The Apple was one of the first personal computers, created on 1976 in a garage, by Steve Wozniak. With his friend Steve Jobs, Wozniak set up a company called Apple Computer, Inc. and they sold about 200 units of the Apple I. On 1977, they released commercially the Apple ][, and on 1978 was released the Apple ][+, which became the most popular model of the Apple line. Later, were also released the Apple //c, Apple //e and Apple IIGS, all compatible with the original model, but with many extended features.
For almost ten years, the Apple ][ had practically no rivals in the personal computer market, until the popularization of the IBM PC, on mid-80's.
2. Hardware profile:
- CPU
MOS Technology 6502 8-bit microprocessor running at 1 MHz
- Memory
ROM: 8 KB (Apple ][); 12 KB (Apple ][+)
RAM: 4 KB up to 64 KB
- Keyboard
53 keys
- Video
Composite video output, for connection with a monitor ou TV set via a RF-modulator.
Text mode: 40 columns by 24 lines, monochrome (2 pages of 1 KB each)
GR (low-resolution): 40x48 pixels with 16 colors (2 pages of 1 KB each)
HGR (high-resolution): 280x192 pixels with 8 colors (2 pages of 8 KB each)
- Storage medias
Cassete tape recorder
Up to 4 disk-drives for 5¼" single-sided floppy disks with capacity of 140 KB per side.
Hard disks were not very common, but were available drives for removable and fixed (winchester) hard disks, with tipical capacities between 5 MB and 10 MB.
3. Emulators:
Programs written for the Apple don't run directly on PC computers. It's necessary a program written for the PC that can interpret Apple's machine language instructions and convert them to PC's machine language instructions. Such programs are called emulators:
Some Apple emulators for the PC:
applepc.zip (47 KB) - The best one, in my opinion - it's extremely compact and you feel just like operating a real good old Apple. You can choose the emulation mode: Apple ][+, Apple //e or Apple //c.
aplwin95.zip (465 KB) - An emulador for Windows 95. Though it's slightly easier to use than ApplePC, the video display don't match the original colors, and the program runs only windowed (don't use full screen).
Disk images:
The old 5¼" diskettes from the Apple can't be read by PC disk-drives. The data
contained in the original disks must be transferred via cable from the Apple
to the PC and then saved in a DOS binary file, which is called a disk "image".
Here, you'll find many original disk images for download.
See also mini-reviews with pictures of two classic games for the Apple ][: Castle Wolfenstein and Mystery House.
4. Bookmarks:
Asimov FTP site - Emulators and disk images.
Homepage do NORMAN - Brazilian home page about many hardware emulators.
The Computer Museum - Historical data and images about computers.
5. Bibliography:
- Apple II reference manual. Apple Computer, Inc., 1978.
- POOLE, L.; McNIFF, M. & COOK, S. Apple II user's guide. Osborne/McGraw-Hill, 1981.
- INMAN, D. & INMAN, K. Apple machine language. Reston Publishing Company, Inc., 1981.
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Copyright ©1996-97 by Henrique Avila Vianna (snoopy@ufpel.tche.br)
The Apple ][