The Q40 and Q60 (sometimes known generically as the Qx0 series) are

computer A computer is a machine that can be programmed to Execution (computing), carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations (computation) automatically. Modern digital electronic computers can perform generic sets of operations known as C ...

motherboard A motherboard (also called mainboard, main circuit board, mb, mboard, backplane board, base board, system board, logic board (only in Apple computers) or mobo) is the main printed circuit board (PCB) in general-purpose computers and other expand ...

s designed in the late 1990s, based on the

Motorola 68040 The Motorola 68040 ("''sixty-eight-oh-forty''") is a 32-bit microprocessor in the Motorola 68000 series, released in 1990. It is the successor to the 68030 and is followed by the 68060, skipping the 68050. In keeping with general Motorola nami ...

and

68060 The Motorola 68060 ("''sixty-eight-oh-sixty''") is a 32-bit microprocessor from Motorola released in 1994. It is the successor to the Motorola 68040 and is the highest performing member of the 68000 series. Two derivatives were produced, the 68L ...

microprocessors respectively and intended to be partially compatible with the Sinclair QL

microcomputer A microcomputer is a small, relatively inexpensive computer having a central processing unit (CPU) made out of a microprocessor. The computer also includes memory and input/output (I/O) circuitry together mounted on a printed circuit board (PC ...

. Later these were sold as a fully assembled computer in an AT desktop case.

Hardware

The Q40 and Q60 motherboards were designed by Peter Graf of

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and manufactured by D&D Systems of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. Peter Graf designed it to fit any standard AT form factor computer case, although D&D later sold it as complete, fully assembled computer. The Q40 consists of a sub- AT form factor board comprising a 40 MHz

68040 The Motorola 68040 ("''sixty-eight-oh-forty''") is a 32-bit microprocessor in the Motorola 68000 series, released in 1990. It is the successor to the 68030 and is followed by the 68060, skipping the 68050. In keeping with general Motorola nami ...

processor, 1 MiB of video RAM, and several PLDs implementing a QL-compatible video display generator, an

ISA Isa or ISA may refer to: Places * Isa, Amur Oblast, Russia * Isa, Kagoshima, Japan * Isa, Nigeria * Isa District, Kagoshima, former district in Japan * Isa Town, middle class town located in Bahrain * Mount Isa, Queensland, Australia * Mount Is ...

bus, stereo 20 kHz audio DACs and an

AT keyboard The Model F was a series of computer keyboards produced mainly from 1981–1985 and in reduced volume until 1994 by IBM and later Lexmark. Its mechanical-key design consisted of a buckling spring over a capacitive PCB, similar to the later Model ...

interface.

Floppy disk A floppy disk or floppy diskette (casually referred to as a floppy, or a diskette) is an obsolescent type of disk storage composed of a thin and flexible disk of a magnetic storage medium in a square or nearly square plastic enclosure lined w ...

, ATA

hard disk 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 magnet ...

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 a ...

and

Centronics printer port IEEE 1284 is a standard that defines bi-directional parallel communications between computers and other devices. It was originally developed in the 1970s by Centronics, and was widely known as the Centronics port, both before and after its IEEE ...

interfaces are provided by an ISA "multi-I/O" card in one of the two ISA slots provided. Up to 32 MiB of FPM or

EDO RAM Dynamic random-access memory (dynamic RAM or DRAM) is a type of random-access semiconductor memory that stores each bit of data in a memory cell, usually consisting of a tiny capacitor and a transistor, both typically based on metal-oxid ...

can be installed in two 72-pin

SIMM A SIMM (single in-line memory module) is a type of memory module containing random-access memory used in computers from the early 1980s to the early 2000s. It differs from a dual in-line memory module (DIMM), the most predominant form of memory ...

slots. Also included are sockets for two

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 * R ...

devices, 2 kiB of non-volatile RAM and a real-time clock. Both of the QL's standard video modes are supported, plus two extended modes: 512×256 or 1024×512 pixels with 16-bit colour. The Q40 board was produced in limited quantities before being superseded by the Q40i; essentially a Q60 board with a 40 MHz 68040. The Q60 became available in 1999. It is a revised board with a 66 MHz

(Q60/66) or 80 MHz 68LC060 (Q60/80) processor and support for up to 128 MiB of RAM.

Software

Three

operating system An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware, software resources, and provides common services for computer programs. Time-sharing operating systems schedule tasks for efficient use of the system and may also in ...

s are available for the Q40/Q60; these comprise QDOS Classic (an enhanced version of Qdos 1.10), SMSQ/E and a custom

Linux distribution A Linux distribution (often abbreviated as distro) is an operating system made from a software collection that includes the Linux kernel and, often, a package management system. Linux users usually obtain their operating system by downloading one ...

References

External links

Official Q40/Q60 website
68k-based computers Motherboard Sinclair QL clones {{compu-hardware-stub