🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <34cc5...@news.power.net.uk>, bi...@DeathsDoor.com says...
> I ran the user group for the MK14, one of the first UK "home computers" back
> in 1978(ish).
> 
> The spec for this machine, before any kind of addons was:
> 
> SC/MP processor, 256 bytes of RAM, 512 bytes ROM, led digit display, numeric
> keypad, and no way of saving your code!  A cassette interface and other
> goodies soon followed: the cassette interface was so slow, you could make
> out the individual bits.  Eventually I had 1 1/2 K of ram, and a rather
> feeble video output, but that was really so late in its career to be
> pointless.
> 
> I've got a picture somewhere of the rats nest that was my system, I'll have
> to scan it into my web page.
> 
> Geoff
 
Fond memories, yes. This is the machine that I learnt to program in 
assembler on. I eventually built a video display from a design published 
in Personal Computer World back in the days when they actually had 
circuit diagrams and hardware construction projects. Ordered all the 
TTL and memory chips from the US because at that time it was about twice 
as much to buy them in the UK even with shipping.

Does anybody have any information about the SC/MP ? I know it was a bit-
serial processor but I can't remember much about the architecture. There 
were several computers in that era based on it.

I'd love to hear other recollections of the UK home computer scene from 
around that time.

Simon

MAN!!!

And I thought I was the only person who had a home computer that was based
on the NS 8063 AKA SC/MP!!!!
Mine had 16K of RAM (TONS back then!) with the NI/BL Basic interpreter, a
TVT-II (remember them?) and cassette interface.

NI/BL (affectionately called 'nibble') did not support anything other than
punched tape (you typed 'LIST' to save your program to paper tape, you load
said paper tape into reader and pressed start to reload) so I had to write a
save program (in nibble) to write a line to the screen, pause, send the
carriage return, pause and loop through memory until the end of the program
was reached.  Since the source was stored, in ascii-untouched, this was
really easy.  The cassette (tarbell, I think) was treated by nibble as the
paper tape reader/punch.  This arrange worked great.  My little save
application went in the upper page (SC/MP could only address 4K at a
time-upto (and correct me if I am wrong) 64K) Nibble provided a means to
control the paging...oh, the good old days!

I would love to hear from anyone else who used this little beast.

TTFN!

Geoff wrote in message <34cc5...@news.power.net.uk>...
>I ran the user group for the MK14, one of the first UK "home computers"
back
>in 1978(ish).
>
>The spec for this machine, before any kind of addons was:
>
>SC/MP processor, 256 bytes of RAM, 512 bytes ROM, led digit display,
numeric
>keypad, and no way of saving your code!  A cassette interface and other
>goodies soon followed: the cassette interface was so slow, you could make
>out the individual bits.  Eventually I had 1 1/2 K of ram, and a rather
>feeble video output, but that was really so late in its career to be
>pointless.
>
>I've got a picture somewhere of the rats nest that was my system, I'll have
>to scan it into my web page.
>
>Geoff
>
>
>
>
>

Simon Jones wrote:
> 
> In article <34cc5...@news.power.net.uk>, bi...@DeathsDoor.com says...
> > I ran the user group for the MK14, one of the first UK "home computers" back
> > in 1978(ish).
> >
> > The spec for this machine, before any kind of addons was:
> >
> > SC/MP processor, 256 bytes of RAM, 512 bytes ROM, led digit display, numeric
> > keypad, and no way of saving your code!  A cassette interface and other
> > goodies soon followed: the cassette interface was so slow, you could make
> > out the individual bits.  Eventually I had 1 1/2 K of ram, and a rather
> > feeble video output, but that was really so late in its career to be
> > pointless.
> >
> > I've got a picture somewhere of the rats nest that was my system, I'll have
> > to scan it into my web page.
> >
> > Geoff
> 
> Fond memories, yes. This is the machine that I learnt to program in
> assembler on. I eventually built a video display from a design published
> in Personal Computer World back in the days when they actually had
> circuit diagrams and hardware construction projects. Ordered all the
> TTL and memory chips from the US because at that time it was about twice
> as much to buy them in the UK even with shipping.
> 
> Does anybody have any information about the SC/MP ? I know it was a bit-
> serial processor but I can't remember much about the architecture. There
> were several computers in that era based on it.
> 
> I'd love to hear other recollections of the UK home computer scene from
> around that time.
> 
I *never* used one of these SC/MP computers, but I have three old books with
information about the SC/MP. I am attempting to write a cross-assembler for
it. If you are interested, the books are:

_Best of Interface Age: Volume I-Software in BASIC_, edited by Carl D. Warren,
Dilithium Press, 1979, Forest Grove, Oregon, ISBN: 0-918398-36-3. This book
has a chapter with the assembly source for the NIBL BASIC interpreter.

_How to Design, Build & program your Own Working Computer System_, by Rober P
Haviland, TAB Books, 1979, Blue Ridge Summit, Pennsylvania, ISBN:
0-8306-9810-8 (hardback) or ISBN: 0-8306-1111-8 (paperback). This book
contains hardware info on the SC/MP, as well as how to make a small ROM memory
using diodes.

_An Introduction to Microcomputers: Volume II-Some Real Products_, by Adam
Osborne, Adam Osborne and Associates, 1976, Berkeley, California, (no ISBN).
Chapter two of this book gives details about the machine language and hardware
aspects of the SC/MP.

By the way, did the MK14 use the SC/MP or the SC/MP II microprocessor? The
original SC/MP would *not* drive TTL devices without special interface chips.
The SC/MP II did *not* have this problem.


-- 
+-------------------------------------------------------------+
|     Charles and Francis Richmond     <rich...@plano.net>   |
+-------------------------------------------------------------+

The MK14 used the SC/MP 1 as far as I know, there was all manner of
interface circuitry to  do the appropriate buffering.  I've still got the
original manual at my parents' house,  with a cutout photocopy of the
instruction set  stuck on the front!  For MK14 programming you needed to
learn the hex opcodes, as a result of which I have ever since been able to
"think" in hexadecimal.

I was a programmer rather than an electronics engineer back then, one of my
home-grown attempts at expansion (that DID work mind you) was a stack of ram
chips soldered onto one another, with the chip select sticking out at the
side, connected to a multiplexer chip for the address decoding.  Think I had
8 high at one point.

Geoff

Geoff (bi...@DeathsDoor.com) wrote:
: The MK14 used the SC/MP 1 as far as I know, there was all manner of
: interface circuitry to  do the appropriate buffering.  I've still got the

My MK14 (a fairly late one - Issue 4???) used an INS8060 CPU - which is 
the SC/MP-II. It only used a +5V supply and all the signals were TTL-level.


: original manual at my parents' house,  with a cutout photocopy of the
: instruction set  stuck on the front!  For MK14 programming you needed to
: learn the hex opcodes, as a result of which I have ever since been able to
: "think" in hexadecimal.

I can still remember some of the opcodes... Lets see now...

C4 00 07 8F FF C4 01 07 8F FF 90 F4

That was the first program I ever wrote on the MK14. I think I've got the 
last byte correct - it's supposed to jump back to the start of the 
program. 

Anyone know what it does?

I still have my MK14 and the manuals. Alas the 7805 shorted on day 
(Sinclair were too cheap to put a heatsink on it, and I didn't 
realise...) and it cooked the SC/MP and the ROMs. One day I'll put my 
spare SC/MP in the board and burn a new set of ROMs from the listing in 
the manual...


: Geoff


-tony

On Tue, 27 Jan 1998 22:49:58 -0500, "George Gray"
<geo...@bellatlantic.net> wrote:

>And I thought I was the only person who had a home computer that was based
>on the NS 8063 AKA SC/MP!!!!

>I would love to hear from anyone else who used this little beast.

I tried to homebrew a system using an SC/MP about 1976 but never got
it to work.  I still have the part rattling around my junk box.

The first system I got the work was an SWTPC 6800 kit.  SWTPC made
hi-fi kits before they got into computers and made easy to build kits.

In article <6ar164$1...@p850ug1.demon.co.uk>, a...@p850ug1.demon.co.uk 
says...
> Geoff (bi...@DeathsDoor.com) wrote:
> : The MK14 used the SC/MP 1 as far as I know, there was all manner of
> : interface circuitry to  do the appropriate buffering.  I've still got the
> 
> My MK14 (a fairly late one - Issue 4???) used an INS8060 CPU - which is 
> the SC/MP-II. It only used a +5V supply and all the signals were TTL-level.

I think mine was Issue 2, it was definitely an SC/MP-II. I seem to 
remember that the changes to Issue 4 were mainly improved address 
decoding and a better keyboard. I had to do some cut and strap on the 
board before adding something ...(more ram maybe?)

> : original manual at my parents' house,  with a cutout photocopy of the
> : instruction set  stuck on the front!  For MK14 programming you needed to
> : learn the hex opcodes, as a result of which I have ever since been able to
> : "think" in hexadecimal.
> 
> I can still remember some of the opcodes... Lets see now...
> 
> C4 00 07 8F FF C4 01 07 8F FF 90 F4

yes, very familiar, can't remember what 07 was though
L1:	ldi 00
	xx
	dly ff
	ldi 01
	xx
	dly ff
	bra L1

> Anyone know what it does?

was it something like shift acc right into serial out pin?
so the code would generate a tone if you connected a speaker to it?
I can't remember how long the delay instruction waited so maybe it 
flashed an LED

> I still have my MK14 and the manuals. Alas the 7805 shorted on day 
> (Sinclair were too cheap to put a heatsink on it, and I didn't 
> realise...) and it cooked the SC/MP and the ROMs. One day I'll put my 
> spare SC/MP in the board and burn a new set of ROMs from the listing in 
> the manual...
> 
> 
> : Geoff
> 
> 
> -tony
> 

Any chance of putting some of this information on the net ?, I've looked 
but haven't found any detailed info on the instruction set or hardware.
If I can get enough info on the MK14 (circuit diagrams anyone...?) then 
I'd quite like to have a go at writing an emulator for *total* 
nostalgia..

Simon

I'll be going to parent's house next week, and retrieve what info I have,
and scan in some of the bits.  Perhaps I'll issue another newsletter:
"complement and add" it was called (named after the subtract instruction
which had that identity, and also because the nature of the newsletter was
to read it, add something and send on to another person on a list. Wonder If
I still have any :)   Ah nostalgia isn't what it used to be

Geoff


Simon Jones wrote in message ...
(snips galore)

>Any chance of putting some of this information on the net ?, I've looked
>but haven't found any detailed info on the instruction set or hardware.
>If I can get enough info on the MK14 (circuit diagrams anyone...?) then
>I'd quite like to have a go at writing an emulator for *total*
>nostalgia..
>
>Simon
>

Simon Jones (sim...@removethis.videologic.com) wrote:
: > I can still remember some of the opcodes... Lets see now...
: > 
: > C4 00 07 8F FF C4 01 07 8F FF 90 F4

: yes, very familiar, can't remember what 07 was though

07 = CAS (Copy Accumulator to Status)

: L1:	ldi 00
: 	xx
: 	dly ff
: 	ldi 01
: 	xx
: 	dly ff
: 	bra L1

: > Anyone know what it does?

: was it something like shift acc right into serial out pin?

That would probably have involved the extension register - an 8-bit 
register that you could shift right with the LSB falling out onto the 
SOUT pin of the CPU and the MSB being loaded from the SIN pin.

: so the code would generate a tone if you connected a speaker to it?
: I can't remember how long the delay instruction waited so maybe it 
: flashed an LED

You got it. Bit 0 of the status register was flag F0 which was brought 
out to a pin on the chip (so were Bits 1 and 2). I connected an LED 
there. From memory it had a frequency of the order of 1 Hz.

: Any chance of putting some of this information on the net ?, I've looked 
: but haven't found any detailed info on the instruction set or hardware.
: If I can get enough info on the MK14 (circuit diagrams anyone...?) then 

I still have my MK14 schematics (and of the cassette interface, but 
nothing more), and source listings of the original and revised monitor ROMs.

But what about copyright? I can't believe many people would care after 
over 20 years, but still. Who does own the MK14 ROM now?

: I'd quite like to have a go at writing an emulator for *total* 
: nostalgia..

: Simon

-tony

Simon Jones wrote:
> 
> In article <6ar164$1...@p850ug1.demon.co.uk>, a...@p850ug1.demon.co.uk
> says...
> > Geoff (bi...@DeathsDoor.com) wrote:
> > : The MK14 used the SC/MP 1 as far as I know, there was all manner of
> > : interface circuitry to  do the appropriate buffering.  I've still got the
> >
> > My MK14 (a fairly late one - Issue 4???) used an INS8060 CPU - which is
> > the SC/MP-II. It only used a +5V supply and all the signals were TTL-level.
> 
> I think mine was Issue 2, it was definitely an SC/MP-II. I seem to
> remember that the changes to Issue 4 were mainly improved address
> decoding and a better keyboard. I had to do some cut and strap on the
> board before adding something ...(more ram maybe?)
> 
> > : original manual at my parents' house,  with a cutout photocopy of the
> > : instruction set  stuck on the front!  For MK14 programming you needed to
> > : learn the hex opcodes, as a result of which I have ever since been able to
> > : "think" in hexadecimal.
> >
> > I can still remember some of the opcodes... Lets see now...
> >
> > C4 00 07 8F FF C4 01 07 8F FF 90 F4
> 
> yes, very familiar, can't remember what 07 was though
> L1:     ldi 00
>         xx
>         dly ff
>         ldi 01
>         xx
>         dly ff
>         bra L1
> 
> > Anyone know what it does?
> 
> was it something like shift acc right into serial out pin?
> so the code would generate a tone if you connected a speaker to it?
> I can't remember how long the delay instruction waited so maybe it
> flashed an LED
> 
> > I still have my MK14 and the manuals. Alas the 7805 shorted on day
> > (Sinclair were too cheap to put a heatsink on it, and I didn't
> > realise...) and it cooked the SC/MP and the ROMs. One day I'll put my
> > spare SC/MP in the board and burn a new set of ROMs from the listing in
> > the manual...
> >
> >
> > : Geoff
> >
> >
> > -tony
> >
> 
> Any chance of putting some of this information on the net ?, I've looked
> but haven't found any detailed info on the instruction set or hardware.
> If I can get enough info on the MK14 (circuit diagrams anyone...?) then
> I'd quite like to have a go at writing an emulator for *total*
> nostalgia..
> 
> Simon
>
Okay, so here *is* the instruction set for the National SC/MP:

      0     1     2     3     4     5     6     7     8     9     A     B    
C     D     E     F
   
+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
               
  0 | HLT | XAE | CCL | SCL | DINT| IEN | CSA | CAS | NOP |     |     |     | 
   |     |     |     |
    +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
  1 |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     | SIO |     |     | 
SR | SRL |  RR | RRL | 
    +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
  2 |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     | 
   |     |     |     |
    +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
  3 | XPAL| XPAL| XPAL| XPAL| XPAH| XPAH| XPAH| XPAH|     |     |     |     |
XPPC| XPPC| XPPC| XPPC|
    +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
  4 | LDE |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     | 
   |     |     |     |
    +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
  5 | ANE |     |     |     |     |     |     |     | ORE |     |     |     | 
   |     |     |     |
    +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
  6 | XRE |     |     |     |     |     |     |     | DAE |     |     |     | 
   |     |     |     |
    +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
  7 | ADE |     |     |     |     |     |     |     | CAE |     |     |     | 
   |     |     |     |
    +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
  8 |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     | 
   |     |     | DLY |
    +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
  9 | JMP | JMP | JMP | JMP |  JP |  JP |  JP |  JP |  JZ |  JZ |  JZ |  JZ |
JNZ | JNZ | JNZ | JNZ |
    +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
  A |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     | ILD | ILD | ILD | ILD | 
   |     |     |     |
    +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
  B |     |     |     |     |     |     |     |     | DLD | DLD | DLD | DLD | 
   |     |     |     |
    +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
  C |  LD |  LD |  LD |  LD | LDI |     |     |     |  ST |  ST |  ST |  ST | 
   |     |     |     |
    +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
  D | AND | AND | AND | AND | ANI |     |     |     |  OR |  OR |  OR |  OR |
ORI |     |     |     |
    +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
  E | XOR | XOR | XOR | XOR | XRI |     |     |     | DAD | DAD | DAD | DAD |
DAI |     |     |     |
    +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
  F | ADD | ADD | ADD | ADD | ADI |     |     |     | CAD | CAD | CAD | CAD |
CAI |     |     |     |
    +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
       PC    P1    P2    P3    PC    P1    P2    P3    PC    P1    P2    P3   
PC    P1    P2    P3  


If you have *used* this instruction set before, *nothing* needs to be added.
For others, the PC, P1, P2, and P3 across the top and bottom indicate that the
(some of) instructions in that column reference that register. Instructions
with the high order bit set are two byte instructions; the others are single
byte instructions.

For instance, F2 is an add instruction using pointer register P2. (Okay, it
*is* more complicated than that...the next byte is a displacement as a signed
8-bit quantity--if the displacement is positive or zero, P2 addresses the byte
to add to the accumulator; if the displacement is negative, the byte to add to
the accumulator is addressed by the contents of P2 added to the displacement;
in both cases, P2 is incremented by the displacment *after* the add is done.)


-- 
+-------------------------------------------------------------+
|     Charles and Francis Richmond     <rich...@plano.net>   |
+-------------------------------------------------------------+

On 11/07/2018 09:01, dfrind...@gmail.com wrote:
> Just started a build of one of these machines. Board aquire from www.8bity.cz
> 

I thought for a minute that I did but was probably thinking of
the MicroTan from about 1981; one of my colleagues had one, and I
was mighty impressed with the backplane / card frame arrangement.

In article <224edb78-1af5-47ed...@googlegroups.com>,
 <dfrind...@gmail.com> wrote:
>Just started a build of one of these machines. Board aquire from www.8bity.cz

I have an original - a bit bashed, still working:

  https://unicorn.drogon.net/stuff/mk14.jpg
  https://unicorn.drogon.net/stuff/mk14-e.jpg

Gordon

On Wed, 11 Jul 2018 01:01:35 -0700 (PDT)
dfrind...@gmail.com wrote:

> Just started a build of one of these machines. Board aquire from
> www.8bity.cz

	I spent a while working with Nick Toop (at Inele^WIntelligent
Software) who worked on the MK14 before he did the Acorn Atom and the Elan
Enterprise (which is when I met him).

	He told me that the first quick test on the populated MK14 boards
was done by setting a multimeter to continuity test (beeping resistance
check) black to ground and run red down the pins listening to the 'tune' it
made, if it didn't make the right tune it wasn't going to work.

-- 
Steve O'Hara-Smith                          |   Directable Mirror Arrays
C:\>WIN                                     | A better way to focus the sun
The computer obeys and wins.                |    licences available see
You lose and Bill collects.                 |    http://www.sohara.org/

On 8/18/2018 12:58 PM, Peter Flass wrote:
> _H.D._ <huwll...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>> I know this is a long shot and your message is from over 20 years ago,
>> but do you still have copies of "Complement and Add"?  If so, could you upload them?
>>
>>
>> I am collecting MK14 programs.  I know several were published in
>> Practical Electronics (PE) in the late 70s and early 80s and the pdfs are
>> online.  PE mentions "Complement and Add".
>>
>> Does anyone else have or know of a source of MK14 programs?
> 
> The only MK14 google is able to find is a rifle. Do you have some info or a
> link?
> 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MK14

-- 
numerist at aquaporin4 dot com

On Sat, 18 Aug 2018, Charles Richmond wrote:

> On 8/18/2018 12:58 PM, Peter Flass wrote:
>> _H.D._ <huwll...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>>> I know this is a long shot and your message is from over 20 years ago,
>>> but do you still have copies of "Complement and Add"?  If so, could you 
>>> upload them?
>>> 
>>> 
>>> I am collecting MK14 programs.  I know several were published in
>>> Practical Electronics (PE) in the late 70s and early 80s and the pdfs are
>>> online.  PE mentions "Complement and Add".
>>> 
>>> Does anyone else have or know of a source of MK14 programs?
>> 
>> The only MK14 google is able to find is a rifle. Do you have some info or a
>> link?
>> 
>
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MK14
>
I thought it was a Sinclair, just from a period when "Sinclair" wasn't in 
the company name.

   Michael

On Sun, 19 Aug 2018 00:32:11 -0400
Michael Black <mbl...@pubnix.net> wrote:

> On Sat, 18 Aug 2018, Charles Richmond wrote:
> 
> > On 8/18/2018 12:58 PM, Peter Flass wrote:

> >> The only MK14 google is able to find is a rifle. Do you have some info
> >> or a link?
> >> 
> >
> > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MK14
> >
> I thought it was a Sinclair, just from a period when "Sinclair" wasn't in 
> the company name.

	Yes Science of Cambridge was one of Clive Sinclair's companies with
Chris Curry - they then fell out and Chris joined up with Herman Hauser to
form Acorn taking Nick Toop with him to design the Electron. Nick left in
disgust when he didn't see much reward from the success of the Electron.

	An odd thought crossed my mind, we owe the existence of the ARM
processor to the failure of Ferranti to deliver on their promises - in a
real James Burke connections sort of sense.

	After the Electron Acorn started on the Proton but it got shelved
and Acorn wasn't really going anywhere, meanwhile the ailing Newbury Labs
had the coveted BBC contract and was developing the Newbrain for it.
Unfortunately for them they depended on Ferranti ULAs to get the cost down
to where they could make a profit and Ferranti couldn't deliver ones that
didn't overheat. They were designed to spec, the spec was optimistic or
incomplete - it said how fast you could drive the gates and how many gates
you could have it failed to say that you couldn't drive too many of them
that fast.

	So the Newbrain got delayed again and again and the BBC withdrew
their contract and gave it to Acorn who dusted off the Proton, finished it
and called it the BBC Micro[1] and thus became big enough to design a custom
processor for their next series of machines and spin off a company to
design the Acorn Risc Machine.

[1] Also afflicted with overheating Ferranti ULA problems - aka pyjama
stripes.

-- 
Steve O'Hara-Smith                          |   Directable Mirror Arrays
C:\>WIN                                     | A better way to focus the sun
The computer obeys and wins.                |    licences available see
You lose and Bill collects.                 |    http://www.sohara.org/

On Sun, 19 Aug 2018 09:45:58 +0100, Ahem A Rivet's Shot wrote:

> On Sun, 19 Aug 2018 00:32:11 -0400 Michael Black <mbl...@pubnix.net>
> wrote:
> 
>> On Sat, 18 Aug 2018, Charles Richmond wrote:
>> 
>> > On 8/18/2018 12:58 PM, Peter Flass wrote:
> 
>> >> The only MK14 google is able to find is a rifle. Do you have some
>> >> info or a link?
>> >> 
>> >> 
>> > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MK14
>> >
>> I thought it was a Sinclair, just from a period when "Sinclair" wasn't
>> in the company name.
> 
>   Yes Science of Cambridge was one of Clive Sinclair's companies with
> Chris Curry - they then fell out and Chris joined up with Herman Hauser
> to form Acorn taking Nick Toop with him to design the Electron. Nick
> left in disgust when he didn't see much reward from the success of the
> Electron.

[snip]

>  After the Electron Acorn started on the Proton but it got shelved
>and Acorn wasn't really going anywhere

I think you are misremembering the Acorn product names, the Atom came
before the Proton (BBC Micro), the Electron was a cut-down Proton.

I had an Atom as a teenager.

On Sun, 19 Aug 2018 14:59:03 -0000 (UTC)
Robert Swindells <r...@fdy2.co.uk> wrote:

> On Sun, 19 Aug 2018 09:45:58 +0100, Ahem A Rivet's Shot wrote:
> 
> > On Sun, 19 Aug 2018 00:32:11 -0400 Michael Black <mbl...@pubnix.net>
> > wrote:
> > 
> >> On Sat, 18 Aug 2018, Charles Richmond wrote:
> >> 
> >> > On 8/18/2018 12:58 PM, Peter Flass wrote:
> > 
> >> >> The only MK14 google is able to find is a rifle. Do you have some
> >> >> info or a link?
> >> >> 
> >> >> 
> >> > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MK14
> >> >
> >> I thought it was a Sinclair, just from a period when "Sinclair" wasn't
> >> in the company name.
> > 
> >   Yes Science of Cambridge was one of Clive Sinclair's companies with
> > Chris Curry - they then fell out and Chris joined up with Herman Hauser
> > to form Acorn taking Nick Toop with him to design the Electron. Nick
> > left in disgust when he didn't see much reward from the success of the
> > Electron.
> 
> [snip]
> 
> >  After the Electron Acorn started on the Proton but it got shelved
> >and Acorn wasn't really going anywhere
> 
> I think you are misremembering the Acorn product names, the Atom came
> before the Proton (BBC Micro), the Electron was a cut-down Proton.

	You are correct I was crossing over the Atom and the Electron, it
was the Atom that Nick was responsible for, he was long gone by the time of
the Electron.

-- 
Steve O'Hara-Smith                          |   Directable Mirror Arrays
C:\>WIN                                     | A better way to focus the sun
The computer obeys and wins.                |    licences available see
You lose and Bill collects.                 |    http://www.sohara.org/