Transam Triton (2)

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The Transam Triton Personal Computer was launched in November 1978 and was sold in kit form. It is built on a single board and is based on the 8080 MPU. The single board holds up to 8K of memory, 4K RAM and 4K ROM, supplied with 3K ROM and 2K RAM.

The kit, which cost £286 +VAT, came complete with 56-key ASCII keyboard, case, power supply, P.C.B., full documentation, powerful 1K monitor and 2K Tiny Basic, plus all components. The case was designed with room for expansion.

It features a 2K integer Tiny Basic as well as a versatile monitor to allow machine code programming. Used with a standard TV and cassette recorder it forms a powerful computing system. The kit comes with an on-board uhf modulator, allowing you to connect to a TV aerial socket. A unique VDU function, together with 64 graphics characters provide the ETI-Triton with excellent graphics handling capacity as well as full cursor control. 

Other features include: BASIC command look-up table extension, named tape file search, memory-mapped VDU and full textual prompts throughout the software. It also has fully-buffered outputs for up to 64K memory, 256 input/output ports, and eight levels of interrupt.

The Triton one-board computer started life jointly sponsored by Transam and Electronics Today International (ETI), as a sort of cross-marketing collaboration. Full construction and software details for the kit were published in the November 1978 issue of Electronics Today International magazine.

For those who did not want to buy the complete kit, or could not afford it, Transam began selling the individual components for the computer.

 

Taken from a news article about this acquisition:

'A computer assembled by a retired engineer more than 40 years ago has been saved from a skip and donated to a computer museum.

Fred Faulkner, 89, is planning to move nearer family in Stilton this summer and had been clearing out some of the items stored in his bungalow at Mellis Close, Haverhill. He saw an article in the News about the Centre for Computing History moving from Haverhill to Cambridge and contacted the paper to see if they would like his computer.

Jason Fitzpatrick, the centre’s director, said: "We are delighted that Mr Faulkner has decided to donate this key vintage computer - the Transam-Triton- to the Centre. Having survived 40 years, since its construction from a kit back in the 70s, Mr Faulkner’s computer will be preserved for posterity in its new home.”

Widower Fred will be 90 in May, but still makes clocks in a workshop at his home. He said: "It would definitely have gone in the skip if I had not seen the article in the paper. They came along and collected it and seemed very pleased with it. I ran my own engineering company and wanted something to control the machines and that is how I got into computers. I still make my own clocks. I think if you have something you enjoy doing, you get your head down, and the times goes quickly.”'

Manufacturer: Transam Components
Date: 1978



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Transam Triton (2) Manuals:

Item Manufacturer Date
Transam Triton Software & Manual Notes (Humbug and Basic Interpreter) Transam 1979
Transam Documentation Transam 1979
Transam - The Triton Manual (2) Transam 1980
Transam - The Triton Manual Transam 1980
Triton Product Cards Transam 1980

Magazines RELATED to Transam Triton (2) in our Library

Item Manufacturer Date
Electronics Today International - November 1978 Nov 1978
Practical Computing - March 1979 ECC Mar 1979
Practical Computing - April 1979 ECC Apr 1979
Practical Computing - May 1979 ECC May 1979
Practical Computing - June 1979 ECC Jun 1979
Practical Computing - July 1979 ECC Jul 1979
Practical Computing - August 1979 ECC Aug 1979
Practical Computing - December 1979 IPC Electrical Electronic Press Dec 1979
Home Computing: Games Programs - Summer 1981 Modmags Jul 1981
Triton Triangle User Group Magazine No: 7 July 1981 Transam Jul 1981
Triton Magazine No: 1 November 1982 Transam Nov 1982
Triton Magazine No: 2 February 1983 Transam Feb 1983
Triton Magazine No: 3 May 1983 Transam May 1983
Triton Magazine No: 4 August 1983 Transam Aug 1983
Triton Magazine No: 5 November 1983 Transam Nov 1983
Triton Magazine No: 6 December 1983 Transam Dec 1983
Triton Magazine No: 7 February 1984 Transam Feb 1984
Triton Magazine No: 8 May 1984 Transam May 1984
Triton Magazine No: 9 August 1984 Transam Aug 1984
Triton Magazine No: 10 November 1984 Transam Oct 1984

Catalogues RELATED to Transam Triton (2) in our Library

Item Manufacturer Date
Triton 3 Sales Brochure Unknown

Other Systems Related To Transam Triton (2):

Item Manufacturer Date
Transam Triton Transam Components December 1978

This exhibit has a reference ID of CH29449. Please quote this reference ID in any communication with the Centre for Computing History.

 

Transam Triton (2)


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