Computer Devices Dot MS-DOS v1.25 and Computer Devices Dot 8088 CPU and CRT Card ROMs
https://archive.org/details/dot-ms-dos
Computer Devices Dot MS-DOS v1.25
by Computer Devices Inc
Publication date 1983-04
Topics floppy, disk image, operating system, dos
Item Size 5.5M
"This is a flux image of the MS-DOS operating system for use with a Computer Devices Dot. This computer uses 3.5in floppy drives was released in 1983, before a standard was settled on. As a result the disks for it are not compatible with any other PCs. The disk image here is provided in KryoFlux raw format for writing back to a disk directly."
https://archive.org/details/cdi-dot-roms
by Computer Devices Inc.
Publication date 1983-06
Topics ROM, computer
Item Size 2.0M
"These are the ROMs from an 8088 CPU card and CRT controller from a Computer Devices Dot. The computer was IBM compatible design wise but had an unusual wide format CRT with the ability to display 132x25 characters."
Computer Devices Dot MS-DOS v1.25
by Computer Devices Inc
Publication date 1983-04
Topics floppy, disk image, operating system, dos
Item Size 5.5M
"This is a flux image of the MS-DOS operating system for use with a Computer Devices Dot. This computer uses 3.5in floppy drives was released in 1983, before a standard was settled on. As a result the disks for it are not compatible with any other PCs. The disk image here is provided in KryoFlux raw format for writing back to a disk directly."
https://archive.org/details/cdi-dot-roms
by Computer Devices Inc.
Publication date 1983-06
Topics ROM, computer
Item Size 2.0M
"These are the ROMs from an 8088 CPU card and CRT controller from a Computer Devices Dot. The computer was IBM compatible design wise but had an unusual wide format CRT with the ability to display 132x25 characters."
Comments
Interesting and odd little machine. Short screen CRTs like that were used in some single-purpose word processing machines. I wonder if this was really intended to be a word processing machine too. I wonder exactly how IBM PC compatible it really was.
"That's Gurgle's tracking for you.". Yes, dammit. This time I'm not unhappy about it.
https://archive.org/details/@akbkuku
I remember people complaining about the 3.5" drive in my Kaypro 2000 being "non-standard", even though the format was 100% the same as eventually used in the IBM PS/2 (and I think also the same as the IBM Convertible)
So these would have been an even bigger headache.
The fact that CDI was able to put together such a high functioning machine with so few hardware and software resources just amazes me.
And technology was moving at a breakneck speed. We just came to expect back then that something new would pop up every day.
Also: did you catch the part that the Dot could also function as a terminal to mainframe?
Most "personal computers", being programmable devices, would use software based terminal programs instead of ROM based.
But with a ROM based terminal, you could use less ram, did not need an OS, and could do without a disk drive. They could have chosen to sell a disk-less version if they had wanted to.
BTW: It looks like there is a code listing for their io.sys in the deleted space.
By the way, the video mentions the difficulty of getting files on to the machine. The disk is a standard FAT, and uses normal 512 byte sectors, but is formatted for DOS 1, so it does not have bios parameter block info describing the geometry.
A disk formatted with a PBP as follows should theoretically work:
Tracks: 70
Sectors: 8
Heads: 1
Root directory entries: 64
Sectors per cluster: 2
Format ID: $F8
Sector Fill: $00
Interleave: 1
The kick in the teeth is the non standard 70 track floppy TPI track spacing. A normal 3.5" drive can't read/write that. But if they have a Kryoflux hooked up to one of these early drives, then generating a disk should work.