claudio@forty2.physik.unizh.ch (Claudio Nieder) (11/13/90)
I have found this notice in Computerworld Schweiz, 12. November 1990 Nr. 46/90 First RISC-Notebook from Great Brittain The english company Active Book Co. has presented the first RISC-notebook-Computer. In contrast to usual computers it does not have a keyboard, but a pen for entering data, and can be used as paperless fax. The $2342 computer brings also alot of software with it: the proprietary programming language Small Talk, a UNIX Kernel, C++ and several special applications are already contained in the ROM. An out of season April joke, or something real ? Has anybody in netland already heard of such a beast ?? Please post only facts and send suppositions by e-mail. claudio (claudio@physik.unizh.ch) INTERNET: claudio@amsoft.imp.com BITNET: K538912@CZHRZU1A Mail: Claudio Nieder, Kanalweg 1, CH-8610 Uster, Switzerland (********** Computer: The best toy ever invented **********) Erster RISC-Notebook aus Grossbritannien Die englische Frima Active Book Co. hat den ersten RISC-Notebook-Computer vorgestellt. Im Gegensatz zu herk"ommlichen Rechnern verf"ugt er nicht "uber eine Tastatur, sondern einen Stift zur Dateneingabe und kann als papierloser Fax eingesetzt werden. Der 2342 Dollar teuere Rechner bringt neben der RISC- Technologie auch einiges an Software mit: die frimeneigene Programmiersprache Small Talk, ein Unix-Kernel, C++ und einige Spezialapplikationen sind bereits im ROM enthalten. (IDG)
mark@parc.xerox.com (Mark Weiser) (11/14/90)
I have heard of the active book also. What I have heard (consistent with the article) is that it uses a stylus, the Acorn risc, smalltalk, and a cellular phone. However, I believe it is not yet available (if ever?) -mark -- Spoken: Mark Weiser ARPA: weiser@xerox.com Phone: +1-415-494-4406
claudio@forty2.physik.unizh.ch (Claudio Nieder) (11/26/90)
Hello,
two weeks ago I asked on this list about a RISC notebook computer of the
english company Active Book. These are the informations I got so far
(thanks to Jeremy Smith and Mark Lomas):
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Here are a couple of articles from the american computer paper PC Week:
PC Week 20 August 1990 7 33 p8:
Another company hoping to challenge Go and GRiD is Active Book. a
Cambridge, England, firm that is developing a 4-pound notebook computer.
The Active Book features a 10-million-instructions-per-second RISC
processor developed by Acorn Computers Ltd. that has much more
horsepower than the prototype Go system PC Week examined, which only has
a 286 processor.
PC Week 27 August 1990 7 34 p17:
Startup Readies 4-Pound Stylus PC
Get set for another entry into the budding handwriting-recognition
notebook market.
Active Book Co. Ltd., an English startup, is developing a RISC-
based hand-held stylus PC that is expected to be ready for release in
the first quarter of 1991.
The $2000, 4-pound machine will be about the size of a legal
notepad, said company co-founder and Chairman Harmann Hauser. Backed by
a powerful 10-million-instructions-per-second processor from Acorn
Computers Ltd., the new hand-held PC will run the POSIX-compatible,
Helios Unix operating system. Built around the core processor on the
same chip are an LCD interface, a memory-management controller, a direct
memory access controller and a bus interface, said Hauser.
Using the metaphor of a daily scheduler to focus the information
needs of busy executives, Hauser claimed that the new machine will
enable users wielding an electronic pen to integrate information from
spreadsheets, text and graphics through a hyperlink facility and a
menuing system that mirrors the structure of books with covers, chapters
and pages.
"It's a nice way to structure information for busy, mobile
professionals," said Hauser, because the operating system enables users
to link information from disparate sources in a familiar booklike
interface.
Capable of running DOS in emulation at an 8088 speed,the new PC
will accept both DOS and Macintosh disks, have up to 8M bytes of memory
and include a 9,600-baud-modem, he said. A keyboard is optional. The
hand-held machine, which is currently in prototype stage, can run from
eight to ten hours on standard C batteries, Hauser added.
The machine will also come equipped with seven "utility software"
options--a phone manager that will allow users to transmit data over 1M-
bps digital cellular phone lines, a scheduler, a calendar, a portable
fax machine that will send hard copies and receive data digitally, a
word processor, a spreadsheet and a digital dictaphone for voice
annotation.
The machine's digital cellular phone links will be based on two
european communications standards: Groupe Special Mobile (GMB), a wide
area network protocol; and Digital European Cordless (DEC), the LAN
equivalent of GSM.
Based in Cambridge, England, Active Book was founded in 1988.
Hauser was previously chief scientific officer director for Ing. C.
Olivetti & Co. Active Book can be reached at 44 223 355144.
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The Active Book Company is a company based here in Cambridge...
The processor is an Acorn RISC Machine (ARM) that was developed
by Acorn Computers, also a Cambridge Company and also founded by
Dr. Herman Hauser. The processor is used as a cell in a gate-array
manufactured by VTI; this allowed the Active Book Company to place
many of the support components on the same chip as the processor
itself and so reduce the component count.
Input to the machine requires a stylus that is pressed against
the LCD screen on its front surface...phr@lightning.Berkeley.EDU (Paul Rubin) (11/26/90)
In article <1402@forty2.physik.unizh.ch> claudio@forty2.physik.unizh.ch (Claudio Nieder) writes:
...
Input to the machine requires a stylus that is pressed against
the LCD screen on its front surface...
In this group we have heard from people complaining about laptops without
enough lines on the screen, without an internal floppy, without a
math coprocessor slot, etc. Is Active Book trying to top all of
these by shipping a machine without a *keyboard*????!!!mathew@mantis.UUCP (mathew) (11/27/90)
phr@lightning.Berkeley.EDU (Paul Rubin) writes: > In article <1402@forty2.physik.unizh.ch> claudio@forty2.physik.unizh.ch (Clau > > ... > Input to the machine requires a stylus that is pressed against > the LCD screen on its front surface... > > In this group we have heard from people complaining about laptops without > enough lines on the screen, without an internal floppy, without a > math coprocessor slot, etc. Is Active Book trying to top all of > these by shipping a machine without a *keyboard*????!!! The impression I get from talking to people from ABC is that there will be a plug-in qwerty keyboard, and maybe even a microwriter keyboard; but I'm not sure whether the first machine will be bundled with a keyboard or not. The idea is that you plug it into a desk-based machine for information transfer. I'm told that the software includes something similar to KeyCaps on the Mac, so you can bring up a keyboard on the screen and peck at keys with the stylus. There's a fairly basic problem: keyboards are large. If you want a qwerty keyboard, your machine is not going to be smaller than an A4 pad. Look at the Psion laptops. If those are too big and if you don't mind spending 2 hours learning to use a microwriter keyboard, buy an AgendA and do your text entry on something which will fit in a pocket. (Screen's a bit small, but what do you expect?) mathew. -- Mantis Consultants, Unit 56, St. John's Innovation Centre, Cambridge. CB4 4WS. "CP/M is to metric as cockroaches are to a Timex watch" - booter@catnip
blk@mitre.org (Brian L. Kahn) (11/28/90)
mathew@mantis.UUCP (mathew) writes: >If those are too big and if you don't mind spending 2 hours learning to use a >microwriter keyboard, buy an AgendA and do your text entry on something which >will fit in a pocket. (Screen's a bit small, but what do you expect?) What is an AgendA? A little screen/cpu that accepts a microwriter keyboard? I assume that a microwriter is the one handed multiple keypress input device? -- B< Brian Kahn blk@security.mitre.org "may the farce be with you"
dave@convex.csd.uwm.edu (David A Rasmussen) (12/05/90)
From article <1402@forty2.physik.unizh.ch>, by claudio@forty2.physik.unizh.ch (Claudio Nieder):
Another company hoping to challenge Go and GRiD is Active Book. a
Cambridge, England, firm that is developing a 4-pound notebook computer.
The Active Book features a 10-million-instructions-per-second RISC
processor developed by Acorn Computers Ltd.
What does Acorn's current line of standard machines look like and how much
do they go for? Like on the order of unix workstations *with* keyboards?
--
Dave Rasmussen - Systems Programmer/Manager, UW-Milwaukee Computing Svcs Div.
Internet:dave@uwm.edu, Uucp:uwm!dave, Bitnet:dave%uwm.edu@INTERBIT
AT&T:414-229-5133 USmail:Box 413 EMS380,Milwaukee,WI 53201