Byte: The Small Systems Journal (July 1983)

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_{Cover of the July 1983 issue of Byte}

If you wanted a computer magazine with lots of technical coverage on a variety of systems than Byte was your magazine in the late 1970s and early 1980s. And it covered a lot. This issue from June 1983 is over 570 pages and includes:

Themes

16-Bit Designs - A look at new 16-bit computers and software including the Sunrise, the Gavilan portable, the DEC Professional 350, the Hewlett-Packard Series 200 Model 16, the Texas Instruments 99/2, the Altos 586, the Fuitsu Micro16, the Pronto Series 16, the Docutel/Olivetti M20, and more.

Sunrise Systems - This company makes customizable portable business computers that run CP/M.

The Gavilan Mobile Computer - A battery powered portable computer with up to 208K RAM, 320K disk drive, optional printer attachment, and more for about $4000.

Digital Professional 300 Series - A multitasking personal computer designed with DEC's larger computers in mind.

A DEC on Every Desk? - A look at DEC's small systems including the VT180 CP/M based machine, the Rainbow 100 CP/M and DOS machine, the DECmate II which is a PDP-8 compatible machine, and the Micro/PDP-11 compatible with PDP-11 minicomputers.

Tight Squeeze: The HP Series 200 Model 16 - A 68000 based computer with 128K to 512k of RAM with prices starting around $4000 with no disk drive.

Texas Instruments' 99/2 Basic Computer - A look at the design of the TI-99/2 which was forwards compatible with the TI-99/4A. This was meant to be an ultra cheap computer from which you could move up to the TI-99/4A later if desired. The TI-99/2 never ended up being released.
Implementing Minicomputer Capabilities In a Desktop Microcomputer - A look at the Altos 586 which uses the Xenix operating system, supports multiple users, and local area networks.

A Machine for All Processors: The Fujitsu Model 16s - This unique computer supports multiple processors via add-in cards. To start with, there were cards for the 8086 and Z80A with plans for the 68000, 80286, and possibly others.

The Pronto Series 16 - A business oriented computer based on the 80186 CPU.

A Sleek Import: The Docutel/Olivetti M20 - This machine uses the Zilog Z8001 CPU and runs a proprietary OS called PCOS.

Modular Architecture - Designing a modular system based around the IBM PC.

digital Research's DR Logo - I look at this implementation of Logo from Digital Research.

An Inside Look at MS-DOS - A look at the design of MS-DOS.

BYTE West Coast: A Guided Tour of Visi On - Visi On is a DOS operating environment that was the first graphical user interface for the PC.

_{Table of Contents from the July 1983 issue of Byte}

Features

Use ADPCM for Highly Intelligible Speech Synthesis - A look at new chips from Oki Semiconductor that compress digitized speech data.

NEC PC-8201 - A portable computer designed to compete with the TRS-80 Model 100.

The User Goes to the Faire - A report from the eighth West Coast Computer Faire.

Design Philosphy Behind Motorola's MC68000, Part 3: Advanced Instructions - The final part in a series on the Motorola MC68000. This part covers branching, jumping, error traping, supervisor-mode, and other advanced instructions.

The Bazeries Cylinder - Discussion and computer simulation of the Brazeries cylinder cypher system.

AVL Trees - A scheme for searching and updating sorted data efficiently.
Build a Simple Light Pen for the Apple II - A guide to building a light pen for the Apple II. Light pens were a somewhat popular control device before the mouse took over.

User's Column: Zenith Z-100, Epson QX-10, Software Licensing, and the Software Piracy Problem - Reviews of a variety of products including the Epson QX-10 computer, Invasion and Crush Crumble and Chomp games from Epyx, the Kaypro II computer, the M-1 Optical Mouse, Modula-2 Compiler, Zenith Z-100 computer, and Zork, Starcross and Deadline from Infocom for CP/M, Apple, Atari, And IBM PC.

The 8086 - An Architecture for the Future, Part 1: Introduction and Glossary - Improvements of the 8086 over earlier 8-bit CPUs include the ability to address 1 megabyte of memory, the ability to process both 16-bit and 8-bit data, and more. This article goes into detail on the architecture of the 8086.

_{Table of Contents from of the July 1983 issue of Byte (continued)}

Reviews

HMS3264 EPROM Programmer - An EPROM programmer for the Apple II.

Electrohome Supercolor Board and Color Monitor - A graphics board and monitor for the Apple II that provides high resolution color graphics.

Nucleus

Editorial: High-Tech Morrill Act - A bill that would provide money for high-tech education.

MICROBYTES - More operating systems coming for the IBM PC; Digital Research markets languages for the PC including Personal BASIC; Octagon 80286/Z80 combo system allows three operating systems simultaneiously (PC-DOS, Concurrent CPM/86 and CP/M-80); Sharp introduces portable computer; and more.

Letters - Letters from readers about new industry standards, the Apple Lisa, the Apple IIe, and more.

Programming Quickies: Novel Methods of Integer Multiplication and Division - A method of integer multiplication in which you repeatedly halve the multiplicand and double the multiplier until the multiplicand becomes 1.

Technical Forum: Random Numbers from an All-Digital Generator - Building a dedicated digital random number generator.

Ask BYTE - Questions answered about adapting the Comm-80 Expansion interface for the ZX80, a monitor buffer for the Sinclair ZX81, using a projection system with North Star systems in a classroom environent, operating systems for the 68000, printer interfaces for the Atari 400, and more.

What's New? - A brief look at new products including Compac's 16-bit CE8000S computer, Corana IBM PC compatible computers, Micro Five's 16-bit Series 1000 desktop computer, half-height floppy drives for the Sage II, the Rair Business Computer, and much more.