07-11-2020, 07:41 PM
Before the microbee and the DG-Z80, someone built their first computer. Tired of waiting, someone spent AUD$525 for a Cromemco SCC which comprises of 4MHz Z80A S100 card with 4 x 2716 sockets, 1K of static RAM, and some peripherals including the TMS5501 Multi I/O Controller (which includes a UART and some interval timers) and a couple of parallel input and output ports.
The monitor ROM and 3K Control BASIC for it was an additional AUD$100 or so.
These ROMs were lent to Applied Tech as a part of the microbee development never to be seen again.
Since then this Computer laid idle and being scavenged for parts just like the crashed Imperial Destroyer in Star Wars Episode 7 "The Force Awakens".
The SCC has been resurrected sans its TMS5501 and is again working.
Its 2716 EPROMs were replaced with TimeKeeper 48Z02 Non-Volatile RAMs which are very fast to reprogram.
Like the microbee, S-100 systems can be make to run games found on later machines such as the Microbee, Sorcerer, TRS80, Super-80, ZX80/81, ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, MSX machines and a myriad of others. It just requires the nouse to configure (or even build) the video, sound and peripheral I/O to do so.
This was part in parcel of the great adventure of S-100 where you built your own machine from scratch learning as you as you delve deeper into its depths.
The monitor ROM and 3K Control BASIC for it was an additional AUD$100 or so.
These ROMs were lent to Applied Tech as a part of the microbee development never to be seen again.
Since then this Computer laid idle and being scavenged for parts just like the crashed Imperial Destroyer in Star Wars Episode 7 "The Force Awakens".
The SCC has been resurrected sans its TMS5501 and is again working.
Its 2716 EPROMs were replaced with TimeKeeper 48Z02 Non-Volatile RAMs which are very fast to reprogram.
Like the microbee, S-100 systems can be make to run games found on later machines such as the Microbee, Sorcerer, TRS80, Super-80, ZX80/81, ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, MSX machines and a myriad of others. It just requires the nouse to configure (or even build) the video, sound and peripheral I/O to do so.
This was part in parcel of the great adventure of S-100 where you built your own machine from scratch learning as you as you delve deeper into its depths.
