Michael Dell’s PC’s Limited Turbo PC came with an eighty-four-key AT-style keyboard. The AT-style keyboard was compatible with the IBM PC/AT computer and featured the function keys to the left, ten numerical keys at the top, and light-up buttons indicating Caps Lock, Number Lock, and Scroll Lock. The keyboard connected to the Turbo PC via a five-pin DIN connector.
This guide for use of the programming language BASIC is stored in a grey-brown padded vinyl binder containing documentation used with a Compaq portable computer. The computer has museum number 1988.0175.01.
This software, VIC Payroll by Microspec, is on a 5 in. floppy disk. There also is a user's guide in a 7" x 9" three-ring binder. The materials were designed for use with the VIC-20 microcomputer.
In the mid-1960s, Dartmouth College professors John Kemeny and Thomas Kurtz developed a computer language intended to be easy to learn and use. They called it BASIC -- Beginners' All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code. Students learned BASIC on a teletype terminal that communicated with a central computer. Several terminals were linked to one computer as part of a system called timesharing. Students on remote terminals could use the computer without seeing it--or even knowing what kind of computer it was. This particular BASIC tape was used with a MITS Altair 8800, a later microcomputer.
A "Programmer's Aid Cartridge" (designated the VIC-1212) that plugs into an expansion interface on the VIC-20. Also included is an instruction guide. The accession also included a VIC-20 microcomputer.
Most of thiese disks relate to dBase II, one of the first database management systems used on microcomputers. The software was originally introduced in 1979 and called "Vulcan".
The maroon box,especially designed for storing 8" floppy disks, contains the following Ashton-Tate software:
1. dBase II System Diskette - Serial No.: 550512 (/) Format: IBM 8 INCH (/) CP/M 80 (/) Version: 2.43, 1984 copyright.
2. dBase II Sample Programs - Format: STAND. 8 INCH (/) CP/M 80 (/) Version: 2.43*, 1984 copyright
3. dBase II UTILITIES - Format: STAND. 8 INCH (/) CP/M 80 (/) Version: 2.43*, 1984 copyright
4. dBase II On-Disk Tutorial (/) STAND. 8 INCH CP/M 80 (/) START-UP DISKETTE (/) ALSO CONTAINS LESSON 1 (/) VERSION: 2.0.1*, 1982, 1983 copyright
5. dBase II On-Disk Tutorial (/) STAND. 8 INCH CP/M 80 (/) LESSONS 2 THROUGH 7 (/) VERSION: 2.0.1*, 1982, 1983 copyright
6. dBase II On-Disk Tutorial (/) STAND. 8 INCH CP/M 80 (/) LESSONS 8 THROUGH 10 (/) VERSION: 2.0.1*, 1982, 1983 copyright
7. ZIP Version 1.5* (/) Format: STAND. 8 INCH (/) CP/M 80, 1983 copyright Hal Pawick
This software for the VIC-20 microcomputer is entitled VIC General Ledger and was made by Microspec. It consists of a 5" floppy disk and a user's guide in a 7" x 9" three-ring binder.
This computer game, Galaxy Invasion, was released in 1980 by Big Five Software for the TRS-80 Model I and III microcomputers. The software package included an instruction manual, a special instruction sheet, and a 5.25” disk. It is enclosed in a plastic bag with a price sticker of $19.95 ($61.00 in 2019 dollars).
This game was based on the arcade game “Galaxian” released in 1979 by Namco. Galaxy Invasion was Big Five Software’s first game to feature sound and music. The object of the game was to shoot down space aliens, with extra points awarded if you shot a space alien while it was attacking, and to destroy a Flagship within a set amount of time.
These thirty-eight cassette tapes contain programs used with the SCAMP microcomputer (for the computer, see 1988.0861.01). Dates on the labels range from 6/15/73 to 9/7/75. The tapes are stored in a yellow cardboard box with a plastic handle.
These materials for the program VIC Checkbook Manager by Microspec. include a 5" floppy disk and a user's guide in a 7" x 9" three-ring binder, They came with the VIC-20 microcomputer included in the accession.
"Robert Carrier's Menu Planner," made for the VIC-20 microcomputer by Commodore and Ivan Berg Software, Ltd., consists of two cassettes and an instruction booklet in their original box.
Power or line conditioners regulate, filter and suppress noise in alternating current power for computers and other solid state equipment. This one was used with a Dynabyte microcomputer and disk drive (see 1997.0294.01 and 1997.0294.02). It is marked on the front: Line 2. It has serial number 85337.
WatchWord Version 2.1was software for the Zenith Z100 (or Heath H100) microcomputers and was developed by S&K Technology, Inc. of San Antonio, Texas, in 1984. The package includes a 5.25" disk, two product brochures, and a questionnaire. WatchWord was a word processing and editing tool developed to run on microcomputers running either ZDOS or MSDOS operating systems. It was created for use by beginner, intermediate, and advanced level users. Basic key functions were available for all users and it provided the ability to assign 20 different keystroke sequences to other keys. Advanced users could create their own command files for repeatable sequences of keystrokes (called macros). A status line at the bottom of the screen kept track of the cursor position, line number, file size, file name, operation mode, and the current time. WatchWord provided built-in support for many common printers. In 1984 the software sold for $100 (approximately $246 in 2019 dollars).
This software program, ProKey, was sold by CE Software, Inc., for DOS users. The package includes one 3.25" disk, a user manual, product guide, letter to the user, registration card, and a support pamphlet. This software allowed the user to automate routine tasks by recording keyboard and mouse actions (up to 1,009 keystrokes or characters) in a file called a macro. The software came with a wide-range of predefined macros which the user could edit. ProKey was first released in 1982 by RoseSoft, Inc. for $75 ($196 in 2019 dollars). In 1992 the company was purchased by CE Software Inc. of Bellevue, Washington. They released this version for $99 ($186 in 2019 dollars).
Reference:
“Network World,” September 28, 1992.
“InfoWorld,” November 4, 1991.
“PC Magazine,” November 1982.
Kelly, Brian W. and Grimes, Dennis J., 1985, “DEC Microcomputer Directory,” Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.
In order to transmit signals over a telephone line, early microcomputers and other electronic equipment used modems (modulator/demodulators). These converted from a digital format into a format suitable for an analog transmission medium such as a telephone. This device, with its black plastic case and metal base, has two wells that held a phone handset, three switches, a power cord, and internal circuitry. It is marked on a tag on the bottom: DESIGN ELEMENTS, INC. (/) COLUMBUS,OHIO(/) MODEL 79-O/A (/) SERAL 7930770-00382 (/) PATENT PENDING. It is marked on another tag on the bottom: PROPERTY OF (/) RCA SERVICE COMPANY (/) L13155. A logo on the front reads: dei.
Richard D. Fretwell of Columbus, Ohio, applied for a patent for a "data terminal automatic control circuit" in 1972, assigning the patent to Design Elements, Inc. of Columbus. The patent was granted in 1973 (U.S. patent 3,745, 251). He envisioned signals sent from teletype machines.