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Summary of Contents for Briel Computers SUPERBOARD
- Page 1 SUPERBOARD /// Setup and Users Manual JUNE 2014 PRELIMINARY EDITION Briel Computers...
- Page 2 Published by Briel Computers Copyright 2014 Briel Computers. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. Except as permitted under the Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher, with the exception that the program listings may be entered, stored, and executed in a computer system, but they may not be reproduced for publication.
- Page 3 How the Superboard /// came to be Thank you for purchasing the Superboard ///. This replica was a goal of mine for nearly 8 years. I grew up in the 70's and 80's and was proud to be a part of the computer revolution if only as a bystander. I read every magazine I could get my hands on about computers.
- Page 4 Setup and Users Manual Index Chapter 1: A Brief History of OSI and the Superboard II Chapter 2: Introducing the Superboard /// Chapter 3: Unpacking and Setting Up Chapter 4: Assembling the Kit Version Chapter 5: Programming the Superboard ///...
- Page 5 OSI was the OSI 500. It was a simple computer with no video display and required a serial port and power supply for operation. Later, they released the Superboard which had a 6502 or 6800 processor, 1K RAM, 512 bytes ROM, I/O chip slot, 2 serial ports and the OSI 48 pin connector for turning it into a full system.
- Page 6 In 1978 the Superboard II was born. It was designed as a single-board computer like the 400 but included a video display interface with 1K video RAM, 8K system RAM and built in keyboard. The added BASIC interpreter by Microsoft made this a complete system on one board. The board was available in a case and was badged as the Challenger 1P.
- Page 7 Chapter 2: Introducing the Superboard /// The Superboard /// was designed to be as close to original OSI Superboard II as possible. The system board includes built in BASIC in ROM, 32K RAM, 1K video RAM and a 53 key keyboard. The design is software compatible with the original OSI Superboard II so you can run programs designed for it on the new Superboard ///.
- Page 8 There are five mounting holes on the board to secure it to a board or install it in a custom case. As of the writing of this manual, there is no optional case for the Superboard /// but we hope to change that in the near future.
- Page 9 Next you need to choose what type of power supply you are going to use. There are two ways you can power your Superboard ///. The mini USB cable is not only the serial port but also the power source.
- Page 10 With the Superboard /// powered on, LED is lit up and garbage is on the screen, you need to RESET the system board to begin operation. Make sure the SHIFT LOCK key is in the down position and press and hold BREAK for 3 seconds.
- Page 11 Make sure you have proper working space and that you heat your iron before beginning the assembly. This kit is not for beginners and Briel Computers assumes that you have some prior experience with soldering circuit boards. If you have never soldered circuit boards before or don’t feel you are ready, you should build other kits of a smaller, less complex nature before building your Superboard ///.
- Page 12 Looking at the LED there are two connectors, the Anode is longer and has the smaller connector inside. The cathode is the negative side. It has a shorter lead and a larger part inside the LED. The cathode is the negative post. © Briel Computers 2014 page...
- Page 13 Make sure you have proper working space and that you heat your iron before beginning the assembly. This kit is not for beginners and Briel Computers assumes that you have some prior experience with soldering circuit boards. If you have never soldered circuit boards before or don’t feel you are ready, you should build other kits of a smaller, less complex nature before building your Superboard ///.
- Page 14 Step 3: Place the 5MHz crystal into its location and while holding it flush with the board, turn the board over and set it on your work bench. Verify that the crystal is still flush with the board and solder the 2 pins into place. © Briel Computers 2014 page...
- Page 15 Step 6: Install the resistor packs. There are 2 yellow packs with 9 pins each on them. The dot on the resistor pack is pin 1 and goes where the 4.7 is written on the board. Hold in place, turn over and solder down. If you solder this backwards, the keyboard will not function. © Briel Computers 2014 page...
- Page 16 Step 7: Installing the serial USB power interface. The small blue USB board supplies power and serial to USB communication with the Superboard /// to a PC or Mac for data transfer. To install this board onto the Superboard ///, you need to hold the USB board mounted in the Superboard /// USB connector facing out, connector down and through the board.
- Page 17 Step 14: Install the .01uF capacitor C14 like you did with the .1uF capacitors. ID is 103M on the cap. It is not polarized so you can install it in either direction as well. Cut the extra length off. © Briel Computers 2014 page...
- Page 18 Place the capacitor so it is flush with the board. Bend the pins slightly away from one another to help hold the position and turn the Superboard /// over. Solder the 2 leads and cut the excess off.
- Page 19 EEPROM. Attach an RCA cable to the Superboard /// video port and attach it to your monitor or TV. Power up your Superboard /// and see if you get a screen full of garbage. If the video section is working properly, turn off the board and install the remaining chips.
- Page 20 PC or Mac as if they were stored on cassette. The system board is equipped with 32K of RAM which is 4 times more than the stock OSI Superboard II came with. There is a small library of programs out there to download and play but nothing beats writing your own program.
- Page 21 Some versions of BASIC will end with an error if you do not use these commands. Refer to chapter 6 for instructions on how to LOAD and STORE programs to and from your PC or Mac. © Briel Computers 2014 page...
- Page 22 TCP/IP to Serial and select the new COMM port that should have installed when you connected the Superboard /// to your computer. See figure below for what your program should look like. Click on OK and your connection is started. You still have some settings to adjust before you can communicate with the Superboard ///.
- Page 23 CR+LF so a new line is created on ENTER. Click OK and you are ready. Power up and get the Superboard /// to a BASIC prompt. See chapter 3 for details on powering up the system. The system can not just communicate with the PC, you must use the cassette commands LOAD and SAVE to use the serial port.
- Page 24 Find the file on your PC and select “OK”. At this point Tera Term will send the file your Superboard /// and your Superboard will treat the file as if you were typing it in. Once it is finished typing in, press space bar on the Superboard /// to transfer control back to the keyboard.
- Page 25 The Superboard /// is equipped with a hidden feature to give you the ultimate in options. Some of the OSI Superboard II users had the ability to use all 32x25 or so lines of video display. Well, the Superboard /// has the ability to display 32 characters across and 28 lines of text.
- Page 26 Chapter 8: Troubleshooting your Superboard /// If you have just built your Superboard /// and are now having problems getting it running, here are some tips on what to check: Dead: Check the USB power source and cable. We have already seen bad USB cables and too small power supplies.
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Page 27: Appendix A: Matrix Keyboard Pin Out
Appendix A: Matrix Keyboard Pin out The Superboard /// has a blank spot for a connector if you wish to use your own matrix keyboard. The pin outs are as shown below. This was a feature request from current OSI owners. -
Page 28: Appendix B: 25 X 25 Video Sheet
Appendix B: 25 X 25 Video Sheet VIDEO MEMORY MAP OSI 600 SUPERBOARD II D085 53381 53405 D09D D0A5 53413 53437 D0BD D0C5 53445 53469 D0DD D0E5 53477 53501 D0FD D105 53509 53533 D11D D125 53541 53565 D13D D145 53573... -
Page 29: Appendix C: Expansion Interface Connection
The original 40 pin OSI 600 connector is a socket connector but this will keep users from attempting to connect legacy devices to the Superboard /// without a voltage converter board to handle 5V signals. -
Page 30: Warranty
Briel Computers shall assume no liability as a consequence of such events under the terms of this warranty. While every effort, on the part of Briel Computers, is made to provide clear and accurate technical instruction on the use,...
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