 | This article has multiple issues. Please helpimprove it or discuss these issues on thetalk page.(Learn how and when to remove these messages) (Learn how and when to remove this message)
|
 | |
 Acorn Risc PC 600 with two case slices, 3.5-inch disk drive and DVD-ROM drive | |
| Developer | Acorn Computers |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Acorn Computers,Castle Technology[1] |
| Release date | 15 April 1994; 30 years ago (1994-04-15) |
| Discontinued | 11 November 2003 (2003-11-11)[2] |
| Operating system | RISC OS |
| CPU | ARMv3/ARMv4 |
| Graphics | VIDC20 |
| Dimensions |
|
| Predecessor | Archimedes series |
| Successor | Phoebe,Iyonix PC,A9home |
| Related | A7000 |
| Website | acorn.com at theWayback Machine (archived 1998-02-02) |
Risc PC was a range of personal computers launched in 1994 byAcorn, replacing theArchimedes series. The machines use the Acorn developedARM CPU and were thereby notIBM PC-compatible.[3][4]
At launch, the original Risc PC 600 model was fitted as standard with an ARM 610, a 32-bit RISC CPU with 4KB of cache and clocked at 30MHz. CPU technology advanced rapidly in this period though and within only two years a DECStrongARM could be installed at 233MHz which was around 8 times faster.[5]
The machines were supplied with theRISC OS operating system which has a windowed cooperative multi-tasking design. Unusually for a PC of the period the O/S was stored inROM, which enabled a relatively fast boot time. In addition Acorn sold a Virtual PC package that permitted x86 applications to be run in a virtual machine, they also supported the development of an ARM Linux distribution, from 1996.[6]
In contrast to most contemporary IBM clones, the machines supported multiple processors as a standard feature. Secondary (or "guest") CPUs did not need to be ARM based and could be an entirely different architecture. It was possible to add anx86 CPU which enabled use of operating systems includingDOS andWindows 95. Cards could often be added to other machines of the era to run DOS software but more usually these would implement the majority of an IBM PC clone on the card. The Risc PC required only the addition of the relevant CPU with some interface logic.
Alternate operating systems ran concurrently with RISC OS in a window. Applications from both operating systems could run at the same time in a similar fashion to avirtual machine with data shared between them. While now a ubiquitous technology, this was a less common feature in 1994 and more usually only one operating system would run at once on a single PC.
The Risc PC had a novel case design where additional chassis, known as "slices", could be stacked on top of each other, expanding the height of the machine. Up to six additional slices could be stacked, each containing additional drives or expansion cards (known as "podules"). At the time the IBM clone industry was standardised around the PCI bus, but Acorn used its own bus implementation that was not compatible and required its own unique expansion cards. The machines did use the then industry standard IDE orSCSI drives found in contemporary PCs.
Acorn discontinued production of the Risc PC in 1998 after a corporate reorganisation butCastle Technology continued manufacturing the machines until 2003 and subsequently then produced their own similar designs. RISC OS is still available after becoming an open source product.[7]
The Risc PC was used by music composers and scorewriters to run theSibelius scorewriting software.[17]
Between 1994 and 2008, the Risc PC andA7000+ were used in television for broadcast automation, programmed by the UK company OmniBus Systems: once considered "the world leader in television station automation" and at one point automating "every national news programme on terrestrial television in the United Kingdom".[18] The Risc PC, in the form of the OmniBus Workstation, and a customised version of the A7000+ built into a 19-inch rack mount unit, known as the OmniBus Interface Unit, were used to control/automate multiple television broadcast devices from other manufacturers in a way that was unusual at the time. In 2002, OmniBus products were "in constant use worldwide at nearly 100 broadcasters" including the BBC and ITN.[19]: 2
Acorn set about designing theRisc PC 2, later renamed to Phoebe 2100 – a design with a 64 MHz front-side bus,PCI slots, and a yellowNLXform-factor case.[26] Slated for release in late 1998, the project was abandoned just before completion, when Acorn's Workstation Division was closed. Only two prototypes were ever built, and one was publicly displayed for historical interest at the RISC OS 2001 show inBerkshire, England.[27] The remaining cases were bought by CTA Direct who sold them off to the public.[28]
In 2003 it was confirmed that no more Risc PCs would be produced.[23] However RISC OS computers based on other ARM processors machines have been manufactured by companies since this date.
Significantly better performance has been reached on the aged Risc PC design by using the newer 203 (and later 236) MHz StrongARM CPU, using third-partyvideo cards,overclocking, and having specially-designed CPU cards withRAM located upon them to sidestep the speed bottleneck of the slow system bus.
The 16 MHzfront-side bus is usually recognised as being the most significant fault of the computer; and the arrival of the (five times faster)StrongARM processor in 1996 meant that the Risc PC had aCPU significantly faster than the computer had been designed for. Acorn had originally expected ARM CPUs to progress from the 30 MHz ARM6 to the 40 MHz ARM7, and then onto the ARM8 cores, which at the time were clocked at around 50–80 MHz. In 2000, Castle released "Kinetic", a new StrongARM processor board with its own onboard memory slots augmenting main memory, reducing the need to negotiate the slow front-side bus for memory accesses.
The podule bus on the Risc PC can achieve a maximum data throughput of approximately 6100 KByte/s. It is 32-bit and Risc PC predecessors have a 16-bit bus.[29] For comparison, thePCI bus, which was available in systems at the time of the Risc PC's introduction, is over 20 times faster. The transfer of 650 MB would take 2 minutes via podule, compared to 5 seconds via PCI.
(October 12th 1998), Cambridge, UK-Acorn announced today that it has completed negotiations with Castle Technology for them to distribute Acorn products.
... on Friday April 15th ...
The modular design of the new computer allows a PC 486 processor to be added using a card ...
IBM 5x86C 100MHz Second Generation PC Card
Acorn has been pressed to give its users access to Windows Multimedia PC CDs ... there are still doubts about full compatibility.
Many composers bought an Archimedes simply to have access to the program.
| Main companiesa | |
|---|---|
| Hardware | |
| Emulation | |
| Key softwareb | |
| OS components | |
| OS utilities | |
| Books | |
| Related and historical | |
| |
