Re: State of the SAM and SAM Community
Andrew Gale wrote: I've often wondered whether there's an opening to use the SAM ASIC in a simple single-board computer for electronics hobbyists... It would use up those spare ASICs and perhaps encourage people to devise hardware for the SAM bus. I was thinking of a stripped down machine on it's own pcb, with a few (slightly modified) expansion slots -- it could have 256K RAM (much more than any SBC usually has), an ASIC, a BASIC ROM, monochrome video (needing just a transistor and a few resistors to implement, rather than an MC1377P), no sound, and no MIDI - thereby saving a few chips but permitting people to add them if they like, and using a flash memory (approx 512K) for program storage - much easier and cheaper than a disc drive. Oh, and a Z80 too! Include a printer port, and use a PC keyboard, and you'll have something much more fun to use than many of these microprocessor trainers on the market - how many have video output? And they all need connecting to a PC to program... this could be programmed in-situ by lugging a TV and PC keyboard to the installation. The whole component cost, excluding the ASIC, could be less than 25 quid. Perhaps it could prolong the life of the SAM by opening it up to a new market? Andy It's a very good idea, and it's on that Bruce had done in at least one form towards the end of SAMTech - i remember seeing the prototype at ZX92 remember seeing it Nev? Good idea. David
Re: State of the SAM and SAM Community
I've often wondered whether there's an opening to use the SAM ASIC in a simple single-board computer for electronics hobbyists... It would use up those spare ASICs and perhaps encourage people to devise hardware for the SAM bus. I was thinking of a stripped down machine on it's own pcb, with a few (slightly modified) expansion slots -- it could have 256K RAM (much more than any SBC usually has), an ASIC, a BASIC ROM, monochrome video (needing just a transistor and a few resistors to implement, rather than an MC1377P), no sound, and no MIDI - thereby saving a few chips but permitting people to add them if they like, and using a flash memory (approx 512K) for program storage - much easier and cheaper than a disc drive. Oh, and a Z80 too! Include a printer port, and use a PC keyboard, and you'll have something much more fun to use than many of these microprocessor trainers on the market - how many have video output? And they all need connecting to a PC to program... this could be programmed in-situ by lugging a TV and PC keyboard to the installation. The whole component cost, excluding the ASIC, could be less than 25 quid. Perhaps it could prolong the life of the SAM by opening it up to a new market? Andy
Re: State of the SAM and SAM Community
I've often wondered whether there's an opening to use the SAM ASIC in a simple single-board computer for electronics hobbyists... It would use up those spare ASICs and perhaps encourage people to devise hardware for the SAM bus. [snip] Perhaps it could prolong the life of the SAM by opening it up to a new market? *laughs* I've been saying this for eons... Bob, Bill, and Samsboss rejected it then and will certainly reject it now! (At the time, I was only suggesting a carefully written advert into certain electronics magazines - not a stripped down SBC) Justin.
Re: State of the SAM and SAM Community
Van: Andrew Gale [EMAIL PROTECTED] Aan: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Onderwerp: Re: State of the SAM and SAM Community Datum: Friday, October 16, 1998 10:14 Perhaps it could prolong the life of the SAM by opening it up to a new market? The idea itself is in my opinion a good one, but as Justin already said the big bloke has no intention of doing anything with Sam (but he could always come up with some amazing new idea). All he does is barking at the usual suspects who in his opinion should be coding like mad on proper usefull software. If only 1 percent, fnar -- Robert van der Veeke, aka RJV Graphics [EMAIL PROTECTED] Currently listening to : Saving Private Ryan
Re: State of the SAM and SAM Community
On Fri, 16 Oct 1998 10:14:25 +0100 (BST), Andrew Gale [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I've often wondered whether there's an opening to use the SAM ASIC in a simple single-board computer for electronics hobbyists... It would use up those spare ASICs and perhaps encourage people to devise hardware for the SAM bus. snip Bruce did this already. years ago. hth -- Nev - no longer at [EMAIL PROTECTED] and getting no spam at all (yet) Webpage under construction at www,nfy53,demon,co,uk also hiding on ICQ
