<s>
The	O
Acorn	B-Device
Business	I-Device
Computer	I-Device
(	O
ABC	O
)	O
was	O
a	O
series	O
of	O
microcomputers	B-Architecture
announced	O
at	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
1983	O
by	O
the	O
British	O
company	O
Acorn	O
Computers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
ABC	O
210	O
was	O
subsequently	O
relaunched	O
as	O
the	O
Acorn	B-Device
Cambridge	I-Device
Workstation	I-Device
in	O
July	O
1985	O
,	O
and	O
sold	O
in	O
modest	O
numbers	O
to	O
academic	O
and	O
scientific	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
ABC	O
range	O
was	O
developed	O
by	O
Acorn	O
essentially	O
as	O
a	O
repackaged	O
BBC	B-Device
Micro	I-Device
,	O
expanded	O
to	O
64KB	O
RAM	B-Architecture
,	O
to	O
which	O
was	O
added	O
(	O
in	O
some	O
models	O
)	O
a	O
second	O
processor	O
and	O
extra	O
memory	O
to	O
complement	O
the	O
Micro	O
's	O
6502	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
electronics	O
and	O
disk	B-Device
drives	I-Device
were	O
integrated	O
into	O
the	O
monitor	O
housing	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
separate	O
keyboard	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Zilog	B-General_Concept
Z80	I-General_Concept
,	O
Intel	B-General_Concept
80286	I-General_Concept
and	O
National	B-Device
Semiconductor	I-Device
32016	I-Device
were	O
all	O
used	O
as	O
second	O
processors	O
in	O
the	O
various	O
models	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
agreement	O
made	O
between	O
Acorn	O
and	O
the	O
BBC	O
to	O
supply	O
a	O
microcomputer	B-Architecture
to	O
accompany	O
the	O
BBC	B-Device
Computer	I-Device
Literacy	I-Device
Project	I-Device
,	O
Acorn	O
had	O
committed	O
to	O
deliver	O
a	O
business	O
upgrade	O
for	O
the	O
BBC	B-Device
Micro	I-Device
,	O
with	O
Z80-based	O
computers	O
running	O
the	O
CP/M	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
being	O
the	O
established	O
business	O
platform	O
at	O
that	O
time	O
and	O
thus	O
the	O
likely	O
form	O
of	O
any	O
such	O
upgrade	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
upgrade	O
was	O
eventually	O
delivered	O
in	O
1984	O
as	O
the	O
Z80	B-General_Concept
Second	O
Processor	O
,	O
requiring	O
a	O
BBC	B-Device
Micro	I-Device
,	O
dual	O
floppy	B-Device
drives	I-Device
and	O
a	O
display	O
to	O
complete	O
a	O
basic	O
business	O
system	O
for	O
a	O
total	O
cost	O
of	O
around	O
£1500	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Various	O
systems	O
had	O
already	O
been	O
proposed	O
by	O
Acorn	O
early	O
in	O
the	O
life	O
of	O
the	O
BBC	B-Device
Micro	I-Device
before	O
the	O
Acorn	B-Device
Business	I-Device
Computer	I-Device
name	O
had	O
been	O
publicly	O
adopted	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
instance	O
,	O
the	O
machine	O
that	O
would	O
eventually	O
be	O
known	O
as	O
the	O
ABC	O
210	O
was	O
described	O
in	O
mid-1982	O
in	O
the	O
context	O
of	O
an	O
apparent	O
deal	O
with	O
National	O
Semiconductor	O
,	O
indicating	O
a	O
1	O
MB	O
system	O
with	O
hard	B-Device
disks	I-Device
and	O
"	O
Acorn	O
,	O
Unix	B-Application
or	O
Idris	B-Operating_System
operating	B-General_Concept
systems	I-General_Concept
"	O
at	O
an	O
estimated	O
price	O
of	O
around	O
$3500	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
second	O
processor	O
product	O
for	O
the	O
BBC	B-Device
Micro	I-Device
having	O
only	O
256	O
KB	O
RAM	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Gluon	O
concept	O
,	O
offering	O
a	O
32016	B-Device
second	O
processor	O
solution	O
for	O
the	O
BBC	B-Device
Micro	I-Device
and	O
other	O
microcomputers	B-Architecture
,	O
featured	O
prominently	O
in	O
the	O
company	O
's	O
strategy	O
to	O
offer	O
more	O
powerful	O
computing	O
hardware	O
and	O
to	O
provide	O
the	O
basis	O
for	O
more	O
powerful	O
machines	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Meanwhile	O
,	O
the	O
machine	O
that	O
would	O
become	O
known	O
as	O
the	O
ABC	O
100	O
was	O
described	O
in	O
mid-1983	O
as	O
the	O
Acorn	O
Business	O
Machine	O
,	O
being	O
based	O
on	O
the	O
BBC	B-Device
Micro	I-Device
with	O
Z80	B-General_Concept
Second	O
Processor	O
,	O
twin	O
disk	B-Device
drives	I-Device
,	O
running	O
CP/M	O
,	O
with	O
an	O
anticipated	O
launch	O
the	O
same	O
year	O
and	O
a	O
price	O
of	O
"	O
under	O
£2000	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Such	O
a	O
configuration	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
Z80	B-General_Concept
processor	O
running	O
CP/M	O
assisted	O
by	O
a	O
6502	B-General_Concept
processor	I-General_Concept
managing	O
the	O
display	O
and	O
peripherals	O
was	O
already	O
proven	O
by	O
various	O
Torch	O
Computers	O
products	O
-	O
notably	O
the	O
BBC	O
Micro-based	O
C-series	O
(	O
Communicator	O
)	O
-	O
and	O
also	O
featured	O
in	O
machines	O
like	O
the	O
C/WP	O
Cortex	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
successful	O
development	O
of	O
second	O
processor	O
solutions	O
was	O
regarded	O
as	O
an	O
essential	O
progression	O
that	O
would	O
enable	O
Acorn	O
to	O
offer	O
variants	O
of	O
the	O
BBC	B-Device
Micro	I-Device
as	O
business	O
machines	O
and	O
to	O
be	O
able	O
to	O
compete	O
with	O
Torch	O
,	O
whose	O
products	O
were	O
in	O
some	O
ways	O
pursuing	O
such	O
goals	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
late	O
1983	O
,	O
the	O
launch	O
of	O
the	O
Z80	B-General_Concept
Second	O
Processor	O
had	O
been	O
estimated	O
as	O
occurring	O
in	O
February	O
1984	O
,	O
and	O
although	O
the	O
16032	B-Device
Second	O
Processor	O
had	O
been	O
demonstrated	O
at	O
an	O
event	O
in	O
Munich	O
,	O
Acorn	O
had	O
not	O
apparently	O
decided	O
on	O
pricing	O
or	O
positioning	O
,	O
describing	O
the	O
product	O
as	O
being	O
"	O
months	O
away	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Meanwhile	O
,	O
negotiations	O
between	O
National	O
Semiconductor	O
,	O
Acorn	O
,	O
Logica	O
and	O
Microsoft	O
were	O
ongoing	O
with	O
regard	O
to	O
making	O
Unix	B-Application
-	O
Xenix	B-Application
,	O
specifically	O
-	O
available	O
on	O
"	O
the	O
BBC	O
machine	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
acknowledging	O
the	O
ABC	O
range	O
as	O
a	O
"	O
repackaging	O
job	O
"	O
of	O
the	O
BBC	B-Device
Model	I-Device
B	I-Device
,	O
the	O
selection	O
of	O
models	O
was	O
itself	O
regarded	O
as	O
"	O
superb	O
"	O
in	O
some	O
of	O
the	O
commentary	O
following	O
the	O
unveiling	O
of	O
the	O
ABC	O
in	O
late	O
1984	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
ABC	O
Personal	O
Assistant	O
was	O
perceived	O
by	O
some	O
to	O
be	O
the	O
BBC	O
Model	O
C	O
expected	O
from	O
Acorn	O
,	O
raising	O
questions	O
about	O
the	O
work	O
that	O
had	O
been	O
done	O
to	O
the	O
BBC	B-Device
Model	I-Device
B	I-Device
hardware	O
and	O
whether	O
such	O
a	O
board	O
,	O
designed	O
for	O
a	O
reduction	O
in	O
chip	O
count	O
and	O
production	O
cost	O
,	O
would	O
eventually	O
see	O
use	O
in	O
the	O
conventional	O
BBC	B-Device
Micro	I-Device
range	O
,	O
bringing	O
lower	O
pricing	O
and	O
higher	O
reliability	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
model	O
,	O
providing	O
a	O
hard	B-Device
disk	I-Device
,	O
entered	O
production	O
as	O
the	O
Acorn	B-Device
Cambridge	I-Device
Workstation	I-Device
(	O
ACW	O
443	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
32016	B-Device
firmware	B-Application
(	O
Pandora	O
)	O
in	O
ROM	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
ABC	O
210	O
was	O
intended	O
to	O
run	O
Xenix	B-Application
,	O
however	O
,	O
the	O
ACW	O
was	O
shipped	O
with	O
Panos	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
reason	O
given	O
for	O
providing	O
Panos	B-Operating_System
as	O
the	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
at	O
the	O
launch	O
of	O
the	O
Acorn	B-Device
Cambridge	I-Device
Workstation	I-Device
instead	O
of	O
Xenix	B-Application
,	O
despite	O
Acorn	O
having	O
contracted	O
Logica	O
to	O
port	O
Xenix	B-Application
to	O
the	O
machine	O
,	O
was	O
the	O
apparent	O
lack	O
of	O
a	O
working	O
memory	O
management	O
unit	O
(	O
MMU	O
)	O
in	O
the	O
National	B-Device
Semiconductor	I-Device
32016	I-Device
chipset	O
,	O
for	O
which	O
a	O
socket	O
was	O
provided	O
on	O
the	O
machine	O
's	O
processor	O
board	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Thus	O
,	O
the	O
machine	O
was	O
delivered	O
with	O
only	O
the	O
32016	B-Device
CPU	O
,	O
32081	O
FPU	O
(	O
Floating	O
Point	O
Unit	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
32201	O
TCU	O
(	O
Timing	O
and	O
Control	O
Unit	O
)	O
fitted	O
as	O
standard	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Such	O
problems	O
with	O
the	O
32082	O
MMU	O
had	O
been	O
noted	O
with	O
regard	O
to	O
hardware	O
workarounds	O
adopted	O
in	O
the	O
design	O
of	O
the	O
Whitechapel	B-Device
MG-1	I-Device
workstation	O
(	O
a	O
somewhat	O
higher-specification	O
product	O
than	O
Acorn	O
's	O
offerings	B-Device
that	O
initially	O
provided	O
National	O
Semiconductor	O
's	O
own	O
Unix	B-Application
variant	O
,	O
Genix	O
,	O
instead	O
of	O
Xenix	B-Application
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Logica	O
had	O
announced	O
general	O
availability	O
of	O
Xenix	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
for	O
the	O
32000	O
series	O
,	O
featuring	O
"	O
full	O
demand	O
paging	O
virtual	O
memory	O
"	O
,	O
for	O
May	O
1984	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Four	O
models	O
were	O
originally	O
planned	O
for	O
launch	O
in	O
the	O
Acorn	B-Device
Cambridge	I-Device
Workstation	I-Device
range	O
:	O
the	O
ACW	O
100	O
,	O
ACW	O
121	O
and	O
ACW	O
143	O
being	O
models	O
with	O
1MB	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
(	O
expandable	O
to	O
4MB	O
except	O
for	O
the	O
ACW	O
100	O
)	O
,	O
the	O
ACW	O
443	O
having	O
4MB	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
;	O
the	O
ACW	O
143	O
and	O
ACW	O
443	O
offering	O
hard	B-Device
drive	I-Device
storage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Queen	O
Mary	O
College	O
was	O
a	O
significant	O
purchaser	O
of	O
the	O
Acorn	B-Device
Cambridge	I-Device
Workstation	I-Device
,	O
having	O
reportedly	O
acquired	O
"	O
no	O
less	O
than	O
80	O
of	O
the	O
300	O
machines	O
Acorn	O
has	O
sold	O
"	O
by	O
mid-1986	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Despite	O
a	O
fairly	O
varied	O
range	O
of	O
programming	O
language	O
products	O
being	O
available	O
for	O
the	O
machine	O
's	O
Panos	B-Operating_System
environment	O
-	O
32016	B-Device
assembly	O
language	O
,	O
BASIC	O
,	O
BCPL	O
,	O
Fortran	O
,	O
Lisp	O
,	O
Pascal	O
-	O
mostly	O
giving	O
the	O
impression	O
of	O
being	O
"	O
top-notch	O
"	O
implementations	O
,	O
other	O
kinds	O
of	O
applications	O
were	O
more	O
scarce	O
or	O
suffered	O
from	O
performance	O
issues	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
System	O
and	O
network	O
reliability	O
proved	O
to	O
be	O
a	O
significant	O
problem	O
in	O
the	O
teaching	O
environment	O
,	O
although	O
the	O
introduction	O
of	O
Panos	B-Operating_System
1.3	O
improved	O
the	O
situation	O
"	O
markedly	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Acorn	O
's	O
earlier	O
positioning	O
of	O
this	O
system	O
as	O
a	O
CAD	O
workstation	O
failed	O
to	O
keep	O
up	O
with	O
user	O
expectations	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
BBC	B-Device
Micro	I-Device
architecture	O
offering	O
an	O
insufficiently	O
high	O
screen	O
resolution	O
and	O
with	O
the	O
system	O
not	O
being	O
provided	O
with	O
mouse	O
or	O
trackball	O
,	O
these	O
contributing	O
to	O
perceptions	O
of	O
it	O
being	O
"	O
less	O
than	O
ideal	O
for	O
Computer	O
Aided	O
Design	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
confusion	O
arose	O
when	O
the	O
range	O
was	O
first	O
shown	O
,	O
with	O
commentators	O
given	O
the	O
impression	O
that	O
the	O
graphical	B-Application
environment	I-Application
had	O
been	O
developed	O
by	O
Acorn	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
impressed	O
by	O
the	O
potential	O
of	O
the	O
machine	O
,	O
offering	O
support	O
for	O
running	O
four	O
applications	O
concurrently	O
,	O
including	O
traditional	O
DOS	O
applications	O
,	O
by	O
using	O
the	O
protected	O
mode	O
of	O
the	O
80286	B-General_Concept
and	O
relying	O
on	O
the	O
"	O
host	O
"	O
6502	B-General_Concept
at	O
the	O
core	O
of	O
the	O
ABC	O
architecture	O
to	O
handle	O
the	O
display	O
needs	O
of	O
each	O
application	O
,	O
skepticism	O
was	O
expressed	O
at	O
Acorn	O
's	O
likely	O
pricing	O
and	O
the	O
company	O
's	O
ability	O
to	O
deliver	O
the	O
product	O
by	O
a	O
rumoured	O
release	O
date	O
of	O
March	O
1985	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
most	O
of	O
the	O
ABC	O
models	O
failed	O
to	O
reach	O
the	O
market	O
in	O
their	O
original	O
form	O
,	O
particularly	O
after	O
Olivetti	O
's	O
rescue	O
of	O
Acorn	O
,	O
several	O
of	O
the	O
concepts	O
were	O
revisited	O
in	O
the	O
BBC	B-Device
Master	I-Device
series	I-Device
of	O
microcomputers	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
Like	O
the	O
ABC	O
Personal	O
Assistant	O
,	O
the	O
Master	O
128	O
offers	O
more	O
memory	O
than	O
the	O
original	O
BBC	B-Device
Micro	I-Device
and	O
includes	O
the	O
View	O
and	O
ViewSheet	B-Language
productivity	O
software	O
on	O
board	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Meanwhile	O
,	O
the	O
Master	O
Scientific	O
was	O
intended	O
to	O
offer	O
some	O
continuity	O
with	O
the	O
32016-based	O
second	O
processor	O
solution	O
provided	O
by	O
the	O
Acorn	B-Device
Cambridge	I-Device
Workstation	I-Device
,	O
and	O
the	O
Master	O
512	O
offers	O
a	O
80186-based	O
second	O
processor	O
with	O
DOS	O
Plus	O
and	O
GEM	B-Application
support	O
,	O
thus	O
resembling	O
the	O
ABC	O
300	O
series	O
in	O
particular	O
ways	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Whereas	O
the	O
different	O
models	O
in	O
the	O
ABC	O
range	O
were	O
combinations	O
of	O
a	O
"	O
host	O
"	O
computer	O
based	O
on	O
the	O
BBC	B-Device
Micro	I-Device
and	O
a	O
second	O
processor	O
fitted	O
inside	O
the	O
display	O
unit	O
,	O
the	O
equivalent	O
Master-series	O
variants	O
were	O
generally	O
accommodated	O
by	O
plug-in	O
coprocessor	O
cards	O
fitted	O
inside	O
a	O
Master	O
128	O
or	O
Master	O
Econet	O
Terminal	O
(	O
ET	O
)	O
,	O
these	O
models	O
being	O
the	O
foundation	O
of	O
the	O
range	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
more	O
direct	O
legacy	O
of	O
the	O
range	O
concerns	O
the	O
BBC	O
Model	O
B+	O
whose	O
motherboard	O
has	O
its	O
origin	O
as	O
the	O
BBC	B-Device
Micro	I-Device
"	O
host	O
"	O
found	O
in	O
the	O
different	O
ABC	O
models	O
:	O
a	O
design	O
using	O
64-kilobit	O
RAM	B-Architecture
chips	I-Architecture
,	O
an	O
updated	O
disk	B-Device
controller	O
,	O
and	O
support	O
for	O
shadow	B-General_Concept
RAM	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Having	O
successfully	O
pursued	O
a	O
similar	O
strategy	O
to	O
that	O
of	O
the	O
Acorn	B-Device
Business	I-Device
Computer	I-Device
,	O
Torch	O
were	O
said	O
to	O
be	O
"	O
actively	O
evaluating	O
the	O
B+	O
motherboard	O
"	O
,	O
having	O
used	O
the	O
previous	O
BBC	B-Device
Micro	I-Device
motherboard	O
as	O
the	O
basis	O
of	O
the	O
company	O
's	O
earlier	O
products	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Torch	O
's	O
own	O
Graduate	O
product	O
had	O
been	O
noted	O
as	O
potentially	O
filling	O
a	O
gap	O
within	O
the	O
ABC	O
range	O
,	O
this	O
being	O
the	O
"	O
big	O
jump	O
"	O
from	O
the	O
Z80-based	O
ABC	O
100	O
systems	O
to	O
the	O
80286-based	O
ABC	O
300	O
models	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
1982	O
vision	O
of	O
microcomputers	B-Architecture
acting	O
as	O
terminals	O
to	O
a	O
"	O
Universal	O
Gluon	O
"	O
expansion	O
did	O
eventually	O
come	O
to	O
pass	O
through	O
the	O
availability	O
of	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
third-party	O
expansions	O
for	O
the	O
BBC	B-Device
Micro	I-Device
such	O
as	O
the	O
Cambridge	O
Microprocessor	O
Systems	O
68000	O
second	O
processor	O
,	O
Flight	O
Electronics	O
68000	O
processor	O
board	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
Micro	O
Developments	O
MD512k	O
Universal	O
Second	O
Processor	O
System	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Meanwhile	O
,	O
various	O
companies	O
pursued	O
the	O
development	O
of	O
Tube-based	O
second	O
processor	O
solutions	O
involving	O
the	O
68000	O
,	O
neglected	O
by	O
Acorn	O
in	O
its	O
own	O
offerings	B-Device
,	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
CA	O
Special	O
Products	O
Casper	O
board	O
and	O
the	O
HDP68K	O
board	O
featured	O
in	O
the	O
Torch	O
Computers	O
Unicorn	O
,	O
the	O
latter	O
offering	O
the	O
Unix	B-Application
support	O
never	O
delivered	O
for	O
Acorn	O
's	O
32016-based	O
systems	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Torch	O
Unicorn	O
was	O
perhaps	O
the	O
clearest	O
realisation	O
of	O
the	O
broader	O
"	O
Universal	O
Gluon	O
"	O
concept	O
,	O
effectively	O
coupling	O
a	O
BBC	B-Device
Micro	I-Device
with	O
a	O
more	O
powerful	O
computing	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Initially	O
mentioned	O
as	O
a	O
"	O
CAD	O
graphics	O
workstation	O
based	O
on	O
the	O
16032	B-Device
chip	O
"	O
in	O
October	O
1983	O
,	O
and	O
presumably	O
following	O
on	O
from	O
work	O
done	O
by	O
Acorn	O
related	O
to	O
the	O
design	O
of	O
the	O
ULA	O
components	O
in	O
its	O
products	O
,	O
the	O
Acorn	B-Device
Cambridge	I-Device
Workstation	I-Device
formed	O
the	O
hardware	O
basis	O
of	O
a	O
chip	O
design	O
product	O
by	O
Qudos	O
called	O
Quickchip	O
,	O
"	O
a	O
comprehensive	O
CAD	O
package	O
for	O
semi-custom	O
gate	O
arrays	O
...	O
supported	O
by	O
a	O
high	O
speed	O
direct	O
write	O
electron	O
beam	O
fabrication	O
facility	O
"	O
,	O
used	O
by	O
custom	O
semiconductor	O
product	O
designers	O
such	O
as	O
Flare	O
Technology	O
and	O
promoted	O
by	O
the	O
UK	O
's	O
Department	O
of	O
Trade	O
and	O
Industry	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
related	O
product	O
was	O
apparently	O
produced	O
by	O
Qudos	O
for	O
the	O
BBC	B-Device
Master	I-Device
Turbo	O
or	O
BBC	B-Device
Micro	I-Device
with	O
6502	B-General_Concept
second	O
processor	O
expansion	O
,	O
offering	O
design	O
support	O
for	O
custom	O
gate	O
arrays	O
of	O
"	O
up	O
to	O
around	O
300	O
gates	O
in	O
size	O
"	O
based	O
on	O
Ferranti	O
ULA	O
technology	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Quickchip	O
was	O
subsequently	O
ported	O
to	O
the	O
Acorn	B-Device
Archimedes	I-Device
,	O
with	O
the	O
software	O
having	O
previously	O
been	O
"	O
running	O
on	O
powerful	O
Unix	B-Application
workstations	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
the	O
smaller-scale	O
Minichip	O
solution	O
ran	O
on	O
a	O
BBC	O
Micro-based	O
system	O
with	O
6502	B-General_Concept
coprocessor	O
,	O
and	O
was	O
also	O
released	O
for	O
the	O
Archimedes	B-Device
,	O
the	O
Unix-based	O
Quickchip	O
solution	O
apparently	O
ran	O
on	O
Vax	O
systems	O
running	O
Ultrix	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Having	O
promised	O
some	O
kind	O
of	O
Unix	B-Application
product	O
as	O
early	O
as	O
1982	O
,	O
Acorn	O
eventually	O
released	O
a	O
Unix	B-Application
workstation	O
in	O
1989	O
based	O
on	O
the	O
Archimedes	B-Device
hardware	O
platform	O
,	O
followed	O
up	O
by	O
other	O
models	O
in	O
1990	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Instead	O
of	O
Xenix	B-Application
,	O
these	O
workstations	O
ran	O
RISC	B-Operating_System
iX	I-Operating_System
:	O
a	O
port	O
of	O
4.3BSD	B-Operating_System
Unix	B-Application
to	O
the	O
ARM	O
architecture	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Despite	O
the	O
ABC	O
300	O
series	O
embracing	O
compatibility	O
with	O
the	O
IBM	O
PC	O
world	O
,	O
Acorn	O
would	O
subsequently	O
mostly	O
avoid	O
selling	O
dedicated	O
PC	O
compatibles	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
Acorn	B-Device
M19	I-Device
-	O
a	O
rebadged	O
Olivetti	B-Device
M19	I-Device
-	O
appearing	O
in	O
the	O
product	O
range	O
for	O
a	O
short	O
period	O
in	O
the	O
mid-1980s	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Beyond	O
the	O
Master	O
512	O
,	O
the	O
Archimedes	B-Device
range	O
was	O
initially	O
intended	O
to	O
support	O
a	O
similar	O
second	O
processor	O
expansion	O
,	O
but	O
PC	O
support	O
on	O
the	O
Archimedes	B-Device
range	O
initially	O
focused	O
on	O
software	O
emulation	O
with	O
the	O
PC	O
Emulator	O
product	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Acorn	O
would	O
go	O
on	O
to	O
emphasise	O
PC	O
compatibility	O
with	O
the	O
Archimedes	B-Device
 '	O
successor	O
,	O
the	O
Risc	B-Device
PC	I-Device
,	O
with	O
its	O
architecture	O
supporting	O
a	O
plug-in	O
Intel-compatible	O
CPU	O
alongside	O
the	O
main	O
ARM	O
processor	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Eventually	O
yielding	O
to	O
demands	O
for	O
dedicated	O
PC-compatible	O
systems	O
,	O
Acorn	O
announced	O
Pentium-based	O
systems	O
in	O
1996	O
for	O
administrative	O
use	O
in	O
educational	O
establishments	O
,	O
although	O
these	O
models	O
would	O
eventually	O
become	O
available	O
via	O
Xemplar	O
Education	O
-	O
Acorn	O
's	O
educational	O
joint	O
venture	O
with	O
Apple	O
-	O
and	O
not	O
Acorn	O
itself	O
.	O
</s>
