HCX
| HCX | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Manufacturer |
 Heavy mechanical engineering combine "Ernst Thälmann" (SKET)
|
| Type | Home computers |
| publication | 1988 |
| processor | UA 880 @ 2.75 MHz or 4.0 MHz |
| random access memory | 64 KB |
| graphic | 256 × 192 pixels, 8 colors |
| Sound | Buzzer |
| Disk | cassette |
| operating system | Sinclair BASIC |
HCX is a computer that was to be produced by SKET Magdeburg from 1988 onwards as part of the production of consumer goods . It is based on work at the Technical University of Magdeburg , Section Technical Cybernetics and Electrical Engineering, from 1986. The decision to have the device manufactured at SKET Magdeburg had a long history. Among other things, in cooperation with the Technical University of Magdeburg, since 1987, at FEW (Research and Development Plant of the Deutsche Reichsbahn) Blankenburg, a small series was launched. The circuit was technically similar to that of the later SKET devices, but was housed in a much smaller housing. However, due to the political developments in the GDR from 1989 onwards, the consumer goods production project did not go beyond the manufacture of some pre-series devices. At the same time, a large number of private devices in extensive variants were created, mainly in the vicinity of the university and SKET Magdeburg, but also across the GDR. Some of them still function today.
technology
The computer is a replica of the British home computer Sinclair ZX Spectrum , the technical details are largely the same. A large number of RAM modules, including the U256 or the U2164, could be used as main memory. Depending on the type of building block, winding or soldering bridges had to be set. The HCX had two joystick connections and a connection for a cassette device as an external storage medium. The image signal was available either as a b / w image in a channel of the VHF range or as an RGB signal including SYNC signal via an HF connection. In order to display the color image on a standard TV set from the GDR production, it was usually necessary to retrofit a corresponding interface on the device.
The motherboard had the dimensions of 320 mm × 210 mm. In addition, a keyboard board and a video board were provided for series production, which were positioned above the motherboard. The video board is rigidly connected to the motherboard via a two-row 58-pin connector. The keyboard board is firmly connected to the upper part of the housing and is connected via a ribbon cable.
Like the GDC1, it was only partially compatible with the original , as the ULA (Uncommitted Logic Array, a programmable logic gate) was modeled by several circuits and the operating system was slightly modified.
Web links
- Website of SKET Maschinen- und Anlagenbau GmbH (successor company)
- List of all installed components (PDF)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Home computer kits. In: www.robotrontechnik.de. Retrieved February 25, 2020 .
- ↑ ZX replica HCX. In: www.sax.de. Retrieved February 25, 2020 .