The Osborne Executive is the successor of the already commercially successful

Osborne 1 The Osborne 1 is the first commercially successful portable computer, released on April 3, 1981 by Osborne Computer Corporation. It weighs , cost US$1,795, and runs the CP/M 2.2 operating system. It is powered from a wall socket, as it has no ...

portable computer by

Osborne Computer Corporation The Osborne Computer Corporation (OCC) was a pioneering maker of portable computers. It was located in the Silicon Valley of the southern San Francisco Bay Area in California.application software Application may refer to: Mathematics and computing * Application software, computer software designed to help the user to perform specific tasks ** Application layer, an abstraction layer that specifies protocols and interface methods used in a ...

. The

WordStar WordStar is a word processor application for microcomputers. It was published by MicroPro International and originally written for the CP/M-80 operating system, and later written also for MS-DOS and other 16-bit PC OSes. Rob Barnaby was the so ...

word processor A word processor (WP) is a device or computer program that provides for input, editing, formatting, and output of text, often with some additional features. Early word processors were stand-alone devices dedicated to the function, but current ...

SuperCalc SuperCalc is a CP/M-80 spreadsheet application published by Sorcim in 1980. History VisiCalc was the first spreadsheet program but its release for the CP/M operating system ran only on the HP-125, Sharp MZ80, and the Sony SMC-70. SuperCalc w ...

spreadsheet, and the

CBASIC CBASIC is a compiled version of the BASIC programming language written for the CP/M operating system by Gordon Eubanks in 1976–1977. It is an enhanced version of BASIC-E. History BASIC-E was Eubank's master's thesis project. It was develop ...

and

MBASIC MBASIC is the Microsoft BASIC implementation of BASIC for the CP/M operating system. MBASIC is a descendant of the original Altair BASIC interpreters that were among Microsoft's first products. MBASIC was one of the two versions of BASIC bundled w ...

programming languages—all software packages that were the leading applications in their respective niches at the time—had a retail value of more than US$2,495. The disk drives and built-in 7-inch amber CRT are covered by the keyboard when snapped on to the main case for transportation. Like the Osborne 1, the Executive can be supported by the keyboard at a convenient viewing angle. The Executive includes a cooling fan, unlike the Osborne 1, and a tiny air filter for it.

Software

The operating system is CP/M version 3.0. A complete listing of the

ROM Rom, or ROM may refer to: Biomechanics and medicine * Risk of mortality, a medical classification to estimate the likelihood of death for a patient * Rupture of membranes, a term used during pregnancy to describe a rupture of the amniotic sac * ...

BIOS is available in the Osborne technical manual. Unlike version 2.2, this edition of CP/M supports

bank switching Bank switching is a technique used in computer design to increase the amount of usable memory beyond the amount directly addressable by the processor instructions. It can be used to configure a system differently at different times; for example ...

memory; this allows compatible programs to use more RAM. An alternative OS, the

UCSD p-System UCSD Pascal is a Pascal programming language system that runs on the UCSD p-System, a portable, highly machine-independent operating system. UCSD Pascal was first released in 1977. It was developed at the University of California, San Diego (UCS ...

is also included.

Compatibility

The CP/M BIOS of the Executive can automatically detect and use single-sided disks formatted in the following systems: *

* IBM PC running CP/M-86 *

DEC VT180 The VT180 is a personal computer produced by Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) of Maynard, Massachusetts, USA. Introduced in early 1982, the CP/M-based VT180 was DEC's entry-level microcomputer. "VT180" is the unofficial name for the combinat ...

Xerox 820 The Xerox 820 Information Processor is an 8-bit desktop computer sold by Xerox in the early 1980s. The computer runs under the CP/M operating system and uses floppy disk drives for mass storage. The microprocessor board is a licensed variant of th ...

* Commodore 128 Many CP/M systems of the time cannot read diskettes formatted for any other brand (sometimes, for other models of the same brand) without using third-party special purpose interchange software. This built-in feature provides a useful amount of flexibility in exchanging data with other systems. The Executive can also emulate certain models of

computer terminal A computer terminal is an electronic or electromechanical hardware device that can be used for entering data into, and transcribing data from, a computer or a computing system. The teletype was an example of an early-day hard-copy terminal and ...

(which is useful for dial-up access to remote systems): *

VT100 The VT100 is a video terminal, introduced in August 1978 by Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC). It was one of the first terminals to support ANSI escape codes for cursor control and other tasks, and added a number of extended codes for special ...

ADM-3A The ADM-3A was an influential early video display terminal, introduced in 1976. It was manufactured by Lear Siegler and had a 12-inch screen displaying 12 or 24 lines of 80 characters. It set a new industry low single unit price of $995. Its " ...

* Hazeltine * Hewlett-Packard

Use

The Osborne Executive is useful for presentations and projects at client sites. Unlike static presentations, the portable computer can provide on-the-spot answers to numeric questions when working with consulting clients. This laid the groundwork for the kind of 'show me the money' ROI or TCO presentations commonplace today. A number of Executives have custom ROM's which were personalized when booted; name plates were also etched onto the casing.Vintage Computing Website
/ref> The Executive was only produced in limited numbers compared to the predecessor Osborne 1, before the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The financial problems of the Osborne company were aggravated by early announcement of the Executive, which cut into sales of the Osborne 1. This so-called

Osborne effect The Osborne effect is a social phenomenon of customers canceling or deferring orders for the current, soon-to-be-obsolete product as an unexpected drawback of a company's announcing a future product prematurely. It is an example of cannibalizati ...

has become proverbial as a mistake that can be made by companies trading in high-technology products. The company had announced yet another successor product, the

Osborne Vixen The Osborne Vixen is a "luggable" portable computer announced by the Osborne Computer Corporation in November 1984, as a follow-up to their Osborne 1 and Osborne Executive system. The Vixen has a 4 MHz Zilog Z80 microprocessor with 64&nbs ...

, but went out of business before the Vixen could be established. An Osborne Executive II, using an 8088 processor, and providing MS-DOS and IBM PC compatibility, was announced but never produced.

Hardware

Features

* Dual half-height 5¼-inch, single-sided double-density 40 track floppy disk drives with 160 KB capacity (

Shugart Associates Shugart Associates (later Shugart Corporation) was a computer peripheral manufacturer that dominated the floppy disk drive market in the late 1970s and is famous for introducing the -inch "Minifloppy" floppy disk drive. In 1979 it was one of the f ...

standard, unlike the

) * 4

MHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, meaning that one he ...

Z80A CPU * 124 KB main

memory Memory is the faculty of the mind by which data or information is encoded, stored, and retrieved when needed. It is the retention of information over time for the purpose of influencing future action. If past events could not be remembered, ...

* Fold-down

keyboard Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

doubling as the computer case's lid * 7-inch, 80 character × 24 line amber

monochrome A monochrome or monochromatic image, object or palette is composed of one color (or values of one color). Images using only shades of grey are called grayscale (typically digital) or black-and-white (typically analog). In physics, monochrom ...

CRT display *

IEEE-488 IEEE 488 is a short-range digital communications 8-bit parallel multi-master interface bus specification developed by Hewlett-Packard as HP-IB (Hewlett-Packard Interface Bus). It subsequently became the subject of several standards, and is ...

port configurable as a

parallel Parallel is a geometric term of location which may refer to: Computing * Parallel algorithm * Parallel computing * Parallel metaheuristic * Parallel (software), a UNIX utility for running programs in parallel * Parallel Sysplex, a cluster of ...

printer Printer may refer to: Technology * Printer (publishing), a person or a company * Printer (computing), a hardware device * Optical printer for motion picture films People * Nariman Printer (fl. c. 1940), Indian journalist and activist * James ...

port * Two

RS-232 In telecommunications, RS-232 or Recommended Standard 232 is a standard originally introduced in 1960 for serial communication transmission of data. It formally defines signals connecting between a ''DTE'' (''data terminal equipment'') such ...

compatible 2400/1200 or 300 baud

serial port In computing, a serial port is a serial communication interface through which information transfers in or out sequentially one bit at a time. This is in contrast to a parallel port, which communicates multiple bits simultaneously in parallel. ...

s for use with external

modem A modulator-demodulator or modem is a computer hardware device that converts data from a digital format into a format suitable for an analog transmission medium such as telephone or radio. A modem transmits data by Modulation#Digital modulati ...

s or serial printers *External composite video monitor connection *Storage pocket for up to eight 5¼-inch disks The Osborne Executive is powered by a

wall plug A wall plug (UK English),In US English, a wall plug would likely be understood as an electric socket on a wall, although that is a misnomer as a socket is a device that accepts a plug. also known as an anchor (US) or "Rawlplug" (UK), is a fibre ...

, and has no internal battery, although an aftermarket battery pack offering 1-hour run time was available.

Size

* Width: * Height: * Depth: * Weight:

Upgrades and Enhancements

Despite having single-sided drives the Executive motherboard is wired to support double-sided drives, providing the SIDE signal from the disk controller socket to the drive connector but is unused by the shipped single-sided

Western Digital Western Digital Corporation (WDC, commonly known as Western Digital or WD) is an American computer drive manufacturer and data storage company, headquartered in San Jose, California. It designs, manufactures and sells data technology produc ...

FD1793

floppy-disk controller A floppy-disk controller (FDC) has evolved from a discrete set of components on one or more circuit boards to a special-purpose integrated circuit (IC or "chip") or a component thereof. An FDC directs and controls reading from and writing to a ...

. An upgrade kit to 360 KB double-sided, double-density drives was briefly available from Future Systems, consisting of two new DSDD drives, a drop-in replacement FD1797 disk controller, ROM (1.3) upgrade and an upgraded CP/M BIOS (1.4) and utilities which provides backward compatibility for SSSD/SSDD disks as well as the newer format used by the

. An 11 MB

Hard disk drive A hard disk drive (HDD), hard disk, hard drive, or fixed disk is an electro-mechanical data storage device that stores and retrieves digital data using magnetic storage with one or more rigid rapidly rotating platters coated with magne ...

option was available from Gard Micro Systems; installation requires the removal of one floppy drive to accommodate the new drive, a new logic board and fitting a more powerful mains voltage fan. The motherboard also provides a pin header (P12) giving connections to the CPU, RAM and video memory and

direct memory access Direct memory access (DMA) is a feature of computer systems and allows certain hardware subsystems to access main system memory independently of the central processing unit (CPU). Without DMA, when the CPU is using programmed input/output, it is ...

for possible future internal expansion via a

daughterboard In computing, an expansion card (also called an expansion board, adapter card, peripheral card or accessory card) is a printed circuit board that can be inserted into an electrical connector, or expansion slot (also referred to as a bus s ...

References

External links

Computer Museum Page
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110526011344/http://www.computermuseum.li/Testpage/Osborne-Executive-1983.htm , date=2011-05-26

Atari Magazine Review of the Osborne Executive

Rhode Island Computer Museum

- The Osborne Executive can be seen in the 1984 film The Philadelphia Experiment.
Video Osborne Executive Retro Computer museum, Zatec, Czech Republic
Computer-related introductions in 1983 Personal computers Portable computers Z80-based computers