#BBC MICRO USER

[retrocgads]

UK 1987

[adafruit]

🎄💾🗓️ Day 15: Retrocomputing Advent Calendar - BBC Micro🎄💾🗓️⌨️🇬🇧

The BBC Micro was an 8-bit microcomputer introduced in 1981 by Acorn Computers under the BBC Computer Literacy Project of the UK, launched with a 6502A processor running at 2 MHz, supported 16 KB to 32 KB of RAM, and featuring a BASIC environment. The machine was versatile, having very good-for-its-time graphics and multi-colors. Expansion capability for educational and experimental use with an assortment of I/O ports, which included a 1 MHz bus, user port, and cassette interface.

The BBC Micro was known for its reliability and emphasis on teaching programming and computer science. The system software, Acorn MOS, was simple and intuitive. With peripherals such as floppy drives and second processors, it performed tasks well beyond its initial use and extended its lifetime by at least a decade or more.

The BBC Micro also pushed forward a lot of gaming and software since this open architecture inspired a thriving community of developers. It also played a big role in the development of the ARM architecture by Acorn Computers, which would change the way modern computers are made in years to come. The BBC Micro has a special place in computing history, which expanded education and brought computing to schools and society through the 1980s.

Have first computer memories? Post’em up in the comments, or post yours on socialz’ and tag them #firstcomputer #retrocomputing – See you back here tomorrow!

[ui-alcoholic]

Enterprise 64/128 (1985) (formerly ELAN 64/128)

After the 1982 introduction of the ZX Spectrum, Hong Kong trading company Locumals commissioned Intelligent Software to develop a home computer in the UK. During development, the machine had the codename DPC. The machine was also known by the names Samurai, Oscar, Elan, and Flan before the Enterprise name was finally chosen. The succession of name changes was mainly due to the discovery of other machines and companies with the chosen name.

The Enterprise has a 4 MHz Z80 CPU, 64 KB or 128 KB of RAM, and 32 KB of internal read-only memory that contains the EXOS operating system and a word processor. The BASIC programming language was supplied on a 16 KB ROM cartridge, it had to be inserted into the left side of the machine. Cartridges containing other programming languages ​​(Forth, Lisp, Pascal) were also produced. In this way, games or user programs could be stored on the cartridges. The maximum supported ROM size of the cartridges was 64Kb.

Two application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) chips take some of the workload off of the central processor. They are named 'NICK' and 'DAVE' after their designers, Nick Toop, who had previously worked on the Acorn Atom, and Dave Woodfield. 'NICK' manages graphics, while 'DAVE' handles sound and memory paging. The Z80, like all 8-bit CPUs, could only address 64 KB of memory, so "bank switching" was required to access more memory. The Enterprise's memory can be expanded to 4 MB without any tricks (and this is a 'plain' 8-bit machine like the ZX-Spectrum or Commodore 64)

Enterprise was announced to the press in September 1983, and some 80,000 machines were pre-ordered by the time of its April 1984 sales launch. The product did not ship until 1985, by which point the UK home computer market was already dominated by the ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC, and Acorn BBC Micro with the 16-bit era on the horizon (Commodore Amiga, Atarti ST, etc)

After the initial manufacturing run of 80,000 units, it is believed that no further units were made, so the Enterprise is among the rarer home computers of the 1980s.

source of images: 8bit home computer museum

more info: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enterprise_(computer)

https://www.theregister.com/2013/10/24/elan_flan_enterprise_micro_is_30_years_old/

[everygame]

Christmas Crackers (A-G) (BBC Micro)

This post is for subscribers only! You can subscribe for just $1 a month at https://ko-fi.com/mathewkumar to read this! But wait! If you're looking for a Christmas present for that hard to please friend or relative, why not buy them a copy of Every Game I've Finished 14>24, "Probably the best physical collection of game criticism available on this planet" according to one of the user reviews on Amazon? Paperbacks available at .COM, .CA, CO.UK and all the other regional Amazons! So even if your granny lives in Australia you can still buy her a copy. Which I recommend, she'll love it.

[retrocgads]

UK 1987

[rattyydotmp3]

No because this is so true. Working in IT… the “older” (read, young boomers through til older millennials) who likely grew up with the BBC Micro, computing and typing classes, the explosion of enterprise and personal computing which was far less user friendly than today tend to be the most proficient users.

And yeah, okay sometimes Barbara on reception who learnt to type on an electric typewriter in the 70s is only exceptionally proficient in the small area of computing knowledge that their job requires (and when they do call IT, they tend to know and respect the knowledge we have to fix it).

The younger users, however? The people that grew up on phones, laptops, a commercialised and garden walled internet, the “””digital natives””” we were promised seem to have been entirely kneecapped by just how much everything is locked down and commercialised.

They tend to be the more difficult users when attempting to assist them, more helpless when faced with problems and more belligerent when they don’t receive the outcome expected.

Maybe my experience is different, working for the public sector, but just my 0.2$. File structures, navigating through directories, basic stuff like setting up say, rules for different emails in outlook seems to be beyond them.

this can't be true can it

[everygame]

Christmas Crackers O-U (BBC Micro)

This post is for subscribers only! You can subscribe for just $1 a month at https://ko-fi.com/mathewkumar to read this! But wait! If you’re looking for a Christmas present for that hard to please friend or relative, why not buy them a copy of Every Game I’ve Finished 14>24, “Probably the best physical collection of game criticism available on this planet” according to one of the user reviews on Amazon? Paperbacks available at .COM, .CA, CO.UK and all the other regional Amazons! So even if your granny lives in Australia you can still buy her a copy. Which I recommend, she’ll love it.

[retrocgads]

UK 1987

[everygame]

Christmas Crackers H-N (BBC Micro)

This post is for subscribers only! You can subscribe for just $1 a month at https://ko-fi.com/mathewkumar to read this! But wait! If you’re looking for a Christmas present for that hard to please friend or relative, why not buy them a copy of Every Game I’ve Finished 14>24, “Probably the best physical collection of game criticism available on this planet” according to one of the user reviews on Amazon? Paperbacks available at .COM, .CA, CO.UK and all the other regional Amazons! So even if your granny lives in Australia you can still buy her a copy. Which I recommend, she’ll love it.

[retrocgads]

UK 1987

[retrocgads]

UK 1987