A home computer was a class of personal computers entering the market in 1977 and becoming common during the 1980s. A personal computer ( PC) is any Computer whose original sales price size and capabilities make it useful for individuals and which is intended to be operated [1] These computers typically cost much less than business, scientific or engineering-oriented desktop personal computers of the time, and were generally less powerful in terms of memory and expandability. However, a home computer often had better graphics and sound than contemporary business personal computers, and was usually sold for purposes of education, game play, and personal productivity use such as word processing. A video game is a Game that involves interaction with a User interface to generate visual feedback on a video device. Advertisements for early home computers were rife with possibilities for their use in the home, from cataloging recipes to personal finance to home automation,[2][3][4] but these were seldom realized in practice as they usually required the home computer user to learn how to program; a significant time commitment many weren't willing to make. Home automation (also called smart homes or domotics) is a field within Building automation, specializing in the specific Automation requirements Still, for many the Home Computer offered the first possibility to learn to program. [5]
The home computer became affordable for the general public due to the mass production of the microprocessor. A microprocessor incorporates most or all of the functions of a Central processing unit (CPU on a single Integrated In contrast to their predecessors, which had front-mounted switches and blinkenlights to control and indicate internal system status and often came in kit form, home computers were designed to be used by the average consumer, not necessarily an electronics hobbyist. Blinkenlights is a hacker 's Neologism for diagnostic lights on old mainframe computers and modern network Hardware. [6] These machines were pre-assembled, with keyboards and plug-in peripheral devices such as screens, cassette tape recorders, joysticks, and (later) disk drives. A joystick is an input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle or direction to the device it is controlling Usually the manufacturer would provide all the peripheral devices practical to add to any system as extra cost accessories. Often peripherals were not interchangeable between brands of home computer (or sometimes even between successive models of the same brand).
Very typically a home computer would have had a version of the BASIC programming language in read-only permanent memory. In Computer programming, BASIC (an Acronym for Beginner's All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code) is a family of High-level programming languages [7] To save the cost of a dedicated monitor, the home computer often would have connected either directly or through an RF modulator to the family TV set as video display and sound system. An RF modulator (for Radio frequency Modulator) is a device that takes a Baseband input signal and outputs a Radio frequency -modulated signal Television ( TV) is a widely used Telecommunication medium for sending ( Broadcasting) and receiving moving Images, either monochromatic [8]
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Background
After the success of systems like the RadioShack TRS-80, the Commodore PET and the Apple Inc. Apple II in 1977, large numbers of new machines of all types began to appear during the late 1970s and early 1980s. RadioShack Corporation (formerly Tandy Corporation) ( is a chain of electronics retail stores in the United States, as well as parts of North America TRS-80 was Tandy Corporation 's desktop Microcomputer model line sold through Tandy's Radio Shack stores in the late 1970s and early The PET ( P ersonal E lectronic T ransactor) was a home -/ Personal computer produced by Commodore starting in 1977 Apple Inc, ( formerly Apple Computer Inc, is an American Multinational corporation with a focus on designing and manufacturing Consumer electronics Some home computers sold many units over several years, such as the BBC Micro, Sinclair ZX Spectrum, Atari 800XL and Commodore 64, and attracted third-party software development. The Sinclair ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit personal Home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research Ltd The Atari 8-bit family is a series of 8-bit Home computers manufactured from 1979 to 1992
To some extent, low-end home computers competed with video game consoles. The markets weren't entirely distinct, as both had the ability to be used for games. A common marketing tactic was to show a computer system and console playing games side by side, then emphasising the computer's greater ability by showing it running user-created programs, educational software, word processing, spreadsheet and other applications while the game console showed a blank screen or continued playing the same repetitive game. The North American video game crash of 1983 (sometimes known as the video game crash of 1984 because it was in that year that the full effects of the crash became apparent Books were available for most models of computer with titles along the lines of "64 Amazing BASIC Games for the Commodore 64" and were a popular means of both learning to program and software distribution. Some video game consoles offered "programming packs", consisting of a version of BASIC in a ROM cartridge. For the ColecoVision console Coleco even announced an expansion module which should convert it into a full-fledged computer system, but this never materialised, and instead the Coleco Adam was announced. The ColecoVision is Coleco Industries ' second generation home Video game console and was released in August. Coleco was a company founded in 1932 by Maurice Greenberg as " Co nnecticut Le ather Co mpany " The Coleco Adam was a Home computer, an attempt in the early 1980s by American toy manufacturer Coleco to follow on the success of its ColecoVision [9] During the peak years of the home computer market, scores of models were produced, usually with little or no thought given to compatibility between different manufacturers or even within product lines of one manufacturer. [10] The concept of a computer platform did not exist, except for the Japanese MSX standard. In Computing, a platform describes some sort of Hardware architecture or Software framework (including Application frameworks, that allows MSX was the name of a standardized Home computer architecture in the 1980s [11]
The introduction of the IBM Personal Computer in August 1981 would eventually lead to standardization in personal computing, largely due to the system's open architecture, which encouraged production of third-party clones of the unit. Open architecture is a type of Computer architecture or Software architecture that allows adding upgrading and swapping components IBM PC compatible computers are those generally similar to the original IBM PC, XT, and AT. While the Apple II would be quickly displaced by the IBM PC for office use, Apple Computer's 1984 release of the Apple Macintosh created a new model for the home computer which IBM-compatible computers would eventually imitate. Apple Inc, ( formerly Apple Computer Inc, is an American Multinational corporation with a focus on designing and manufacturing Consumer electronics Macintosh, commonly nicknamed Mac is a Brand name which covers several lines of Personal computers designed developed and marketed by Apple Inc IBM PC compatible computers are those generally similar to the original IBM PC, XT, and AT.
The declining cost of IBM-compatible "personal computers" on the one hand, and the greatly increased graphics, sound, and storage capabilities of dedicated video game consoles on the other, caused the market segment for home computers to vanish in the early 1990s in the US. In Europe, the home computer remained a distinct presence for a few years more, with the Amiga and Atari ST lines being the dominant players, but today a computer purchased for home use anywhere will be very similar to those used in offices - made by the same manufacturers, with compatible peripherals, operating systems, and application software.
Technology
Many home computers were superficially similar. Most had a keyboard integrated into the case; sometimes a cheap-to-manufacture chiclet keyboard in the early days, although full-travel keyboards quickly became universal due to overwhelming consumer preference. A chiclet keyboard is slang for a Computer keyboard built with an array of small flat rectangular or lozenge-shaped rubber or plastic keys that look like Erasers or Most systems could use an RF modulator to display 20–40 column text output on a home television. An RF modulator (for Radio frequency Modulator) is a device that takes a Baseband input signal and outputs a Radio frequency -modulated signal The use of a television set as a display almost defines the pre-PC home computer. Although monitors dedicated for use with a computer were available for this market segment, it was often a later purchase only made after users had bought a floppy disk drive, printer, modem, and the other pieces of a full system. This "peripherals sold separately" approach is another defining characteristic of home computers. For an account of the words periphery and peripheral as they are used in biology sociology politics computer hardware and other fields see the Many first time computer buyers brought a base C-64 system home to find they needed to purchase a disk drive or Datassette before they could make use of it. The Commodore 1530 ( C2N) Datassette (a Portmanteau of Data + cassette) was Commodore 's dedicated computer Tape recorder
In the early part of the 1980s, home computers were mostly based on 8-bit microprocessor technology, typically the MOS Technology 6502 or the Zilog Z80. Eight-bit CPUs normally use an 8-bit data bus and a 16-bit address bus which means that their Address space is limited to 64 KBs This is not a "natural A microprocessor incorporates most or all of the functions of a Central processing unit (CPU on a single Integrated MOS Technology Inc, also known as CSG (Commodore Semiconductor Group, was a semiconductor design and fabrication company based in Norristown Pennsylvania The MOS Technology 6502 is an 8-bit Microprocessor that was designed by Chuck Peddle for MOS Technology in 1975 The Zilog Z80 is an 8-bit Microprocessor designed and sold by Zilog from July 1976 onwards A notable exception was the TI-99 series, announced in 1979 with a 16-bit TMS9900 CPU. The Texas Instruments TI-99/4A was an early Home computer, released in June 1981 originally at a price of USD $525 Introduced in 1976 and based on the Texas Instruments 990 Minicomputer CPU, the TMS9900 was one of the first true 16-bit [12]
Processor clock rates were typically 1–2 MHz for 6502 based CPU's and 2–4 MHz for Z80 based systems, but this aspect of performance was not emphasized by users or manufacturers, as dealing with the systems' limited RAM capacity, graphics capabilities and storage options took priority. The clock rate is the fundamental rate in cycles per second (measured in Hertz) at which a Computer performs its most basic operations such as adding two Clock speed was considered a technical detail of interest only to users needing accurate timing. To economize on component cost, often the same crystal used to produce color television compatible signals was also divided down and used for the processor clock. A crystal oscillator is an Electronic circuit that uses the mechanical Resonance of a vibrating Crystal of piezoelectric material to create an This meant processors rarely operated at their full rated speed, and had the side-effect that European and North American versions of the same home computer operated at slightly different speeds and different video resolution due to different television standards. PAL, short for Phase Alternating Line, is a colour -encoding system used in Broadcast television systems in large parts of the world NTSC ( National Television System Committee) is the Analog television system used in the United States, Canada, Japan, Mexico
Many home computers initially used the ubiquitous compact audio cassettes as a storage mechanism. The Compact Cassette, often referred to as audio cassette, cassette tape, cassette, or simply tape, is a Magnetic tape sound Most implementations were notoriously slow and unreliable, but floppy disk drives found on more costly business-oriented microcomputers were expensive and used disks eight inches wide at the beginning of the home computer era. A floppy disk is an increasingly Obsolete data storage medium that is composed of a disk of thin flexible ("floppy" Magnetic storage medium encased Costs declined toward the end of the 1980s as sales of microcomputers increased and large production of 5. 25" drive mechanisms enabled economy of scale. The 5. 25" floppy disk drives would become standard, with 3. 5" drives being made available for most systems toward the latter part of the decade. Most software for home computers remained sold on 5. 25" disks, however; 3. 5" drives were used for data storage. Standardization of disk formats was not common; sometimes even different models from the same manufacturer used different disk formats. Various copy protection schemes were developed for floppy disks but most were broken in short order, and many users would only tolerate them for games as wear and tear on disks was a significant issue in an entirely floppy-based system, and having a backup disk of vital application software was seen as important. Copy protection, also known as content protection, copy prevention, or copy restriction, is a technology for preventing the unauthorised reproduction Copy programs that advertised their ability to copy or even remove common protection schemes were a common category of utility software. Utility software (also known as service program, service routine, tool, or utility routine) is a type of Computer software.
In contrast to modern computers, home computers most often had their OS stored in ROM chips. This made startup times very fast - no more than a few seconds but made upgrades difficult or impossible without buying a new unit. Usually only the most severe bugs were fixed by issuing new ROMs to replace the old ones at the user's cost. The user interface was usually only a BASIC interpreter coupled to a character-based screen or line editor, with applications performing all other OS duties themselves. In Computer programming, BASIC (an Acronym for Beginner's All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code) is a family of High-level programming languages In Computer science, an interpreter normally means a Computer program that executes, i Visual editors are editing programs which display the text being edited on the screen as it is being edited as opposed to line-oriented editors (such as ed A line editor is a Text editor Computer program that is oriented around lines As multitasking was not common on home computers until late in the '80s, this lack of API support wasn't much of a liability. Application programs usually accessed hardware directly to perform a specific task, often "switching out" the ROM based OS to free the address space it occupied. In Computing, an address space defines a range of discrete addresses each of which may correspond to a physical or virtual Memory register, a network host In an enduring reflection of their early cassette-oriented nature, most home computers loaded their Disk Operating System (DOS) separately from the main OS. The DOS was only used to send commands to the floppy disk drive and needn't be loaded to perform other computing functions. One notable exception was Commodore, whose disk drives actually contained a 6502 processor and Commodore DOS in ROM. Commodore DOS, aka CBM DOS, was the Disk operating system used with Commodore 's 8-bit computers. Many home computers also had a cartridge interface which accepted ROM-based software. In various types of electronic equipment a cartridge can refer one method of adding different functionality or content (e This was occasionally used for expansion or upgrades such as fast loaders, and application software on cartridge did exist, but the vast majority of cartridges were games. A fast loader is a software program for a Home computer - most commonly the Commodore 64 - that accelerates the speed of file loading from the Floppy disk [13]
From about 1985, the high end of the home computer market began to be dominated by "next generation" home computers using the 16-bit Motorola 68000 chip, which helped to enable the greatly increased abilities of the Amiga and Atari ST series. Motorola Inc ( is an American, multinational Fortune 100, Telecommunications company based in Schaumburg Illinois. The Motorola 68000 is a 16/32-bit CISC Microprocessor core designed and marketed by Freescale Semiconductor (formerly Motorola Semiconductor The Amiga is a family of Personal computers originally developed by Amiga Corporation. The Atari ST is a home / Personal computer that was commercially available from 1985 to the early 1990s Clock rates on these systems were approximately 8 MHz with RAM capacities of 256 kB (for the base Amiga 1000 system) up to 1024 kB (1 megabyte, a milestone, first seen on the Atari 1040 ST). The Amiga and ST both had GUIs inspired by the Apple Macintosh, but at a list price of $2495 (over $5000 in 2007 dollars), the Macintosh itself was too expensive for most households. Macintosh, commonly nicknamed Mac is a Brand name which covers several lines of Personal computers designed developed and marketed by Apple Inc
Radio frequency interference
After the first wave of computers landed in American homes, the US Federal Communications Commission began receiving complaints of electromagnetic interference to television reception. By 1979 the FCC demanded that home computer manufacturers submit samples for radio frequency interference testing. It was found that "first generation" home computers, which often included their own screens, emitted too much radio frequency noise for household use. Some manufacturers appealed to the FCC to waive the requirements for home computers, while other manufacturers (with compliant designs) objected to the waiver. Many manufacturers had to supply an external RF modulator to allow their units to connect to a home television receiver. An RF modulator (for Radio frequency Modulator) is a device that takes a Baseband input signal and outputs a Radio frequency -modulated signal Eventually techniques to suppress interference became standardized. Electromagnetic compatibility (EMC is the branch of electrical sciences which studies the unintentional generation propagation and reception of electromagnetic energy with reference to [14]
"The Home Computer Revolution"
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, from about 1977 to 1983, it was widely predicted [15] that computers would soon revolutionize many aspects of home and family life as they had business practices in the previous decades. [16] Mothers would keep their recipe catalog in "kitchen computer" databases and turn to a medical database for help with child care, fathers would use the family's computer to manage family finances and track automobile maintenance (note the gender roles). The Honeywell 316 was a popular 16-bit Minicomputer built by Honeywell starting in 1969 A gender role is defined as a set of perceived behavioural norms associated particularly with Males or Females in a given social group or system Children would use disk-based encyclopedias for school work and would be avid video gamers. Video games were introduced as a commercial entertainment medium in 1971, becoming the basis for an important entertainment industry in the late 1970s/early 1980s in the United Home automation would bring about the intelligent home of the '80s. Home automation (also called smart homes or domotics) is a field within Building automation, specializing in the specific Automation requirements Home automation (also called smart homes or domotics) is a field within Building automation, specializing in the specific Automation requirements Using some sort of computer technology, television would be interactive. Morning coffee would be brewed automatically under computer control. The same computer would control the house lighting and temperature. Robots would take the garbage out, and be programmable to perform new tasks by the home computer. A robot is a mechanical or Virtual Artificial agent In practice it is usually an electro-mechanical system which by its appearance or movements Electronics were expensive, so it was generally thought that each home would have one computer for the entire family to use, with interfaces to the various devices it was expected to control.
All this was predicted to be commonplace sometime before the end of the decade, but virtually every aspect of the predicted revolution would prove not to be or be delayed. The computers available to consumers of the time period just weren't powerful enough to perform any single task required to realize this vision, much less do them all simultaneously. The home computers of the early 1980s could not multitask. Even if they could, memory capacities were too small to hold entire databases or financial records, floppy disk-based storage was inadequate in both capacity and speed for multimedia work, and the graphics of the systems could only display blocky, unrealistic images and blurry, jagged text. Before long, a backlash set in—computer users were "geeks", "nerds" or worse, "hackers". The word geek is a Slang term noting individuals as "a peculiar or otherwise odd person especially one who is perceived to be overly obsessed with one or more things The North American video game crash of 1983 soured many on home computer technology. The North American video game crash of 1983 (sometimes known as the video game crash of 1984 because it was in that year that the full effects of the crash became apparent The computers that were purchased for use in the family room were either forgotten in closets or relegated to basements and children's bedrooms to be used exclusively for games and the occasional book report. A book report (or Book review) is an exposition giving a short summary of a book and a reaction to it
It took another 10 years for technology to mature, for the graphical user interface to make the computer approachable for non-technical users, and for the internet to provide a compelling reason for most people to want a computer in their homes. The Internet is a global system of interconnected Computer networks Predicted aspects of the revolution were left by the wayside or modified in the face of an emerging reality. The cost of electronics dropped precipitously and today many families have a computer for each family member, or a laptop for mom's active lifestyle, a desktop for dad with the kids sharing a computer. Encyclopedias, recipe catalogs and medical databases are kept online and accessed over the world wide web not stored locally on floppy disks or CD-ROM. The World Wide Web (commonly shortened to the Web) is a system of interlinked Hypertext documents accessed via the Internet. Our coffee may be brewed automatically, but the computer is embedded in the coffee maker, not under external control. An embedded system is a special-purpose Computer system designed to perform one or a few dedicated functions often with Real-time computing constraints As of 2008, robots are just beginning to make an impact in the home, with Roomba and Aibo leading the charge. AIBO ( A rtificial I ntelligence ro' BO' t homonymous with "pal" in Japanese was one of several types of Robotic Pets designed
This delay wasn't out of keeping with other technologies newly introduced to an unprepared public. Early motorists were widely derided with the cry of "Get a horse!"[17] until the automobile was accepted. Driving is the controlled operation of a land Vehicle, usually a Motor vehicle such as a Truck or a car. Television languished in research labs for decades before regular public broadcasts began. The Television Technology can be divided along two lines those developments that depended upon both mechanical and electronic Principles and In an example of changing applications for technology, before the invention of radio, the telephone was used to distribute opera and news reports, whose subscribers were denounced as "illiterate, blind, bedridden and incurably lazy people". [18] Likewise, the acceptance of computers into daily life today is a product of continuing refinement of both technology and perception.
Use today
As many older computers have become obsolete and in some cases nonfunctional, it has become popular amongst enthusiasts[19] to virtually "recreate" these machines, their environments and popular software titles[20] with emulation software. An emulator duplicates (provides an emulation of the functions of one System using a different system so that the second system behaves like (and appears to One of the more well-known emulators is the Multiple Emulator Super System which can emulate most of the better known home computers. MESS ( Multi Emulator Super System) is an Emulator for many game consoles and computer systems based on the MAME core This page lists the Computer systems supported by the MESS emulator as of version 0 One system for which many emulators exist is the MSX. A list of MSX Emulators MSX was the name of a standardized Home computer architecture in the 1980s A more or less complete list of home computer emulators can be found here. This article lists software and hardware that emulates computing platforms Games for many 8 and 16 bit platforms are becoming available for the Wii Virtual Console. Virtual Console, sometimes abbreviated as VC, is a specialized section of the Wii Shop Channel, an online service that allows players to purchase and download As of 2008, game consoles are beginning to incorporate most of the most common uses for PCs in the home - all of the current console generation feature web browsers and music playing capability in addition to gaming. The Xbox 360 also features instant messaging. The Xbox 360 is the second Video game console produced by Microsoft, and was developed in cooperation with IBM, ATI, and SiS. Through the web browser component, word processing, email and photo editing is available. Future home computer users may opt for the all-in-one simplicity of a console over a standard PC.
Retrocomputing is gaining in popularity, with many enthusiasts using real Commodore 64 hardware to perform modern tasks such as surfing the web and email. Retrocomputing is a term used to describe the use of early computer hardware and software today The 64 has also been repackaged as the C-One and C64 Direct-to-TV, both designed by Jeri Ellsworth with modern enhancements. The C-One is a Single-board computer designed by Jeri Ellsworth, a self-taught designer and Jens Schönfeld from Individual Computers, The C64 Direct-to-TV, called C64DTV for short is a single- chip implementation of the Commodore 64 computer contained in a Joystick with 30 Jeri Ellsworth (born 1974 is an American Entrepreneur and self-taught Computer chip designer [21]
Collecting
Many enthusiasts have started to collect home computers, with older and rarer systems being much sought over. Sometimes the collections turn into a "museum", often the collections are presented on web sites. [22]
Notable home computers
The list below shows many of the most popular or significant home computers of the late 1970s and of the 1980s. The Disk II was a 5¼-inch floppy disk drive designed by Steve Wozniak and manufactured by Apple Computer.
The most popular home computers in the USA up to 1985 were: the TRS-80 (1977), various models of the Apple II family (first introduced in 1977), the Atari 400/800 (1979), the Commodore VIC-20 (1980) and the Commodore 64 (1982) which is still the highest-selling single model of personal computer ever, with over 17 million produced before production stopped in 1994 – a 12-year run with only minor changes. TRS-80 was Tandy Corporation 's desktop Microcomputer model line sold through Tandy's Radio Shack stores in the late 1970s and early The Atari 8-bit family is a series of 8-bit Home computers manufactured from 1979 to 1992 The VIC-20 ( Germany: VC-20; Japan: VIC-1001) is an 8-bit Home computer which was sold by Commodore Business Machines [23]
In Europe the situation was slightly different, as many of the British made systems like Sinclair's ZX81 and Spectrum, and later the Amstrad/Schneider CPC were generally much cheaper in Europe than US systems (such as the Atari and Apple models). The Sinclair ZX81 Home computer, released by Sinclair Research in 1981, was the follow up to the company's ZX80. The Sinclair ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit personal Home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research Ltd Amstrad is an electronics firm based in Brentwood in Essex, England and founded in 1968 by Sir Alan Michael Sugar in the The Amstrad CPC is a series of 8-bit Home computers produced by Amstrad Plc during the 1980s and early 1990s The reverse was also true, as popular British systems like the Spectrum never became popular in the US, like the ill-fated Timex Sinclair 2068. The Timex Sinclair 2068 ( TS2068) released in November 1983, was Timex Sinclair 's fourth and last Home computer for the US The result was that these British systems were much more popular in Europe than in the USA, the only notable exception being the Commodore 64 (C64), which competed favorably price-wise with the British systems, and was the most popular system in Europe much like in the USA. [24][25]
Until the introduction of the IBM PC in 1981, computers such as the Apple II and TRS 80 also found considerable use in office work. [26]
(For a comprehensive overview of home computers, i. e. not just the most notable ones given below, see the List of home computers. This is a list of Home computers, sorted Alphanumerically by manufacturer's name and Chronologically by computer model )
1970s
Three microcomputers were the prototypes for what would later become the home computer market segment; but when introduced they sold as much to hobbyists and small businesses as to the home.
- June 1977: Apple II (North America) (color graphics, eight expansion slots)
- August 1977: Tandy Radio Shack TRS-80 (N. TRS-80 was Tandy Corporation 's desktop Microcomputer model line sold through Tandy's Radio Shack stores in the late 1970s and early Am. ) (first home computer for less than US$600) (used a dedicated monitor for FCC rules compliance).
- December 1977: Commodore PET (N. The PET ( P ersonal E lectronic T ransactor) was a home -/ Personal computer produced by Commodore starting in 1977 Am. ) (first all-in-one computer: keyboard/screen/tape storage)
The following computers were also typical of the home computer segment:
- 1979: Atari 400/800 (N. The Atari 8-bit family is a series of 8-bit Home computers manufactured from 1979 to 1992 Am. ) (first computer with custom chip set and programmable video chip and built-in audio output)
- 1979: TI-99/4 (first home computer with a 16-bit processor)
1980s
- 1980: Commodore VIC-20 (N. The VIC-20 ( Germany: VC-20; Japan: VIC-1001) is an 8-bit Home computer which was sold by Commodore Business Machines Am. ) (under US$300; first computer in the world to pass the one million sold mark)
- 1980: TRS-80 Color Computer (N. The Radio Shack TRS-80 Color Computer (also called Tandy Color Computer, or CoCo) was a Home computer launched in 1980 Am. ) (Motorola 6809, optional OS-9 multi-user multi-tasking)
- June 1981: Texas Instruments TI-99/4A (based on the less-successful TI-99/4, first to add sprite graphics)
- 1981: Sinclair ZX81 (Europe) (£49. The Motorola 6809 is an 8-bit (arguably an 8/ 16-bit) Microprocessor CPU from Motorola, introduced circa 1979 OS-9 is a family of real-time, process-based, multitasking, Multi-user, Unix-like Operating systems developed in the 1980s The Texas Instruments TI-99/4A was an early Home computer, released in June 1981 originally at a price of USD $525 The Texas Instruments TI-99/4A was an early Home computer, released in June 1981 originally at a price of USD $525 In Computer graphics, a sprite (also known by other names see Synonyms below is a two-dimensional/three-dimensional Image or Animation that The Sinclair ZX81 Home computer, released by Sinclair Research in 1981, was the follow up to the company's ZX80. 95 in kit form; £69. 95 pre-built) (released as Timex Sinclair 1000 in US in 1982)
- 1981: BBC Micro (Europe) (premier educational computer in the UK for a decade; advanced BASIC with integrated 6502 machine code assembler; designed with a myriad of I/O ports)
- April 1982: Sinclair ZX Spectrum (Europe) (best-selling British home computer; "made" the UK software industry)
- August 1982: Dragon 32, became, for a short time, the best-selling home micro in the United Kingdom. The Timex Sinclair 1000 (TS1000 was the first The Sinclair ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit personal Home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research Ltd This article is about the Dragon home computers. For other uses see Dragon (disambiguation.
- August 1982: Commodore 64 (N. Am. ) (best-selling computer model of all time: ~ 17 million sold)
- Jan. 1983: Apple IIe (Apple II enhanced. The Apple IIe is the third model in the Apple II series of personal computers produced by Apple Computer. Reduced component count and manufacturing costs enabled high-volume production. The IIe would not be discontinued until 1993. )
- Apr. 1984: Apple IIc (Apple II compact. The Apple IIc, the fourth model in the Apple II series of personal computers was Apple Computer ’s first endeavor to produce a Portable computer. No expansion slots, and built-in mouse port for pseudo-plug and play ease of use. Plug-and-play is a computer feature that allows the addition of a new device normally a Peripheral, without requiring reconfiguration or manual installation of Device The Apple II most geared to home use, to compliment the Apple IIe's dominant education market share. )
- 1983: Coleco Adam (one of the few home computers to be sold with an integrated printer; cousin to the ColecoVision game console; one of the first systems to be "orphaned" by its manufacturer, a casualty of the North American video game crash of 1983. The Coleco Adam was a Home computer, an attempt in the early 1980s by American toy manufacturer Coleco to follow on the success of its ColecoVision The ColecoVision is Coleco Industries ' second generation home Video game console and was released in August. The North American video game crash of 1983 (sometimes known as the video game crash of 1984 because it was in that year that the full effects of the crash became apparent )
- 1983: MSX (Japan) (a computer 'reference design' by ASCII and Microsoft, manufactured by several companies: ~ 5 million sold)
- 1983: VTech Laser 200 (entry level computer aimed at being the cheapest on market). MSX was the name of a standardized Home computer architecture in the 1980s was a Publishing company based in Tokyo, Japan, and was one of the key players in the creation of the MSX standard home computer in Japan Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational Computer technology Corporation, which rose to dominate the Home computer The VTech Laser 200 was an early 8-bit
- 1984: Amstrad/Schneider CPC & PCW ranges (Europe) (British std. Amstrad is an electronics firm based in Brentwood in Essex, England and founded in 1968 by Sir Alan Michael Sugar in the The Amstrad CPC is a series of 8-bit Home computers produced by Amstrad Plc during the 1980s and early 1990s The Amstrad PCW series ( '''P'''ersonal '''C'''omputer '''W'''ord processor) was British company Amstrad 's versatile line of home/personal prior to IBM PC; German sales next to C64)
- 1985: Atari ST (N. The Atari ST is a home / Personal computer that was commercially available from 1985 to the early 1990s Am. ) (first with built-in MIDI interface; also 1MB RAM for less than US$1000; Motorola 68000 processor. MIDI ( Musical Instrument Digital Interface, ˈmɪdi is an industry-standard protocol that enables Electronic musical instruments Computers A megabyte is a unit of Information or Computer storage equal to either 106 (1000000 Bytes or 220 (1048576 bytes depending on )
- 1985: Commodore 128 (N. The Commodore 128 ( C128, CBM 128, C=128) home / Personal computer was the last 8-bit machine which was commercially Am. ) Final, most advanced 8-bit Commodore, retained full 64 compatibility in a complex multi-mode architecture
- July 1985: Commodore Amiga (N. The Amiga is a family of Personal computers originally developed by Amiga Corporation. Am. ) (custom chip set for graphics and sound; multitasking OS with both GUI and CLI interfaces; Motorola 68000 processor. The Original Chip Set ( OCS) was a Chipset used in the earliest Commodore Amiga computers and defined the Amiga's graphics and sound capabilities AmigaOS is the default native Operating system of the Amiga personal computer )
- 1987: Acorn Archimedes (Europe) (based on the powerful Acorn-developed 32-bit ARM microprocessor; most powerful home computer in its class on its debut)
References
- ^ Home of the home computer website
- ^ Video of old TV Ad for Atari Home computers from YouTube
- ^ Home computer ads
- ^ More home computer TV ads
- ^ CNN.com readers recall the life-changing Commodore 64 from CNN
- ^ The Altair 8800 used binary LEDs and switches, and came as a kit
- ^ Most home computers would have BASIC built in in permanent ROM
- ^ at the start the TI99/4 could not offer a FCC certified RF-modulator, and had to use an expensive modified TV instead
- ^ About the Expansion Module #3 for the colecovision
- ^ 1982 was arguably the peak year of the home computer market
- ^ about the history of the MSX standard
- ^ The TI99/4 was unique in using a 16 bit processor from Retrogaming Times, Issue 42, February 20th, 2001
- ^ List of TI99/4 cartridges, mostly games from OldComputers. The Acorn Archimedes was Acorn Computers Ltd 's first general purpose Home computer based on their own 32-bit ARM RISC The ARM architecture (previously the Advanced RISC Machine, and prior to that Acorn RISC Machine) is a 32-bit RISC processor architecture YouTube is a video sharing website where users can upload view and share Video clips YouTube was created in February 2005 by three former PayPal employees Cable News Network, usually referred to by its Initialism CNN, is a major English language Television network founded in 1980 by Ted Turner The MITS Altair 8800 was a Microcomputer design from 1975 based on the Intel 8080 CPU and sold as a mail-order kit through advertisements in net
- ^ TRS-80 the "Trash-80" from PC-History. org
- ^ The Computer Revolution from eNotes. com
- ^ The computer revolution from The Eighties Club
- ^ Horseless Classrooms from the Hawaii Education & Research Network
- ^ Clement Ader from Beb's Old Phones
- ^ Reviving Old Computer Games from xtrazone. com
- ^ Traffic Details for gametap.com from Alexa
- ^ Retro-Computing with FPGAs article from Slashdot
- ^ www.homecomputer.de is one homecomputer collection that turned into a museum, with strong bonds to other similar collectors
- ^ number of C64s sold
- ^ 25th Anniversary of the Sinclair ZX Spectrum from Slashdot
- ^ Format Wars: The Tech that should have Won from ArmchAirarcade. Alexa Internet Inc is a California -based Subsidiary company of Amazon Slashdot, often abbreviated as /, is a technology-related news Website owned by SourceForge Inc Slashdot, often abbreviated as /, is a technology-related news Website owned by SourceForge Inc com
- ^ Tandy TRS-80 catalog listing many business uses (PDF)
- ^ Grandiose Price for a Modest PC from Wired
See also
- Computer magazines
- History of computing hardware (1960s-present)
- List of home computers
- List of home computers by category
- List of home computers by video hardware
- List of video game consoles
- The influence of the IBM-PC on the PC market
- Microprocessor development board and List of early microcomputers, first microprocessor based systems used by hobbyists
- Personal computer
- Pirates of Silicon Valley - docu-fiction focused on Apple and Microsoft evolution
- Triumph of the Nerds
- Video Display Controller, chips that were used to create the video graphics of many early home computers
External links
- Rune's PC Museum
- Collection of old analog and digital computers at Old Computer Museum
- Computer History Museum – An online museum of home computing and gaming
- HCM - Home Computer Museum
- "Total share: 30 years of personal computer market share figures" – From Ars Technica
- article on computing in the 1980s
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