Engineering:North Star Horizon
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 A North Star Horizon computer | |
| Manufacturer | North Star Computers |
|---|---|
| Type | Personal computer |
| Introductory price |
|
| Discontinued | Early 1980s |
| Operating system | CP/M, NorthStar DOS |
| CPU | Z80 @ 4MHz |
| Memory | 16K or more |
| Storage | 5.25 floppy drive(s) holds 90KB each |
| Display | 80 x 24 text mode |
| Graphics | RS-232 port |
| Sound | None |
| Power | Integrated 250W P.S.U. |
| Dimensions | 50.8 x 44.4 x 18.4 cm |
| Mass | 20 kg |
| Successor | North Star Advantage |
The North Star Horizon was a popular 8-bit S-100 bus computer introduced in October 1977.[1][2][3] Like most S-100 machines of the era, it was built around the Zilog Z80A microprocessor, and typically ran the CP/M operating system. It was produced by North Star Computers, and it could be purchased either in kit form or pre-assembled.[4] The North Star Horizon was one of the first computers to have built in floppy drives [5] as well as being one of the first personal computers to have a hard disk drive.[6]
Specifications
Capable of running CP/M and NSDOS (North Star's proprietary Disk Operating System), a standard North Star system sported one or two hard-sectored single sided 5.25 inch floppy disk drives. Within a year a double density floppy controller board was released that supported double sided drives giving 360KB per disk. The base unit had a serial interface to which one could connect a terminal to interact with it. NSDOS included North Star BASIC, a slightly non-standard dialect of BASIC, where some standard BASIC commands of the day had been changed, probably to avoid potential legal issues. Two examples of this were the EXAM and FILL commands, which took the place of the more common PEEK and POKE.
The Horizon was superseded by the all-in-one North Star Advantage in 1982.[7] The Horizon found a niche in University environments where its inbuilt S-100 bus could be used to interface it to a variety of control systems.[8]
North Star released a hard disk version, with an internal full height 5MB MFM drive. They also released an S-100 card with integrated memory and two serial ports which allowed up to eight users on one Horizon, each with their own CPU sharing the disk and other resources. This operated under TurboDOS, a multi user CP/M variant with some Unix-like features.
Software
There are 35 commercial games for North Star Horizon[9][10]
| Game | Year | Publisher |
| Adventure | 1979 | Creative Computing Soft. |
| Adventures #1~#3 | 1982 | Adventure International |
| Adventures #10~#12 | 1982 | Adventure International |
| Adventures #4~#6 | 198? | Adventure International |
| Adventures #7~#9 | 1982 | Adventure International |
| Backgammon 2.0 | 1981 | DynaComp, Inc. |
| Blackjack Coach | 1983 | DynaComp, Inc. |
| Bridge 2.0 | 1979 | DynaComp, Inc. |
| Bridge Master | 1982 | DynaComp, Inc. |
| Chess Master | 1981 | DynaComp, Inc. |
| Cranston Manor Adventure | 1981 | DynaComp, Inc. |
| Evilk | 1978 | Creative Computing Soft. |
| Game Pak I | 1981 | DynaComp, Inc. |
| Game Pak II | 1981 | DynaComp, Inc. |
| Games. Vol. 1 | 1978 | MicroAge |
| Games. Vol. 2 | 1978 | MicroAge |
| Gigatrek | 1982 | Artworx Soft. Co., Inc. |
| Hearts | 1980 | DynaComp, Inc. |
| Management Simulator | 1981 | DynaComp, Inc. |
| Mensa Master | 1982 | DynaComp, Inc. |
| Monarch | 198? | DynaComp, Inc. |
| North Star Software Exchange #1: Games | 1979 | North Star Computers |
| North Star Software Exchange #11: Life Expectancies & Capitals Quiz | 1979 | North Star Computers |
| North Star Software Exchange #13: Games | 1979 | North Star Computers |
| North Star Software Exchange #18: Video Games | 1979 | North Star Computers |
| North Star Software Exchange #3: Guess Game System | 1979 | North Star Computers |
| North Star Software Exchange #7: SOL/VDM Video Games | 1979 | North Star Computers |
| North Star Software Exchange #8: Simulation-type Games | 1979 | North Star Computers |
| Poker Party | 1980 | DynaComp, Inc. |
| Poker Tourney | 1982 | Artworx Soft. Co., Inc. |
| Qubic | 1978 | 1001001, Inc. |
| Space Lanes | 198? | DynaComp, Inc. |
| Uncle Harry's Will | 1982 | DynaComp, Inc. |
| Valdez | 1979 | DynaComp, Inc. |
| Windmere Estates Adventure | 1982 | DynaComp, Inc. |
References
- ↑ North Star Computer Catalogs. North Star Computer. 1979. http://www.hartetechnologies.com/manuals/Northstar/North%20Star%20Computer%20Catalogs.pdf.
- ↑ "S-100 Bus / IEEE-696 Archive: North Star Computers Manuals". http://www.hartetechnologies.com/manuals/Northstar/.
- ↑ "NorthStar Horizon computer". http://oldcomputers.net/northstar-horizon.html.
- ↑ "Horizon, The Complete Computer". Byte (Peterborough NH: Green Publishing) 2 (10): 21. October 1977. The introductory advertisement for the North Star Horizon computer. The price for a Z80 CPU, 16K of RAM and a single floppy drive was $1599 kit and $1899 assembled. Dual drive systems were $1999 kit and $2349 assembled.
- ↑ "NorthStar Horizon computer". http://www.oldcomputers.net/northstar-horizon.html. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
- ↑ "NorthStar Horizon Personal Computer". http://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/search/object/nmah_1064207. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
- ↑ "OLD-COMPUTERS.COM : The Museum". https://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=652. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
- ↑ "S100 Computers - NorthStar". http://www.s100computers.com/Hardware%20Folder/Northstar/History/History.htm.
- ↑ "North Star Horizon software list". https://mame.spludlow.co.uk/SoftwareLists.aspx?List=horizon.
- ↑ "Dynacomp Inc. Catalog – Summer 1981". Dynacomp, Inc.. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bf/Dynacomp_Inc_Catalog_Summer_1981.pdf.
External links
- NorthStar Horizon at Obsolete Technology
- NorthStar Horizon at Old Computer Museum
- North Star Computers Manuals from Harte Technologies
- NorthStar documentation from Rich's classic computing lab
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