Computer Terminal Corporation 2200 - Start of Intel 8008 Microprocessor

[@gepeterson2]

The Datapoint 2200 was a revolutionary machine for a whole lot of reasons. It was the first general-purpose computer designed for single-user, desktop use, and that looked more like a piece of office equipment than like a piece of exotic electronics. I worked in Software Development / Advanced Product Development / R&D at Datapoint for more than 9 years, and it was a very rewarding time. I designed and wrote the world's first commercially available LAN software there... the company sold over a billion dollars' worth of that product. ;-) I also was the lead developer of the disk operating system there for several years. A lot of us Datapoint folks are on the DatapointComputers Yahoogroup. ;-) Also, there's a wonderful book about Datapoint's key role in the creation of personal computing... highly recommended.

[@lcfgroup]

Hi Gordon - Thank you for you comment and info - you sure had a good seat to known about the Datapoint work. What are you doing now - just enjoying retirement? I am glad to have the 2200 in my museum. Dave

[@gepeterson2]

lcfgroup I'm hoping to not retire just yet, but we'll see what happens... at the moment I'm between jobs, so... you might enjoy some of the discussions on LinkedIn about the 2200 too. Have you seen the Datapoint marketing videos that I've uploaded to my KZbin channel? You'll especially enjoy the "Datapoint-We Make Computers" and "Datapoint-ARC" ones. ;-) It was Datapoint that dragged Intel (a memory company) kicking and screaming into the role of selling microprocessors. ;-) BTW, the brilliant industrial design work for the 2200 (and Datapoint) is by John "Jack" Frassanito. His company, now in Houston, went on to do a lot of design work for NASA. Jack was also the force that got the above-mentioned book written and published: www.barnesandnoble.com/w/datapoint-lamont-wood/1112783181?ean=2940016066448

[@lcfgroup]

Hi Gordon - Just received the book Datapoint by Lamont Wood and it looks fascinating. Would you be willing to write a short story that I could put on my computer blog about your experience at Datapoint? I hope so - this is just a great story that most folks have not heard. Thank You Dave Larsen

[@gepeterson2]

lcfgroup You'll see some of my stuff in Lamont's book, but sure I'd be glad to offer more memories...!

[@lcfgroup]

I have finished reading the book & did see you work described in the book. I learned a lot of new things from the book. Thank you for putting me on to it. I am doing a blog about the book and will post it in a day or 2. Do you known anything about the Datapoint 2100? The fellow I got if from said it was a prototype ? I would sure like some more of you memories for the Blog. Can you email me or contact on Facebook ? Thank you Dave

[@daicekube]

The 2200 become one of the prime data entry terminals for Swedish municipalities and Datapoint corp actually opened up a major office at Älvsjö, Stockholm. The 2200 was perfect for data entry in that it had a card image screen (80*12) and a cassette deck for data (and one for the particular data entry programme to execute). Data could be transmitted using a modem and further processed in a main frame (a UNIVAC 1100). The came the 6600 series and the full use of the DataShare and DataBus, and the multiport. The multiuser solution. The 3800-series terminals with the ARC network. The 1500-series Zilog Z80 machines with the massive double 128k single side/single density 8" floppy disks. The 8600-series with the 8200-series terminals (not quite VT220-VT320) and the Resource Management Systems - RMS. But that was the end of the story.

[@nickyjurtz3139]

This is amazing!this terminal is from 1970 and looks awesome for 46 year old sistem

[@johneygd]

This pc was 11 years ahead of it’s time, heck you even could connect it to an arcnet network later on, what’s even more amezing is that the first (commercial) microprocessor was released 1 year later in 1971, the 4004 wich was a 4bit chip, with that said , i wonder how could the datapoint 2200 pc had a 8008 8bit like cpu in it??? Still this is interesting stuff.

[@lcfgroup]

The folks that designed this werejust making a computer simpler than the 12 bit PDP-8 for more limited purpose. I expect there were more 8 bit computers at the time. The logic of this unit became the property of Intel when Datapoint gave it to them instead of paying the $50,000 or so for microprocessor development.

[@tomp2008]

impressive heatsink

[@RetroGamerVX]

Fascinating, never heard about this or it's story :o)

[@lcfgroup]

RetroGamerVX the story is true and interesting - A really good read about Datapoint is book"@wiki/Datapoint - The lost story of the Texans Who Invented the Personal Computer Revolution" by Lamont Wood - ISBN 978-1-936449-36-1(2010) 325 pages Lots of good history not only Datapoint but about Intel and other start up companies in the microcomputer business in early 1970's

[@play_history]

I'm curious, are the chips inside of this machine actually Intel chips, TI chips, or a mish-mash? I found an article from the 1970s in which Texas Instruments claimed they supplied the chips for the machine even after it was released so I was curious if the chips are labeled at all.

[@lcfgroup]

I may have a copy. www.kk4ww.com

[@joeober1700]

TI ran the ad, but Datapoint never used their version of the chip (nor Intel's). TI didn't actively market it (though they did patent theirs!). Intel did pursue marketing their version (8008), and the later 8080, to quite a bit of success! (To the point where they eventually changed from a memory-chip company [their original plan] to the 'x86 dynasty' they are today.

[@themagicayrtonsenna]

a 4K video resolution, but only audio in the left side??? Really???

[@lcfgroup]

Ayrton Senna Hi Thank you for the comment - not sure what I did wrong but will try doing better - Dave

[@icarus901]

Don't worry..the audio is just fine, even if not stereo. I'm merely happy to watch the videos you've shared.

[@alexa.davronov1537]

It's not over 1080p.

[@RaymondHng]

@@alexa.davronov1537 It's not even true 1080p. It appears to be 480p upscaled to 1080p.

[@klaasj7808]

What was used from CTC in the x86 instruction set. Is it based on the engineering that CTC did? I really wonder, how big is the difference between the 4004 and 8008. I really wonder. Actually CTC designed the personal computer and the first processor, but not on silicium.

[@gepeterson2]

The 4004 is more a dedicated controller than a microprocessor, suitable mostly for calculators and such. The 8008 *is* the instruction set and CPU architecture of the Datapoint 2200... same register compliment, same register names, same instructions (even the same instruction opcodes). The 8008 was a custom chip for CTC/Datapoint (and Intel really didn't want to make it, they were convinced that there was no market for a general purpose 8-bit microcomputer on a chip).

[@cautiousoptimist]

Correct. We had to put it on discrete boards...

[@klaasj7808]

But when i read those lines on wikipedia. Poor and fellow amateur radio colleague Harry Pyle produced the underlying architecture of the modern microprocessor on a living room floor. Then we can sure say that those 2 guys were some insane genius, why dont we read more about them. Its all about intel and their success story on the first processor. Only thing they actually did was putting it all in one chip, sure that is smart but writing that architecture wow just mind blowing especially when they did it in 1969. I even think Intel delayed it on purpose. Because they knew what they had in their hands was something unique. They couldnt let it go, and Datapoint used instead TTL. What a shame.

[@gepeterson2]

Actually, no. Vic Poor did the main 2200 CPU architecture, the main thing that Harry Pyle added (hardware wise) was the hardware stack for subroutine call return addresses and explicit PUSH/POP instructions. Harry went on to write Datapoint's CTOS (Cassette Tape Operating System) and its original DOS, through version 1.2. I don't think Intel delayed it (the 8008) "on purpose", but it did take them a while. Datapoint had already implemented the 2200 processor in TTL (most of it on one largeish board, and a few smaller auxiliary boards). It is disturbing that the Computer History Museum in the Bay Area gives so little recognition to CTC/Datapoint (thus the reason for the Lamont Wood book). I knew Lamont Wood in those days...he was a writer for the San Antonio Light (one of our two local newspapers, along with the Express-News) and was the boyfriend of my next door neighbor in my apartment building. Jack Frassanito (who was the wonderful industrial designer used by CTC) encouraged/commissioned the Wood book.

[@klaasj7808]

Thanks for the great info, i wasn't even born when this all happened. This machine keeps me fascinating, as it is actually the mother of m all. Do you know if there is any footage of a operational 2200. I can only find pictures and a few footage like this and of course some ads and manuals.

[@thunderpeel2001]

My first computer...

[@ETHel1903]

I use to work on the datapoint computers and peripherals. The 2200 eventually turned into the 5500 then 6600 (or 6040 if it was fitted with an arcnet controller's instead of the twin cassettes). Shame the company stagnated and lost the race.......

[@lcfgroup]

Thank you for your comments. David kk4ww.com

[@gerritvos5886]

This pre-dates the Kenbak-1 and the Altair 8800

[@lcfgroup]

Yes the Kenbak-1 was first. There were 40 or so made. I have seen a few on the marked in the past 5 or 6 years. Never did have one but had good opportunity to buy but missed out. David

[@cautiousoptimist]

Wasn't the 1100 first? Oops. i see gordon answered that one 1st... I was a service tech from 76 to 83 or 84... Loved San Antone...;-) Edit - definitely til 85. got divorced and started Modular Data...

[@dalezimmerman4151]

I was a tech from 75 to 87 and absolutely loved staying in the Greens Apartments, except, of course, when a stray golf ball would come thru an open window. San Antonio was a great place to attend school, and then drive around in either one of the vans or later with four of us in a Mustang II which almost needed to be pushed. I am proud to be drawing a small pension from Datapoint/Intelogic Trace, the memories are wonderful.

[@cautiousoptimist]

No pension. Left in 85 to start my own service company...:-) Worked out ok for a while.. Asher didn't like it when I asked who came up with that stupid fucking name, I guess... I loved all the bars in town, especially the one you could walk to...:-) Oh - and the Texican girls were the best. I remember Cyndi, the nurse from Corpus and Irma, the 95 lb girl wo could drink me under the table with Wild Turkey...:-)

[@gepeterson2]

I also lived at The Greens, in Apt. 2804, from 1974-1986. Datapoint was definitely a great company to work for, and we truly did change the world of computing in an indelible way...!

[@cautiousoptimist]

I'm sure we prob'ly met, then. I was down there a LOT until the Intelogic debacle. Even trained on the infra red system... Remember Scot Eckman? Les Macanelly? Jack Burke? When I was Operations Director for Mod Data, we worked with a couple of guys from R&D who started Performance Technologies...

[@gepeterson2]

I don't recognize those names... I left Datapoint in 1983. But I was the guy who created The ARC System there. ;-) Wasn't Mod Data the Les Staples/Tom Carlson group? PerfTech was Jonathan Schmidt, John Murphy, Lewis Donzis.... I really liked LightLink....I'm surprised (and disappointed) that nobody pursued that in a more significant way. (I feel much the same way about AIM...).

[@OlekcaDovbush41]

Fallout comp.