<s>
The	O
Amstrad	B-Device
PCW	I-Device
series	O
is	O
a	O
range	O
of	O
personal	B-Device
computers	I-Device
produced	O
by	O
British	O
company	O
Amstrad	O
from	O
1985	O
to	O
1998	O
,	O
and	O
also	O
sold	O
under	O
licence	O
in	O
Europe	O
as	O
the	O
"	O
Joyce	B-Device
"	O
by	O
the	O
German	O
electronics	O
company	O
Schneider	O
in	O
the	O
early	O
years	O
of	O
the	O
series	O
 '	O
life	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
PCW	O
,	O
short	O
for	O
Personal	B-Device
Computer	I-Device
Word-processor	B-General_Concept
,	O
was	O
targeted	O
at	O
the	O
word	B-General_Concept
processing	I-General_Concept
and	O
home	O
office	O
markets	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
the	O
last	O
two	O
models	O
,	O
introduced	O
in	O
the	O
mid-1990s	O
,	O
were	O
commercial	O
failures	O
,	O
being	O
squeezed	O
out	O
of	O
the	O
market	O
by	O
the	O
falling	O
prices	O
,	O
greater	O
capabilities	O
and	O
wider	O
range	O
of	O
software	O
for	O
IBM-compatible	O
PCs	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
all	O
models	O
,	O
including	O
the	O
last	O
,	O
the	O
monitor	B-Device
's	O
casing	O
included	O
the	O
CPU	B-Device
,	O
RAM	B-Architecture
,	O
floppy	B-Device
disk	I-Device
drives	I-Device
and	O
power	O
supply	O
for	O
all	O
of	O
the	O
systems	O
 '	O
components	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Early	O
models	O
used	O
3-inch	O
floppy	B-Device
disks	I-Device
,	O
while	O
those	O
sold	O
from	O
1991	O
onwards	O
used	O
3½-inch	O
floppies	B-Device
,	O
which	O
became	O
the	O
industry	O
standard	O
around	O
the	O
time	O
the	O
PCW	O
series	O
was	O
launched	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
variety	O
of	O
inexpensive	O
products	O
and	O
services	O
were	O
launched	O
to	O
copy	O
3-inch	O
floppies	B-Device
to	O
the	O
3½-inch	O
format	O
so	O
that	O
data	O
could	O
be	O
transferred	O
to	O
other	O
machines	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
All	O
models	O
except	O
the	O
last	O
included	O
the	O
Locoscript	B-Protocol
word	B-General_Concept
processing	I-General_Concept
program	O
,	O
the	O
CP/M	B-Operating_System
Plus	I-Operating_System
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
,	O
Mallard	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
and	O
the	O
Logo	B-Device
programming	I-Device
language	I-Device
at	O
no	O
extra	O
cost	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
wide	O
range	O
of	O
other	O
CP/M	B-Application
office	O
software	O
and	O
several	O
games	B-Application
became	O
available	O
,	O
some	O
commercially	O
produced	O
and	O
some	O
free	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
Amstrad	O
supplied	O
all	O
but	O
the	O
last	O
model	O
as	O
text	B-Application
based	I-Application
systems	O
,	O
graphical	B-Application
user	I-Application
interface	I-Application
peripherals	O
and	O
the	O
supporting	O
software	O
also	O
became	O
available	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
last	O
model	O
had	O
its	O
own	O
unique	O
GUI	B-Application
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
and	O
set	O
of	O
office	O
applications	O
,	O
which	O
were	O
included	O
in	O
the	O
price	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1984	O
,	O
Tandy	O
Corporation	O
executive	O
Steve	O
Leininger	O
,	O
designer	O
of	O
the	O
TRS-80	B-Device
Model	I-Device
I	I-Device
,	O
admitted	O
that	O
"	O
as	O
an	O
industry	O
we	O
have	O
n't	O
found	O
any	O
compelling	O
reason	O
to	O
buy	O
a	O
computer	O
for	O
the	O
home	O
"	O
other	O
than	O
for	O
word	B-General_Concept
processing	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Amstrad	O
's	O
founder	O
Alan	O
Sugar	O
realised	O
that	O
most	O
computers	O
in	O
the	O
United	O
Kingdom	O
were	O
used	O
for	O
word	B-General_Concept
processing	I-General_Concept
at	O
home	O
,	O
and	O
allegedly	O
sketched	O
an	O
outline	O
design	O
for	O
a	O
low	O
cost	O
replacement	O
for	O
typewriters	O
during	O
a	O
flight	O
to	O
the	O
Far	O
East	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
To	O
reduce	O
the	O
cost	O
of	O
the	O
printer	O
,	O
Amstrad	O
commissioned	O
an	O
ASIC	O
(	O
custom	O
circuit	O
)	O
from	O
MEJ	O
Electronics	O
,	O
which	O
had	O
developed	O
the	O
hardware	O
for	O
Amstrad	O
's	O
earlier	O
CPC-464	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Two	O
other	O
veterans	O
of	O
the	O
CPC-464	B-Device
'	O
s	O
creation	O
played	O
important	O
roles	O
,	O
with	O
Roland	O
Perry	O
managing	O
the	O
PCW	O
project	O
and	O
Locomotive	B-Device
Software	I-Device
producing	O
the	O
Locoscript	B-Protocol
word	B-General_Concept
processing	I-General_Concept
program	O
and	O
other	O
software	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
CP/M	B-Application
operating	I-Application
system	I-Application
was	O
added	O
at	O
the	O
last	O
minute	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
During	O
development	O
the	O
PCW	O
8256	O
/	O
8512	O
project	O
was	O
code-named	O
"	O
Joyce	B-Device
"	O
after	O
Sugar	O
's	O
secretary	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
the	O
launch	O
the	O
product	O
name	O
"	O
Zircon	O
"	O
was	O
jointly	O
suggested	O
by	O
MEJ	O
Electronics	O
and	O
Locomotive	B-Device
Software	I-Device
,	O
as	O
both	O
companies	O
had	O
been	O
spun	O
off	O
from	O
Data	O
Recall	O
,	O
which	O
had	O
produced	O
a	O
word	B-General_Concept
processing	I-General_Concept
system	O
called	O
"	O
Diamond	B-Protocol
"	O
in	O
the	O
1970s	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Sugar	O
,	O
preferring	O
a	O
more	O
descriptive	O
name	O
,	O
suggested	O
"	O
WPC	O
"	O
standing	O
for	O
"	O
Word	B-General_Concept
Processing	I-General_Concept
Computer	O
"	O
,	O
but	O
Perry	O
pointed	O
out	O
that	O
this	O
invited	O
jokes	O
about	O
Women	O
Police	O
Constables	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Sugar	O
reshuffled	O
the	O
initials	O
and	O
the	O
product	O
was	O
launched	O
as	O
the	O
"	O
Personal	B-Device
Computer	I-Device
Word-processor	B-General_Concept
"	O
,	O
abbreviated	O
to	O
"	O
PCW	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
advertising	O
campaign	O
featured	O
trucks	O
unloading	O
typewriters	O
to	O
form	O
huge	O
scrap	O
heaps	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
slogan	O
"	O
It	O
's	O
more	O
than	O
a	O
word	B-General_Concept
processor	I-General_Concept
for	O
less	O
than	O
most	O
typewriters	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1986	O
,	O
John	O
Whitehead	O
described	O
the	O
Amstrad	B-Device
PCW	I-Device
as	O
"	O
the	O
bargain	O
of	O
the	O
decade	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
technology	O
writer	O
Gordon	O
Laing	O
said	O
in	O
2007	O
,	O
"	O
It	O
represented	O
fantastic	O
value	O
at	O
a	O
time	O
when	O
an	O
IBM	B-Device
compatible	I-Device
or	O
a	O
Mac	B-Device
would	O
cost	O
a	O
comparative	O
fortune.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
its	O
United	O
Kingdom	O
launch	O
in	O
September	O
1985	O
,	O
the	O
basic	O
PCW	O
model	O
was	O
priced	O
at	O
£399	O
plus	O
value	O
added	O
tax	O
,	O
which	O
included	O
a	O
printer	O
,	O
word	B-General_Concept
processor	I-General_Concept
program	O
,	O
the	O
CP/M	B-Application
operating	I-Application
system	I-Application
and	O
associated	O
utilities	B-Application
,	O
and	O
a	O
BASIC	O
interpreter	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Software	O
vendors	O
quickly	O
made	O
a	O
wide	O
range	O
of	O
additional	O
applications	O
available	O
,	O
including	O
accounting	O
,	O
spreadsheet	B-Application
and	O
database	O
programs	O
,	O
so	O
that	O
the	O
system	O
was	O
able	O
to	O
support	O
most	O
of	O
the	O
requirements	O
of	O
a	O
home	O
or	O
small	O
business	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Shortly	O
afterwards	O
the	O
Tandy	O
1000	O
was	O
introduced	O
in	O
the	O
UK	O
with	O
the	O
MS-DOS	B-Application
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
and	O
a	O
similar	O
suite	O
of	O
business	O
applications	O
and	O
became	O
the	O
only	O
other	O
IBM-compatible	O
personal	B-Device
computer	I-Device
system	O
available	O
for	O
less	O
than	O
£	O
1,000	O
in	O
Britain	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
the	O
time	O
the	O
cheapest	O
complete	O
systems	O
from	O
Apricot	O
Computers	O
cost	O
under	O
£	O
2,000	O
and	O
the	O
cheapest	O
IBM	B-Device
PC	I-Device
system	O
cost	O
£	O
2,400	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
competitors	O
 '	O
systems	O
generally	O
had	O
more	O
sophisticated	O
features	O
,	O
including	O
colour	O
monitors	O
,	O
Whitehead	O
thought	O
the	O
Amstrad	B-Device
PCW	I-Device
offered	O
the	O
best	O
value	O
for	O
money	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
US	O
the	O
PCW	O
was	O
launched	O
at	O
a	O
price	O
of	O
$799	O
,	O
and	O
its	O
competitors	O
were	O
initially	O
the	O
Magnavox	O
VideoWriter	O
and	O
Smith	O
Corona	O
PWP	O
,	O
two	O
word-processing	B-General_Concept
systems	O
whose	O
prices	O
also	O
included	O
a	O
screen	O
,	O
keyboard	B-Device
and	O
printer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
magazine	O
Popular	O
Science	O
thought	O
that	O
the	O
PCW	O
could	O
not	O
compete	O
as	O
a	O
general-purpose	O
computer	O
,	O
because	O
its	O
use	O
of	O
non-standard	O
3-inch	O
floppy	B-Device
disk	I-Device
drives	I-Device
and	O
the	O
rather	O
old	O
CP/M	B-Application
operating	I-Application
system	I-Application
would	O
restrict	O
the	O
range	O
of	O
software	O
available	O
from	O
expanding	O
beyond	O
the	O
spreadsheet	B-Application
,	O
typing	O
tutor	O
and	O
cheque	O
book	O
balancing	O
programs	O
already	O
on	O
sale	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
the	O
magazine	O
predicted	O
that	O
the	O
PCW	O
's	O
large	O
screen	O
and	O
easy-to-use	O
word	B-General_Concept
processing	I-General_Concept
software	O
would	O
make	O
it	O
a	O
formidable	O
competitor	O
for	O
dedicated	B-General_Concept
word	I-General_Concept
processors	I-General_Concept
in	O
the	O
home	O
and	O
business	O
markets	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
PCW	O
redefined	O
the	O
idea	O
of	O
"	O
best	O
value	O
"	O
in	O
computers	O
by	O
concentrating	O
on	O
reducing	O
the	O
price	O
,	O
which	O
totally	O
disrupted	O
the	O
personal	B-Device
computer	I-Device
market	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
low	O
price	O
encouraged	O
home	O
users	O
to	O
trade	O
up	O
from	O
simpler	O
systems	O
like	O
the	O
Sinclair	B-Operating_System
Spectrum	I-Operating_System
,	O
whose	O
sales	O
had	O
passed	O
their	O
peak	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Personal	B-Device
Computer	I-Device
World	O
,	O
the	O
PCW	O
"	O
got	O
the	O
technophobes	O
using	O
computers	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
first	O
two	O
years	O
over	O
700,000	O
PCWs	O
were	O
sold	O
,	O
gaining	O
Amstrad	O
60%	O
of	O
the	O
UK	O
home	O
computer	O
market	O
,	O
and	O
20%	O
of	O
the	O
European	O
personal	B-Device
computer	I-Device
market	O
,	O
second	O
only	O
to	O
IBM	O
's	O
33.3	O
%	O
share	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Having	O
gained	O
credibility	O
as	O
computer	O
supplier	O
,	O
Amstrad	O
launched	O
IBM-compatible	O
PCs	B-Device
,	O
once	O
again	O
focussing	O
on	O
low	O
prices	O
,	O
with	O
its	O
PC1512	O
surpassing	O
the	O
IBM	B-Device
PC	I-Device
on	O
performance	O
and	O
beating	O
even	O
the	O
Taiwanese	O
clones	B-General_Concept
on	O
price	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Amstrad	O
became	O
the	O
dominant	O
British	O
personal	B-Device
computer	I-Device
company	O
,	O
buying	O
all	O
the	O
designs	O
,	O
marketing	O
rights	O
and	O
product	O
stocks	O
of	O
Sinclair	O
Research	O
Ltd	O
's	O
computer	O
division	O
in	O
April	O
1986	O
,	O
while	O
Apricot	O
later	O
sold	O
its	O
manufacturing	O
assets	O
to	O
Mitsubishi	O
and	O
became	O
a	O
software	O
company	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Daily	O
Telegraph	O
estimated	O
in	O
2000	O
that	O
100,000	O
were	O
still	O
in	O
use	O
in	O
the	O
UK	O
,	O
and	O
said	O
that	O
the	O
reliability	O
of	O
the	O
PCW	O
's	O
hardware	O
and	O
software	O
and	O
the	O
range	O
of	O
independently	O
produced	O
add-on	O
software	O
for	O
its	O
word	B-General_Concept
processing	I-General_Concept
program	O
were	O
factors	O
in	O
its	O
continued	O
popularity	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Laing	O
says	O
the	O
PCW	O
line	O
's	O
downfall	O
was	O
that	O
"	O
proper	O
PCs	B-Device
became	O
affordable	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1993	O
the	O
PCW	O
still	O
cost	O
under	O
£390	O
while	O
a	O
PC	O
system	O
with	O
a	O
printer	O
and	O
word	B-General_Concept
processing	I-General_Concept
software	O
cost	O
over	O
£	O
1,000	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
after	O
adjustment	O
for	O
inflation	O
the	O
retail	O
price	O
of	O
a	O
multimedia	O
IBM-compatible	O
PC	O
in	O
1997	O
was	O
about	O
11%	O
more	O
than	O
that	O
of	O
a	O
PCW	O
8256	O
in	O
1985	O
,	O
and	O
many	O
home	O
PCs	B-Device
were	O
cast-offs	O
,	O
sometimes	O
costing	O
as	O
little	O
as	O
£50	O
,	O
from	O
large	O
organisations	O
that	O
had	O
upgraded	O
their	O
systems	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Users	O
of	O
Windows	B-Application
,	O
Unix	B-Application
or	O
macOS	B-Application
systems	O
who	O
wish	O
to	O
run	O
programs	O
that	O
were	O
developed	O
for	O
the	O
PCW	O
8256	O
,	O
8512	O
,	O
9256	O
,	O
9512	O
and	O
9512+	O
can	O
use	O
an	O
emulator	B-Application
called	O
"	O
Joyce	B-Device
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
is	O
also	O
another	O
one	O
only	O
for	O
Windows	B-Application
called	O
""	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
PCW	O
8256	O
was	O
launched	O
in	O
September	O
1985	O
,	O
and	O
had	O
256KB	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
and	O
one	O
floppy	B-Device
disk	I-Device
drive	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Launched	O
a	O
few	O
months	O
later	O
,	O
the	O
PCW	O
8512	O
had	O
512KB	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
and	O
two	O
floppy	B-Device
disk	I-Device
drives	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Both	O
systems	O
consisted	O
of	O
three	O
units	O
:	O
a	O
printer	O
;	O
a	O
keyboard	B-Device
;	O
and	O
a	O
monochrome	O
CRT	B-Device
monitor	I-Device
whose	O
casing	O
included	O
the	O
processor	O
,	O
memory	O
,	O
motherboard	B-Device
,	O
one	O
or	O
two	O
floppy	B-Device
disk	I-Device
drives	I-Device
,	O
the	O
power	O
supply	O
for	O
all	O
the	O
units	O
and	O
the	O
connectors	O
for	O
the	O
printer	O
and	O
keyboard	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
monitor	B-Device
displayed	O
green	O
characters	O
on	O
a	O
black	O
background	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
designers	O
preferred	O
this	O
to	O
the	O
usual	O
personal	B-Device
computer	I-Device
display	O
of	O
25	O
80-character	O
lines	O
,	O
as	O
the	O
larger	O
size	O
would	O
be	O
more	O
convenient	O
for	O
displaying	O
a	O
whole	O
letter	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
monitor	B-Device
could	O
also	O
display	O
graphics	O
well	O
enough	O
for	O
the	O
bundled	O
graphics	O
program	O
and	O
for	O
some	O
games	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
floppy	B-Device
disk	I-Device
drives	I-Device
on	O
these	O
models	O
were	O
in	O
the	O
unusual	O
3-inch	O
"	O
compact	O
floppy	B-Device
"	O
format	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
selected	O
as	O
it	O
had	O
a	O
simpler	O
electrical	O
interface	O
than	O
3½-inch	O
drives	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
range	O
's	O
early	O
days	O
supplies	O
of	O
3-inch	O
floppies	B-Device
occasionally	O
ran	O
out	O
,	O
but	O
by	O
1988	O
the	O
PCW	O
's	O
popularity	O
encouraged	O
suppliers	O
to	O
compete	O
for	O
this	O
market	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
dot	B-General_Concept
matrix	I-General_Concept
printer	O
had	O
a	O
sheet	O
feed	O
for	O
short	O
documents	O
and	O
a	O
tractor	O
attachment	O
for	O
long	O
reports	O
on	O
continuous	O
stationery	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
dot	B-General_Concept
matrix	I-General_Concept
printer	O
was	O
not	O
very	O
robust	O
as	O
its	O
chassis	O
was	O
made	O
entirely	O
of	O
plastic	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Users	O
who	O
needed	O
to	O
support	O
higher	O
print	O
volumes	O
or	O
to	O
produce	O
graphics	O
could	O
buy	O
a	O
daisy-wheel	O
printer	O
or	O
graph	B-Operating_System
plotter	I-Operating_System
from	O
Amstrad	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
keyboard	B-Device
had	O
82	O
keys	O
,	O
some	O
of	O
which	O
were	O
designed	O
for	O
word	B-General_Concept
processing	I-General_Concept
,	O
especially	O
with	O
the	O
bundled	O
Locoscript	B-Protocol
software	O
–	O
for	O
example	O
to	O
cut	B-General_Concept
,	I-General_Concept
copy	I-General_Concept
,	I-General_Concept
and	I-General_Concept
paste	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Other	O
special	O
key	O
combinations	O
activated	O
caps	B-Device
lock	I-Device
,	O
num	B-Device
lock	I-Device
and	O
reboot	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
PCW	O
8256	O
's	O
RAM	B-Architecture
could	O
be	O
expanded	O
to	O
512KB	O
for	O
a	O
hardware	O
cost	O
of	O
about	O
£50	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
additional	O
internal	O
floppy	B-Device
disk	I-Device
drive	I-Device
for	O
the	O
8256	O
would	O
cost	O
about	O
£100	O
,	O
and	O
installation	O
was	O
fairly	O
easy	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Graphical	B-Application
user	I-Application
interface	I-Application
devices	O
such	O
as	O
light	B-Device
pens	I-Device
,	O
mice	B-Device
and	O
graphic	B-Device
tablets	I-Device
could	O
be	O
attached	O
to	O
the	O
expansion	O
socket	O
at	O
the	O
back	O
of	O
the	O
monitor	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Adding	O
a	O
serial	B-Protocol
interface	I-Protocol
connector	O
,	O
which	O
cost	O
about	O
£50	O
,	O
made	O
it	O
possible	O
to	O
attach	O
a	O
modem	B-Application
or	O
non-Amstrad	O
printer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
designs	O
were	O
licensed	O
to	O
the	O
German	O
consumer	O
electronics	O
company	O
Schneider	O
,	O
which	O
slightly	O
modified	O
their	O
appearance	O
and	O
consequently	O
sold	O
them	O
as	O
"	O
Joyce	B-Device
"	O
and	O
"	O
Joyce	B-Device
Plus	I-Device
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
partnership	O
between	O
Amstrad	O
and	O
Schneider	O
had	O
been	O
formed	O
to	O
market	O
the	O
Amstrad	B-Device
CPC	I-Device
range	O
of	O
computers	O
,	O
and	O
broke	O
up	O
when	O
Amstrad	O
launched	O
the	O
PCW9512	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
PCW	O
9512	O
,	O
introduced	O
in	O
1987	O
at	O
a	O
price	O
of	O
£499	O
plus	O
VAT	O
,	O
had	O
a	O
white-on-black	O
screen	O
instead	O
of	O
green-on-black	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
bundled	O
printer	O
was	O
a	O
daisy-wheel	O
model	O
instead	O
of	O
a	O
dot-matrix	B-General_Concept
printer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
models	O
also	O
had	O
a	O
parallel	B-Device
port	I-Device
,	O
allowing	O
non-Amstrad	O
printers	O
to	O
be	O
attached	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
9512	O
was	O
also	O
supplied	O
with	O
version	O
2	O
of	O
the	O
Locoscript	B-Protocol
word	B-General_Concept
processor	I-General_Concept
program	O
which	O
included	O
spellchecker	B-Application
and	O
mail	B-Application
merge	I-Application
facilities	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
9512+	O
had	O
512KB	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
,	O
and	O
two	O
printer	O
options	O
,	O
the	O
Amstrad	O
daisy-wheel	O
unit	O
and	O
a	O
series	O
of	O
considerably	O
more	O
expensive	O
Canon	O
inkjet	O
printers	O
:	O
initially	O
the	O
BJ10e	O
,	O
later	O
the	O
BJ10ex	O
and	O
finally	O
the	O
BJ10sx	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
9256	O
had	O
256KB	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
and	O
the	O
same	O
dot	B-General_Concept
matrix	I-General_Concept
printer	O
as	O
the	O
8256	O
and	O
8512	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
the	O
older	O
Locoscript	B-Protocol
version	O
1	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
was	O
a	O
PCW	O
9256	O
with	O
512KB	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
,	O
a	O
parallel	B-Device
printer	I-Device
port	I-Device
,	O
and	O
Locoscript	B-Protocol
1.5	O
instead	O
of	O
Locoscript	B-Protocol
1	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
this	O
time	O
other	O
systems	O
offered	O
much	O
better	O
print	O
quality	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
PCW	O
was	O
a	O
poor	O
choice	O
as	O
a	O
general-purpose	O
computer	O
,	O
because	O
of	O
its	O
slow	O
CPU	B-Device
and	O
incompatibility	O
with	O
MS-DOS	B-Application
systems	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Instead	O
of	O
having	O
two	O
operating	O
environments	O
,	O
Locoscript	B-Protocol
for	O
word	B-General_Concept
processing	I-General_Concept
and	O
CP/M	B-Application
for	O
other	O
uses	O
,	O
it	O
had	O
its	O
own	O
GUI	B-Application
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
,	O
known	O
as	O
"	O
Rosanne	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
bundled	O
word	B-General_Concept
processor	I-General_Concept
was	O
produced	O
by	O
Creative	O
Technology	O
,	O
and	O
could	O
read	O
Locoscript	B-Protocol
files	O
but	O
saved	O
them	O
in	O
its	O
own	O
format	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
package	O
also	O
included	O
a	O
spreadsheet	B-Application
,	O
address	O
book	O
,	O
diary	O
,	O
calculator	O
and	O
file	O
manager	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
display	O
unit	O
,	O
which	O
also	O
contained	O
the	O
processor	O
,	O
motherboard	B-Device
and	O
RAM	B-Architecture
,	O
was	O
the	O
standard	O
640×480	O
pixels	O
in	O
size	O
and	O
worked	O
in	O
VGA	B-Protocol
mode	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
PcW16	O
included	O
a	O
standard	O
1.4MB	O
floppy	B-Device
drive	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
competitors	O
included	O
hard	B-Device
disk	I-Device
drives	I-Device
with	O
capacities	O
of	O
a	O
few	O
hundredMB	O
to	O
a	O
few	O
GB	O
,	O
the	O
PcW16	O
used	O
a	O
1MB	O
flash	B-Device
memory	I-Device
to	O
store	O
the	O
programs	O
and	O
user	O
files	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Like	O
previous	O
PCW	O
models	O
,	O
the	O
PcW16	O
used	O
the	O
8-bit	O
Zilog	B-General_Concept
Z80	I-General_Concept
CPU	B-Device
,	O
which	O
first	O
appeared	O
in	O
1976	O
,	O
while	O
other	O
personal	B-Device
computers	I-Device
used	O
16-bit	B-Device
CPUs	B-Device
or	O
the	O
more	O
recent	O
32-bit	O
CPUs	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
price	O
included	O
a	O
mouse	O
for	O
use	O
with	O
the	O
GUI	B-Application
,	O
but	O
did	O
not	O
include	O
a	O
printer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
magazine	O
PCW	O
Plus	O
Dave	O
Langford	O
expressed	O
a	O
series	O
of	O
concerns	O
about	O
the	O
PcW16	O
:	O
the	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
could	O
not	O
run	O
the	O
many	O
CP/M	B-Application
programs	O
available	O
for	O
previous	O
PCW	O
models	O
;	O
the	O
flash	B-Device
RAM	I-Device
was	O
too	O
small	O
for	O
a	O
large	O
collection	O
of	O
programs	O
,	O
but	O
programs	O
could	O
not	O
be	O
run	O
from	O
the	O
floppy	B-Device
disk	I-Device
,	O
which	O
was	O
designed	O
for	O
backing	O
up	O
files	O
;	O
and	O
a	O
second-hand	O
IBM	B-Device
PC	I-Device
with	O
Locoscript	B-Protocol
Pro	O
looked	O
like	O
a	O
more	O
sensible	O
upgrade	O
path	O
for	O
users	O
of	O
earlier	O
PCWs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
word	B-General_Concept
processing	I-General_Concept
software	O
Locoscript	B-Protocol
was	O
included	O
in	O
the	O
price	O
of	O
the	O
hardware	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
"	O
limbo	B-Application
file	O
"	O
facility	O
enabled	O
users	O
to	O
recover	O
accidentally	O
deleted	O
documents	O
until	O
the	O
disk	O
ran	O
out	O
of	O
space	O
,	O
when	O
the	O
software	O
would	O
permanently	O
delete	O
files	O
to	O
make	O
room	O
for	O
new	O
ones	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
cut	B-General_Concept
,	I-General_Concept
copy	I-General_Concept
and	I-General_Concept
paste	I-General_Concept
facility	O
provided	O
10	O
paste	O
buffers	O
,	O
each	O
designated	O
by	O
a	O
number	O
,	O
and	O
these	O
could	O
be	O
saved	O
to	O
a	O
disk	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Locoscript	B-Protocol
supported	O
150	O
characters	O
and	O
,	O
if	O
used	O
with	O
the	O
dot	B-General_Concept
matrix	I-General_Concept
printer	O
,	O
could	O
print	O
European	O
letters	O
including	O
Greek	O
and	O
Cyrillic	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
mathematical	O
and	O
technical	O
symbols	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Locoscript	B-Protocol
did	O
not	O
run	O
under	O
the	O
control	O
of	O
a	O
standard	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
but	O
booted	O
directly	O
from	O
a	O
floppy	B-Device
disk	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Users	O
had	O
to	O
reboot	B-Operating_System
if	O
they	O
wanted	O
to	O
switch	O
between	O
Locoscript	B-Protocol
and	O
a	O
CP/M	B-Application
application	O
,	O
unless	O
they	O
used	O
a	O
utility	O
called	O
"	O
Flipper	O
"	O
,	O
which	O
could	O
allocate	O
separate	O
areas	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
to	O
Locoscript	B-Protocol
and	O
CP/M	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Locoscript	B-Protocol
version	O
1	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
bundled	O
with	O
the	O
PCW	O
8256	O
and	O
8512	O
,	O
had	O
no	O
spell	B-Application
checker	I-Application
or	O
mail	B-Application
merge	I-Application
facilities	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Version	O
2	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
bundled	O
with	O
the	O
PCW	O
9512	O
,	O
included	O
a	O
spellchecker	B-Application
and	O
could	O
provide	O
mail	B-Application
merge	I-Application
by	O
interfacing	O
to	O
other	O
products	O
from	O
Locomotive	B-Device
Software	I-Device
,	O
such	O
as	O
LocoMail	O
and	O
LocoFile	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Locoscript	B-Protocol
2	O
also	O
expanded	O
the	O
character	O
set	O
to	O
400	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
PCW	O
included	O
a	O
version	O
of	O
CP/M	B-Application
known	O
as	O
"	O
CP/M	B-Operating_System
Plus	I-Operating_System
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
provided	O
a	O
range	O
of	O
facilities	O
comparable	O
to	O
those	O
of	O
MS-DOS	B-Application
,	O
but	O
imposed	O
a	O
significant	O
limitation	O
:	O
it	O
could	O
not	O
address	O
more	O
than	O
64KB	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
Since	O
CP/M	B-Application
took	O
3KB	O
of	O
this	O
,	O
the	O
most	O
that	O
CP/M	B-Application
applications	O
could	O
use	O
was	O
61KB	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
rest	O
of	O
the	O
RAM	B-Architecture
was	O
used	O
as	O
a	O
RAM	B-Application
disk	I-Application
(	O
exposed	O
under	O
the	O
drive	O
letter	O
"	O
M	O
:	O
"	O
for	O
"	O
memory	O
"	O
)	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
much	O
faster	O
than	O
a	O
floppy	B-Device
disk	I-Device
but	O
lost	O
all	O
its	O
data	O
when	O
the	O
machine	O
was	O
powered	O
off	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
the	O
other	O
hand	O
,	O
the	O
standalone	B-General_Concept
Locoscript	B-Protocol
word	B-General_Concept
processor	I-General_Concept
program	O
was	O
able	O
to	O
use	O
154KB	O
as	O
normal	O
memory	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
rest	O
as	O
a	O
RAM	B-Application
disk	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Mallard	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
,	O
like	O
LocoScript	B-Protocol
,	O
was	O
a	O
Locomotive	B-Device
Software	I-Device
product	O
,	O
but	O
ran	O
under	O
CP/M	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
version	O
of	O
BASIC	O
lacked	O
built-in	O
graphics	O
facilities	O
,	O
but	O
included	O
JetSAM	O
,	O
an	O
implementation	O
of	O
ISAM	B-Application
that	O
supported	O
multiple	O
indexes	O
per	O
file	O
,	O
so	O
that	O
programs	O
could	O
access	O
records	O
directly	O
by	O
specifying	O
values	O
of	O
key	O
fields	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
CP/M	B-Application
software	O
bundle	O
also	O
included	O
the	O
Digital	O
Research	O
implementation	O
of	O
Seymour	O
Papert	O
's	O
LOGO	B-Device
programming	I-Device
language	I-Device
and	O
a	O
graphics	O
program	O
that	O
could	O
produce	O
pie	B-Application
charts	I-Application
and	O
bar	B-Application
charts	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
software	O
vendors	O
supplied	O
versions	O
of	O
their	O
products	O
to	O
run	O
with	O
CP/M	B-Operating_System
Plus	I-Operating_System
,	O
making	O
a	O
wide	O
range	O
of	O
software	O
available	O
for	O
the	O
PCW	O
,	O
often	O
very	O
cheaply	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
Alternative	O
word	B-General_Concept
processors	I-General_Concept
included	O
Superwriter	O
and	O
WordStar	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Several	O
spreadsheet	B-Application
programs	I-Application
became	O
available	O
,	O
including	O
SuperCalc	B-Application
II	O
and	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
Multiplan	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Database	O
programs	O
adapted	O
for	O
the	O
PCW	O
included	O
Sage	O
Database	O
,	O
Cardbox	O
and	O
dBase	B-Application
II	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Other	O
programming	O
languages	O
,	O
including	O
C	B-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
games	B-Application
for	O
the	O
PCW	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
were	O
text	O
adventures	O
but	O
there	O
were	O
also	O
graphical	O
games	B-Application
like	O
Batman	B-Application
,	O
Bounder	B-Application
and	O
Head	B-Application
over	I-Application
Heels	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
free	O
packages	O
could	O
run	O
under	O
CP/M	B-Application
but	O
required	O
careful	O
setting	O
of	O
options	O
to	O
run	O
on	O
the	O
PCW	O
series	O
,	O
although	O
a	O
significant	O
number	O
had	O
installer	O
programs	O
that	O
made	O
this	O
task	O
easier	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Programs	O
that	O
were	O
already	O
configured	O
for	O
the	O
PCW	O
covered	O
a	O
broad	O
range	O
of	O
requirements	O
including	O
word	B-General_Concept
processors	I-General_Concept
,	O
databases	O
,	O
graphics	O
,	O
personal	O
accounts	O
,	O
programming	O
languages	O
,	O
games	B-Application
,	O
utilities	B-Application
and	O
a	O
full-featured	O
bulletin	B-Application
board	I-Application
system	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
All	O
PCW	O
models	O
,	O
including	O
the	O
PcW16	O
,	O
used	O
the	O
Zilog	B-General_Concept
Z80	I-General_Concept
range	O
of	O
CPUs	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
4MHz	O
Z80A	B-General_Concept
was	O
used	O
in	O
the	O
8256	O
,	O
8512	O
,	O
9512	O
,	O
9256	O
,	O
9512+	O
and	O
PCW10	O
;	O
and	O
a	O
16MHz	O
Z80	B-General_Concept
in	O
the	O
PCW16	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Z80	B-General_Concept
could	O
only	O
access	O
64KB	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
at	O
a	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Software	O
could	O
work	O
around	O
this	O
by	O
bank	B-General_Concept
switching	I-General_Concept
,	O
accessing	O
different	O
banks	O
of	O
memory	O
at	O
different	O
times	O
but	O
this	O
made	O
programming	O
more	O
complex	O
and	O
slowed	O
the	O
system	O
down	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
PCW	O
divided	O
the	O
Z80	B-General_Concept
memory	O
map	O
into	O
four	O
16KB	O
banks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
CP/M	B-Application
,	O
the	O
memory	O
used	O
for	O
the	O
display	O
was	O
switched	O
out	O
while	O
programs	O
were	O
running	O
,	O
giving	O
more	O
than	O
60KB	O
of	O
usable	O
RAM	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
the	O
Joyce	B-Device
architecture	O
was	O
designed	O
with	O
configurations	O
of	O
128KB	O
and	O
256KB	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
in	O
mind	O
,	O
no	O
PCW	O
was	O
ever	O
sold	O
with	O
128KB	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
Each	O
PCW	O
's	O
CP/M	B-Application
application	O
could	O
not	O
use	O
more	O
than	O
64KB	O
so	O
the	O
system	O
used	O
the	O
rest	O
of	O
the	O
RAM	B-Architecture
for	O
a	O
RAM	B-Application
drive	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
the	O
other	O
hand	O
,	O
the	O
standalone	B-General_Concept
Locoscript	B-Protocol
word	B-General_Concept
processor	I-General_Concept
program	O
was	O
reported	O
as	O
using	O
up	O
to	O
154KB	O
as	O
normal	O
memory	O
and	O
the	O
rest	O
as	O
a	O
RAM	B-Application
disk	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Unusually	O
,	O
the	O
Z80	B-General_Concept
CPU	B-Device
in	O
the	O
PCW	O
8256	O
,	O
8512	O
,	O
9512	O
,	O
9256	O
and	O
9512+	O
had	O
no	O
directly	O
connected	O
ROM	B-Device
,	O
which	O
most	O
computers	O
used	O
to	O
start	O
the	O
boot	B-Operating_System
process	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Instead	O
,	O
at	O
startup	O
,	O
the	O
ASIC	O
(	O
customised	O
circuit	O
)	O
at	O
the	O
heart	O
of	O
the	O
PCW	O
provided	O
access	O
to	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
1k	O
ROM	B-Device
within	O
the	O
Intel	B-Device
8041	I-Device
microcontroller	I-Device
used	O
to	O
drive	O
the	O
printer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Z80	B-General_Concept
would	O
copy	O
256	O
bytes	O
via	O
the	O
ASIC	O
into	O
RAM	B-Architecture
,	O
providing	O
sufficient	O
instructions	O
to	O
load	O
the	O
first	O
sector	B-Application
from	O
a	O
floppy	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
ROM-based	O
code	O
cannot	O
display	O
text	O
,	O
being	O
too	O
small	O
to	O
support	O
character	O
generation	O
;	O
instead	O
,	O
it	O
displays	O
a	O
bright	O
screen	O
which	O
is	O
progressively	O
filled	O
by	O
black	O
stripes	O
as	O
the	O
code	O
is	O
loaded	O
from	O
the	O
floppy	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
printer	O
case	O
contained	O
only	O
electromechanical	O
components	O
and	O
high-current	O
driver	O
electronics	O
;	O
its	O
power	O
was	O
supplied	O
via	O
a	O
coaxial	O
power	O
connector	O
socket	O
on	O
the	O
monitor	B-Device
casing	O
,	O
and	O
rather	O
than	O
using	O
a	O
traditional	O
parallel	B-Device
interface	I-Device
,	O
pin	O
and	O
motor	O
signals	O
were	O
connected	O
directly	O
by	O
a	O
34-wire	O
ribbon	O
cable	O
to	O
an	O
8041	B-Device
microcontroller	B-Architecture
on	O
the	O
PCW	O
's	O
mainboard	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
models	O
of	O
PCW	O
were	O
bundled	O
with	O
a	O
9-pin	O
dot	B-General_Concept
matrix	I-General_Concept
printer	O
mechanism	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
later	O
9512	O
and	O
9512+	O
models	O
using	O
a	O
daisywheel	O
(	O
with	O
a	O
different	O
cable	O
;	O
the	O
printers	O
were	O
not	O
interchangeable	O
with	O
the	O
dot	B-General_Concept
matrix	I-General_Concept
models	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
PCW	O
printers	O
could	O
not	O
,	O
of	O
course	O
,	O
be	O
used	O
on	O
other	O
computers	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
original	O
PCW	O
lacked	O
a	O
then-standard	O
Centronics	B-Device
printer	I-Device
port	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Instead	O
,	O
the	O
Z80	B-General_Concept
bus	O
and	O
video	O
signals	O
were	O
brought	O
to	O
an	O
edge	O
connector	O
socket	O
at	O
the	O
back	O
of	O
the	O
cabinet	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
accessories	O
including	O
parallel	B-Device
and	O
serial	B-Protocol
ports	I-Protocol
were	O
produced	O
for	O
this	O
interface	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
of	O
the	O
later	O
models	O
included	O
a	O
built-in	O
parallel	B-Device
port	I-Device
;	O
these	O
could	O
be	O
bundled	O
with	O
either	O
the	O
dedicated	O
Amstrad	O
printer	O
or	O
a	O
Canon	O
Bubblejet	O
model	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
PCWs	O
were	O
not	O
designed	O
to	O
play	O
video	O
games	B-Application
,	O
although	O
some	O
software	O
authors	O
considered	O
this	O
a	O
minor	O
detail	O
,	O
releasing	O
games	B-Application
like	O
Batman	B-Application
,	O
Head	B-Application
Over	I-Application
Heels	I-Application
,	O
and	O
Bounder	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
PCW	O
video	O
system	O
was	O
not	O
at	O
all	O
suited	O
to	O
games	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
display	O
was	O
monochrome	O
and	O
bitmapped	B-Algorithm
with	O
a	O
resolution	O
of	O
720	O
by	O
256	O
pixels	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
1	O
bit	O
per	O
pixel	O
,	O
this	O
occupied	O
23KB	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
which	O
was	O
far	O
too	O
large	O
for	O
the	O
Z80	B-General_Concept
CPU	B-Device
to	O
scroll	O
in	O
software	O
without	O
ripple	O
and	O
tearing	O
of	O
the	O
display	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Instead	O
,	O
the	O
PCW	O
implemented	O
a	O
Roller	O
RAM	B-Architecture
consisting	O
of	O
a	O
512-byte	O
area	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
that	O
held	O
the	O
address	O
of	O
each	O
line	O
of	O
display	O
data	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
screen	O
could	O
now	O
be	O
scrolled	O
either	O
by	O
changing	O
the	O
Roller	O
RAM	B-Architecture
contents	O
or	O
by	O
writing	O
to	O
an	O
I/O	O
port	O
that	O
set	O
the	O
starting	O
point	O
in	O
Roller	O
RAM	B-Architecture
for	O
the	O
screen	O
data	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
meant	O
that	O
the	O
Z80	B-General_Concept
's	O
concise	O
block	O
copy	O
instructions	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
LDIR	O
,	O
could	O
be	O
used	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
PcW16	O
does	O
not	O
share	O
any	O
hardware	O
with	O
the	O
original	O
PCW	O
series	O
,	O
other	O
than	O
the	O
Z80	B-General_Concept
CPU	B-Device
,	O
and	O
should	O
be	O
considered	O
to	O
be	O
a	O
completely	O
different	O
machine	O
.	O
</s>
