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Path: utzoo!linus!philabs!cmcl2!seismo!lll-crg!dual!qantel!ihnp4!houxm!hou2g!stekas
From: stekas@hou2g.UUCP (J.STEKAS)
Newsgroups: net.arch
Subject: Re: Architecture, or Coincidence?
Message-ID: <667@hou2g.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 9-Oct-85 09:25:27 EDT
Article-I.D.: hou2g.667
Posted: Wed Oct  9 09:25:27 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 12-Oct-85 05:30:39 EDT
References: <482@ihwpt.UUCP> <> <792@nmtvax.UUCP>, <373@wlbr.UUCP>
Organization: AT&T Bell Labs, Holmdel NJ
Lines: 15

> As I recall, Atari embarked upon the intelligent peripheral scheme 
> as an answer to the FCC emissions edict.      ...
>
>			Steve Childress       wlbr!steve

The reason for intelligent periphs was to minimize the cost of the
basic machine.  An Atari talks to all it's periphs over a single
serial line using a very simple protocol.  The design not only
minimizes hardware but software as well.  Since the smarts are in the
peripherals, device handlers are simple and compact - very important
when one only has 64K to play with.  Atari's 8K OS includes disk,
cassette, printer, keyboard and screen handlers, a simple screen editor,
transcendental math functions for Basic (or whatever), and the usual
boot and initialization stuff.
                                           Jim