But that was half the fun of doing learning to hack on a C64. Adding coder tools typed in from MLX code from Compute! or Compute!'s Gazette and learning assembly by taking apart programs in Monitor was a deep learning experience for many beginning 6502 coders.

It's sad that they didn't last, but the chip was simply an evolutionary dead end. I've recently thought about finding one to give my grandson in an attempt to pry away from a tablet his parents gave him.

The crop of tablet/cell-addicted kids is a sad state of affairs.