Noob with an A500

[Naton]

Hi there, I hope you guys don't mind some really newbie questions, since I guess most Amiga users these days atleast recall the basics.. However I just bought my first Amiga. I used my dad's one as a kid, and when I saw one at a recent gaming exhibit I had to get one. It's a second hand A500 and I'm really excited about it, but I don't really know what to do with it.
Some of my problems are software related sorry for putting them here but I didn't want to start two threads
Firstly, before I even turn it on, I'd like to clean it, open her up and get any dust out, and to check for any problems like battry leakage which I head can happen. I'm a little worried about doing this so if there are any tips you can give to prevent me breaking the thing in the process that would be great
I'd also like to 'reformat' it, if that's the right word for this kind of thing, reset it to its original state, you know :roll:
It also came without any software, as far as I know it already has an OS installed, but no kick start disk or anything, and I don't know which OS version is most suitable for this machine.. Would appreciate advice :-D
Lastly, if there are any hardware addons you think are worth getting I'd like to hear them! The more bits and pieces the better (it came with a 512k ram expander installed)

Sorry if any of these questions seem stupid or a bit much, but thanks for any help you can give, eager to explore what this ol' computer can do :-D

[Naton]

Thanks, this is all enlightening :-D
I cracked the front of it open (those weird shaped screwes required some unconventional tools to get out) and while the dust clogged keys were bad enough, there's actually a dead spider that's made a small web on one of the chips in the top right.. It's only a little one but it scared the crap out of me!
(If it's still working) I think I will look into a hard drive (mainly because it looks cool plugged into the side of it like that ;-)) but is Workbench 1.x or 2.x more suitable do you think? I mainly intend to play old games like Agony and some of the other programs.

[Naton]

The ROM switcher certainly sounds interesting, versitility's always a plus!
I removed the spider's remains, hope I don't run into any more nasty suprises like that, but now I'm up to the metal grate, and can't see any way around the metal prongs holding it in place :-?
I live in Melbourne, I hear there's still a lot of Amiga users around here. ;-)

[Naton]

Thanks Xamiche, cool having local in the community, after I look around a bit I might take you up on the offer :-D
I got the screws out with the end of a nail file ;-)
That sounds like quite a collection Fingers :-D If the price is as good as this one I can see my self snatching up a few more machines eventually ;-)
I got the metal plate case off and apart from a few more cobwebs everything looks fine! I'll give it a quick dust and put it back together and fire it up and see how it goes.

[Naton]

Hi again. So I got my Amiga hooked up to my TV and turned it on. It gave me a white screen, but no disk image, so I removed the RAM expander and bingo, she works! But looking at what I pulled out, I'm not sure that's what it is.
The machine came with it installed. The seller sent me the box for an A501 RAM expander, saying he assumed it was already in the machine, but this doesn't look anything like the picture on the box. Can anyone tell me what this is?
http://img507.imageshack.us/img507/3903/img54052ig4.jpg
I also tried running a floppy with a demo version of the lost vikings on it (only amiga disk on hand) but inserting it takes me to a workbench 1.3 AmigaDOS window, what should I do here? :-?

[Naton]

Ah, thanks I'll try reinstalling it later.
Sorry to get deeper off the hardware topic, but the only things on the screen are the Workbench Screen bar and an AmigaDOS window, can't seem to do anything but move them around and type jibberish :-(

[Naton]

I did first look out for an A4000, made sense if I'm gonna get an Amiga, might as well get the most recent one, with all the new and old capabilities. But since I havn't seen any for sale, and I read there weren't that many made, I reckon they're a bit out of the price range of what I'm willing to spend on a hobby at the moment ;-) I then thought about an A1000, but thought maybe I was delving a bit too far back.. The A500 seemed like the most well rounded machine for me :-)

I got the battery out of the RAM expander, but probably did more harm than good, it took the clamps holding it in place with it, and I chipped one of the little orange things trying to sperate it from the glue :roll: reckless people shouldn't be let near computer chips I guess.(not too bothered if I broke it so don't worry or anything ;-))

Entering Dir gave me an unknown command response, and I managed to get an error 212 typing in c: , if that means anything :roll:

[Naton]

That would be awesome, thankyou :-D PM me the details and I'll send it asap :-)

[Naton]

Thanks for the info and support Retro :-D these batteries seem like a real pain just to tell the time ;-)

[Naton]

I ordered a Quickshot joystick off ebay about a month ago, hoping to get it working with my PC some how. Unfortunatly it got lost in the mail from hongkong, which is a real shame because I distinctly remember liking the feel of the buttons. So as it happens I'm joystickless, and was lamenting ordering another off ebay, so a new one from around here without strings attached would be much appreciated kind sir :-D I'd love any joystick for playing games like Agony :lol: