Slovenijales colorgraf: The Forgotten Slovenian Computer: A Rare Homebrew Marvel from 1980s Yugoslavia

In the early 1980s, the zeitgeist didn’t just block the free movement of people — it also restricted the flow of technology. Until 1984, it was illegal to import home computers into Yugoslavia. But where there’s passion, there’s always a way.

This is the story of a forgotten Slovenian home computer — a machine so rare that only about 30 were ever made — built by a small team of visionaries led by engineer Saša Burian.

Smuggling Technology Across Borders

Faced with the import ban, Burian and his small team set out on a bold mission: to build a home computer themselves. Their inspiration? The Tandy Radio Shack TRS-80 Color Computer (CoCo) from the United States — chosen specifically for its color graphics capabilities and separate graphics chip, the Motorola 6847.

Smuggling technology was risky business. The team imported a TRS-80 CoCo from the US to Italy, then covertly carried it across the border into Yugoslavia. From there, they began reverse engineering the system, determined to create their own domestic machine.

As development neared completion, the project was offered to Slovenijales — a state-owned company primarily known for wood exports. The idea was to manufacture the computer in cooperation with Galeb from Izola, an organization that connected craftsmen from various industries.

However, political pressure forced Slovenijales to back out at the last moment. The design eventually landed with the team behind the Iskra HR-84 — but sadly, it was shelved before mass production could begin.

Despite ambitious plans to produce 100 units in 1984, only around 30 computers were ever built, according to Burian’s own estimates.

TRS-80 CoCo Compatible — With a Yugoslav Twist

The Slovenian computer was fully hardware- and software-compatible with the TRS-80 CoCo, and partially compatible with the British Dragon 32/64.

However, the team had to overcome a serious technical challenge: the Motorola 6847 graphics chip was NTSC-only, while Yugoslavia used the PAL standard. The solution? A custom PAL conversion board — a testament to the team’s technical ingenuity.

Sadly, due to the project's abrupt cancellation, no Slovenia-specific software was ever developed for the system.

Specifications:

Feature	Specification
CPU	Motorola 6809
RAM	64 KB (4164 DRAM chips)
ROM	16 KB TRS-80 CoCo compatible (expandable to 24 KB, additional 8kb can be expanded via the cartridge port the same as on Tandy COCO), (two HN482764 ROM chips)
Graphics	192x256 resolution or 24x80 of character display, 9 colors (Motorola 6847)
Sound	6-octave, 6-bit DAC, onboard speaker + external output
OS Compatibility	Extended BASIC, OS-9 compatible
I/O Ports	RS232C serial port, parallel port, cassette interface, 2 joystick ports (TRS-80 compatible with ADC inputs)
Planned Price	150,000 Yugoslav Dinars (1984)~ 2000$ in 2025

Unique Features

ON/OFF switch, image inversion switch, and reset button on the front panel
Back panel with RS232 serial port, joystick ports, video output (RF), parallel port, and keyboard connector
The keyboard was likely sourced from Vakuumska Tehnika Ljubljana — the same manufacturer that supplied keyboards for other Yugoslav terminals like the PAKA-2000
OS-9 support and terminal functionality via RS232
Internal power supply with +5V (1.5A), +12V(0.4A), -12V(0.1A) and -5V (100uA)
I/O was controlled via two MC6821 PIA chips
When using OS-9 up to 4 floppy drives could be used
Joystick ports had 4 6-bit Analog to Digital converter on the pins, enabling a connection of measurement instruments to the computer
The cassette interface had motor control lines, allowing the computer to start/stop tape playback automatically
The onboard ROM could contain also PASCAL, Micro assembler or OS-9

Front panel with switches, picture was taken at GOTO 1982 exhibition: https://goto1982.muzej.si/stik.html

If you would like to get a feeling on how the computer behaved and its capabilities, I would suggest this online TRS-80 COCO emulator, Colorgraf would have the same graphical capabilities.

Preserving a Lost Piece of Slovenian Tech Heritage

Thanks to Saša Burian’s generosity, we’ve managed to scan the original BASIC manual and technical documentation — all of which is now available on my GitHub repository.

Unfortunately, we are still searching for a ROM dump of this computer. If you have any leads, or if you happen to own one of these rare machines, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

It’s incredible that even in a time of isolation, limited resources, and political obstacles, Slovenian engineers managed to create a machine that could stand alongside Western home computers of its era.

This computer may never have had mass production, or its own software ecosystem — but its story deserves to be remembered.