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Apple II Peripheral Cards
The Apple II line of computers supported a number of Apple II peripheral cards. In an era before plug and play USB or Bluetooth connections, these were expansion cards that plugged into slots on the motherboard. They added to and extended the functionality of the base motherboard when paired with specialized software that enabled the computer to read the input/output of the devices on the other side of the cable (the peripheral) or to take advantage of chips on the board - as was the case with memory expansion cards. All Apple II models except the Apple IIc had at least seven 50-pin expansion slots, labeled Slots 1 though 7. These slots could hold printed circuit board cards with double-sided edge connectors, 25 "fingers" on each side, with 100 mil (0.1 inch) spacing between centers. Slot 3 in an Apple IIe that has an 80-column card fitted (which is usually the case) and Slots 1 through 6 in a normally configured Apple II are "virtually" filled with on-board devices which means th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apple II Series
The Apple II series (trademarked with square brackets as "Apple ] ''" and rendered on later models as "Apple //") is a family of home computers, one of the first highly successful mass-produced microcomputer products, designed primarily by Steve Wozniak, manufactured by Apple Computer (now Apple Inc.), and launched in 1977 with the Apple II, original Apple II. In terms of ease of use, features, and expandability, the Apple II was a major advancement over its predecessor, the Apple I, a limited-production bare circuit board computer for electronics hobbyists. Through 1988, a number of models were introduced, with the most popular, the Apple IIe, remaining relatively unchanged into the 1990s. A model with more advanced graphics and sound and a 16-bit processor, the Apple IIGS, was added in 1986. It remained compatible with earlier Apple II models, but the IIGS had more in common with mid-1980s systems like the Atari ST, Amiga, and Acorn Archimedes. The Apple II was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Z-80 SoftCard
The Z-80 SoftCard is a plug-in Apple II processor card developed by Microsoft to turn the computer into a CP/M system based upon the Zilog Z80 central processing unit (CPU). Becoming the most popular CP/M platform and Microsoft's top revenue source for 1980, it was eventually renamed the Microsoft SoftCard, and was succeeded by Microsoft's Premium Softcard IIe for the Apple IIe. Overview Introduced in 1980 as Microsoft's first hardware product, and bundled with the Microsoft BASIC programming language, the Z-80 SoftCard is an Apple II processor card that enables the Apple II to run CP/M, an operating system from Digital Research. This gives Apple II users access to many more business applications, including compilers and Interpreter (computing), interpreters for several high-level languages. CP/M, one of the earliest cross-platform operating systems, is easily adaptable to a wide range of auxiliary chips and peripheral hardware, but it requires an Intel 8080-compatible CPU, which ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apple II Peripherals
An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus ''Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancestor, ''Malus sieversii'', is still found today. Apples have been grown for thousands of years in Asia and Europe and were brought to North America by European colonists. Apples have religious and mythological significance in many cultures, including Norse, Greek, and European Christian tradition. Apples grown from seed tend to be very different from those of their parents, and the resultant fruit frequently lacks desired characteristics. Generally, apple cultivars are propagated by clonal grafting onto rootstocks. Apple trees grown without rootstocks tend to be larger and much slower to fruit after planting. Rootstocks are used to control the speed of growth and the size of the resulting tree, allowing for easier harvesting. There are more th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apple II Sound Cards
Throughout its lengthy, multi-model lifespan, the Apple II series computers lacked any serious built-in sound capabilities. At the time of its release in 1977, this did not distinguish it from its contemporaries (ex. the TRS-80 and Commodore PET), but by 1982, it shared the market with several sound-equipped competitors such as the Commodore 64, whose MOS Technology SID, SID chip could produce sophisticated multi-timbral music and sound effects. All Apple II models (except the Apple IIGS, Apple IIGS, a significantly different, albeit backwards-compatible machine) possess a speaker, but it was limited to 1-bit output in the form of a simple voltage the user could switch on and off with software, creating clicks from the speaker each time the state was toggled. By turning the signal on and off rapidly, sounds with pitches could be produced. This approach places extreme constraints on software design, since it requires the CPU to be available to toggle the output at specific frequenci ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apple II System Clocks
Apple II system clocks, also known as real-time clocks, were devices in the early years of microcomputing. A clock/calendar did not become standard in the Apple II line of computers until 1986 with the introduction of the Apple IIGS. Although many productivity programs as well as the ProDOS operating system implemented time and date functions, users would have to manually enter this information every time they turned the computer on. Power users often had their Apple II's peripheral slots completely filled with expansion cards, so third party vendors came up with alternative approaches with products like the Serial Pro and No-Slot Clock. No-Slot Clock (Dallas Semiconductor) The No-Slot Clock, also known as the Dallas Smartwatch (DS1216E), was a 28-pin chip-like device that could be used directly in any Apple II or Apple II compatible with a 28-pin ROM. Dallas Semiconductor produced the device as an easy implementation for a real-time clock for a variety of applications. The cloc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apple II Accelerators
Apple II accelerators are computer hardware devices which enable an Apple II computer to operate faster than their intended clock rate. 8-bit accelerators Number Nine Apple Booster – ''Number Nine Computer Corporation (Number Nine Visual Technology)'' * Platform: Apple II, Apple II Plus * Form Factor: 50-pin slot card * Speed: 3.58 MHz * Cache: 64 KB on board RAM * DMA compatible: No * Upgradeable: No Number Nine Apple Booster (1982) was one of the first accelerators for the Apple II series of computers. This card is the original version of Saturn's Accelerator II (thus the Accelerator II PCB shares both Saturn Systems' and NNCC's logos.) At $598, the Saturn was much cheaper than the NNCC, but little information about the board is available today. SpeedDemon – ''Microcomputer Technologies (M-c-T)'' * Platform: Apple II, Apple II Plus, Apple IIe * Form Factor: 50-pin slot card * Speed: 3.58 MHz * Cache: 4 KB cache * DMA compatible: No * Upgradeable: No Mic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apple II Processor Cards
Apple II processor cards (or co-processor cards) were special cards that could be used to allow the Apple II to use different processors on the (otherwise) same computer hardware. This allowed other operating systems to run on the Apple II. Here are some processors that were available on coprocessor cards for the Apple II: * Zilog Z80 – Microsoft SoftCard or compatibles, ran CP/M * Intel 8088 – the AD8088 Processor Card, from ALF Products, ran CP/M-86 and MS-DOS as well as increased the speed of math functions in Applesoft BASIC. MetaCard, from Metamorphic Systems (a 1982 startup by Phil Zimmermann), ran CP/M-86, MS-DOS, and UCSD Pascal * Motorola 6809 – The Mill, by Stellation Two, ran OS-9 Level One. AP10 by IBS running FLEX * Motorola 68008 – mc magazine * DEC LSI-11 – (unconfirmed) See also * Apple II peripheral cards The Apple II line of computers supported a number of Apple II peripheral cards. In an era before plug and play USB or Bluetooth connections, these wer ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Videx
Videx, Inc. is a Corvallis, Oregon manufacturer of computer hardware such as access control products and data collection terminals. Its initial success came with the first release of the $345 Videoterm (80 column) display card in March 1980 and the $149 shift and custom keyboard mapping Enhancer II terminal card in November 1981, both for Apple II computers. Later, in 1984, it released its $379 UltraTerm expansion card boasting high-definition 96-pixel characters and up to 128 × 32 character display. These products became obsolete when Apple released the Apple IIe with most of the 80-column card hardware built-in - only a much simpler and cheaper RAM card was then required. Videx also produced software, including Desktop Calendar (1984) for the Apple Lisa Lisa is a desktop computer developed by Apple, released on January 19, 1983. It is one of the first personal computers to present a graphical user interface (GUI) in a machine aimed at individual business users. Its d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
80-column Card
The Apple 80-Column Text Card was an expansion card for the Apple IIe computer to give it the option of displaying 80 columns of text instead of the usual 40 columns. Two models were available; the cheaper 80-column card had just enough extra RAM to double the video memory capacity, and the Extended 80-Column Text Card had an additional 64 kilobytes of RAM, bringing the computer's total RAM to 128 KB. VisiCalc and Disk II made the Apple II very popular in small businesses, which asked the company for 80-column support, but Apple delayed improving the Apple II because for three years it expected that the unsuccessful Apple III would be the company's business computer. The cards went in the IIe's "Auxiliary Slot", which existed in addition to the 7 standard Apple II peripheral slots present on all expandable Apple II series machines. Although in a separate slot, the card was closely associated with slot #3 of the seven standard slots, using some of the hardware and firmware function ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apple II Serial Cards
:''This article is a sub-page of Apple II peripheral cards.'' Apple II serial cards primarily used the serial RS-232 protocol. They most often were used for communicating with printers, Modems, and less often for computer to computer data transfer. They could be programmed to interface with any number of external devices which were RS-232 compatible. Most serial cards had speed ranges starting from 110 bit/s up to 19,200 bit/s, however some could be modified to go much faster. The most popular and widely used of these cards was Apple Computer's Super Serial Card, a solid design that was often copied for maximum software compatibility of the end product. Apple II Communications Card – ''Apple Computer'' The Apple II Communications Card is the original serial card from Apple Computer. Released in 1978 for $225, it was designed to work with modems utilizing acoustic couplers. It offered speeds of 110 and 300 bit/s but with a simple hardware modification (described in th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peripheral
A peripheral or peripheral device is an auxiliary device used to put information into and get information out of a computer. The term ''peripheral device'' refers to all hardware components that are attached to a computer and are controlled by the computer system, but they are not the core components of the computer, such as the CPU or power supply unit. In other words, peripherals can also be defined as devices that can be easily removed and plugged into a computer system. Several categories of peripheral devices may be identified, based on their relationship with the computer: *An ''input device'' sends data or instructions to the computer, such as a mouse, keyboard, graphics tablet, image scanner, barcode reader, game controller, light pen, light gun, microphone and webcam; *An ''output device'' provides output data from the computer, such as a computer monitor, projector, printer, headphones and computer speaker; *An ''input/output device'' performs both input and output fun ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apple Inc
Apple Inc. is an American multinational technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, United States. Apple is the largest technology company by revenue (totaling in 2021) and, as of June 2022, is the world's biggest company by market capitalization, the fourth-largest personal computer vendor by unit sales and second-largest mobile phone manufacturer. It is one of the Big Five American information technology companies, alongside Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft. Apple was founded as Apple Computer Company on April 1, 1976, by Steve Wozniak, Steve Jobs and Ronald Wayne to develop and sell Wozniak's Apple I personal computer. It was incorporated by Jobs and Wozniak as Apple Computer, Inc. in 1977 and the company's next computer, the Apple II, became a best seller and one of the first mass-produced microcomputers. Apple went public in 1980 to instant financial success. The company developed computers featuring innovative graphical user inter ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
