 | | Apple IIc | | Manufacturer | Apple Computer | | Introduced | April 1984 | | Discontinued | August 1988 | | Price | US$1295 | | CPU | 65C02, 1.023 MHz | | RAM | 128 kB (up to 1.125 MB), | | OS | ProDOS | The Apple IIc, the fourth model in the Apple II series of personal computers, was Apple Computer's first endeavor to produce a portable computer. The end result was a "luggable" 7½ pound notebook sized version of the Apple II which could easily be transported from place to place. The "c" in the name stood for "compact", referring to the fact it was essentially a complete Apple II computer setup (minus display and power supply) squeezed into a small notebook sized housing. While sporting a built-in floppy drive and new rear peripheral expansion ports, it lacked the internal expansion slots and direct motherboard access of earlier Apple II's, making it a closed system. However that was the intended direction for this model—a more appliance-like machine, ready to use out of the box, requiring no technical know how or experience to hook up and therefore attractive to first time users. Image File history File links Apple_iicb. ...
Apple Computer, Inc. ...
WDC 65C02 Microprocessor // Introduction The W65C02S is a low power, cost effective 8-bit microprocessor. ...
For Australian-based Objectivist Prodos Marinakis and the prodos institute, see here. ...
The 1977 Apple II, complete with integrated keyboard, color graphics, sound, a plastic case, and eight expansion slots. ...
Apple Computer, Inc. ...
A Portable computer is a computer that is designed to be moved from one place to another (in other words, it is a computer that is portable). ...
History
The Apple IIc was released in April 1984, during an Apple held event called "Apple II Forever". The new machine was proclaimed as proof of Apple's long term commitment to the Apple II series and its users, an assurance the company's older technology would not be forsaken or dropped with the recent introduction of the Macintosh. While essentially an Apple IIe computer in a smaller case, it was not a successor, but rather a portable version to complement it. One Apple II machine would be sold for users who required the expandability of slots, and another for those wanting the simplicity of a plug and play machine with portability in mind. The first Macintosh computer, introduced in 1984, upgraded to a 512K Fat Mac. The Macintosh or Mac, is a line of personal computers designed, developed, manufactured, and marketed by Apple Computer. ...
The Apple IIe was the third model in the Apple II line of personal computers, produced by Apple Computer. ...
Plug and Play is a term used in the computer field to describe a computers ability to have new devices, normally peripherals, added to it without having to reconfigure or load device drivers for the new card. ...
The machine introduced Apple's Snow White design language, notable for its elegant case styling and a sleek modern look which soon became the standard for most Apple equipment and computers, and continuing for nearly a decade after. The origin of term comes from the Apple IIc's unique pure snow white coloring, the only Apple made computer produced in this color (other machines were typically beige or light grey). While relatively light weight and compact in design, the Apple IIc was not a true portable in design as it lacked a built-in battery and display. The Snow White design language was an industrial design language developed by Frog design. ...
Codenames for the machine while under development included: Lollie, ET, Yoda, Teddy, VLC, IIb, IIp.
Overview of features Improving the IIe Technically the Apple IIc was the Apple IIe computer in a smaller case, retaining the same set of features. Building on the design, it did manage to offer a few minor improvements without affecting compatibility for the most part. First it utilized the CMOS based 65C02 microprocessor (instead of a plain 6502) which added 27 new processor instructions and drew less power (but hampered compatibility with a very small number of programs that used illegal opcodes of the 6502 processor, which were removed in the 65C02). The new ROM firmware allowed Applesoft BASIC to recognize lowercase characters, work better with an 80 columns display and fixed several bugs from the IIe ROM. In terms of video, the text display added 32 unique character symbols called "Mousetext" which, when placed side by side, could display simplistic looking icons, windows and menus to recreate a graphical user interface completely out of text, similar in concept to IBM ANSI. Note: A year later the Apple IIe would benefit from these improvements in the form of a four chip upgrade called the Enhanced IIe. The Apple IIe was the third model in the Apple II line of personal computers, produced by Apple Computer. ...
The 65C02 Microprocessor is a slightly upgraded version of the popular and venerable 6502 microprocessor. ...
An Illegal Opcode, also called an Undocumented Instruction, is an instruction to a CPU that is not mentioned in any official documentation released by the CPUs designer or manufacturer, which nevertheless has an effect. ...
This article or section needs a complete rewrite for the reasons listed on the talk page. ...
The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) is a private, non-profit standards organization that produces industrial standards in the United States. ...
The Apple IIe was the third model in the Apple II line of personal computers, produced by Apple Computer. ...
Built-in cards and ports
The equivalent of five slot cards were built-in and integrated into the Apple IIc motherboard. These included: An Extended 80 Columns Card, two Apple Super Serial Cards, a Mouse Card and a floppy drive controller card. For starters this meant the Apple IIc had 128 kB RAM, 80 columns text and Double-Hi-Resolution graphics built-in and available right out of the box, unlike its older sibling the Apple IIe. It also meant less of a need for slots as the most popular peripheral add-on cards were already built-in, ready for devices to be plugged into the rear ports of the machine. The built-in cards were mapped to phantom slots so software from slot-based Apple II models would know where to find them (i.e. mouse to virtual slot 4, serial cards to slot 1 and 2, floppy to slot 6, and so on). Of interest is the entire Apple Disk II Card, used for controlling floppy drives, had been shrunk down into a single chip called the "IWM" which stood for Integrated Wozniak Machine. Apple II serial cards primarily used the serial RS-232 protocol. ...
Look up RAM, Ram, ram in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...
In the rear of the machine were its expansion ports, mostly for providing access to its built-in cards. The standard DE9 joystick connector doubled as a mouse interface, compatible with the same mice used by the Lisa and early Macintosh computers. Two serial ports were provided primarily to support a printer and modem, a floppy port connector supported a single external 5.25 drive (and later "intelligent" devices such as 3.5 drives and hardisks). A Video Expansion port provided rudimentary signals for add-on adapters but alone could not directly generate a video signal (Apple produced a LCD display and an RF-modulator for this port; the latter shipped with early IIc's). A port connector tied into an internal 12 volt power converter for attaching batteries; this is where the infamous external powersupply (dubbed "brick on a leash" by users) that was included plugged in. The same composite video port found on earlier Apple II models remained present, however gone were the cassette ports and internal DIP-16 game port. The Apple Lisa was a revolutionary personal computer designed at Apple Computer during the early 1980s. ...
The first Macintosh computer, introduced in 1984, upgraded to a 512K Fat Mac. The Macintosh or Mac, is a line of personal computers designed, developed, manufactured, and marketed by Apple Computer. ...
Built-in accessories and keyboard
The Apple IIc had a built-in 5.25" floppy drive (140 kB) along the right side of the case—the first Apple II model to include such a feature. Along the left side of the case was a dial to control the volume of the internal speaker, along with a 1/8" monaural audio jack for headphones or an external speaker. A fold out carrying handle doubled as a way to prop up back end of the machine to angle the keyboard for typing, if desired.
The keyboard layout mirrored that of the Apple IIe, however the 'Reset' key had been moved above the 'ESC' key. Two toggle switches were also located in the same area: an "80/40" columns switch for (specially written) software to detect which text video mode to start up in, and a "Keyboard" switch to select between QWERTY and DVORAK layout - or between US and national layout on non-American machines. The keyboard itself was built-in to the front half of the case (much like a notebook computer) and had a rubber mat placed beneath the keycaps which acted as a liquid spill guard. The QWERTY Layout QWERTY, (pronounced ) is the most common modern-day keyboard layout on English language computer and typewriter keyboards. ...
Dvořák is a common Czech surname (feminine form is Dvořáková). Spelling without diacritics is Dvorak. ...
Technical specifications Microprocessor - 65C02 running at 1.023 MHz
- 8-bit data bus
Memory - 128K RAM built-in
- 32K ROM built-in (16K ROM in original)
- Expandable from 128K to 1 MB (only through non-conventional methods in original)
Video - 40 and 80 columns text, with 24 lines[1]
- Low-Resolution: 40×48 (15 colors)
- High-Resolution: 280×192 (6 colors)[2]
- Double-Low-Resolution: 80×48 (15 colors)
- Double-High-Resolution: 560×192 (15 colors)[2]
Audio - Built-in speaker; 1-bit toggling
- User adjustable volume (manual dial control)
Built-in storage - Slim-line internal 5.25 floppy drive
- 140K, single-sided
Internal connectors - Memory Expansion Card connector (34-pin)*
* Only available on ROM 3 motherboard and higher; original IIc: NONE
Specialized chip controllers
- IWM (Integrated Wozniak Machine) for floppy drives
- Dual 6551 ASIC chips for serial I/O
External connectors - Joystick/Mouse (DE-9)
- Printer, serial-1 (DIN-5)
- modem, serial-2 (DIN-5)
- Video Expansion Port (D-15)
- Floppy drive SmartPort (D-19)
- 12 Volt DC connector input (DIN-7, male)
- NTSC composite video output (RCA connector)
- Audio-out (1/8" mono phono jack)
Revisions The Apple IIc was in production between April 1984 until August 1988, and during this time accrued some minor changes. These modifications included three new updates of the original ROM, two motherboard variants (including a hardware bug fix for one), and a slight cosmetic change to the external appearance of the machine. These versions, as well as a method for determining which firmware resides in a particular machine, are detailed below.
Original IIc (ROM version '255') The initial ROM, installed in machines produced during the first year and a half of production, was 16 kB in size. The only device which could be connected to the disk port was (one) external 5.25 floppy drive; software could be booted from this external drive by typing the command "PR#7". The serial port did not mask incoming linefeed characters or support the XON/XOFF protocol, unlike all later firmware revisions to come. There was no self-test diagnostic present in this ROM, holding down the solid-Apple key during cold boot merely cycled unusual patterns on screen which served no useful purpose or indication of the machine's health.
Serial port timing fix The original Apple IIc motherboard (manufactured between April and November 1984) derived the timing for its two serial ports through a 74LS161 TTL logic chip. It was later found that this method's timing was 3% slower than the minimum requirement specified and caused certain modems and printers, which operated at 1200 bits per second (baud) or faster, to function improperly. Slower serial devices operating at 300 baud or less were unaffected. The solution was to replace the TTL chip with an oscillator during manufacture. Apple would swap affected motherboards for users who could prove they had an incompatible serial device (e.g., 1200 baud modem). A Motorola 68000-based computer with various TTL chips. ...
In telecommunications and electronics, baud (pronounced , unit symbol Bd) is a measure of the symbol rate, that is the number of distinct symbolic changes (signalling event) made to the transmission medium per second in a digitally modulated signal. ...
UniDisk 3.5 support (ROM version '0') This update, introduced November 1985, came in the form of an upgrade to the ROM firmware which doubled in size from 16 kB to 32 kB. The new ROM supported "intelligent" devices such as Apple's UniDisk 3.5 (800 kB) floppy drive, in addition to an external 5.25 floppy drive. A new self-test diagnostic was provided for testing built-in RAM and other signs of logic faults. The Mini-Assembler, absent since the days of the Apple II Plus, made a return, and new Monitor "Step" and "Trace" commands were added as well. The upgraded ROM added rudimentary support for an external AppleTalk networking device which was yet to be developed. When attempting to boot virtual slot 7, users would encounter the message "APPLETALK OFFLINE". The IIc however had no built-in networking capabilities, and no external device was ever released. The upgrade consisted of a single chip swap (and a trivial motherboard modification), which Apple provided free only to persons who purchased a UniDisk 3.5 drive. A small sticker with an icon of a 3½" floppy diskette was placed next to the existing 5¼" diskette icon above the floppy drive port indicating the machine had been upgraded. 1985 (MCMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
Look up RAM, Ram, ram in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...
Memory Expansion IIc (ROM version '3') Introduced in September 1986 simultaneously with the Apple IIGS, this model introduced a new motherboard, new keyboard and new color scheme. The original Apple IIc had no expansion options and required third party cards to perform various hardware tricks. This could be done by removing the CPU and MMU chips and squeezing a special board into these sockets, which then used bank switching to expand memory (RAM). This was similar to the function of the auxiliary slot in the original Apple IIe. The new motherboard added a 34-pin socket for plugging in memory cards directly, which allowed for the addressing of up to 1 megabyte of memory using Slinky-type memory cards. The onboard chip count was reduced from sixteen memory chips (64K×1) to four (64K×4). The new firmware removed the code for the cancelled AppleTalk networking device and replaced it with support for memory cards. Bumping out the non-supported AppleTalk functionality, memory now lived in virtual slot 4, and mouse support moved to slot 7. The new keyboard no longer had the rubber anti-spill mat and offered generally more tactile and responsive keys that felt more "clicky". At the same time the color of the keyboard, floppy drive latch and power supply cords changed from beige to light grey, which matched the new Platinum color scheme of the Apple IIGS. The case however remained snow white. Owners of the previous IIc model were entitled to a free motherboard upgrade if they purchased one of Apple's IIc memory expansion boards (they did not receive the new keyboard or the cosmetic changes). The Apple IIGS, the fifth model inception of the Apple II, was the most powerful member of the Apple II series of personal computers made by Apple Computer. ...
Look up RAM, Ram, ram in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...
The Apple IIGS, the fifth model inception of the Apple II, was the most powerful member of the Apple II series of personal computers made by Apple Computer. ...
Memory Expansion fix (ROM version '4') In January 1988 a new ROM firmware update was issued to address bugs in the new memory expandable IIc. Changes included better detection of installed RAM chips, correction of a problem when using the serial modem port in terminal-mode, and a bug fix for keyboard buffering. The ROM upgrade was available free of charge only to owners of the memory expansion IIc. This was the final change to the Apple IIc until superseded by the Apple IIc Plus (identified as ROM version '5'). The Apple IIc Plus was the sixth and final model in the Apple II line of personal computers, produced by Apple Computer. ...
Identifying firmware ROM versions According to the Apple IIC Technical Reference Manual (New York : Addison-Wesley, 1987, pp. xxiii-xxv / ISBN 0-201-17752-8) one can determine which version of ROM is installed in a specific Apple IIc by running the Applesoft BASIC programming language, and typing in the command: -
- PRINT PEEK (64447)
This will return a value indicating which ROM revision is contained in a specific Apple IIc. - if PRINT PEEK (64447) returns 255, this is the original IIC (ROM revision '255').
- if PRINT PEEK (64447) returns 0, this is the IIC with UniDisk 3.5 inch drive support (ROM revision '0').
- if PRINT PEEK (64447) returns 3, this is the IIC with memory expansion support (ROM revision '3').
- if PRINT PEEK (64447) returns 4, this is the IIC with a modified/fixed version of memory expansion support (ROM revision '4').
- if PRINT PEEK (64447) returns 5, this is the Apple IIc Plus, an entirely different machine (ROM revision '5').
The Apple IIc Plus was the sixth and final model in the Apple II line of personal computers, produced by Apple Computer. ...
International versions Like the Apple IIe before it, the Apple IIc keyboard differed depending on what region of the world it was sold in. Sometimes the differences were very minor, such as extra local language characters and symbols printed on certain keycaps (e.g. French accented characters on Canadian IIc such as "á", "é", "ç", etc, or the British Pound "£" symbol on the UK IIc) while other times the layout and shape of keys greatly differed (e.g. European IIc). In order to access the local character set, the "Keyboard" switch above the keyboard (used for switching between QWERTY and DVORAK layouts on US models; a feature not available in international IIc's) was depressed, which would instantly switch text video from the US character set to the local set. In some countries these localized IIc's also supported 50 Hz PAL video and the different 220/240 volt power of that region by means of a different external power supply—this was a very simple change, since the IIc had an internal 12 volt power converter. The international versions replaced any English wording printed on the case (specifically the "keyboard" toggle switch, "Power" and "Disk Use" drive activity labels) with graphical icon symbols that could be universally understood. The Apple IIe was the third model in the Apple II line of personal computers, produced by Apple Computer. ...
Add-on accessories
 Apple IIc Flat Panel Display. Portability enhancements Image File history File links Flat_panel_IIc. ...
Image File history File links Flat_panel_IIc. ...
At the time of the Apple IIc's release, Apple announced an optional black and white (1-bit) LCD screen designed specifically for the machine called the Apple Flat Panel Display. While it was welcomed as a means of making the IIc more portable it did not integrate well as a portable solution, not attaching in a secure or permanent manner, and not able to fold-over face down. Instead it sat atop the machine (temporarily wedging its support stand inside the top vertical grooves of the case) and connected via ribbon cable to a somewhat bulky rear port connector. Its main shortcoming was it suffered from a very poor contrast and no backlighting, making it very difficult to view. The display itself had an odd aspect ratio as well, making graphics look vertically squashed. A third party company would later introduced a work-alike LCD screen called the C-Vue, which looked and functioned very much like Apple's product, albeit with a reportedly slight improvement in viewability. Even so it too suffered from an overall poor visibility, as like the Apple display had no backlight or illumination and overall a very low contrast, making both products nearly impossible to use without a strong external light source. Consequently both sold poorly and had a very short market life span, making these displays fairly uncommon (and as a result, extremely rare today). LCD redirects here. ...
Third parties also offered external rechargeable battery units for the Apple IIc (e.g. Prairie Pack) with up to 8 hours per charge or longer. Although they aided in making the machine more of a true portable, they were nonetheless bulky and heavy, and added more pieces that would have to be carried. Adapter cables were sold as well that allowed the Apple IIc to plug into and power off of an automobile's DC power cigarette lighter. Rechargeable batteries are batteries that can be restored to full charge by the application of electrical energy. ...
To help transport the Apple IIc and its accessory pieces around, Apple sold a nylon carrying case with shoulder strap that had a compartment for the computer, its external powersupply and cables. It had enough room to squeeze in one of the above mentioned LCD display units inside. The case was grey in color with a stitched on Apple logo in the upper left corner.
Expanding capabilities
While the Apple IIc had many built-in features to offer, many users wanted to extend the machine's capabilities beyond what Apple provided. It proved difficult since the IIc was a closed system that initially was designed with no expansion capabilities, however many companies figured out ingenious ways of squeezing enhancements inside the tiny case. Real-time clocks, memory expansion and coprocessor were popular, and some companies even managed to combine all three into a single add-on board. Typically, in order to add these options, key chips on the motherboard were pulled, moved onto the expansion board offering the new features, and the board was then placed into the empty sockets. While sometimes a tight squeeze, this trickery worked quite well, and most importantly of all offered users a way to expand memory—something Apple did not themselves support until the Memory Expansion IIc model was introduced.
Some companies devised a method for squeezing in an entire CPU accelerator product, by means of placing all the specialized circuitry (i.e. cache and logic) into one tall chip that outright replaced the 40-pin 65C02 microprocessor, speeding up the machine from 4–10 MHz. Notably the Zip Chip and Rocket Chip. Look up cache in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...
Apple II accelerators are computer hardware devices which enable an Apple II computer to operate faster than their intended design speed. ...
Although the IIc lacked a SCSI or IDE interface, external hardrives were produced that connected through the floppy SmartPort (e.g. ProApp, Chinook, C-Drive) providing true mass storage. However they were relatively slow due to the nature of how data was transferred through this interface, designed primarily for floppy drives. Even add-on speech and music synthesis products were made available, by means of external devices that plugged into the IIc's serial ports. Two such popular devices were the Mockingboard-D and Echo IIc.
General Accessories
For those wishing to use the Apple IIc as a standard desktop machine, Apple sold an optional small 9" monochrome CRT display and stand or 14" color composite monitor. A mouse was another popular add-on, especially since it required no interface card and simply plugged directly into back of the machine (MousePaint, a clone of the popular MacPaint, shipped with the IIc's mouse). An external 5.25 floppy drive, matching the style of the IIc, was also made available. Later 3.5 floppy storage became an option with the "intelligent" UniDisk 3.5 which contained its own miniature computer inside (CPU, RAM, firmware) to overcome the issue of using a high-speed floppy drive on a 1 MHz machine.
See also The 1977 Apple II, complete with integrated keyboard, color graphics, sound, a plastic case and eight expansion slots. ...
Apple III The Apple III, or Apple /// as it was sometimes styled, was the first completely new computer designed by Apple Computer, Inc. ...
The Apple IIe was the third model in the Apple II line of personal computers, produced by Apple Computer. ...
The Apple IIGS, the fifth model inception of the Apple II, was the most powerful member of the Apple II series of personal computers made by Apple Computer. ...
The Apple IIc Plus was the sixth and final model in the Apple II line of personal computers, produced by Apple Computer. ...
Following is a List of Apple II games. ...
Actually this page is pretty set, the subpages need work. ...
There was a thriving industry devoted to the Apple II at one time, including: 8/16 A+ - Published by IDG A2-Central On Disk Apple Assembly Lines A.U.G.E. Apple User Group Europe Call-A.P.P.L.E. Compute! Apple GS+ Hardcore Computist (later renamed just Computist...
References - Apple IIC Technical Reference Manual, New York : Addison-Wesley, 1987 (ISBN 0-201-17752-8)
- Andrews, Mark. Apple roots : assembly language programming for the Apple IIe & IIc, Berkeley, Calif. : Osborne McGraw-Hill, c1986 (ISBN 0-07-881130-9)
- Blechman, Fred. Apple IIc : an intelligent guide, New York : Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 1985 (ISBN 0-03-001749-1)
- DeWitt, William H. HiRes/Double HiRes graphics for the Apple IIc and Apple II family, New York : Wiley, c1986 (ISBN 0-471-83183-2)
- Gilder, Jules H. Apple IIc and IIe assembly language, New York : Chapman and Hall, 1986 (ISBN 0-412-01121-2)
Notes - ^ Text can be mixed with graphic modes, replacing either bottom 8 or 32 lines, depending on video mode
- ^ a b effectively 140×192 in color, due to pixel placement restrictions
External links |
Feeds |
Contact