.Harris technology on the job
In information systems, Harris produces data processing terminals, general-purpose computers, word processing systems and supervisory control systems.
Harris offers a complete family of high-performance, general-purpose computer systems. Providing virtual memory, data base management and a multitude of languages for scientific and commercial applications.
.Introducing the new generation of programmable calculators… with revolutionary Solid State Software… from Texas Instruments.
The world’s most advanced programmables.
Performance. Capability. Quality. Value.
The TI Programmable 58.
The advanced key programmable calculator with plug-in Solid State Software™ libraries.
$124.95*The TI Programmable 59.
The super-powerful card programmable with Solid State Software™ libraries and magnetic cards.
$299.95*
That Televideo keyboard has a really weird, narrow numeric keypad. Also, it today’s dollars it would cost $716 in today’s dollars, which is pretty insane for a keyboard. KeyTronic is still around and they still sell keyboards, though it looks like they haven’t designed a new one in the last decade. They’ve shifted almost exclusively over to producing products for other companies.
.Your System Deserves The Best!
Key Tronic Keyboards.
To enhance the performance of your personal computer or computer terminal, ask your dealer for a plug-compatible Key Tronic keyboard.
Key Tronic Corporation is the world’s largest independent manufacturer of computer keyboards.
.Game/teacher
Hook Intellivision to your color TV and its preprogrammed software lets you do everything from play games to learn a language. It has 60-by-92-line graphics in 16 colors. With keyboard, it’s $499. Maker: Mattel Electronics, 5150 Rosecrans Ave., Hawthorne, Calif. 90250.
.“My computer helped me write The Final Encyclopedia. I wouldn’t trust anything less than Scotch Brand Diskettes to make a long story short!”
Gordon R. Dickson,
Science Fiction Author, Minneapolis, MinnesotaGordon Dickson: a small businessman whose product is his own imagination. He’s written more than 40 novels and 150 short stories; his newest work is The Final Encyclopedia. He uses his personal computer and word processing software to maximize his production. All his words-his product-are stored on diskettes.
Actually, it never stopped biting. The Apple III was an unmitigated disaster. One of the reason’s for its “reintroduction” was that Steve Jobs had insisted that it not have a fan. The chips inside would get so hot that they would pop out of their sockets. Apple’s official advice to customers when this happened was to lift the computer a few inches off of the table and drop it to reseat the chips.
Regarding it’s hard drive, it’s kind of crazy to think that it only spun at 60 RPM. Modern drives usually spin at 7,200 RPM and high end drives spin at 10-15,000 RPM; though the former usually have 3.5″ platters and the latter 2.5″ so there is a lot less metal to fling around. As pointed out by Michael Covington in the comments, the drive actually rotated 60 times per second, or 3600 RPM. Not that far off from today’s drives. My bad.
The OCR software kept reading “Apple III’s” as “Apple Ill’s” which seems appropriate.
Also, once again Interface age shows that they really could have used a spell-checker, or at least a copy-editor as this piece is rife with spelling errors (which I generally left in).
.THE APPLE III BITES AGAIN
by Tom Fox
Sitting tall and handsome, the Apple III is the desktop computer of the future—or so it was intended, when introduced about a year ago. Since then, development hangups and production delays have allowed the competition the time to play catch-up. Recently re-introduced as the “new, more powerful Apple III,” how does the system measure up to its challengers?
.The ARMY BRAIN
A GIANT “thinking machine,” able to apply electronic speeds for the first time to mathematical tasks too difficult for previous solution, is now in use by the U. S. Army. It can compute 1,000 times faster than the most advanced calculating device previously known, can solve in hours problems which would take years on a mechanical machine and shows promise of revolutionizing long-range weather prediction and many other highly complicated sciences.
.HANDWRITING READER invented by Leon D. Harmon of Bell Telephone Laboratories reads ten handwritten words—”zero through nine.” The electrically wired stylus is pressed to “reset” button before a word is written on the electrically-connected writing surface. When stylus is touched to “identify” button, light appears above correct digit on handwriting reader.
.Intricate Machine Fits Men to Jobs
A MACHINE known as a mechanical correlator which takes certain information about an individual and after a few minutes’ work tells him just what occupation he should pursue has been used with success in fitting men into the right jobs. The machine operates on a pneumatic principle, using a perforated paper roll similar to that which produces music in player pianos.
.WHAT’S NEW
Advanced Personal Computer Has UNIX.
NEC Information Systems’ Advanced Personal Computer III is an IBM PC compatible offering UNIX functionality. The MS-DOS operating system and GW BASIC are standard, and the multitasking, single-user UNIX System III operating system is available with special memory-management hardware.
