VT180

VT180, code name " Robin " was an ASCII computer terminal and microcomputer built by Digital Equipment Corporation ( DEC) in the period 1982 to 1983. It was based on the VT100 terminal and included an additional board with Z80 CPU and 64 kB RAM. He also had two or four external floppy drives for single-sided disks with 180 kB and three programmable serial ports for communications, printers, and general needs. Thus, it could alternatively be used as a terminal or a computer.

The computer was running under the operating system CP / M, version 2.2, and was therefore able, at that time used software (possibly after adaptation) to process, such as WordStar, SuperCalc, MBASIC or dBASE.

With the end of the VT100 VT180 series and the model was discontinued. A direct successor to this computer did not come on the market. Meanwhile powerful computers have been available on the basis of 16-bit microprocessors, the Intel 8088 or Intel 8086. However, the DEC computer then produced "Rainbow 100 " with Z80 CPU and 8088 included the most VT180 functions as a subset.

The VT180/Robin-Diskettenformat was not only processed by the Rainbow 100 but also by some other computer systems, such as the first portable computers Osborne 1 and Kaypro II or later the IBM PC under the operating system MS -DOS with additional software.

Sources / Links

• EK- VT18X -TM- 001: VT180 Series Technical Manual
• DigiBarn Computer Museum
• Daves Old Computers - Terminals
• Old Computers
• Computers week 28 May 1982

• User interface
• Microcomputer
• Communication device