The IMSAI 8080 microcomputer, manufactured by IMS Associates, Inc. (later renamed to IMSAI Manufacturing Corp.) in 1976, was an early Intel 8080, S-100 bus based computer, compatible with its main competitor, the earlier MITS Altair 8800, by which it was inspired. Apple IIc Generally, a microcomputer is a computer with a microprocessor (µP) as its CPU. Another general characteristic of these computers is that they occupy physically small amounts of space. ... 1976 is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Intel 8080 was an early microprocessor designed and manufactured by Intel. ... The S-100 bus was an early computer bus designed as a part of the Altair 8800, generally considered today to be the first personal computer. The S-100 bus was the first industry standard bus for the microcomputer industry, and S-100 computers, processor and peripheral cards, were produced... The MITS Altair 8800 is a microcomputer design from 1975, based on the Intel 8080A CPU. Sold as a kit through Popular Electronics magazine, the designers intended to sell only a few hundred to hobbyists, and were surprised when they sold over ten times that many in the first month. ...

The IMSAI machine ran a highly modified version of the CP/M operating system called IMDOS. CP/M (whose antecedent was most commonly accepted during the 1970s as Control Program for Microcomputers but also Control Program/Monitor or Command Processor for Microcomputers are purported as well) was an operating system for Intel 8080/85 and Zilog Z80 based microcomputers. ...

As of late 2004, there are reports of an IMSAI Series Two kit being developed, featuring a 50 MHz Zilog eZ80 CPU (see the external link, below). 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The ZiLOG eZ80 is essentially an updated version of their earlier Z80 8-bit microprocessor. ...

Trivia

• An IMSAI 8080 and an acoustic coupler type modem were among the hacking tools used by the main character in the 1983 movie WarGames. However, even by 1983 the acoustic coupler was out of date. It was selected over a more modern model so that the audience would immediately recognize it as the device that interfaced with the telephone.

Acoustically coupled modem In telecommunications, the term acoustic coupler has the following meanings: An interface device for coupling electrical signals by acoustical means__usually into and out of a telephone instrument. ... A modem (a portmanteau word constructed from modulator and demodulator) is a device that modulates an analog carrier signal (sound), to encode digital information, and that also demodulates such a carrier signal to decode the transmitted information. ... Hacker is a term used to describe different types of computer experts. ... Wargames can refer to: Complex military simulations (in a computer or in the real world), see wargaming. ...

External links

• Short description of the IMSAI 8080 with photos (http://oldcomputers.net/imsai8080.html)
• Distributor of IMSAI parts, docs and the Series Two model (http://www.imsai.net/)
• The History of the IMSAI 8080 (http://www.pc-history.org/imsai.htm)