The RAM Pack: A Legendary Component with a Fascinating History

So, the rampant wobble is legendary and as with a lot of legends, they're not always entirely true. The RAM pack is now on there, so it takes a little bit longer than now to power up. Then you go in there's the cursor so we could type in our program again 10:00 print. Let's do a hello this time. Took a little bit longer to enter it into the memory go to 10 so there's our program. But as you can see, the machine itself kind of wobbles a little bit as you're typing in code.

And if that rampant one was too much, we lose the data, but actually, our one and we haven't done anything. Clever here, this is just a standard old RAM pack, but actually, if we wobble it move the machine, it's a different story altogether. It's almost like a different animal altogether. The movement of the RAM pack can affect the performance of the machine in unexpected ways.

The design of the BBC Micro computer was influenced by Sinclair Research Ltd., which was a company that specialized in building small computers. They had designed several machines before, including the ZX Spectrum and the ZX81. However, when they were approached by the BBC to create a computer for their school program, they decided to take on the challenge. The machine was designed to be affordable and accessible to students of all skill levels.

The machine's design was influenced by Sinclair's experience with building small computers. They had developed a range of components that could be used in their machines, including the RAM pack. These components were designed to be compact and efficient, allowing the computer to perform tasks quickly and accurately. The BBC Micro was no exception, and it went on to become one of the most popular home computers of its time.

One of the notable features of the BBC Micro was its affordability. It was priced at just £399, making it accessible to students and hobbyists who might not have been able to afford more expensive machines. This made it an ideal choice for schools and education programs, as it allowed a wide range of people to participate in computing.

The machine's design was also influenced by Sinclair's experience with building small computers. They had developed a range of components that could be used in their machines, including the RAM pack. These components were designed to be compact and efficient, allowing the computer to perform tasks quickly and accurately. The BBC Micro was no exception, and it went on to become one of the most popular home computers of its time.

The impact of the BBC Micro can still be seen today. It played a significant role in popularizing computing among students and hobbyists, and it helped to pave the way for future generations of computer scientists and programmers. The machine's design and functionality were influenced by Sinclair's experience with building small computers, and it remains an important part of computer history.

The BBC Micro was also notable for its use of a compact floppy disk drive. This allowed users to store and retrieve files easily, making the machine even more accessible and convenient. The machine's design and functionality were influenced by Sinclair's experience with building small computers, and it remains an important part of computer history.

One of the most interesting aspects of the BBC Micro was its design process. When the BBC approached Sinclair Research Ltd. to create a computer for their school program, they had specific requirements in mind. However, Sinclair did not have the machine that they were selling at the time, and they ended up with a different specification altogether.

This led to a bit of a kerfuffle between Sinclair and the BBC, as Sinclair's design was not exactly what the BBC had been expecting. However, despite this setback, the BBC Micro went on to become one of the most popular home computers of its time. It played a significant role in popularizing computing among students and hobbyists, and it helped to pave the way for future generations of computer scientists and programmers.

The machine's design was also influenced by Sinclair's experience with building small computers. They had developed a range of components that could be used in their machines, including the RAM pack. These components were designed to be compact and efficient, allowing the computer to perform tasks quickly and accurately. The BBC Micro was no exception, and it went on to become one of the most popular home computers of its time.

In conclusion, the RAM pack is an important component of the BBC Micro computer, and its design and functionality have had a lasting impact on the world of computing. The machine's affordability and accessibility made it an ideal choice for schools and education programs, and it played a significant role in popularizing computing among students and hobbyists. Despite some setbacks along the way, the BBC Micro went on to become one of the most popular home computers of its time, and its design continues to influence computer development to this day.

The BBC Micro's design process was also influenced by Sinclair Research Ltd.'s experience with building small computers. When they were approached by the BBC to create a computer for their school program, they had specific requirements in mind. However, Sinclair did not have the machine that they were selling at the time, and they ended up with a different specification altogether.

This led to a bit of a kerfuffle between Sinclair and the BBC, as Sinclair's design was not exactly what the BBC had been expecting. However, despite this setback, the BBC Micro went on to become one of the most popular home computers of its time. It played a significant role in popularizing computing among students and hobbyists, and it helped to pave the way for future generations of computer scientists and programmers.

The machine's design was also influenced by Sinclair's experience with building small computers. They had developed a range of components that could be used in their machines, including the RAM pack. These components were designed to be compact and efficient, allowing the computer to perform tasks quickly and accurately. The BBC Micro was no exception, and it went on to become one of the most popular home computers of its time.

One of the notable features of the BBC Micro was its use of a compact floppy disk drive. This allowed users to store and retrieve files easily, making the machine even more accessible and convenient.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enSo the rampant wobble is legendary and as with a lot of legends. They're not always entirely trueThe RAM pack is now on thereSo it takes a little bit longer than now to to power upThen you go in there's the cursor so we could type in our program again 10:00 print. Let's do a hello this timeTook a little bit longer to enter it into the memory go to 10 so there's our programBut as you can see the machine itself kind of wobbles a little bit as you're typing in codeAnd if that rampant one was too much. We lose the data, but actually our one and we haven't done anythingClever here, this is just a standard old Ram pack, but actually if we wobble itMove the Machine around a little bitActually if we now type runIt's still working. Okay, so you know the RAM pack wobble?The classic one that everybody talks about is the blue techallegedly recommended by Sir Clive himselfAnd you would put a piece of blue tape betweenThe case and the RAM pack and that would just stop the movingI think in reality that doesn't necessarily work that well. How strong is blue tech. You knowBut we've had some brilliantresolutions to this so quite oftenWe've probably had two or three machines as xat ones and they donated on a piece of white melamine chip boardAnd there's a bloomin great big ugly metal aluminium bracket that holds that so the piece of woodAnd then there's another aluminium bracket that holds the RIMPAC down as wellThey look really uglyBut actually when we laughed about this we plugged the enemy tried itActually if you still messed around with and soo much it would stillLose that memory this one's particularly good connections for whatever reason. I don't know that it's just goodThey actually made it worseBecause as the machine the connections tarnished a little bit that got in the way and the connections and that you know caused more problemsBut the one that I did which was a bit harsh. I admit is to take my machine out of the case completely andChop the wires that hold this connector in place and in solder it directly to the back of machine itselfThat was harsh, but it workedAnd I ended up and I really regret this taking a machine that I had at the tone called a tangerine micro 1065It's actually a really quite a sought-after machine now there weren't many of themBut just gracefully I took the keyboard off it because I hadn't I particularly used for that machineand I took all the tracks off the back of the keyboard and rewired the matrix so it matched theZajonc 81 and I had a proper zelich's 81 with improper keyboard, and I've sold it on RAM pack, so it was absolutelyYeah, I'm a completely reliable so what sort of programs, would you write on your?ohSaw some random stuff. I mean I had a go at writing games. I grand visions of writing these amazing gamesI wrote these kind of well. I mentioned the game called piece of Kroll that I've seen on the NASSCOMSome years before and I wrote a version of that which I've called crystalCastle or caves, I don't knowAnd I never did finish itIt was probably rubbish anywayBut I did you knowAdding up things you know kind of bank accounts. I was 11 or so soThe thing is what the most important thing about this machine is the thoughts of what you could do with it notNecessarily for a lot of us what we actually did with itBut that's just as validBecause then later on you know you'd have that drive things go and do it on machines that you know would have more use toyou later on alot of the time I was loading in things like lunar landing and andAnd some of the games I was bought the the maths pack the mindThis is the junior education packBut DadYou know I wanted to meet to learn so obviously bought me the mass spec and I'd become a mathematicianAt some point which still it's not happenedso it's not managed to get them to buy me the games take I think these are about four ninety ninety three ninety nine Iremember having IThink two of these and these hold a lot of affection for me because they've just the look of them I had two of theseOne was games one was the mass spec and I hadAnother game, which I think might have been an analogue?Game, maybe a Kong type copy or smoke I remember nowBut again I've had three original tapes for itThere's a real branding thing there I go well SinclairI think was really really cute on this side of thingsHe was very very much about the aesthetics and the look and the presentation those products and againAlthough they take stick you've got to look at themandlook at theYou know the design the aesthetic of these and realize actually there was a lot of thought going to it having a machine that wasThis small in comparison with something like the MS @atkThat was there. You know there is a big difference, and there is a beauty to thisThis came beforeBut this was been the sort of machine that people would recognize as a computerI think for for cried to come along and have a product that looked like thisIt was space-age at the time look at the manual the menu itself has got that kind of space-age representation on itAnd I think there a lot is to be said for the designers of these machinesAs much as they were built to that price pointThey were done in a way you know with a with a verypretty professionallyPlastic molded case, so I think a lot has to be created succinctly on that schoolAnd he had a history of it as well miniaturizationTo a fault in some cases you knowHe was making miniature TVs and little radios and this kind of stuff and the calculators that was makingsometimes he was trying to get too much Institute to smaller space andThat caused heat problems and whatever, but you know to have successes. You've got our failures andIn my mind, this is a huge huge success, and I think to a lot of people's minds a really really important machineThe BBC put out to tender a project to create a machine that they could use for their television programSo the government were very much pushing the idea of home computers and trying to get everybody involved with them and understand them what theyWere because there's a bit resistance. It's you know computers. They're gonna lose all their jobs at this timeYou know this is computers were the thing that were you know kind of feared ins in somerespectsSo the government were pushing that kind of thing and the BBC we're going to make a programme about itThey put out to tender for this this project theyspecification the BBC computer itself was pretty much SPECT up by the BBC they take a lot of credit forthe way that machine turned out and anybody could come along andAnd produce that machine or perform plans to do itSinclair did andacorn, did apparentlyNewbury computers Newbury new brain and put forward somethingUltimately long story short I called got that tenderYou could argue. They didn't necessarily have the machine they were selling to the BBC at that timeAnd but they had plans and they knew what they were gonna do to make it and Sinclair just didn't get itNow the whys and wherefores of that I don't knowBut bottom line is you lost that and he was really angry about it, and you know field microman Connor puts that intoInto perspective but some but yeah, it was just one of those thingsHis sort of specifications for the machine that he thought should be usedDidn't really match with what the BBC wanted, and you know you could argue thatThere were there were reasons why Sinclair probably should have been yeah, the cost is a big deal the BBC micro is 399 poundAnd for a lot of people they use their BBC micros at schoolThey typed in lines of code really really simple basic programsThere's only kind of the higher end students that were that were getting in there and doing the clever stuffSo you could argue actually the Sinclair probably did have and I know actually was in schools anyway a place within when schools and withinTeaching because of the price point you know a lot more students would have been have it would've had access to itSo yeah, I know schools had them anyway. You know they went out and bought it seemed closed because of that pricePrograms on those tapes and load them in from tape so that was feasible we tended to spend ages just getting the volume exactly right\n"