V-Tech Genius Leader Debugging Cartridge and PCB

thingiverse

This is a work-in-progress project to create a break-out cartridge for the vintage V-Tech Genius Leader series of children's learning computers. For up-to-date information about the whole project, visit the hackaday project page at https://hackaday.io/project/166921-v-tech-genius-leader-precomputer-hacking. Currently, the debug cartridge latches onto the bus at a specific memory address and enables simple 1-byte I/O. I have established a FTDI-USB terminal connection to a Raspberry Pi and developed a proof-of-concept MIDI port using these designs. I also included my PCB designs in the hopes that someone with better KiCAD skills will create a usable version suitable for sending to a PCB manufacturer. Use the 3D printable cartridge case to make it look legitimate. There is also an Illustrator file for the Genius Leader label design. There is some compiler support for the Genius Leader in the z88dk compiler suite. See https://www.z88dk.org/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=16831 for discussions about that. Help and improve this project, and let's create a nice plug-and-play debugging cartridge for these inexpensive computers!