. Salvato Says:

    I was completely unaware of this title. I was so excited to know of its existence that I bought one on eBay after seeing this article. Thanks!

    I’m pretty sure I made some Christmas art on my Coleco ADAM using the SmartLOGO program.

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