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Technical News & Discussion => Windows News & Discussion => Topic started by: Rik on Oct 15, 2008, 15:39:57

Title: How's your memory?
Post by: Rik on Oct 15, 2008, 15:39:57
Try and identify these early model computers and games consoles.

5/7 for me.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/7671677.stm
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: Sebby on Oct 15, 2008, 16:10:19
I'm a bit young to do well, but very interesting nonetheless. :)
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: Inactive on Oct 15, 2008, 16:11:21
4/7 for me.. :blush: ;D
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: Rik on Oct 15, 2008, 16:14:02
I did better on computers than consoles, In. :)
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: Simon on Oct 15, 2008, 17:10:09
4/7, but mostly lucky guesses.
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: kinmel on Oct 15, 2008, 17:23:53

I got 6/10,  but then I once owned a few of those, ZX 80, ZX 81, Spectrum, BBC B,  & CPC646.

Ah  when I was a lad.....................
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: Rik on Oct 15, 2008, 17:25:18
And we thought that 64K of memory was incredible...
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: JB on Oct 15, 2008, 17:37:46
What memory did the basic ZX81 come with?
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: Rik on Oct 15, 2008, 17:41:02
I think it was 64K, but I wouldn't swear to it anymore. :)
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: JB on Oct 15, 2008, 17:43:32
Believe it or not, it was 1K and expandable to 16K if you needed to run a BIG program  :o

Just found this link:-

http://www.apj.co.uk/zx81/zx81-hardware.asp
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: Rik on Oct 15, 2008, 17:46:19
Shows how the rose-tinted specs have cut in, doesn't it, JB. I can remember paying £32 for a 32K EPROM for my BBC B, and £300 to add a 10Mb HD, and I do mean MB.
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: JB on Oct 15, 2008, 17:50:12
Yes, me too Rik. Seem to remember some board I fitted with extra ROM's on it. Wordwise rings a bell as the word processor.

I'm sure the BBC B is still in the loft. Seem to remember the characteristic bleep it made when it was switched one.

Happy days. (What an old fart I am!).
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: kinmel on Oct 15, 2008, 17:52:51
The earlier ZX 80 came in kit form, you even needed a soldering iron.

It spec'd out with a 4k ROM, 1k of RAM and a 3.25Mhz clock speed on the Z80 processor.

People came to our house specially to see it.

The original BASIC programs were typed in.
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: Rik on Oct 15, 2008, 17:53:56
The BBC B was a great machine in so many ways, very expandable, somewhat future proof - I had a range of second processors, a good version of BASIC to learn on. I too had the ROM expansion board, fully populated. Wordwise was the first WP from Computer Concepts iirc. The had a great base near Hemel Hempstead, country house with tennis courts and swimming pool. :)

Oh, and the Beeb booted faster than any modern machine.  :thumb:
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: Rik on Oct 15, 2008, 17:55:44
Quote from: kinmel on Oct 15, 2008, 17:52:51
The original BASIC programs were typed in.

Very slowly on those horrible keypads. :)
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: JB on Oct 15, 2008, 17:56:23
Quote from: kinmel on Oct 15, 2008, 17:52:51
The earlier ZX 80 came in kit form, you even needed a soldering iron.

Oh heck, I remember that !
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: Rik on Oct 15, 2008, 17:57:07
Like the new avatar, JB.  :thumb:
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: JB on Oct 15, 2008, 17:58:38
Quote from: Rik on Oct 15, 2008, 17:57:07
Like the new avatar, JB.  :thumb:
I'm sure the previous one was doin' peoples 'eads in Rik.

:lol:
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: Rik on Oct 15, 2008, 18:06:00
Not mine, but then it's pretty solid. :)
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: kinmel on Oct 15, 2008, 18:07:51
Quote from: 6jb on Oct 15, 2008, 17:50:12
Wordwise rings a bell as the word processor.


Wordwise, on a ROM,  was written for the BBC computer at Wrexham Technical College' Computer labs and was intended for the education market> I was one of those testing it before it was released and still occasionally go for a pint with one of the programmers.
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: Rik on Oct 15, 2008, 18:09:03
Can you remember who marketed it, Alan. The second CC release was a suite, InterBase, InterWord etc, but I thought they handled Wordwise...
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: Lona on Oct 15, 2008, 18:41:00
I only scored 3/10 as I wasn't into games consoles
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: Rik on Oct 15, 2008, 18:44:29
You're forgiven.  :-*
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: kinmel on Oct 15, 2008, 19:05:39
Quote from: Rik on Oct 15, 2008, 18:09:03
Can you remember who marketed it, Alan. The second CC release was a suite, InterBase, InterWord etc, but I thought they handled Wordwise...

No idea who marketed it, everyone in Wrexham with a BBC B had a copy "for testing" and so we took no notice of what happened to it later.

The original market was schools and colleges since the computer was part of  an educational endeavour by the BBC.


edit: I have spoken to one of the programmers and he thinks it was commissioned and published by a company called Xara, or Xarax
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: kinmel on Oct 15, 2008, 19:35:02
Rik, you were right about Computer Concepts being involved in Wordwise, someone else has pointed me to an archive of BBC programs and it is listed there (http://www.nvg.ntnu.no/bbc/dir.php3?dir=rom/ComputerConcepts) for Computer Concepts, look in the "apps" folder.

And Xara (http://www.xara.com/us/about/) was the developer as Paul thought, but i have no idea about the relationship of the 2 companies.
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: David on Oct 15, 2008, 19:51:30
5/10 and I havnt a clue how I did it......I want to know how they get a piture of my current PC  :whistle:
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: JB on Oct 15, 2008, 22:29:08
Quote from: badpianoplayer on Oct 15, 2008, 19:51:30
I want to know how they get a piture of my current PC  :whistle:

You just can't trust PC World at all, can you?

:out:
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: Sebby on Oct 15, 2008, 23:52:34
:rofl:
Title: Re: How's your memory?
Post by: Rik on Oct 16, 2008, 09:47:51
Well, CC went on to develop the Xara graphics suite, which might give a clue. :) Their address is the old CC one too.

I was a tester on the Inter suite, and used to pop in to see them quite often.