Re: TI-H: New Calculator!!!
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Re: TI-H: New Calculator!!!
Go for it. If the price is right, i'd love to buy one. I like the idea of
having nice solder points in there, so i don't have to try soldering
directly to the edge of a chip - ooh, phun :>. Or, if you could post the
schematics, and let us build them ourselves, that'd be kewl too. I'd love to
manufacture these things for people.
-- Jon Olson
-----Original Message-----
From: Richard Piotter <richfiles1@hotmail.com>
To: ti-hardware@lists.ticalc.org <ti-hardware@lists.ticalc.org>
Date: Thursday, March 05, 1998 1:05 PM
Subject: TI-H: New Calculator!!!
>
>Why not make a whole new calculator!!! You could buy a standard, off the
>shelf Z80, add as much SRAM as you can fit into it, and use a large
>Nonvolitle memory chip in place or ROM. Make the board and everything!!!
>It can have built in solder spots for RS-232, Parallel, SPinTerface, and
>DBA! add a cheap PIA (Peripheral interface adapter) to it and you could
>have 3 8-bit ports to play with. Use a graphics module from Digi-Key or
>Mouser, designed with built in EL backlighting. You could even pick a
>small color one, or, you could use a VIC (Video interface chip) to make
>NTSC color output. use an NTSC compatible LCD and have a video out that
>could connect to a TV (great for presentations)!!! A SID (sound
>interface device) would make a GREAT sound generator (12 bit I think!!!)
>Even a simple MAX 038 wave form generator will work. Make it with a
>crystal, and include an IRdA chip on the RS-232. Either use AAs or have
>a high power battery. Big case, whatever!!! I have the skills to design
>the hardware (probably). If it's realy something everyone's interested
>in, who knows!!! The ROM could possibly look at the DBA (direct bus
>access) port, to look for ROM cartridges, then look at a certain address
>for internal ROM instructions, and then, finaly, if nothing is found,
>request data over the calc net via RS-232. There should be a standard
>link port added as well, if we can emulate the other calcs. Also, I
>remember a LONG time ago, someone mentioned the Strong Arm processor.
>Why not??? I heard it uses less power than a stock Z80 and is fairly
>cheap as well! Who thinks it's worth a try??? Maybe we could emulate ALL
>the calcs!!! One big calculator, with QWERTY keyboard and sound (sound I
>think is one of the things that is not allowed on machines to be uses
>for SAT tests). I don't know about emulation, but if we do it, we might
>as well go all out! We'd have to mold a complete case, keys and all, and
>we'd need to have them silk screened, but it would be worth it to have a
>color, strong arm, sound capable, QWERTY, and everything else
>calculator. We could MAKE the next calc rather than modify the old
>ones!!!
>
>What does everyone think??? I have seen schematics of countless
>computers, and I think it could be done!!!
>
>Richard Piotter
>richfiles1@hotmail.com
>
>The Richfiles TI Page
>http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Lakes/5081/Richfiles.html
>
>
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