<s>
Based	O
on	O
the	O
Zilog	B-General_Concept
Z80	I-General_Concept
and	O
the	O
general	O
layout	O
of	O
the	O
emerging	O
S-100	B-Architecture
standard	O
,	O
the	O
Sorcerer	O
was	O
comparatively	O
advanced	O
when	O
released	O
,	O
especially	O
when	O
compared	O
to	O
the	O
contemporary	O
more	O
commercially	O
successful	O
Commodore	B-Device
PET	I-Device
and	O
TRS-80	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
the	O
time	O
,	O
the	O
Commodore	B-Device
PET	I-Device
and	O
Tandy	B-Device
TRS-80	I-Device
offered	O
the	O
out-of-the-box	O
experience	O
he	O
considered	O
essential	O
,	O
yet	O
required	O
a	O
costly	O
computer	O
monitor	O
in	O
spite	O
of	O
their	O
inadequate	O
graphics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Apple	B-Device
II	I-Device
had	O
superior	O
graphics	O
and	O
color	O
,	O
but	O
required	O
some	O
user	O
assembly	O
before	O
being	O
operational	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
keyboard	O
computer	O
that	O
could	O
plug	O
into	O
a	O
television	O
set	O
like	O
the	O
Apple	B-Device
II	I-Device
and	O
TRS-80	B-Device
but	O
also	O
plug	O
into	O
a	O
computer	O
monitor	O
to	O
display	O
high	O
resolution	O
graphics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
easily	O
programmable	O
graphics	O
character	O
set	O
like	O
the	O
Commodore	B-Device
PET	I-Device
,	O
so	O
aspiring	O
programmers	O
could	O
write	O
BASIC	O
language	O
programs	O
that	O
would	O
impress	O
their	O
friends	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Sorcerer	O
design	O
was	O
eloquent	O
with	O
the	O
highest	O
resolution	O
in	O
the	O
marketplace	O
and	O
innovative	O
because	O
the	O
graphic	O
characters	O
could	O
be	O
reprogrammed	O
to	O
represent	O
any	O
kind	O
of	O
8x8	O
character	O
the	O
programmer	O
wanted	O
and	O
was	O
not	O
fixed	O
like	O
the	O
graphic	O
characters	O
on	O
the	O
Commodore	B-Device
PET	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Exidy	B-Architecture
Sorcerer	I-Architecture
used	O
the	O
Z80	B-General_Concept
Processor	O
from	O
Zilog	O
Corp	O
.	O
(	O
the	O
same	O
as	O
the	O
TRS-80	B-Device
from	O
Tandy	O
,	O
while	O
the	O
Apple	B-Device
II	I-Device
and	O
Commodore	B-Device
PET	I-Device
used	O
the	O
6502	O
processor	O
from	O
MOS	O
Technology	O
)	O
which	O
allowed	O
it	O
to	O
run	O
the	O
same	O
BASIC	O
language	O
software	O
that	O
was	O
becoming	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
first	O
standards	O
in	O
the	O
personal	O
computer	O
industry	O
,	O
Microsoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
Blank	O
cartridges	O
were	O
provided	O
for	O
custom	O
applications	O
and	O
the	O
most	O
popular	O
application	O
was	O
customer	O
generated	O
foreign	O
language	O
character	O
sets	O
,	O
which	O
made	O
the	O
Exidy	B-Architecture
Sorcerer	I-Architecture
the	O
most	O
popular	O
international	O
PC	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
expansion	O
unit	O
designed	O
to	O
the	O
industry	O
standard	O
S-100	B-Architecture
bus	I-Architecture
so	O
that	O
all	O
of	O
the	O
low	O
cost	O
peripheral	O
products	O
then	O
currently	O
available	O
could	O
be	O
attached	O
to	O
configure	O
a	O
computer	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
standard	O
plug-in	O
attachments	O
to	O
the	O
keyboard	O
case	O
(	O
included	O
in	O
the	O
base	O
price	O
of	O
the	O
unit	O
)	O
were	O
a	O
printer	B-Device
port	I-Device
for	O
hard	O
copy	O
devices	O
,	O
cassette	O
port	O
for	O
mass	O
storage	O
,	O
and	O
serial	O
port	O
for	O
communications	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Exidy	B-Architecture
Sorcerer	I-Architecture
was	O
competitively	O
priced	O
at	O
$895	O
and	O
went	O
to	O
market	O
in	O
Long	O
Beach	O
California	O
in	O
April	O
1978	O
and	O
generated	O
a	O
4,000	O
unit	O
back-log	O
on	O
introduction	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Exidy	O
sold	O
the	O
rights	O
to	O
the	O
design	O
of	O
the	O
Exidy	B-Architecture
Sorcerer	I-Architecture
to	O
Dynasty	O
Computer	O
Corp	O
.	O
of	O
Dallas	O
,	O
Texas	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
its	O
unique	O
programmable	O
character	O
set	O
for	O
foreign	O
language	O
characters	O
,	O
the	O
Exidy	B-Architecture
Sorcerer	I-Architecture
was	O
in	O
a	O
league	O
of	O
its	O
own	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
first	O
Sorcerers	O
sold	O
in	O
the	O
UK	O
were	O
imported	O
direct	O
from	O
the	O
US	O
by	O
a	O
small	O
company	O
based	O
in	O
Cornwall	O
called	O
Liveport	O
Ltd	O
.	O
Liveport	O
also	O
eventually	O
designed	O
and	O
built	O
extra	O
plug-in	O
ROM-PAC	O
cartridges	O
and	O
an	O
add-on	O
floppy	B-Device
disk	I-Device
drive	I-Device
(	O
based	O
on	O
Micropolis	O
units	O
)	O
that	O
did	O
not	O
require	O
the	O
expensive	O
S-100	B-Architecture
chassis	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
machine	O
had	O
its	O
greatest	O
success	O
in	O
1979	O
when	O
the	O
Dutch	O
broadcasting	O
company	O
TELEAC	O
,	O
in	O
a	O
move	O
to	O
be	O
emulated	O
later	O
by	O
the	O
BBC	O
with	O
its	O
BBC	B-Device
Micro	I-Device
,	O
decided	O
to	O
introduce	O
its	O
own	O
home	O
computer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Belgian	O
company	O
DAI	B-Device
was	O
originally	O
contracted	O
to	O
design	O
the	O
machine	O
but	O
they	O
failed	O
to	O
deliver	O
and	O
Compudata	O
delivered	O
several	O
thousand	O
Sorcerers	O
instead	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
several	O
years	O
of	O
Exidy	O
production	O
,	O
Compudata	O
developed	O
their	O
own	O
16-bit	B-Device
Intel	B-Device
8088	I-Device
–	O
based	O
machine	O
called	O
the	O
Tulip	O
,	O
replacing	O
the	O
Sorcerer	O
in	O
1983	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
of	O
the	O
largest	O
computing	O
user	O
groups	O
in	O
the	O
Netherlands	O
was	O
the	O
ESGG	O
(	O
Exidy	B-Architecture
Sorcerer	I-Architecture
Gebruikers	O
Groep	O
)	O
which	O
published	O
a	O
monthly	O
newsletter	O
in	O
two	O
editions	O
,	O
Dutch	O
and	O
English	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Sorcerer	O
Computer	O
Users	O
group	O
of	O
Australia	O
(	O
SCUA	O
)	O
actively	O
supported	O
the	O
Sorcerer	O
long	O
after	O
Exidy	O
discontinued	O
it	O
,	O
with	O
RAM	O
upgrades	O
,	O
speed	O
boosts	O
,	O
the	O
"	O
80-column	O
card	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
even	O
a	O
replacement	O
monitor	B-General_Concept
program	I-General_Concept
,	O
SCUAMON	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
history	O
of	O
the	O
Sorcerer	O
has	O
some	O
parallels	O
with	O
Exidy	O
's	O
competitor	O
Bally	O
's	O
attempts	O
to	O
build	O
a	O
home	O
computer	O
based	O
on	O
the	O
Astrocade	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
contrast	O
to	O
the	O
Astrocade	B-Device
's	O
(	O
and	O
Datamax	B-Device
UV-1	I-Device
'	O
s	O
)	O
limited	O
text	O
capabilities	O
but	O
excellent	O
graphics	O
,	O
the	O
Sorcerer	O
had	O
excellent	O
text	O
and	O
only	O
limited	O
graphics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Sorcerer	O
was	O
a	O
combination	O
of	O
parts	O
from	O
a	O
standard	O
S-100	B-Architecture
bus	I-Architecture
machine	O
and	O
its	O
custom	O
display	O
circuitry	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
machine	O
included	O
the	O
Zilog	B-General_Concept
Z80	I-General_Concept
and	O
various	O
bus	O
features	O
needed	O
to	O
run	O
the	O
CP/M	B-Application
operating	I-Application
system	I-Application
,	O
but	O
placed	O
them	O
inside	O
a	O
"	O
closed	O
"	O
box	O
with	O
a	O
built-in	O
keyboard	O
similar	O
to	O
machines	O
like	O
the	O
Commodore	B-Device
PET	I-Device
,	O
the	O
Commodore	O
64	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
Atari	B-Device
8-bit	I-Device
family	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Unlike	O
most	O
S-100	B-Architecture
CP/M	B-Application
machines	O
of	O
its	O
era	O
,	O
the	O
Sorcerer	O
did	O
not	O
have	O
any	O
internal	O
expansion	O
slots	O
,	O
and	O
everything	O
that	O
was	O
needed	O
for	O
basic	O
computing	O
was	O
built-in	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
standard	O
video	O
monitor	O
was	O
required	O
for	O
display	O
,	O
and	O
optionally	O
a	O
standard	B-Device
audio	I-Device
cassette	I-Device
deck	O
was	O
needed	O
for	O
data	O
storage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Sorcerer	O
included	O
a	O
small	O
ROM	B-Device
containing	O
a	O
simple	O
monitor	B-General_Concept
program	I-General_Concept
which	O
allowed	O
the	O
machine	O
to	O
be	O
controlled	O
at	O
the	O
machine	B-Language
language	I-Language
level	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
load	O
programs	O
from	O
cassette	B-Device
tape	I-Device
or	O
cartridges	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
cartridges	O
,	O
known	O
as	O
"	O
ROM	B-Device
PAC	O
"	O
s	O
in	O
Exidy-speak	O
,	O
were	O
built	O
by	O
replacing	O
the	O
internal	O
tape	O
in	O
an	O
eight-track	O
tape	O
cartridge	O
with	O
a	O
circuit	O
board	O
and	O
edge	O
connector	O
to	O
interface	O
with	O
the	O
Sorcerer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
machine	O
was	O
usable	O
without	O
any	O
expansion	O
,	O
but	O
if	O
the	O
user	O
wished	O
to	O
use	O
S-100	B-Architecture
cards	O
they	O
could	O
do	O
so	O
with	O
an	O
external	O
expansion	O
chassis	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Using	O
the	O
expansion	O
chassis	O
the	O
user	O
could	O
directly	O
support	O
floppy	B-Device
disks	I-Device
,	O
and	O
boot	O
from	O
them	O
into	O
CP/M	B-Application
(	O
without	O
which	O
the	O
disks	O
were	O
not	O
operable	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Another	O
expansion	O
option	O
was	O
a	O
large	O
external	O
cage	O
which	O
included	O
a	O
full	O
set	O
of	O
S-100	B-Architecture
slots	O
,	O
allowing	O
the	O
Sorcerer	O
to	O
be	O
used	O
like	O
a	O
"	O
full	O
"	O
S-100	B-Architecture
machine	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Still	O
another	O
option	O
combined	O
the	O
floppies	B-Device
,	O
expansion	O
chassis	O
and	O
a	O
small	O
monitor	O
into	O
a	O
single	O
box	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
lower	O
half	O
was	O
fixed	O
in	O
ROM	B-Device
,	O
and	O
contained	O
the	O
usual	O
ASCII	O
character	O
set	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
area	O
would	O
be	O
loaded	O
with	O
a	O
default	O
set	O
of	O
graphics	O
at	O
reset	O
,	O
but	O
could	O
be	O
re-defined	O
and	O
used	O
in	O
lieu	O
of	O
pixel-addressable	O
graphics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
this	O
respect	O
the	O
Sorcerer	O
was	O
similar	O
to	O
the	O
PET	O
and	O
TRS-80	B-Device
in	O
that	O
it	O
had	O
only	O
"	O
graphics	O
characters	O
"	O
to	O
draw	O
with	O
,	O
but	O
at	O
least	O
on	O
the	O
Sorcerer	O
one	O
could	O
define	O
a	O
custom	O
set	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Enterprising	O
developers	O
then	O
standardized	O
on	O
use	O
of	O
two	O
pins	O
of	O
the	O
parallel	B-Device
port	I-Device
,	O
to	O
which	O
users	O
were	O
expected	O
to	O
attach	O
a	O
speaker	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
cartridge	O
was	O
essentially	O
the	O
common	O
Microsoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
already	O
widely	O
used	O
in	O
the	O
CP/M	B-Application
world	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
machine	O
included	O
sound	O
in/out	O
ports	O
on	O
the	O
back	O
that	O
could	O
be	O
attached	O
to	O
a	O
cassette	B-Device
tape	I-Device
recorder	I-Device
,	O
so	O
BASIC	O
could	O
load	O
and	O
save	O
programs	O
to	O
tape	O
without	O
needing	O
a	O
disk	O
drive	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
constant	O
ROM	B-Device
fault	O
in	O
the	O
wordprocessor	O
PAC	O
was	O
a	O
printer	O
status	O
switch	O
setting	O
for	O
the	O
printer	O
,	O
but	O
most	O
people	O
learned	O
about	O
it	O
and	O
turned	O
it	O
off	O
early	O
in	O
their	O
power-on	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Montfort	O
Brothers	O
made	O
an	O
EPROM	B-General_Concept
PAC	O
with	O
a	O
rechargeable	O
battery	O
inside	O
and	O
16KB	O
RAM	O
with	O
an	O
external	O
write-protect	O
switch	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
CP/M	B-Application
machines	O
were	O
designed	O
to	O
allow	O
the	O
full	O
16-bit	B-Device
address	O
space	O
of	O
64KB	O
to	O
be	O
populated	O
by	O
memory	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
was	O
problematic	O
on	O
the	O
Exidy	B-Architecture
Sorcerer	I-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
Another	O
16KB	O
was	O
the	O
ROM	B-Device
cartridge	O
address	O
space	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
could	O
be	O
populated	O
,	O
but	O
required	O
disabling	O
the	O
ROM	B-Device
cartridge	O
capability	O
.	O
</s>
