[Elecraft] Computers in the Stone Age

[Charlie T, K3ICH]

Don't forget how revolutionary the Commodore VIC-20 was with all of 3.2 K of 
RAM.  We (Microlog) made a plug in called the AIR-1 for the VIC that allowed 
CW & RTTY communications.  I wrote a complete production test program in 
BASIC that required no other test equipment but plugging in the AIR-1 and 
running the tape loaded test program.  It checked the CW copy, aligned the 
AFSK generator and verified CW & PTT keying, all in that 3.2 K of RAM with 
neat graphic indicators on the screen for the production testers.

Needless to say I REALLY got fancy when I had all of that extra memory to 
play with on the later C-64.  It was not the full 64K but LOTS more than the 
VIC.

73, Charlie k3ICH


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Kevin Cozens" <kevin at ve3syb.ca>
To: <elecraft at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Wednesday, May 28, 2014 2:19 PM
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Computers in the Stone Age


> Someone wrote:
>> Desktop computers did not come into being until the advent of the IBM
>> PC in the 1980s.
>
> (Among?) The first desktop computers were the S-100 bus based machines. 
> First, the Altair 8800 announced on the cover of Popular Electronics 
> magazine in January 1976, and its later popular variant the IMSAI 8080. 
> They were in boxes along the size of 17" rack mount sized boxes with 
> high-amperage power supplies.
>
> Other early desktop computers that came along not long after were the 
> Apple I and II lines, and the Commodore computers such as their PET.
>
> Josh W6XU wrote:
>> Maybe he's remembering running DR-DOS on the Apple II? Required a Z80 
>> card.
>
> PC-DOS/MS-DOS/DR-DOS were all for the IBM PC and compatible computers. The 
> plug-in card for the Apple II and later computers that had the Z-80 CPU on 
> it was so that you could run CP/M. I have one for my pair of Apple 
> computers.
>
> The plug-in card and floppy disk system used with the Apple II could be 
> thought of as the K2 of its day. It may seem quaint today but the disk 
> system was a marvel of engineering in its simplicity and elegance.
>
> -- 
> Cheers!
>
> Kevin.
>
> http://www.ve3syb.ca/           |"Nerds make the shiny things that 
> distract
> Owner of Elecraft K2 #2172      | the mouth-breathers, and that's why 
> we're
>                                 | powerful!"
> #include <disclaimer/favourite> |             --Chris Hardwick
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