28 Nov
2007
28 Nov
'07
4:26 p.m.
On Nov 28, 2007 4:43 PM, Jules Richardson <julesrichardsonuk at yahoo.co.uk>
wrote:
Hmm, interesting. Is that the one that was the same as the Dragon 32 in
the UK
(i.e. built from the 6809 app note)?
If so, I'll be bringing a Dragon 64 over at some point ( > 6 months), and
I
have the disk controller cartridge for it, along with the disk unit itself
and
quite a stack of software...
So yes, maybe I'm best off looking for a Coco (I assume 'Coco' == 'Color
Computer') right now, and then one day (assuming the lad's still keen)
'upgrading' him to a BBC micro, C64 etc...
As I understand it, the Color Computer / "CoCo" is very similar to the
Dragon 32/64, except with some differences in memory locations -- things
like the location of the "speedup poke" and so forth. I don't have the
slightest idea whether the CoCo version of OS-9 runs on a Dragon.
If you happen to try to get a US CoCo, be aware that there are a number of
levels to which they can be upgraded -- from 4K to 64K of memory and Color
BASIC vs. Extended Color BASIC. (Many 32K systems actually have 64K
installed, with half of it jumpered away.) The keyboards are nice, though:
you can take them completely apart for cleaning without much effort.
The CoCo 3 is a very different beast inside. It's a great little computer
(wouldn't give mine up for the world), but something to stay away from if
understanding the design is a big deal: almost everything outside the
processor is implemented on a custom ASIC.