4051: Difference between revisions
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===Manuals=== | ===Manuals=== | ||
* [http://bitsavers.trailing-edge.com/pdf/tektronix/405x/ 4050 series manuals] @ bitsavers | * [http://bitsavers.trailing-edge.com/pdf/tektronix/405x/ 4050 series manuals] @ bitsavers | ||
* [[Media:Tek_4051_basicref.pdf|Tektronix 4051 BASIC Reference Guide (OCR, PDF)]] | |||
===Museums=== | ===Museums=== | ||
* [http://www.tekmuseum.com/tek-museum_009.htm 4051 @ tekmuseum.com] | * [http://www.tekmuseum.com/tek-museum_009.htm 4051 @ tekmuseum.com] | ||
Revision as of 10:45, 22 December 2020
The Tektronix 4051 is a graphics-capable desktop microcomputer produced by Tektronix in the late 1970s through the early 1980s. The display is similar to the Tektronix 4010 terminal, using a direct-view storage CRT display (like an analog storage scope) to avoid the need for video RAM.
An all-in-one design, the 4051 includes display, keyboard, CPU and a 300 kByte DC300 quarter-inch cartridge tape drive in a single desktop case, and includes a GPIB interface. A simple operating system and BASIC interpreter are stored in ROM.
The storage tube display allows the screen to retain images drawn to it, eliminating the need for frame-buffer memory, and allowing the resolution to be as high as the display hardware can handle - logical coordinates are 1024 by 1024 of which the physical screen displays 1024 by 780. This type of display does not require a raster buffer memory, so all memory can be dedicated to programs and data.
The 4051 is based on an 8-bit Motorola 6800 CPU running at 1 MHz, and normally shipped with 8 kB of RAM expandable to 32 kB using 8 kB modules.
The remaining 32 kB of address space is reserved for ROM, which can be expanded using one or two external ROM cartridges of 8 kB each. The ROM includes six character sets and an extended dialect of BASIC including various vector drawing commands.
The 4051 was released in 1975 for the base price of $5,995 (2020 value $28,960). Adding the optional RS-232 interface allowed it to emulate a Tektronix 4012 terminal.
Key designer of the 4051 was Hiro Moriyasu.
See Also
- 4050E01 - ROM Expander
- 4051R07 - Signal Processing Cartridge Number 1
- 4051R08 - Signal Processing Cartridge Number 2
- 4924 cartridge tape drive (GPIB)
Links
General Information
- Tektronix 4051 Brochure (PDF)
- Tektronix 4050 series at Wikipedia
- Tekscope 1975 Vol.7 No.5: A desk-top graphic computing system
- 4051 leaflet from 1976
Manuals
Museums
Videos
- Tek 4051 at work @ YouTube
- 4051 introduction @ YouTube - part 1 / part 2 / part 3 / part 4 / part 5 / part 6 / Emulator
Software
- Tektronix 4051/4052/4054 Program Files (GitHub repository)
- 4051 firmware listings (microfiche scans) @ bitsavers
Miscellaneous
Pictures
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Front view
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Keyboard
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4051 with 4924 GPIB cartridge tape drive
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Back side
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Back side detailed view
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Back side detailed view
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Communication Interface
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Communication Interface
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Communication Interface
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Inside view
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RAM board
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main board
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Screen without frame
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Power supply
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Power supply
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ROMs cloaseup
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4051 ad
