31 Jan
2007
31 Jan
'07
7 p.m.
On 31 Jan 2007 at 19:38, Richard wrote:
We all went down to the Radio Shack to check out the
Model I. The
case felt like *very* cheap plastic, even for RS standards. The
keyboard was clunky and while not as bad as the chiclet keyboard on
the PET, it still wasn't something I wanted to type on. The lack of
lower case was a major turn-off for me. The whole thing just felt
dorky.
You have no idea HOW dorky the thing looked if you were into S-100 or
Multibus systems big-time. As flimsy as the Altair was, the IMSAI
box did set a direction. My last S-100 box was a no-blinkin' lights
heavy-duty Integrand box with active bus termination and a boat
anchor of a linear PSU. The manufacturer even included blueprints
(as in real bluelines) with the boxes. Bill Godbout was no slouch
either with his boxes.
The TRS-80 looked, well, like something you'd buy at Radio Shack.
Cheers,
Chuck