27 Jun
2007
27 Jun
'07
8:34 a.m.
Rumor has it that Patrick Finnegan may have mentioned these words:
On Monday 25 June 2007, Tony Duell wrote:
Why do you need a multiline display to play games?
[[ Back to the future for a second: Why do you need multicore multiGHz,
multigigabyte RAM, multiterabyte HD to play games? ;-) ]]
In college, I had to write a game for the Heathkit 3400 microprocessor
trainer (one line of 6 7-segment LEDs) and it was quite enjoyable. I can't
see why having more than 5x the display size and real alpha capabilities
means it can't play games...
There was even a game ROM package for the programmable TI-59 (IMHO, it was
a computer - it had expandable ROM/RAM, magnetic storage, and even a printer!).
The only reason I feel Tony's HP can't be classified as a microcomputer is
because I was taught that a microcomputer utilized a microprocessor, and I
was taught that the definition of a microprocessor is a processing solution
contained entirely on one chip. Anything larger (more than one chip) and
it's a mini. As that definition has always seemed logical to me, I've
always stuck with it.
If one uses my definition for microcomputer, it might be possible to
actually figure out what the first home microcomputer is - find the very
first one in existence, and it could've been used at home. ;-) If one takes
the "Micro" part out of the equation, I see no reason why Tony's HP
can't
be considered a home computer, tho.
That's my two microbits, anyway... ;-)
Laterz,
Roger "Merch" Merchberger
--
Roger "Merch" Merchberger | "Profile, don't speculate."
SysAdmin, Iceberg Computers | Daniel J. Bernstein
zmerch at 30below.com |
The built-in display was a 1-line 32 character
alphanumeric unit.
Hardly a 'calculator display'. In general you linked up the 9866
printer if you wanted a larger 'display' for things like program
listings. If you wanted graphives 9and were rich!), you eitehr linked
up a plotter -- there was a pltoter ROM add-on to BASIC that added
useful statements to drive the plotter -- or you got the HPIB
interface, an HP1350 'graphics translator' (vector display generator)
and an HP1311 monitor. I am wondering why you consider the dispaly to
be an important part of the machine, though. This thing was not
designed for games, after all. It was designed for scientific data
processing, data logging, control, and the like. For which yuo
probably don't need more than a 1-line display.
I'd say that if it can't play games (graphical or at least a multi-line
text display), then it's not what I'd call a *home* computer.