In the 1980s the French Thomson company produced a range of 8-bit computers based on the 6809E CPU. [1]
They were released in several variations (mostly concerning the keyboard or color of the casing) covering the MO and TO series [2] from late 1982 to 1989. While MO and TO models are incompatible in software, most of the peripherals and hardware were compatible.
These machines were common in France due to the 1980s governmental educational program Computing for All (Informatique pour Tous) . [3] [4] [5] Around 100,000 MO5 and TO7/70 computers were ordered and installed in schools. [6] Export attempts to Germany, Italy, Algeria, USSR, India, Argentina and Spain were unsuccessful.
It is reported that there were 450,000 Thomson computers in France in 1986. [7] By 1988 Thomson had only sold 60,000 of the predicted 150,000 computers, abandoning computer development the following year. [6]
About 84 games were released for the TO7, [8] [9] 194 for the MO5, [10] [11] 3 for the TO7/70, [12] 10 for the TO9, [13] 21 for the MO6, [14] [15] and 128 for the TO8. [16] [17] Most titles were released between 1984 and 1987 and by French companies such as Infogrames, Loriciel, FIL or Coktel Vision. [18] [19]
The Micromega was fundamental on the adoption of Unix by the French government, due to the localization of the Unix operating system. According to Dominique Maisonneuve, a Unix developer at CERG (Paris): "It was thanks to the Micromega that the government became interested in installing Unix. What was needed, was some hardware with a French coloring." [35]
The Matra & Hachette Ordinateur Alice is a home computer sold in France beginning in 1983. It was a clone of the TRS-80 MC-10, produced through a collaboration between Matra and Hachette in France and Tandy Corporation in the United States.
The X68000 is a home computer created by Sharp Corporation. It was first released in 1987 and sold only in Japan.
The ThomsonMO5 is a home computer introduced in France in June 1984 to compete against systems such as the ZX Spectrum and Commodore 64. It had a release price of 2390 FF.
Thomson may refer to:
The Thomson EF936x series is a type of Graphic Display Processor (GDP) by Thomson-EFCIS. The chip could draw at 1 million pixels per second, which was relatively advanced for the time of its release. There are various versions of the chip with slightly different capabilities.
The Atari TT030 is a member of the Atari ST family, released in 1990. It was originally intended to be a high-end Unix workstation, but Atari took two years to release a port of Unix SVR4 for the TT, which prevented the TT from ever being seriously considered in its intended market.
The Plantronics Colorplus is a graphics card for IBM PC computers, first sold in 1982. It implements a superset of the then-current CGA standard, using the same monitor standard and providing the same pixel resolutions. It was produced by Frederick Electronics, a subsidiary of Plantronics since 1968, and sold by Plantronics' Enhanced Graphics Products division.
Micral is a series of microcomputers produced by the French company Réalisation d'Études Électroniques, beginning with the Micral N in early 1973. The Micral N was one of the first commercially available microprocessor-based computers.
The Thomson TO7, also called Thomson 9000 is a home computer introduced by Thomson SA in November 1982, with an original retail price of 3750 FF. By 1983 over 40000 units were produced. About 84 games were released for the TO7.
The ThomsonMO6 was a Motorola 6809E-based computer introduced in France in 1986. It was intended as the successor to the Thomson MO5 and featured 128 KB of RAM, a 40 × 25 text display, and a new built-in Microsoft BASIC interpreter. It retained compatibility with its predecessor, while incorporating the same technology as the TO8.
The Thomson TO8 is a home computer introduced by French company Thomson SA in 1986, with a cost of 2,990 FF. It replaces its predecessor, the Thomson TO7/70, while remaining essentially compatible.
The VG5000μ is a computer created by Philips in 1984. It was manufactured in Le Mans by Radiotechnique (RTS) and marketed under the Philips, Radiola and Schneider brands.
BASIC 1.0 is the standard BASIC language for Thomson computers, which is the reference for the entire range. This is an implementation of Microsoft BASIC (BASIC-69). It was used to introduce children from France to programming in the 1980s. Three languages were mainly taught: LSE, BASIC and LOGO. School textbooks programs were given in BASIC 1.0 for Thomson and sometimes in ExelBasic for the Exelvision EXL 100.
The Thomson TO9 is a home computer introduced by French company Thomson SA in 1985.
The Thomson TO9+ is a home computer introduced by French company Thomson SA in 1986. It kept the professional look of the Thomson TO9 by using a separate keyboard.
The Thomson TO16 or Thomson TO16PC is a PC compatible personal computer introduced by French company Thomson SA in 1987, with prices ranging from 9000 to 16000 FF depending on the version.
The Toshiba Pasopia IQ are a series of MSX compatible machines released by Toshiba between 1983 and 1985. This is not to be confused with a different computer line with the similar name of Toshiba Pasopia.
The Computing for All plan was a French government plan to introduce computers to the country's 11 million pupils. A second goal was to support national industry. It followed several introductory computer science programs in schools since 1971. The IPT plan was presented to the press on January 25, 1985 by Laurent Fabius, Prime Minister at the time. It aimed to set up, from the start of that school year, more than 120,000 machines in 50,000 schools and to train 110,000 teachers. Its estimated cost was 1.8 billion francs, including 1.5 billion for equipment. The plan was abandoned in 1989.
Hector are a series of a microcomputers produced in France in the early 1980s.
Léanord was a French computer brand, founded in 1960 at Haubourdin, near Lille. It was a subsidiary of Creusot-Loire and started to develop computers in the late 1970s.