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Author Topic: Q&A with Bruce Tanner (IS-BASIC writer) (Read 182820 times)

Offline Tuby128

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Re: Q&A with Bruce Tanner (IS-BASIC writer)
« Reply #345 on: 2022.January.09. 21:13:40 »
For the record, the colorised EP keys are very good if you try to teach kids to use the computer. At the beginning younger kids under age of six cannot read all the letters, but they are able to remember partern an positions. I was also 4-5 years old and my favourite key was F5 in the basic because it cleared off the mess i made on the screen. (I was wishing to have the F5 for my room to clean it up.)
 I also liked the STOP with the red color.
 Funny thing is my 4 year old daughter just started to learn the alphabet, and numbers, and the Enterprise helps us a lot. Thus the Enterprise in my point of view is a more generation teaching device for my family.

Offline Tuby128

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Re: Q&A with Bruce Tanner (IS-BASIC writer)
« Reply #346 on: 2024.January.15. 08:19:29 »
I watched a youtube video about the the Apple II. computer. For those who doesn't know about it, Apple II has a MOS 6502 CPU, and the system was introduced in 1977 and was used in american schools at least 10 years long as education material.
 It has a very interesting video mode, where the upper part of the screen is for the bitmap screen, and the lower 4 lines are text lines, where the user can make commands.
 This reminds me to the Enterprise Graphics mode, where the same happens.

 My question ist, where the "graphics" screen with the 4 textline idea came from? Was it some kind of standard that time?

 Another question just to understand the environment, Mr. Tanner if you could answer it: During the developement time of the Enterprise Computer, were the Apple II computers available in the UK schools and companies? Did you use them?

Offline BruceTanner

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Re: Q&A with Bruce Tanner (IS-BASIC writer)
« Reply #347 on: 2024.January.15. 09:35:38 »
We used Apple II computers at I.S. with a Z80 card running CP/M - I remember well using Wordstar on one. We had two disk drives on top and the monitor on top of those. They were replaced by the original IBM PC when they became available (also with a Z80 card).

Schools in the UK, including mine, used the Research Machines 380Z which was built very robustly compared to eg Apple II (just one per school!). Big metal box with separate keyboard also in a metal box.

I think the 4 lines of text under a graphics screen was common - I *think* the above RM 380Z did it too. It's got to do *something* when you go into graphics mode from the Basic prompt or it will appear to have crashed. I did not even know the Apple II did that - I only ever used one for CP/M, never went into Basic.
« Last Edit: 2024.January.16. 06:23:10 by Dr.OG, Reason: Typos: Appke and Apole corrected to Apple. »

Offline BruceTanner

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Online Zozosoft

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Re: Q&A with Bruce Tanner (IS-BASIC writer)
« Reply #349 on: 2024.January.16. 09:49:20 »
About a Hungarian discussion come the question: how come the Status Line idea? Do you see it on any other computers previously than the EP? Or it is full unique Enterprise feautre?

For example the close brother TVC also don't have it, TAPE messages displayed in normal screen area. (And using border flashing instead of EP tape level squares.)
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Offline BruceTanner

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Re: Q&A with Bruce Tanner (IS-BASIC writer)
« Reply #350 on: 2024.January.16. 10:15:49 »
I cannot remember seeing it on any other computers, but I also cannot remember where the idea came from! :oops:.

It made me think... did any mainframe terminals have status lines, as that was still a big influence in the early 1980s. I cannot find any evidence of this, but I came across this colour picture of a VT-52 terminal (wikipedia). Does the keyboard remind you of anything? :lol:



Offline BruceTanner

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Re: Q&A with Bruce Tanner (IS-BASIC writer)
« Reply #351 on: 2024.January.16. 10:19:37 »
And probably difficult to do with the 6845, very coomon and used in the TVC? (But I can't remember!)

Offline Tuby128

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Re: Q&A with Bruce Tanner (IS-BASIC writer)
« Reply #352 on: 2024.January.16. 10:29:41 »
I remember there were not many games, but there was some, where during the TAPE loading screen there was a changing picture instead of static picture.
The one is maybe Tili-Toli game. The other was a triangle which was shrinking until it was a line and back. My version of Ninja Commando had this effect. (Maybe i mistaken the game).
« Last Edit: 2024.January.16. 10:32:58 by Tuby128 »