9 Feb
2015
9 Feb
'15
2:30 p.m.
Hi, I'm a bit curious on this old historical motherboard derived from
original Ferguson Bigboard 1. Is there anybody who have it and he can send a
pic of it? Or Is there anybody who can describe it? I not found anything on
internet, just all I report below:
Micro/Access
| Toronto, Ontario (1983-1993)
SYSOP | Max Southall
SOFTWARE | Custom by Bob Kamins and Max Southall
COMMENTS | "The Micro/Access BBS system grew out of the need to
| service the product line of the JLS/Vidtek Big Board
| project. The JLS Big Board was a reincarnation with
| hardware and software enhancements of the original
| Ferguson Big Board Z80 single board computer system sold
| to hobbyists. Redesigned by Joe L. Sutherland, with input
| from Bob Kamins, with later hardware, firmware and
| software fixes by Max Southall, it was a solid CP/M-80
| based system which also was the basis for the Xerox 820
| series. Customers (or any others) of the Big Board were
| charged $50 a year for access, which eventually included
| email access to the then research-oriented internet.
| There were hundreds of paying customers. The BBS
| software based on Bob Kamins' work was written in
| Microsoft's BASIC, and compilation was with Microsoft's
| M80 compiler. <p> "Eventually Max Southall completely
| rewrote Stuart Lynne's (yes, the later ICANN chairman)
| UUPC program and incorporated an email program interface,
| all in assembler, which connected the Micro/Access BBS
| users via UUCP to Unix-based internet-based
| communications. <p> "Prior to 1985, the system was known
| online as the Vidtek system, which grew out of
| manufacturing video and CP/M boards for the Apple ][
| clone systems. SCSI hard disk subsystems were
| manufactured and sold for the Big Board and sold all over
| the world, and the BBS used the same hardware as was sold
| to customers." - Max Southall
Regards
Enrico