Os-9 68K Emulator - Software Made For

Except for the nameplate and case, it was identical to the Color Computer. 9.

Despite sharing a name with the earlier TRS-80, the Color Computer is a radical departure with its Motorola 6809E processor rather than a Zilog Z80.

Os-9 68K Emulator - Software Made For

The Color Computer line is not compatible with software made for the earlier TRS-80.

It was followed by the Color Computer 2 in 1983, then the Color Computer 3 in 1986.

All three models maintain a high level of software and hardware compatibility, with few programs written for an older model being unable to run on the newer ones.

BYTE wrote, The only similarity between the two computers is the name.

Motorola Semiconductor of Austin, Texas, won the contract for the user terminals and Tandys Computer Division joined later to manufacture the terminals.

The initial goal of this project, called Green Thumb, was to create a low cost Videotex terminal for farmers, ranchers, and others in the agricultural industry.

This terminal would connect to a phone line and an ordinary color television and allow the user access to near-real-time information useful to their day-to-day operations on the farm.

The 1978 prototype Green Thumb terminal used the MC6847 and the Motorola 6809 microprocessor.

Unfortunately, the prototype contained too many chips to be commercially viable.

The SAM, VDG, and 6809 were used as the core of the AgVision terminal.

It was also sold through Radio Shack stores as the VideoTex terminal around 1980.

The internal modem was removed, and IO ports for cassette storage, serial IO, and joysticks were provided.

A sticker indicating the amount of installed memory in the machine covers the hole where the Modems LED DATA indicator had been.

On July 31, 1980, Tandy announced the TRS-80 Color Computer which shares the same case, keyboard, and layout as the AgVisionVideoTex terminals.

Although the companys Ed Juge said in 1981 that the Color Computer was our entry into the home-computer market, he described it as for serious professionals, stating that a word processor and spreadsheet would soon be available.

The initial model (catalog number 26-3001) shipped with 4 KB of Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM) and 8 kB Microsoft BASIC in ROM.

Within a few months, Radio Shack stores across the US and Canada began selling the new computer.

Versions with at least 16K of memory installed shipped with standard Microsoft Color Basic or (optionally) Extended Color BASIC.

The only available connection to a display device is to a TV.

Later versions removed the black keyboard surround and RAM button, and moved the TRS-80 nameplate to the mid-line of the case.

A later motherboard revision removed the 4K RAM option and were upgraded to 32K with half-bad 4164 DRAMs.

These boards have jumpers marked HIGHLOW to determine which half of the memory chip was good.

As memory production yields improved and costs went down, many (perhaps most) 32K CoCo 1s shipped with perfectly good 4164 memory chips.

Utilities and programs began to take advantage of the hidden 32K.

BYTE wrote in 1981 that through Extended Color BASIC, Radio Shack has released the first truly easy-to-use and inexpensive system that generates full-color graphics.

Except for the nameplate and case, it was identical to the Color Computer.

Os-9 68K Emulator -Mac