<s>
The	O
Olivetti	B-Operating_System
M24	I-Operating_System
is	O
a	O
computer	O
that	O
was	O
sold	O
by	O
Olivetti	B-Operating_System
in	O
1983	O
using	O
the	O
Intel	B-General_Concept
8086	I-General_Concept
CPU	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
system	O
was	O
sold	O
in	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
under	O
its	O
original	O
name	O
by	O
Docutel/Olivetti	O
of	O
Dallas	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
AT&T	O
and	O
Xerox	O
bought	O
rights	O
to	O
rebadge	O
the	O
system	O
as	O
the	O
AT&T	O
PC	O
6300	O
and	O
the	O
Xerox	B-Operating_System
6060	I-Operating_System
series	O
,	O
respectively	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
(	O
AT&T	O
owned	O
25%	O
of	O
Olivetti	B-Operating_System
around	O
this	O
time	O
.	O
)	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
AT&T	B-Operating_System
6300	I-Operating_System
,	O
launched	O
in	O
June	O
1984	O
,	O
was	O
T	O
's	O
first	O
attempt	O
to	O
compete	O
in	O
the	O
PC	O
compatible	O
market	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
also	O
available	O
in	O
France	O
as	O
the	O
PERSONA	B-Operating_System
1600	I-Operating_System
,	O
built	O
by	O
LogAbax	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
initial	O
1984	O
US	O
version	O
named	O
AT&T	B-Operating_System
6300	I-Operating_System
came	O
with	O
either	O
one	O
or	O
two	O
360KB	O
5.25	B-Device
"	I-Device
floppy	B-Device
drives	I-Device
;	O
a	O
hard	B-Device
disk	I-Device
was	O
not	O
offered	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
Europe	O
,	O
Olivetti	B-Operating_System
launched	O
a	O
10MHz	O
version	O
:	O
the	O
Olivetti	B-Operating_System
M24	I-Operating_System
SP	O
,	O
announced	O
in	O
November	O
1985	O
,	O
a	O
contender	O
for	O
the	O
title	O
of	O
"	O
highest	O
clocked	O
8086	B-General_Concept
computer	O
"	O
as	O
its	O
processor	O
was	O
the	O
fastest	O
grade	O
of	O
8086-2	B-General_Concept
,	O
rated	O
for	O
a	O
maximum	O
speed	O
of	O
exactly	O
the	O
same	O
10MHz	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
To	O
support	O
this	O
,	O
the	O
motherboard	B-Device
now	O
featured	O
a	O
switchable	O
24/30MHz	O
master	O
crystal	O
,	O
still	O
divided	O
by	O
3	O
to	O
produce	O
the	O
33%	O
duty	O
CPU	B-General_Concept
clock	O
,	O
with	O
an	O
additional	O
4MHz	O
crystal	O
to	O
maintain	O
that	O
clock	O
signal	O
for	O
peripherals	O
that	O
required	O
it	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
video	O
board	O
receiving	O
its	O
own	O
24MHz	O
crystal	O
to	O
maintain	O
the	O
same	O
image	O
size	O
and	O
scan	O
frequencies	O
at	O
both	O
processor	O
speeds	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
October	O
1985	O
,	O
AT&T	O
launched	O
the	O
6300	B-Operating_System
Plus	I-Operating_System
that	O
used	O
a	O
6MHz	O
286	B-General_Concept
microprocessor	I-General_Concept
in	O
the	O
same	O
case	O
as	O
the	O
6300	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Prior	O
to	O
release	O
,	O
this	O
machine	O
had	O
been	O
referred	O
to	O
as	O
the	O
8300	O
and	O
codenamed	O
"	O
Safari	O
5	O
"	O
(	O
PC	B-Device
7300	I-Device
was	O
"	O
Safari	O
4	O
"	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
the	O
hardware	O
level	O
,	O
this	O
machine	O
was	O
criticized	O
by	O
an	O
InfoWorld	O
reviewer	O
for	O
being	O
incompatible	O
with	O
AT	B-Architecture
cards	I-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
the	O
other	O
hand	O
,	O
AT&T	O
sold	O
a	O
package	O
of	O
the	O
6300	B-Operating_System
Plus	I-Operating_System
bundled	O
with	O
Simultask	O
,	O
which	O
ran	O
MS-DOS	B-Application
and	O
UNIX	B-Operating_System
System	I-Operating_System
V	I-Operating_System
simultaneously	O
,	O
at	O
a	O
cost	O
—	O
with	O
all	O
software	O
licenses	O
included	O
—	O
on	O
par	O
with	O
the	O
IBM	B-Operating_System
PC/AT	I-Operating_System
with	O
MS-DOS	B-Application
alone	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
review	O
in	O
PC	O
Magazine	O
declared	O
that	O
T	O
's	O
6300	B-Operating_System
Plus	I-Operating_System
was	O
"	O
flat	O
out	O
the	O
better	O
machine	O
"	O
compared	O
to	O
the	O
IBM	B-Operating_System
PC/AT	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
version	O
of	O
Simultask	O
included	O
with	O
the	O
6300	B-Operating_System
Plus	I-Operating_System
was	O
based	O
on	O
Locus	O
Computing	O
Corporation	O
's	O
Merge	O
software	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
order	O
to	O
allow	O
MS-DOS	B-Application
applications	O
to	O
run	O
as	O
"	O
concurrent	O
UNIX	O
tasks	O
"	O
,	O
a	O
non-standard	O
hardware	O
unit	O
known	O
as	O
OS	O
Merge	O
was	O
provided	O
,	O
allowing	O
DOS	O
applications	O
to	O
"	O
think	O
"	O
that	O
they	O
had	O
"	O
complete	O
control	O
over	O
the	O
system	O
"	O
and	O
offering	O
"	O
almost	O
complete	O
compatibility	O
with	O
IBM	B-Device
PC	I-Device
software	O
"	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
reported	O
performance	O
penalty	O
when	O
running	O
applications	O
such	O
as	O
Microsoft	B-Operating_System
Flight	I-Operating_System
Simulator	I-Operating_System
of	O
around	O
15	O
percent	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Such	O
additional	O
hardware	O
was	O
necessary	O
to	O
support	O
these	O
virtualisation	O
features	O
due	O
to	O
the	O
limitations	O
of	O
the	O
80286	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
PC	B-Operating_System
6300	I-Operating_System
Plus	I-Operating_System
shipped	O
with	O
MS-DOS	B-Application
in	O
1985	O
though	O
,	O
because	O
its	O
Unix	B-Operating_System
System	I-Operating_System
V	I-Operating_System
distribution	O
would	O
not	O
be	O
ready	O
until	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
March	O
1986	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
6300	B-Operating_System
Plus	I-Operating_System
did	O
not	O
sell	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
the	O
original	O
6300	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1986	O
,	O
AT&T	O
began	O
offering	O
3.5	B-Device
"	I-Device
720KB	O
floppies	B-Device
and	O
20MB	O
hard	B-Device
disks	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Xerox	B-Operating_System
6060	I-Operating_System
came	O
standard	O
with	O
a	O
single	O
360KB	O
5.25	B-Device
"	I-Device
drive	O
and	O
a	O
20MB	O
hard	B-Device
drive	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
Iomega	B-Device
Bernoulli	I-Device
10/10	O
removable	O
cartridge	O
drive	O
was	O
also	O
offered	O
as	O
a	O
factory	O
option	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
a	O
"	O
small	O
expansion	O
"	O
sidecar	O
hosting	O
a	O
hard	B-Device
drive	I-Device
for	O
users	O
who	O
found	O
themselves	O
with	O
no	O
internal	O
space	O
left	O
between	O
floppies	B-Device
and	O
expansion	O
cards	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
the	O
6300	B-Operating_System
Plus	I-Operating_System
,	O
AT&T	O
announced	O
that	O
it	O
was	O
turning	O
over	O
both	O
production	O
and	O
development	O
of	O
its	O
PC	O
products	O
to	O
Olivetti	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1987	O
,	O
AT&T	O
offered	O
a	O
true	O
AT-based	O
286	B-General_Concept
,	O
their	O
6310	O
—	O
a	O
rebadge	O
of	O
Olivetti	B-Device
M28	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Equipped	O
with	O
a	O
one-wait	O
state	O
8MHz	O
processor	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
a	O
pretty	O
slow	O
machine	O
for	O
its	O
class	O
,	O
even	O
slower	O
than	O
the	O
IBM	B-Device
XT	I-Device
286	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
later-released	O
6312	O
addressed	O
the	O
speed	O
problem	O
with	O
a	O
12-MHz	O
CPU	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
the	O
announcement	O
of	O
the	O
6310	O
,	O
in	O
April	O
1987	O
,	O
AT&T	O
announced	O
price	O
cuts	O
across	O
its	O
6300	O
PC	O
product	O
line	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
6300	B-Operating_System
Plus	I-Operating_System
discounted	O
by	O
27-38	O
%	O
,	O
while	O
the	O
original	O
6300	O
was	O
discounted	O
by	O
17-23	O
%	O
(	O
depending	O
on	O
configuration	O
.	O
)	O
</s>
<s>
6300s	O
made	O
in	O
1986-1987	O
have	O
BIOS	B-Operating_System
Version	O
1.43	O
which	O
added	O
proper	O
support	O
for	O
3.5	B-Device
"	I-Device
floppies	B-Device
and	O
fixed	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
bugs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
with	O
all	O
contemporary	O
systems	O
,	O
a	O
BIOS	B-Operating_System
upgrade	O
required	O
a	O
physical	O
chip	O
replacement	O
,	O
which	O
AT&T	O
provided	O
for	O
$35	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
M24	O
was	O
designed	O
to	O
be	O
highly	O
compatible	O
with	O
IBM	B-Device
PC	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
of	O
its	O
characteristics	O
was	O
the	O
use	O
of	O
the	O
more	O
powerful	O
8.0MHz	O
Intel	B-General_Concept
8086	I-General_Concept
CPU	B-General_Concept
rather	O
than	O
the	O
4.77MHz	O
Intel	B-Device
8088	I-Device
used	O
in	O
IBM	O
's	O
own	O
PC	B-Device
XT	I-Device
,	O
configured	O
for	O
"	O
maximum	O
mode	O
"	O
that	O
allowed	O
direct	O
installation	O
of	O
an	O
8087	B-Device
math	I-Device
co-processor	I-Device
(	O
also	O
at	O
8MHz	O
)	O
to	O
the	O
motherboard	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
CPU	B-General_Concept
clock	O
,	O
along	O
with	O
most	O
others	O
in	O
the	O
machine	O
(	O
other	O
than	O
the	O
serial	O
baud	O
rate	O
generator	O
and	O
an	O
IBM-standard	O
14.3MHz	O
crystal	O
used	O
on	O
the	O
expansion	O
board	O
)	O
,	O
was	O
divided	O
down	O
from	O
a	O
24.0MHz	O
master	O
crystal	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
CPU	B-General_Concept
timing	O
in	O
particular	O
using	O
an	O
Intel	B-Device
8284	I-Device
clock	O
generator	O
,	O
as	O
per	O
the	O
IBM	B-Device
PC	I-Device
,	O
to	O
produce	O
the	O
33%	O
duty	O
cycle	O
pulse	O
wave	O
required	O
by	O
the	O
8086	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
system	O
was	O
designed	O
"	O
split-level	O
"	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
motherboard	B-Device
screwed	O
onto	O
the	O
underside	O
of	O
the	O
computer	B-General_Concept
case	I-General_Concept
and	O
connected	O
to	O
the	O
ISA	B-Architecture
bus	I-Architecture
backplane	O
in	O
the	O
top	O
section	O
of	O
the	O
case	O
via	O
the	O
video	O
card	O
which	O
,	O
rather	O
than	O
occupying	O
an	O
ISA	B-Architecture
slot	I-Architecture
,	O
has	O
two	O
female	O
edge	O
connectors	O
and	O
plugs	O
onto	O
the	O
ends	O
of	O
both	O
the	O
motherboard	B-Device
and	O
the	O
backplane	O
,	O
doubling	O
as	O
a	O
bridge	O
between	O
them	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
M24	O
has	O
seven	O
8-bit	O
ISA	B-Architecture
slots	I-Architecture
,	O
as	O
were	O
standard	O
for	O
its	O
time	O
,	O
but	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
slots	O
(	O
exact	O
figure	O
seeming	O
to	O
vary	O
between	O
one	O
and	O
at	O
least	O
four	O
across	O
extant	O
machines	O
)	O
have	O
proprietary	O
second	O
connectors	O
to	O
accept	O
Olivetti-specific	O
16-bit	O
cards	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
machine	O
had	O
the	O
bad	O
luck	O
of	O
launching	O
just	O
a	O
few	O
months	O
before	O
the	O
IBM	B-Operating_System
PC/AT	I-Operating_System
,	O
which	O
introduced	O
the	O
entirely	O
different	O
16-bit	O
connector	O
and	O
signalling	O
standard	O
extension	O
to	O
the	O
PC	O
bus	O
now	O
known	O
simply	O
as	O
"	O
ISA	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
so	O
ended	O
up	O
featuring	O
slots	O
incompatible	O
on	O
all	O
three	O
fronts	O
of	O
physical	O
configuration	O
,	O
complement	O
and	O
arrangement	O
of	O
signals	O
,	O
and	O
data	O
transfer	O
rate	O
,	O
significantly	O
restricting	O
the	O
number	O
of	O
compatible	O
16-bit	O
cards	O
produced	O
for	O
it	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
M24/6300	O
had	O
an	O
unusual	O
enhanced	O
32KB	O
CGA-compatible	O
video	O
card	O
(	O
Video	O
Enhanced	O
Adapter	O
-	O
EGC	O
2413	O
)	O
which	O
,	O
in	O
addition	O
to	O
standard	O
200-line	O
CGA	B-Device
graphics	I-Device
modes	O
(	O
automatically	O
line	O
doubled	O
,	O
transparent	O
to	O
software	O
,	O
with	O
text	O
modes	O
also	O
using	O
400	O
scanlines	O
with	O
higher	O
quality	O
8×16	O
pixel	O
fonts	O
,	O
or	O
even	O
16×16	O
in	O
40-column	O
mode	O
with	O
an	O
expansion	O
ROM	O
)	O
,	O
also	O
supported	O
an	O
additional	O
640×400	O
pixel	O
graphics	O
mode	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
a	O
poorly	O
documented	O
512×256	O
mode	O
for	O
compatibility	O
with	O
the	O
earlier	O
M20	B-Device
model	O
(	O
in	O
conjunction	O
with	O
a	O
Z8000-based	O
emulator	O
card	O
that	O
included	O
a	O
necessary	O
additional	O
clock	O
source	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
All	O
modes	O
were	O
non-interlaced	B-Device
,	O
albeit	O
running	O
at	O
a	O
then-common	O
50Hz	O
Vsync	O
rate	O
,	O
and	O
required	O
the	O
dedicated	O
OEM	O
26.3kHz	O
,	O
12	O
"	O
monitor	O
(	O
either	O
colour	O
or	O
multi-level	O
monochrome	O
)	O
because	O
of	O
their	O
comparatively	O
high	O
line	O
frequency	O
,	O
with	O
all	O
but	O
the	O
M20	B-Device
mode	O
using	O
the	O
24MHz	O
system	O
master	O
crystal	O
to	O
drive	O
the	O
pixel	O
clock	O
either	O
directly	O
or	O
(	O
320×200	O
and	O
8×16	O
40-character	O
only	O
)	O
divided	O
in	O
two	O
(	O
in	O
comparison	O
,	O
contemporary	O
IBM	O
displays	O
ran	O
at	O
15.8	O
to	O
21.9kHz	O
with	O
14.3	O
to	O
16.3MHz	O
dot	O
clocks	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Colour	O
depth	O
remained	O
the	O
standard	O
fixed	O
4-colour	O
CGA	B-Device
palettes	O
in	O
320×200	O
,	O
and	O
"	O
monochrome	O
"	O
in	O
all	O
higher	O
modes	O
(	O
any	O
selectable	O
RGB(I )	O
foreground	O
colour/one	O
of	O
15	O
shades	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
fixed	O
black	O
background	O
)	O
,	O
but	O
could	O
be	O
expanded	O
to	O
4	O
or	O
8	O
colours/greyscales	O
in	O
all	O
resolutions	O
,	O
and	O
16	O
in	O
all	O
but	O
512×256	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
addition	O
of	O
a	O
graphics	O
memory	O
expansion	O
board	O
holding	O
between	O
32	O
and	O
96KB	O
RAM	O
(	O
the	O
resolution:colour	O
relationship	O
being	O
unintuitive	O
due	O
to	O
Motorola	B-General_Concept
HD6845	I-General_Concept
CRTC	I-General_Concept
bandwidth	O
and	O
addressing	O
limitations	O
-	O
16	O
colours	O
in	O
the	O
640-pixel	O
modes	O
effectively	O
combined	O
the	O
standard	O
and	O
expansion	O
memory	O
spaces	O
into	O
a	O
single	O
64-bit	O
wide	O
bank	O
)	O
;	O
the	O
expansion	O
card	O
also	O
had	O
its	O
own	O
monitor	O
port	O
built	O
in	O
allowing	O
native	O
dual-monitor	O
support	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
CGA	B-Device
compatibility	O
was	O
necessarily	O
limited	O
to	O
"	O
RGB	O
"	O
modes	O
,	O
and	O
"	O
well	O
behaved	O
"	O
software	O
that	O
only	O
used	O
the	O
BIOS-preset	O
modes	O
and	O
did	O
n't	O
attempt	O
too	O
much	O
clever	O
direct	O
reprogramming	O
of	O
the	O
CRTC	O
registers	O
(	O
including	O
setting	O
of	O
pseudo-text	O
hack	O
modes	O
like	O
160×100	O
16	O
colours	O
)	O
,	O
as	O
there	O
was	O
no	O
composite	O
video	O
output	O
available	O
and	O
although	O
some	O
basic	O
register	O
settings	O
remained	O
the	O
same	O
,	O
others	O
were	O
necessarily	O
very	O
different	O
because	O
of	O
the	O
line	O
doubling	O
trickery	O
(	O
itself	O
a	O
type	O
of	O
CRTC	O
hack	O
)	O
and	O
altered	O
scan	O
rates	O
,	O
and	O
Olivetti	B-Operating_System
's	O
protective	O
"	O
scrambler	O
"	O
chip	O
that	O
attempted	O
to	O
convert	O
custom	O
settings	O
to	O
the	O
nearest	O
safe	O
equivalents	O
could	O
only	O
go	O
so	O
far	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
its	O
turn	O
,	O
the	O
machine	O
's	O
headline	O
640×400	O
graphics	O
mode	O
received	O
a	O
moderate	O
level	O
of	O
support	O
from	O
software	O
developers	O
,	O
mostly	O
for	O
"	O
serious	O
"	O
applications	O
such	O
as	O
Lotus	B-Application
1-2-3	I-Application
and	O
Symphony	B-Application
(	O
Earl	B-Application
Weaver	I-Application
Baseball	I-Application
is	O
however	O
an	O
example	O
of	O
a	O
game	O
that	O
can	O
use	O
it	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
was	O
for	O
a	O
time	O
both	O
supported	O
and	O
emulated	O
(	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
extended	O
to	O
e.g.	O
</s>
<s>
752x410	O
)	O
by	O
various	O
"	O
Super	O
EGA	B-Device
"	O
/	O
"	O
any	O
mode	O
on	O
any	O
monitor	O
"	O
cards	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
ATI	O
EGA	B-Device
Wonder	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
any	O
other	O
replacement	O
video	O
card	O
,	O
could	O
be	O
used	O
in	O
the	O
6300	O
so	O
long	O
as	O
they	O
were	O
designed	O
to	O
work	O
either	O
specifically	O
with	O
the	O
machine	O
(	O
for	O
high	O
speed	O
16-bit	O
cards	O
)	O
,	O
or	O
in	O
an	O
IBM	B-Device
PC	I-Device
compatible	O
mode	O
(	O
necessarily	O
8-bit	O
at	O
4.77MHz	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
the	O
original	O
graphics	O
card	O
had	O
to	O
remain	O
in	O
place	O
even	O
if	O
no	O
longer	O
in	O
use	O
,	O
as	O
it	O
formed	O
an	O
essential	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
bridge	O
connecting	O
the	O
expansion	O
board	O
to	O
the	O
motherboard	B-Device
,	O
and	O
although	O
it	O
featured	O
DIP	O
switch	O
jumpers	O
to	O
select	O
between	O
MDA/Hercules	O
,	O
40	O
and	O
80	O
column	O
CGA	B-Device
,	O
and	O
expanded	O
video	O
options	O
including	O
its	O
own	O
(	O
as	O
per	O
the	O
IBM	O
motherboard	B-Device
settings	O
)	O
,	O
there	O
was	O
no	O
"	O
disable	O
"	O
switch	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Instead	O
,	O
the	O
(	O
socketed	O
)	O
Motorola	B-General_Concept
HD6845	I-General_Concept
CRTC	I-General_Concept
main	O
controller	O
chip	O
had	O
to	O
be	O
removed	O
,	O
and	O
replaced	O
with	O
a	O
simple	O
but	O
remarkably	O
expensive	O
bridging	O
circuit	O
(	O
or	O
a	O
user	O
installed	O
set	O
of	O
jumper	O
wires	O
to	O
the	O
correct	O
half-dozen	O
socket	O
terminals	O
)	O
to	O
bypass	O
the	O
necessary	O
bus	O
signals	O
through	O
the	O
card	O
untouched	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
plasma-screen	O
and	O
early	O
LCD	B-Device
based	O
portables	O
from	O
Compaq	O
and	O
other	O
manufacturers	O
also	O
copied	O
the	O
M24/6300	O
'	O
s	O
graphics	O
hardware	O
to	O
make	O
better	O
use	O
of	O
early	O
square-pixel	B-Device
640×400	O
panels	O
popular	O
for	O
Japanese	O
and	O
other	O
non-IBM	O
portables	O
(	O
still	O
well	O
suited	O
to	O
the	O
basic	O
CGA/EGA	O
resolutions	O
,	O
but	O
not	O
so	O
much	O
EGA-high	O
or	O
MDA/EGA	O
text	O
,	O
and	O
unable	O
to	O
show	O
MCGA/VGA	O
-high	O
or	O
Hercules	B-Device
graphics	I-Device
without	O
cropping	O
or	O
losing	O
details	O
)	O
in	O
an	O
IBM	O
Compatible	O
hardware	O
ecosystem	O
that	O
otherwise	O
avoided	O
the	O
mode	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
it	O
remained	O
on	O
the	O
whole	O
a	O
poorly	O
supported	O
oddity	O
,	O
much	O
like	O
IBM	O
's	O
own	O
PGC	B-Device
and	O
most	O
Super	O
EGAs	B-Device
outside	O
of	O
their	O
limited	O
library	O
of	O
applications	O
with	O
direct	O
driver	O
support	O
,	O
and	O
PC	O
graphics	O
on	O
the	O
whole	O
did	O
not	O
exceed	O
640×350	O
in	O
16	O
colours	O
or	O
720×348	O
in	O
monochrome	O
until	O
the	O
arrival	O
of	O
both	O
the	O
VGA	B-Protocol
standard	O
,	O
and	O
Windows	B-Application
3.0	I-Application
which	O
provided	O
a	O
simple	O
one-driver-for-all-programs	O
framework	O
for	O
future	O
expansion	O
cards	O
to	O
build	O
on	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
keyboard	O
used	O
a	O
proprietary	O
9-pin	B-Protocol
D-sub	I-Protocol
connector	I-Protocol
built	O
into	O
the	O
system	B-Device
board	I-Device
and	O
had	O
the	O
unconventional	O
option	O
of	O
plugging	O
a	O
mouse	O
into	O
the	O
keyboard	O
via	O
another	O
9-pin	B-Protocol
D-sub	I-Protocol
connector	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
mouse	O
could	O
be	O
configured	O
to	O
simulate	O
the	O
usage	O
of	O
the	O
keyboard	O
's	O
arrow	B-Device
keys	I-Device
in	O
DOS	O
applications	O
without	O
mouse	O
support	O
,	O
aided	O
by	O
the	O
choice	O
of	O
a	O
parallel	O
quadrature	O
encoding	O
design	O
(	O
as	O
per	O
the	O
Microsoft	B-Device
Bus	I-Device
Mouse	I-Device
,	O
Amiga	B-Device
,	O
and	O
Atari	B-Device
ST	I-Device
mice	O
,	O
all	O
of	O
which	O
can	O
be	O
modified	O
to	O
work	O
with	O
the	O
6300	O
)	O
instead	O
of	O
the	O
latterly	O
more	O
common	O
9-pin	O
serial	O
transmission	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
January	O
1985	O
review	O
in	O
InfoWorld	O
declared	O
it	O
"	O
a	O
fair	O
performer	O
,	O
better	O
than	O
the	O
8088-equipped	O
IBM	B-Device
PC	I-Device
and	O
PC	B-Device
XT	I-Device
and	O
about	O
equal	O
to	O
the	O
8086-based	O
Compaq	B-Device
Deskpro	I-Device
"	O
,	O
and	O
taking	O
pricing	O
into	O
account	O
concluded	O
that	O
it	O
was	O
"	O
a	O
good	O
deal	O
,	O
but	O
by	O
no	O
means	O
perfect.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
reviewer	O
wondered	O
how	O
the	O
"	O
5MHz	O
"	O
8086	B-General_Concept
in	O
the	O
Compaq	O
ran	O
as	O
fast	O
as	O
the	O
same	O
processor	O
at	O
8MHz	O
in	O
the	O
AT&T	O
machine	O
;	O
however	O
,	O
this	O
appears	O
to	O
be	O
a	O
misunderstanding	O
given	O
that	O
the	O
Compaq	O
was	O
switchable	O
between	O
a	O
guaranteed	O
IBM	O
PC-compatible	O
4.77MHz	O
and	O
an	O
enhanced-performance	O
7.16MHz	O
clock	O
rate	O
(	O
respectively	O
one-third	O
and	O
one-half	O
of	O
the	O
same	O
NTSC	O
colourburst	O
crystal	O
used	O
in	O
the	O
IBM	O
,	O
but	O
not	O
the	O
Olivetti/AT	O
&T	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
defaulted	O
to	O
the	O
latter	O
on	O
boot	O
,	O
as	O
detailed	O
in	O
other	O
publications	O
of	O
the	O
time	O
,	O
and	O
endlessly	O
misreported	O
(	O
including	O
as	O
"	O
8MHz	O
"	O
,	O
about	O
as	O
frequently	O
as	O
the	O
miscalculated	O
"	O
7.14MHz	O
"	O
)	O
ever	O
since	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
reason	O
behind	O
the	O
M24/6300	O
'	O
s	O
failure	O
to	O
perform	O
any	O
better	O
than	O
equal	O
with	O
the	O
1/9th	O
-slower	O
Deskpro	B-Device
may	O
be	O
traceable	O
,	O
as	O
hinted	O
at	O
in	O
the	O
InfoWorld	O
review	O
,	O
to	O
poorly	O
optimised	O
graphics	O
routines	O
in	O
the	O
BIOS	B-Operating_System
,	O
which	O
would	O
have	O
a	O
particularly	O
noticeable	O
effect	O
in	O
the	O
high	O
resolution	O
640x400	O
and	O
extended	O
colour	O
modes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
November	O
1985	O
review	O
in	O
PC	O
Magazine	O
of	O
the	O
hard	O
drive-equipped	O
version	O
found	O
it	O
on	O
par	O
with	O
the	O
(	O
6MHz	O
,	O
80286	B-General_Concept
equipped	O
)	O
IBM	B-Operating_System
PC	I-Operating_System
AT	I-Operating_System
as	O
far	O
as	O
processor	O
performance	O
was	O
concerned	O
,	O
but	O
with	O
considerably	O
slower	O
I/O	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
initial	O
model	O
of	O
the	O
AT&T	B-Operating_System
6300	I-Operating_System
(	O
no	O
hard	B-Device
disk	I-Device
and	O
only	O
360K	B-Device
floppy	B-Device
)	O
had	O
slow	O
sales	O
in	O
1984	O
with	O
only	O
sold	O
compared	O
to	O
1.5	O
million	O
IBM	B-Device
PCs	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
If	O
fact	O
,	O
worldwide	O
sales	O
of	O
the	O
Olivetti	B-Operating_System
M24	I-Operating_System
were	O
only	O
in	O
the	O
first	O
year	O
,	O
well	O
below	O
the	O
planned	O
production	O
capacity	O
of	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
a	O
result	O
,	O
AT&T	O
introduced	O
the	O
faster	O
models	O
with	O
hard	B-Device
drive	I-Device
and	O
a	O
math	O
co-processor	O
in	O
March	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Still	O
,	O
after	O
about	O
one	O
year	O
on	O
the	O
market	O
,	O
AT&T	O
had	O
only	O
claimed	O
about	O
1%	O
of	O
the	O
PC	O
market	O
,	O
on	O
par	O
with	O
that	O
of	O
TeleVideo	O
and	O
Columbia	B-Device
Data	I-Device
Products	I-Device
,	O
but	O
well	O
below	O
that	O
of	O
Compaq	O
and	O
Kaypro	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
December	O
1986	O
however	O
,	O
T	O
's	O
PC	O
line	O
(	O
including	O
the	O
6300	B-Operating_System
Plus	I-Operating_System
,	O
described	O
below	O
)	O
put	O
it	O
in	O
the	O
fourth	O
place	O
in	O
terms	O
of	O
market	O
share	O
in	O
the	O
US	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Olivetti	B-Operating_System
's	O
M24	O
did	O
much	O
better	O
in	O
Europe	O
,	O
where	O
it	O
became	O
the	O
market	O
leader	O
in	O
1986	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
it	O
claimed	O
the	O
crown	O
of	O
most	O
PC	O
machines	O
sold	O
in	O
Europe	O
that	O
year	O
,	O
Olivetti	B-Operating_System
also	O
became	O
the	O
third	O
largest	O
PC	O
manufacturer	O
worldwide	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Olivetti	B-Operating_System
would	O
however	O
be	O
unable	O
to	O
repeat	O
the	O
feat	O
in	O
the	O
subsequent	O
years	O
,	O
and	O
so	O
1986	O
represents	O
the	O
company	O
's	O
apogee	O
in	O
terms	O
of	O
PC	O
market	O
share	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
6300	O
was	O
also	O
supported	O
by	O
Unix-based	O
operating	O
systems	O
particularly	O
by	O
Venix/86	B-Operating_System
Encore	I-Operating_System
,	O
released	O
in	O
September	O
1984	O
,	O
and	O
by	O
a	O
version	O
of	O
Xenix	B-Application
adapted	O
for	O
the	O
machine	O
by	O
the	O
Santa	O
Cruz	O
Operation	O
,	O
and	O
announced	O
in	O
June	O
1985	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
response	O
to	O
IBM	O
's	O
launch	O
of	O
their	O
PS/2	B-Device
line	O
,	O
Olivetti	B-Operating_System
revamped	O
their	O
product	O
line	O
in	O
July	O
1987	O
to	O
include	O
3.5	B-Device
"	I-Device
floppy	B-Device
drives	I-Device
(	O
in	O
5.25-to-3.5	O
"	O
converted	O
bays	O
though	O
)	O
and	O
also	O
introduced	O
new	O
80386-based	O
products	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
M24	O
(	O
and	O
M24	O
SP	O
)	O
were	O
succeeded	O
by	O
the	O
M240	O
(	O
8086	B-General_Concept
at	O
10MHz	O
,	O
which	O
AT&T	O
marketed	O
in	O
the	O
USA	O
as	O
the	O
6300	O
WGS	O
)	O
while	O
the	O
M28	B-Device
(	O
and	O
M28	B-Device
SP	O
)	O
was	O
succeeded	O
by	O
the	O
M280	O
(	O
80286	B-General_Concept
at	O
12MHz	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Olivetti	B-Operating_System
also	O
introduced	O
an	O
M380	O
series	O
(	O
both	O
tower	O
and	O
desktop	O
)	O
using	O
the	O
80386	B-General_Concept
processor	O
.	O
</s>
