Re: Has anyone gotten ELKS to run on an I80186 based system?

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On Tue, Apr 29, 2008 at 6:18 PM, Chris M <chrism3667@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
>  --- Gregg Levine <gregg.drwho8@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
>  > >  The 186 was used in CP/M-86 systems.  I have a
>  > computer with one that runs
>  > > AutoCAD version 1.4 for CP/M.  I don't know if the
>  > 186 was used in computers
>  > > beyond those with the S-100 bus.
>  > >
>  > >  The computer with AutoCAD has more video memory
>  > than system memory.  : )
>
>
>  Can you provide the make (and model) of this unit
>  please.
>
>
> > I have here an accelerator card who has an I80186 on
>  > it. At one point
>  > I had an idea to sort out how to reprogram its
>  > firmware to pose as
>  > such a system, but the idea ran out of steam, when I
>  > couldn't find
>  > anything further about the firm.
>
>
>
>  is this the early Orchid accelerator?
>
>   The 80186 was used in the Tandy 2000, the Mindset,
>  Televideo Personal Mini (PM/4t and PM/16t I think were
>  their designations), the Northstar Dimension, and also
>  the Burroughs ICON. Others? It was used on a number of
>  "4 port cards", AST was one manufacturer. These were
>  essentially high performance serial cards (I know
>  little more, though I did correspond w/a gent who
>  developed, in Modula-2, a bbs system for a Televideo
>  286 box (the Telecat I believe) that had 4 of these
>  cards (each providing maybe 4 high speed serial ports
>  - these boards also sported some Zilog logic). The
>  system was capable of hundreds of simultaneous users
>  in hundreds of chatrooms. It was an interesting app
>  from what I could tell, but unfortunately the vendor,
>  GeNiE, wasn't interested, wanting to make use of a
>  newly purchased mini of some sort. I could get more
>  details if anyone is interested).
>   Early Ampro Little Boards had a '186 (later ones had
>  an NEC V40).
>   There was talk on some usenet group, probably for
>  generic TRS-80s (and the Tandy 2000 did carry the
>  TRS-80 moniker). Allegedly some code was ever so
>  slightly incompatible when run on a 186 machine.
>  Subtle timing differences mayhap. I taught myself
>  assembler on my original Tandy 2000 many moons ago,
>  but farbeit for me to have noticed any
>  incompatibilities like that. But keep in mind...the
>  main reason 80186 based computers were incompatible
>  were because they just weren't clones - the Tandy 2000
>  used a video chipset by SMC. Remember during the early
>  *clone* wars (these were clones in a broad sense) most
>  vendors wanted to either outdo IBM's PEECEE (and did
>  oftentimes w/more speed, better graphics, more
>  storage) or were afraid to make something too
>  compatible and risk litigation. A common high
>  performance graphic chip was the NEC 7220. It was
>  found in the NEC APC and APC III. It wasn't compatible
>  with the Motorola 6845, used on both the CGA and MDA
>  cards.
>   There is an *8 bit* version of the 80186 called the
>  80188. I know of no computer that used it, but I do
>  have an IBM PGA clone by Vermont Microsystems that
>  uses it (the PGA was a high performance video card
>  (actually a sandwich of 3 boards) that predated the
>  vga, but was at least as capable.)
>   Oi. There was also a generic clone mobo/system
>  manufactured in the US which sported an 80186. I
>  forget the name, but they were based in California. I
>  think Computer Products United was the name, but I'd
>  have to check the ad to be sure.

Hello!
Yes you are indeed correct Chris, it is the original one from that
company, it is indeed an Accelerator card from Orchid. Besides trying
to find its networking add on card, I was also trying to find a BIOS
adoption kit from AnnaBooks, but that firm seems to have become a part
of history.

And do not apologize for your problems regarding sending things. Yahoo
is famous for deliberately screwing up how people post messages.
-- 
Gregg C Levine gregg.drwho8@xxxxxxxxx
"This signature was once found posting rude
 messages in English in the Moscow subway."
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