====== Exidy Sorcerer (1978) ======
===== Features =====
* CPU: Zilog Z80 A 2.106 MHz.
* RAM: 8 KB, later 16KB (up to 48 KB)
* VRAM: 2 KB
* ROM: 8 KB
* Text Modes: 64 chars. x 30 lines
* Graphic Modes: 128 programmable graphics characters
* Colors: Monochrome
* Sound: By connecting a speaker to pins 1 and 4 of the parallel port.
* I/O Ports: Expansion Bus (S100), Parallel Interface, Video out, Serial Interface, Tape recorder EAR & MIC (300 / 1200 bauds)
* Keyboard: Full-stroke keyboard, 79 keys with numeric keypad
* OS: CP/M (needs the extender chassis with disk drive)
* Built In Language: BASIC interpreter ROM cartridge
* Peripherals: Floppy drive unit, S-100 bus expansion box, Intelligent tape recorder, Micromation's Doubler disk drive controller
===== Usage =====
Currently, MESS supports two different hardware configuration for the Exidy Sorcerer
* exidy [Exidy Sorcerer]: 32k RAM with 4 floppy drives
* exidyd [Exidy Sorcerer - diskless]: probably the most common configuration, 48k RAM with only the tape recorder connected
Both drivers support cart dumps in .rom format, using the "cartridge" (cart) device, and up to two cassette devices for tapes in .wav format, "cassette1" (cass1) and "cassette2" (cass2).
Additionally, exidy supports up to four floppy drives, "floppydisk1" (flop1) to "floppydisk4" (flop4), for disk images in .dsk format.
Also notice that, in both drivers, a “quickload” (quik) feature is present for .bin files and that the “printer” (prin) is supported as well.
== Keyboard ==
This system requires full keyboard emulation to work correctly. At startup, full keyboard emulation mode is enabled by default. Whilst in full keyboard emulation mode, some key associated functionality may be disabled (like the ESC key for EXIT). The keyboard emulation mode is toggled using the "Scroll Lock" key (by default).
===== Known Issues =====
The emulation of this system is Preliminary.
===== History and Trivia =====
The Sorcerer was first launched in 1978 (although some sources claim 1977, which appears unlikely), at a price of $895. It was powered by a Z80 running at 2.106 MHz with 8 kilobytes of RAM. The expansion systems and drives were released at the same time.
Sales in Europe were fairly strong, via their distributor, CompuData Systems. The machine had its biggest brush with success in 1979 when the Dutch broadcasting company, TELEAC, decided to emulate the BBC's success and introduce their own home computer. The Belgian company DAI was originally contracted to design their machines, but when they couldn't deliver, CompuData delivered several thousand Sorcerers instead.
By 1980 Exidy had already decided to give up on the machine, but sales in Europe were strong enough that CompuData decided to license the design for local construction in the Netherlands. They built the machine for several years before developing their own 16-bit Intel 8088-based machine called the Tulip, which replaced the Sorcerer in 1983.
One of the largest groups in The Netherlands was the ESGG (Exidy Sorcerer Gebruikers Groep) which published a monthly newsletter in two editions, Dutch and English. They were the largest group for a while in the HCC (Hollandse Computer Club) federation. The Dutch company De Broeders Montfort was a major firmware manufacturerer.
The Sorcerer also had a strong following in Australia. This is most likely due to Dick Smith Electronics, being a leading electronics and hobbyist retailer at the time, pushing the Sorcerer quite heavily. The Sorcerer Computer Users group of Australia (or SCUA) actively supported the Sorcerer long after Exidy discontinued it, with RAM upgrades, speed boosts, the "80 column card", and even a replacement monitor program, SCUAMON.
The history of the Sorcerer has interesting parallels with Exidy's competition's attempts to build a home computer, Bally's various attempts at making a "real" machine out of the Astrocade. It is particularly interesting that while the Astrocade (and Datamax UV-1) had limited text capabilities but excellent graphics, the Sorcerer instead had excellent text and only "usable" graphics.
//(info from Wikipedia)//
===== Links =====
* Mike's Exidy Sorcerer Z80 Page -- http://www.lisp.com.au/~michael/exidy/
* Exidy Sorcerer at DigiBarn -- http://www.digibarn.com/collections/systems/exidy-sorcerer/index.html
===== Other Emulators =====
* WSorcerer -- http://www.geocities.com/emucompboy/
Generated on Sun Jul 19 10:17:28 2009