LogAbax was a French computer brand. Founded in 1942, the company was one of France's pioneers in computer manufacturing. The name is composed of two abbreviations: ''Log'' from

logarithm In mathematics, the logarithm is the inverse function to exponentiation. That means the logarithm of a number to the base is the exponent to which must be raised, to produce . For example, since , the ''logarithm base'' 10 of ...

and ''Abax'' from

abacus The abacus (''plural'' abaci or abacuses), also called a counting frame, is a calculating tool which has been used since ancient times. It was used in the ancient Near East, Europe, China, and Russia, centuries before the adoption of the Hi ...

History

The company was created in 1942 as ''“La Société Française des Brevets LogAbax''”. In 1947 it employs twenty people and has a factory located at

Malakoff Malakoff () is a suburban commune in the Hauts-de-Seine department southwest of Paris, France. Located from the centre of the city, it had a population of 30,286 in 2016. The European Organisation for Civil Aviation Equipment (EUROCAE) is base ...

. The company obtains a contract from CNRS for the construction of a " Couffignal machine", intended to be the fist French " electronic calculation machine". Between 1948 and 1950 LogAbax studies an electronic meter, related to the

electronic calculator An electronic calculator is typically a portable electronic device used to perform calculations, ranging from basic arithmetic to complex mathematics. The first solid-state electronic calculator was created in the early 1960s. Pocket-sized ...

development. In 1968 ''LogAbax'' and ''Bariquand et Marre'' merge, forming ''LogAbax SA''. The LX 500, a personal computer based on the

Z80 The Z80 is an 8-bit microprocessor introduced by Zilog as the startup company's first product. The Z80 was conceived by Federico Faggin in late 1974 and developed by him and his 11 employees starting in early 1975. The first working samples were ...

microprocessor and running the CP/M operating system, is presented in 1978. Due to poor results in the late 1970s, LogAbax files for bankruptcy in 1981, with

Olivetti Olivetti S.p.A. is an Italian manufacturer of computers, tablets, smartphones, printers and other such business products as calculators and fax machines. Headquartered in Ivrea, in the Metropolitan City of Turin, the company has been par ...

becoming the majority shareholder, creating a new entity named ''Société Nouvelle LogAbax''. The Persona 1600, a PC compatible machine with an Intel 8086 CPU (similar to

Olivetti M24 The Olivetti M24 is a computer that was sold by Olivetti in 1983 using the Intel 8086 CPU. The system was sold in the United States under its original name by Docutel/Olivetti of Dallas. AT&T and Xerox bought rights to rebadge the system as t ...

) is presented in 1985. Other rebranded Olivetti PCs follow ( Persona 1800 and 1300). In 1988 ''Olivetti France'' and ''Société Nouvelle LogAbax'' merge, becoming ''Olivetti-LogAbax''.

Machines

* LX 3200 (office computer, calculator, typewriter, printer, 1969) * LX 2200, 2600 (office computer, calculator, typewriter, printer, 1974/75) * LX 4200, 4300, 4400, 4500, 4600 (office computer, 1970s/75) * LX 5000, 5076, 5200 (multi-user

16-bit computer 16-bit microcomputers are microcomputers that use 16-bit microprocessors. A 16-bit register can store 216 different values. The range of integer values that can be stored in 16 bits depends on the integer representation used. With the two mos ...

, 64 Kb RAM, 1976/77) * LX 2000, 2010, 2500 (1976) * LX 500, 518, 528 (

Z80A The Z80 is an 8-bit microprocessor introduced by Zilog as the startup company's first product. The Z80 was conceived by Federico Faggin in late 1974 and developed by him and his 11 employees starting in early 1975. The first working samples we ...

, 128Kb RAM, CP/M, 1978) * LX 3000, 3128, 3500 (multi-user office computer, 1980) * Hyper 32 (fault tolerant redundant computer, 1983) * Persona 800 (Z80 @ 4 MHz, 64KB RAM, CP/M, 1985) * Persona 1600 /

( ''Nanoréseau'''''' network machine,

8086 The 8086 (also called iAPX 86) is a 16-bit microprocessor chip designed by Intel between early 1976 and June 8, 1978, when it was released. The Intel 8088, released July 1, 1979, is a slightly modified chip with an external 8-bit data bus (allowi ...

@ 8 MHz, 1985) * Persona 1800 / Olivetti M28 (

80286 The Intel 80286 (also marketed as the iAPX 286 and often called Intel 286) is a 16-bit microprocessor that was introduced on February 1, 1982. It was the first 8086-based CPU with separate, non- multiplexed address and data buses and also the ...

@ 8 MHz, 1986) * Persona 1300 /

Olivetti M19 The Olivetti M19 was a personal computer made in 1986 by the Italian company Olivetti. It has an 8088 at 4.77 or 8 MHz and 256–640 KB of RAM. The BIOS is Revision Diagnostics 3.71. In the UK, it was sold by Acorn Computers as the A ...

(

8088 The Intel 8088 ("''eighty-eighty-eight''", also called iAPX 88) microprocessor is a variant of the Intel 8086. Introduced on June 1, 1979, the 8088 has an eight-bit external data bus instead of the 16-bit bus of the 8086. The 16-bit registers a ...

@ 4.77 MHz, 256KB RAM, 1986) * 3B modèle 400 / Olivetti CPS/32 Stratos (

68030 The Motorola 68030 ("''sixty-eight-oh-thirty''") is a 32-bit microprocessor in the Motorola 68000 family. It was released in 1987. The 68030 was the successor to the Motorola 68020, and was followed by the Motorola 68040. In keeping with genera ...

, VOS, 1986)

References

{{Commons category-inline Computer companies of France History of computing in France Lists of computer hardware Computer science education in France

History

Machines

See also

References