Problem with cartridges

[Turridan]

I recently acquired a Vic 20 and having had one as a child it's bringing back some wonderful memories. I'm having a problem loading game cartridges. Any thoughts on how I can solve the problem? Cheers

[Mayhem]

What's happening? Have you cleaned the cartridge contacts and the cartridge port itself? Are you trying to boot any of the Scott Adams adventures?

[Turridan]

I got a vic 20 recently and it came with 4 game cartridges. When I plug them in and boot the system nothing happens, the usual prompt comes up. I'm not sure if I have to enter a command. The games are original ones such as Gorf

[Mayhem]

The Scott Adams need an SYS call to start, but games such as Gorf should auto boot. Time to give everything a clean...

[Vic20-Ian]

Try rubbing the cartridge edges gently with Scotchbrite (green nylon pan scrubber)

Insert the cartridge firmly and ensure it is fully seated - a little more force is needed than on other systems

[Questarian]

A standard pencil eraser works wonders on dirty cart pins as well. Also, the pins on the socket might need some attention. I've used lens wipes and a thin cardboard/plastic strip to clean them out. It's not as good as the eraser trick but, as I haven't seen a good socket cleaning kit in ages, it's better then nothing.

-John-

[Boray]

scotchbrite will probably scratch the surface. I would recommend some kind of cleaning alcohol and cotton swabs.

[Turridan]

Thanks for the tips everyone. I'll try and get the issue sorted this weekend