68000

Acorn Computers was a British computer company established in Cambridge, England, in 1978. The company produced a number of computers which were especially popular in the UK. These included the Acorn Electron, the BBC Micro and the Acorn Archimedes. Acorn's BBC Micro computer dominated the UK educational computer market during the 1980s and early 1990s, drawing many comparisons with Apple in the U.S. Though the company was broken up into several independent operations in 2000, it leaves an impressive legacy, particularly in the ...

Including:

• Acorn Computers - Prehistory
• Acorn Computers - CPU Ltd 1978–83
• Acorn Computers - The microcomputer systems
• Acorn Computers - The Atom
• Acorn Computers - BBC Micro and the Electron
• Acorn Computers - Acorn Computer Group plc 1983–85
• Acorn Computers - New RISC architecture
• Acorn Computers - Financial problems
• Acorn Computers - Olivetti subsidiary 1985–98
• Acorn Computers - BBC Master and Archimedes
• Acorn Computers - ARM Ltd
• Acorn Computers - Set-Top boxes
• Acorn Computers - Network Computers
• Acorn Computers - Final break up of Acorn 1998–2000
• Acorn Computers - Footnotes

Read more here: » Acorn Computers: Encyclopedia - Acorn Computers

AmigaOS is the default native operating system of the Amiga and AmigaOne personal computers. AmigaOS - Overview. The main modularization technique in AmigaOS is based on libraries (files with a ".library" extension), which are collections of functions much like shared libraries in other operating systems, but don't make use of dynamic linking (this has advantages and disadvantages). One standard AmigaOS library enjoys a special status: the exec.library is the only library i ...

Including:

• AmigaOS - Overview
• AmigaOS - The AmigaOS components
• AmigaOS - Kickstart
• AmigaOS - Workbench
• AmigaOS - Graphics
• AmigaOS - Audio
• AmigaOS - Video
• AmigaOS - ARexx
• AmigaOS - Ram Disk
• AmigaOS - AmigaOS versions
• AmigaOS - Kickstart/Workbench 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3
• AmigaOS - Kickstart/Workbench 1.4
• AmigaOS - Kickstart/Workbench 2.0 2.05 2.1
• AmigaOS - Kickstart/Workbench 3.0 3.1
• AmigaOS - AmigaOS 3.5 3.9
• AmigaOS - AmigaOS 4
• AmigaOS - AmigaOS influence on other Operating Systems
• AmigaOS - Trivia

Read more here: » AmigaOS: Encyclopedia - AmigaOS

The ARM architecture (originally the Acorn RISC Machine) is a 32-bit RISC processor architecture that is widely used in a number of applications. ARM variants are in widespread use in embedded and low-power applications due to their power saving design features. ARM architecture - History. The ARM design was started in 1983 as a development project at Acorn Computers Ltd. The team, led by Roger Wilson and Steve Furber, started development of what in some ways represents an advanced MOS Technol ...

Including:

• ARM architecture - History
• ARM architecture - The cores
• ARM architecture - Design notes
• ARM architecture - Thumb
• ARM architecture - Jazelle
• ARM architecture - Thumb-2
• ARM architecture - Thumb-2EE
• ARM architecture - NEON
• ARM architecture - VFP

Read more here: » ARM architecture: Encyclopedia - ARM architecture

FALSE is an esoteric programming language designed by Wouter van Oortmerssen in 1993, named after his favourite boolean value. It is a small Forth-like stack-oriented language, with syntax designed to make the code inherently obfuscated, confusing, and unreadable. It is also noteworthy for having a compiler of only 1024 bytes (written in 68000 assembly). According to van Oortmerssen, FALSE provided the inspiration for various well known esoteric ...

Including:

• FALSE - The stack
• FALSE - Data types
• FALSE - Basic operators
• FALSE - Variables
• FALSE - Subroutines
• FALSE - Control flow
• FALSE - If
• FALSE - While
• FALSE - Strings
• FALSE - Input / Output
• FALSE - Comments
• FALSE - Code examples

Read more here: » FALSE: Encyclopedia - FALSE

In the early 1980s, MicroProse was primarily known as a publisher of flight and military simulation titles for 8-bit home computers such as the Commodore 64, Apple II, and Atari 8-bit family. As the industry changed, it moved with it, supporting IBM PC compatibles and 68000-based machines like the Amiga and Atari ST. Also in the mid- to late-1980s, MicroProse began publishing a number of strategy games. In 1990 and 1991 it released the blockbusters Railroad Tycoon and Civilization, which quickly became two of the best-se ...

See also:

MicroProse, MicroProse - History, MicroProse - Selected games

Read more here: » MicroProse: Encyclopedia II - MicroProse - History

Early software releases in the CD-i format focused heavily on educational and self-improvement titles, with only a handful of video games, many of them adaptations of board games like "Connect Four". The most popular games for the system were 7th Guest and Burn:Cycle. Later attempts to develop a foothold in the games market were rendered irrelevant by the arrival of cheaper and more powerful consoles, such as the Sony PlayStation. CD-i is noted for the release of several spinoffs of popular Nintendo video games featuring charac ...

See also:

CD-i, CD-i - CD-i software, CD-i - CD-i players, CD-i - Technical Specifications

Read more here: » CD-i: Encyclopedia II - CD-i - CD-i software

The DSP56000 uses fixed-point arithmetic, with 24-bit program words and 24-bit data words. It includes two 24-bit registers, which can also be referred to as a single 48-bit register. It also includes two 56-bit accumulators, each with an 8-bit "extension"(aka headroom); otherwise, the accumulators are similar to the other 24/48-bit registers. A Harvard architecture processor, the 56k has two separate memory spaces+buses (and on-chip memory banks in some of the models): ...

See also:

Motorola 56000, Motorola 56000 - Technical description, Motorola 56000 - Applications; Variants

Read more here: » Motorola 56000: Encyclopedia II - Motorola 56000 - Technical description

Initially, the home system was only available for rent or for use in hotel settings, but SNK quickly began selling the system through stores when customer response indicated that people were willing to spend the money. Compared to the other consoles of the time, the NeoGeo AES was incredibly powerful. The home system featured two CPUs: a 16-bit Motorola 68000 main processor running at 12 MHz and a ZiLOG Z-80A backup processor running at 4 MHz. The system's main CPU was 50 percent faster than the 68000 processor found in Sega's Genesis consol ...

See also:

Neo-Geo, Neo-Geo - History, Neo-Geo - Specifications, Neo-Geo - Display, Neo-Geo - Storage, Neo-Geo - Collecting, Neo-Geo - Other Neo Geo systems

Read more here: » Neo-Geo: Encyclopedia II - Neo-Geo - History

Initially, the home system was only available for rent or for use in hotel settings, but SNK quickly began selling the system through stores when customer response indicated that people were willing to spend the money. Compared to the other consoles of the time, the NeoGeo AES was incredibly powerful. The home system featured two CPUs: a 16-bit Motorola 68000 main processor running at 12 MHz and a 8-bit ZiLOG Z-80A backup processor running at 4 MHz. The system's main CPU was 50 percent faster than the 68000 processor found in Sega's Genesis ...

See also:

Neo-Geo, Neo-Geo - History, Neo-Geo - Specifications, Neo-Geo - Display, Neo-Geo - Storage, Neo-Geo - Collecting, Neo-Geo - Other Neo Geo systems

Read more here: » Neo-Geo: Encyclopedia II - Neo-Geo - History

Sun Microsystems - Operating systems. All Sun systems have been based on Unix systems which are well known for system stability and a consistent design philosophy. The Sun 1 was shipped with Unisoft V7 Unix. Later in 1982 Sun provided a customized 4.1BSD Unix called SunOS as an operating system for its workstations. In 1992, along with AT&T, it integrated BSD Unix and System V into Solaris, which as a result is based on System V Release 4. Sun offered a secure variant of Solaris called Trusted Solaris for releases before the current Solaris 10, which includes the sam ...

See also:

Sun Microsystems, Sun Microsystems - Brief history, Sun Microsystems - Hardware, Sun Microsystems - The Bubble and Sun's subsequent struggle for survival, Sun Microsystems - Present focus, Sun Microsystems - Software, Sun Microsystems - Operating systems, Sun Microsystems - Java platform, Sun Microsystems - Office suite, Sun Microsystems - Notable persons, Sun Microsystems - Founders

Read more here: » Sun Microsystems: Encyclopedia II - Sun Microsystems - Software

While the RISC philosophy was coming into its own, new ideas about how to dramatically increase performance of the CPUs were starting to develop. In the early 1980s it was thought that existing design was reaching theoretical limits. Future improvements in speed would be primarily through improved semiconductor "process", that is, smaller features (transistors and wires) on the chip. The complexity of the chip would remain largely the same, but the smaller size would allow it to run at higher clock rates. A considerable amount of effo ...

See also:

RISC, RISC - RISC design philosophy, RISC - Pre-RISC design philosophy, RISC - Meanwhile..., RISC - Early RISC, RISC - Later RISC, RISC - Alternative term

Read more here: » RISC: Encyclopedia II - RISC - Meanwhile...

In 1983, Mike Myers of Ann Arbor, Michigan purchased a $30,000 Altos 68000 single board computer running UNIX System III[1]. Before long, Marcus Watts, also of Ann Arbor began writing software for the new system including a program allowing users to automatically create accounts, a real time chat system called party, and a conferencing system known as PicoSpan. In the middle of June, 1983, M-Net went online with one dialin line. Before long, other conferencing sites including The Well and ...

See also:

Arbornet, Arbornet - History, Arbornet - Arbornet and Brian Salcedo

Read more here: » Arbornet: Encyclopedia II - Arbornet - History

Competing with Sega and Nintendo's 16-bit consoles, the Jaguar was said to be 64-bit. Back then, bit width was a big deal in the gaming industry, just as polygon-pushing power is today. The Jaguar did not work off of a solitary 64-bit processor, but instead it had a collection of processors with bus widths ranging from 16 to 64 bits. The bit width of the Jaguar is still a source of considerable debate today, but consensus exists among those who are familiar with the system hardware that, because Jaguar's main data bus and some of the processors are 64-bit, the entire system can be considered 64 bit. It would o ...

See also:

Atari Jaguar, Atari Jaguar - History, Atari Jaguar - Screenshot gallery, Atari Jaguar - Technical specifications

Read more here: » Atari Jaguar: Encyclopedia II - Atari Jaguar - History

Commodore International - Foundation and early years. The company that would become Commodore International was started in Toronto by Jack Tramiel in 1954. He had already run a small business fixing typewriters for a few years while living in New York and driving a cab, but managed to sign a deal with a Czechoslovakian company to manufacture their designs in Canada and moved to Toronto to start production. By the late 1950s a wave of Japanese machines forced most North American typewriter companies out of busin ...

See also:

Commodore International, Commodore International - History, Commodore International - Foundation and early years, Commodore International - Computers for the masses not the classes, Commodore International - Tramiel quits; The Amiga vs ST battle, Commodore International - The beginning of the end, Commodore International - The sun sets on Commodore, Commodore International - Post-Commodore International Ltd., Commodore International - Product line, Commodore International - Computers 8-bit, Commodore International - Computers 16/32-bit, Commodore International - Peripherals, Commodore International - Software

Read more here: » Commodore International: Encyclopedia II - Commodore International - History

Amiga games - Early games. Mind Walker -- Commodore -- (1986) Arctic Fox -- Electronic Arts -- (1986) Marble Madness -- Electronic Arts -- (1986, arcade conversion) Archon -- Electronic Arts -- (1986) Defender of the Crown -- Cinemaware -- (1986) Faery Tale Adventure -- Microillusions -- (1986) The Pawn -- Magnetic Scrolls -- (1987) Maniac Mansion -- Lucasfilm -- (1987) Silent S ...

See also:

Amiga games, Amiga games - History, Amiga games - Important Amiga games, Amiga games - Early games, Amiga games - Popular games, Amiga games - Historically significant games, Amiga games - Games that have been distributed with the Amiga, Amiga games - Amiga game developers, Amiga games - Screenshots

Read more here: » Amiga games: Encyclopedia II - Amiga games - Important Amiga games

An IFF file is built up from chunks. Each chunk begins with what the spec calls a "Type ID" (what the Macintosh called an OSType and Windows developers might call a FourCC). This is followed by a 32-bit unsigned integer (all integers in IFF files' structure are big-endian) specifying the size of the following data (the chunk content) in bytes. Because the spec includes explicit lengths for each chunk, it is possible for a parser to skip over chu ...

See also:

Interchange File Format, Interchange File Format - Structure, Interchange File Format - List of common IFF-based file formats, Interchange File Format - Clones and variants of the IFF format

Read more here: » Interchange File Format: Encyclopedia II - Interchange File Format - Structure

The Macintosh operating system initially consisted of two pieces of software, called "System" and "Finder", each with its own version number. They were bundled for upgrades as "System Software" with a single version number for each combination. This was formally shortened to "System" (and the component version numbers synchronised) with "System 6". System 7.5.1 was the first to include the Mac OS logo (a blue variation of a smiley face), and Mac OS 7.6 was the first to be named "Mac OS" (to ensure that users would still identify it with Apple, even when used ...

See also:

Mac OS, Mac OS - Versions, Mac OS - Classic Mac OS 1984-2001, Mac OS - Mac OS X 2001-present, Mac OS - Classic Mac OS technologies, Mac OS - Obsolete technologies, Mac OS - Project Star Trek, Mac OS - Project Marklar, Mac OS - Translation emulation and Macintosh clones, Mac OS - A/UX

Read more here: » Mac OS: Encyclopedia II - Mac OS - Versions

The 68020 and 68030 CPUs were designed with the separate 68881 chip in mind. Their instruction sets reserved the "F-line" instructions — that is, all opcodes beginning with the hexadecimal digit "F" were "traps" which would throw an interrupt, handing control to the computer's operating system. If a 68881 were present in the system, the CPU would allow it to execute the instruction. If not, the OS would either call an FPU emulator to execute the instruction using 68020 integer-based software code, or ...

See also:

Motorola 68881, Motorola 68881 - Overview, Motorola 68881 - Selected statistics, Motorola 68881 - 68881, Motorola 68881 - 68882, Motorola 68881 - 68040

Read more here: » Motorola 68881: Encyclopedia II - Motorola 68881 - Overview

In the early 1980s Jay Miner, along with other Atari staffers, had become fed up with management and decamped. They set up another chip-set project under a new company in Santa Clara, called Hi-Toro (later renamed to Amiga), where they could have some creative freedom. There, they started to create a new 68000-based games console, codenamed Lorraine, that could be upgraded to a full-fledged computer. To raise money for the Lorraine project, Amiga designed and sold joysticks and game cartridges for popular game consoles such as the Atari 2600 and ColecoVision, as well as an odd input device called the Joyboard ...

See also:

Amiga Corporation, Amiga Corporation - History

Read more here: » Amiga Corporation: Encyclopedia II - Amiga Corporation - History

The Macintosh operating system initially consisted of two pieces of software, called "System" and "Finder", each with its own version number. They were bundled for upgrades as "System Software" with a single version number for each combination. This was formally shortened to "System" (and the component version numbers synchronised) with "System 6". System 7.5.1 was the first to include the Mac OS logo (a blue variation of a smiley face), and Mac OS 7.6 was the first to be named "Mac OS" (to ensure that users would still identify it with Apple, even when used ...

See also:

Mac OS, Mac OS - Versions, Mac OS - Classic Mac OS 1984-2001, Mac OS - Mac OS X 2001-present, Mac OS - Classic Mac OS technologies, Mac OS - Project Star Trek, Mac OS - A/UX

Read more here: » Mac OS: Encyclopedia II - Mac OS - Versions