- There was a clone by Timex, the T/S 1500, which was a ZX81 (with 16 kB RAM!) in a Spectrum-like case with rubber/chicklet keys: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timex_Sinclair
You can build your own ZX81 replica, there are several projects available and all components are still available since the replicas replace the Sinclair ULA with a bunch of regular 74-series TTL ICs. We used the ZX81plus38 for a soldering course with our students, this works very well:
https://github.com/mahjongg2/ZX81plus38
There's also a Sinclair Spectrum clone, the Harlequin, which is also quite simple to build.
- Works like a charm – also with a Spectrum clone, but you have to invert the order of the cables at one of the connectors IIRC. I had a number of the PCBs manufactured (but I used different keycaps) and use them with inexpensive keychron switches.
- Note that the version history on unixdude's site is not up to date, the most recent version is 3.1, which was published by Andreas yesterday.
The current source code can be found in the "branch_softfloat" branch on sourceforge's svn: https://sourceforge.net/projects/previous/
- ...these are "only" design prototypes from Hartmut Esslinger's 2012 book, no actual unknown prototypes.
- These were definitely ID prototypes. I am sure Steve Jobs saw these at some point. Whether they moved onto a tape out stage where a production mockup was made - probably not. Aesthetically, whatever it was Steve vetoed it befere it got to the production stage.
here is the og iphone prototype : https://www.theverge.com/2019/3/19/18263844/apple-iphone-pro...
And even skankphone a working prototype for iPhone baseband looked nothing like the shipping product though it looked like it got some ID love....
- Unfortunately no updates since that was posted in 2021...
- This article has a number of OCR errors, some omitting half a sentence.
There's a scan of the BYTE article available at https://www.tech-insider.org/mac/research/acrobat/8402-a.pdf
- Whow, this includes a 68000 Verilog CPU core which seems to use the original 68k micro/nanocode. Impressive!
- Further confirmation and a bit of personal history was posted on the Oberon mailing list by Andreas Pirkbauer:
- There's a second Lisa emulator, idle (Incomplete Draft of a Lisa Emulator):
There are quite a lot of activities around the Lisa right now. A number of projects recreate the Lisa hardware using (mostly) original components:https://idle-lisa-emu.sourceforge.nethttps://github.com/warmech/lisa-hardware/
https://github.com/alexthecat123/Lisa-PCBs/
https://github.com/alexthecat123/Lisa-GALSCSI-Card/
Patrick Schäfer has provided Lisa hardware and tools for many years:
http://john.ccac.rwth-aachen.de:8000/patrick/idefile.htm
and there is an Arduino-based ProFile hard disk emulator (currently only working with the Lisa 2/5 I/O board):
https://github.com/alexthecat123/ArduinoFile
...plus one based on a BeagleBoard:
http://www.arcanebyte.com/harddrive-product/
...bigmessowires' floppy emulator, which also works with Lisas
https://www.bigmessowires.com/floppy-emu/
...and, of course, the Lisa OS and application source code which was published in early 2023:
https://computerhistory.org/blog/the-lisa-apples-most-influe.../
...plus more interesting source code including GEM, e.g. available at:
- Thanks for the links.
Here is yet another one: https://github.com/rochus-keller/LisaPascal
- Ah, darn, I knew I wanted to add your repos, sorry. Thanks for the reminder!
Are you planning to extend the compiler into a full Pascal cross compiler for the Lisa? That would be _very_ nice to have...
- I spent quite some time studying the Pascal and Assembler source code, but could not resolve all symbols, and there are also several ambiguities, which led me to the conclusion that I would also have to build an interpreter for all the build related files and try to reconstruct a complete build with the correct options in order to be able to make any statement about the completeness and integrity of the code. That would take a lot of time at the expense of my other interests. That's why I've put the project on hold for the time being.
- A fascinating and extensive insight into an almost forgotten era of Apple… I’m happy that Apple eventually ended up choosing NeXT, but I would have loved to own an ANS back then (I was running A/UX on a IIci and MkLinux on a PowerMac 6100 and had access to IBM and Motorola AIX machines…), especially with the never-released A/UX 4 :).
- It was a really strange time. I loved my ANS and other than a brief time I got to touch an A/UX console (though I lacked a login) it was the only Apple Unix thing I used contemporaneously. Apple truly seemed all over the place. Otherwise for me personally it was all BSD and classic Mac OS, as a child of the University of California. 8-)
- More
I equally now don’t trust the source forge source either , unless you know Andreas somehow and can vouch for them. The official website linked to from sourceforge is derelict with a last update from 2016 and version 1.4.
http://previous.alternative-system.com/
In 2023 a let’s encrypt script fixes this in 10 minutes and no automation linking. And thr gap of the last update from 2016 is huge. Feels like the project doesn’t have control. I just want people to learn and have a good time and not be in harms way while doing it.
I know jgrahamc would say I’m overthinking this. But I’m hopping they will weigh in and give wisdom as they do.
unixdude knows that his webpage is outdated and is working on an update (see the "What Needs to be done for a NeXT Emulator" thread in the Emulation / Virtualization subforum).