Hi!
I recently picked up one of these beasts at a second-hand store, and
managed to assemble her and get her running. However, I have been unable
to find out anything about them other than they run the 8086 processor. Can
anyone tell me something more? Like what the OS is, when they were made,
and what tehir arcitecture was? Honeywell, unsuprisingly, couldn't help,
and I found nothing on the web.
Um. I don't recognise the name, but there were some early Honeywell PC
type things called "Microsystem Executive". This was a design bought by
Honeywell after the British company responsible, Future Technology
Systems, went bust.
The FTS series 86 was sold as the "Non-compatible compatible". OS was a
version of CPM-86 with MS-DOS compatibility, multitasking, and one or
two other fun features, called Concurrent DOS, and sold by a software
house whose name I can't remember (Pegasus? Something beginning with P,
I think).
Despite its PC-incompatibility - architecture quite different at the
hardware level - Lotus 123 version 1 ran without modification, and even
drew graphs on the monchrome monitor...
I have an FTS 86 somewhere. It was far too expensive, even tho' my
father got a huge discount for not suing FTS for breach of contract when
they failed to maintain our Series 88 machines. After FTS folded,
Honeywell-Bull maintained it for a while; they gave that up at about the
time Honeywell sold the rest of their computer arm to Bull group.
More than that I can't remember, offhand. If you want more info, I'll
see what I can find, but it won't be much...
Philip.
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
Philip Belben
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
Das Feuer brennt, das Feuer nennt die Luft sein Schwesterelement -
und frisst sie doch (samt dem Ozon)! Das ist die Liebe, lieber Sohn.
Poem by Christian Morgenstern - Message by Philip.Belben(a)powertech.co.uk