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From: jack@csccat.UUCP (Jack Hudler)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.hp,comp.sys.ibm.pc,misc.wanted
Subject: Re: How IBM-compatible is the HP 150?
Message-ID: <252@csccat.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 9-Oct-87 06:19:22 EDT
Article-I.D.: csccat.252
Posted: Fri Oct  9 06:19:22 1987
Date-Received: Mon, 12-Oct-87 07:03:41 EDT
References: <1768@ho95e.ATT.COM>
Distribution: na
Organization: Computer Support Corporation. Carrollton,Texas.
Lines: 62
Summary: DOS, but not boring.
Xref: mnetor comp.sys.hp:277 comp.sys.ibm.pc:8914 misc.wanted:1485

In article <1768@ho95e.ATT.COM>, wcs@ho95e.ATT.COM (Bill.Stewart) writes:
> We have a couple of ancient HP-150 PCs lying around (mainly bought as
> terminals), and I'd like to try using one for DOS.  I realize the disk
> drives are different, but can work around that.
> 
> - Are file systems the 3.5" disks compatible with the 
> 	current 3.5" file systems used for laptops?
> - Is the system BIOS compatible?  90%?  etc?
> - Is the display CGA or MDA compatible, or neither?
> 	(hardware-level would be nice, BIOS-level good, DOS-only boring.)
> - What else should I know?
>  Bill Stewart, AT&T Bell Labs 2G218, Holmdel NJ 1-201-949-0705 ihnp4!ho95c!wcs

To answer your questions:

	The disk drives are not compatable....

	The 0% compatable with BIOS ladden programs.

	The display is not like anything on the market.. BUT! it does have
	some very nice features in the screen department.
	The line drawing stuff in the firmware is the greatest stuff, I don't
	know why Microsoft or IBM hasn't taken there lead. You can draw lines
	with patterns to them and varing thickness also has polygon fill with
	user definable patterns. Text can be displayed in all sorts of sizes
	and rotated! The screen firmware buffers stuff to be written out
	and updates the screen when it gets a slice of time, this to is
	kinda neat to have the cause screen output doesn't boog down the
	program. You can alos write to the screen in HPGL <the language of HP's
	plotters>.
	The Keyboard is handled differently, It sends back a keycode and
	Qualifier and the touch screen <if it still works> is handled like
	a hit from the keyboard. Also you can define touch areas on the screen
	to act like keys on the keyboard and you can set the up sense when
	touched or released.. and a bunch of other stuff I can't remember.

	And get this... It's very fast and the graphics,alpha,keyboard can be
	accessed through IOCTL channals!

	It has been >3 years since I worked with one but I still to this day
	wish I could have all the built-in stuff. One which comes to mind is
	seperate Alpha and Graphics. Graphics and Alpha can co-exist without
	destroying the other and either or both can be turned off showing
	graphics wih alpha, alpha only, graphics only, or nothing at all.
	Our company was one of the first alpha/beta locations for the 150
	and the source for the firmware is 11x14 compressed and took 23 2" 
	binders to contain all of it and that really wasn't all of it!

	It's and 8088 I think it's running at 6 or 8 Mhz but I don't remember,
	and 8087 co-processor cannot be installed <little *&^*$#@ on the design
	team gave all the lines that where needed on the expansion bus except 
	one>.

	Wow what a mouthfull.. Hope this answered all your questions.. I am
	sure it's didn't. If you like email me and maybe I can answer any 
	further questions.

						Jack Hudler
						Computer Support Corp.
						ihnp4!killer!csccat!jack
-- 
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