<s>
Oric	B-Device
was	O
the	O
name	O
used	O
by	O
UK-based	O
Tangerine	O
Computer	O
Systems	O
for	O
a	O
series	O
of	O
6502-based	O
home	O
computers	O
sold	O
in	O
the	O
1980s	O
,	O
primarily	O
in	O
Europe	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
the	O
success	O
of	O
the	O
ZX	B-Operating_System
Spectrum	I-Operating_System
from	O
Sinclair	O
Research	O
,	O
Tangerine	O
's	O
backers	O
suggested	O
a	O
home	O
computer	O
and	O
Tangerine	O
formed	O
Oric	B-Device
Products	I-Device
International	I-Device
Ltd	O
to	O
develop	O
the	O
Oric-1	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
During	O
1983	O
,	O
approximately	O
160,000	O
Oric-1	O
computers	O
were	O
sold	O
in	O
the	O
UK	O
,	O
plus	O
another	O
50,000	O
in	O
France	O
(	O
where	O
it	O
was	O
the	O
year	O
's	O
top-selling	O
machine	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
resulted	O
in	O
Oric	B-Device
being	O
acquired	O
and	O
given	O
funding	O
for	O
a	O
successor	O
model	O
,	O
the	O
1984	O
Oric	B-Device
Atmos	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Oric	B-Device
was	O
bought	O
by	O
Eureka	O
,	O
which	O
produced	O
the	O
less	O
successful	O
Oric	B-Device
Telestrat	O
(	O
1986	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Oric	B-Device
was	O
dissolved	O
the	O
year	O
the	O
Telestrat	O
was	O
released	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Eastern	O
European	O
legal	O
clones	O
of	O
Oric	B-Device
machines	O
were	O
produced	O
into	O
the	O
1990s	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Based	O
on	O
a	O
1MHz	O
MOS	B-General_Concept
Technology	I-General_Concept
6502	I-General_Concept
CPU	B-General_Concept
,	O
the	O
Oric-1	O
came	O
in	O
16KB	O
or	O
48KB	O
RAM	B-Architecture
variants	O
for	O
£129	O
and	O
£169	O
respectively	O
,	O
matching	O
the	O
models	O
available	O
for	O
the	O
popular	O
ZX	B-Operating_System
Spectrum	I-Operating_System
and	O
undercutting	O
the	O
price	O
of	O
the	O
48KB	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
Spectrum	O
by	O
a	O
few	O
pounds	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
circuit	O
design	O
requires	O
8	O
memory	O
chips	O
,	O
one	O
chip	O
per	O
data	O
line	O
of	O
the	O
CPU	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
released	O
only	O
48KB	O
is	O
available	O
to	O
the	O
user	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
top	O
16KB	O
of	O
memory	O
overlaid	O
by	O
the	O
BASIC	O
ROM	B-Device
;	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
optional	O
disc	O
drive	O
unit	O
contains	O
some	O
additional	O
hardware	O
that	O
allows	O
it	O
to	O
enable	O
or	O
disable	O
the	O
ROM	B-Device
,	O
effectively	O
adding	O
16KB	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
to	O
the	O
machine	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
additional	O
memory	O
is	O
used	O
by	O
the	O
system	O
to	O
store	O
the	O
Oric	B-Device
DOS	B-Operating_System
software	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Both	O
Oric-1	O
versions	O
have	O
a	O
16KB	O
ROM	B-Device
containing	O
the	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
and	O
a	O
modified	O
BASIC	O
interpreter	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Oric-1	O
has	O
a	O
sound	O
chip	O
,	O
the	O
programmable	O
General	B-Device
Instrument	I-Device
AY-3-8910	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Like	O
the	O
Spectrum	O
,	O
the	O
Oric-1	O
suffers	O
from	O
attribute	B-Algorithm
clash	I-Algorithm
–	O
albeit	O
to	O
a	O
much	O
lesser	O
degree	O
in	O
HIRES	O
mode	O
,	O
since	O
2	O
different	O
colours	O
can	O
be	O
defined	O
for	O
each	O
6x1	O
block	O
of	O
6	O
pixels	B-Algorithm
,	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
standard	O
audio	B-Device
tape	I-Device
recorder	O
can	O
be	O
used	O
for	O
external	O
storage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
late	O
1983	O
the	O
funding	O
cost	O
for	O
continued	O
development	O
of	O
Oric	B-Device
caused	O
external	O
funding	O
to	O
be	O
sought	O
,	O
and	O
eventually	O
led	O
to	O
a	O
sale	O
to	O
Edenspring	O
Investments	O
PLC	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Edenspring	O
money	O
enabled	O
Oric	B-Device
International	O
to	O
release	O
the	O
Oric	B-Device
Atmos	O
,	O
which	O
added	O
an	O
improved	O
keyboard	O
and	O
an	O
updated	O
V1.1	O
ROM	B-Device
to	O
the	O
Oric-1	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
faulty	O
tape	O
error	B-Error_Name
checking	I-Error_Name
routine	O
was	O
still	O
there	O
(	O
See	O
"	O
Cassette	O
Interface	O
"	O
under	O
Technical	O
specification	O
,	O
below	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Soon	O
after	O
the	O
Atmos	O
was	O
released	O
,	O
the	O
modem	B-Application
,	O
printer	O
and	O
3-inch	O
floppy	B-Device
disk	I-Device
drive	I-Device
originally	O
promised	O
for	O
the	O
Oric-1	O
were	O
announced	O
and	O
released	O
by	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
1984	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
short	O
time	O
after	O
the	O
release	O
of	O
the	O
Atmos	O
machine	O
,	O
a	O
modification	O
for	O
the	O
Oric-1	O
was	O
issued	O
and	O
advertised	O
in	O
magazines	O
and	O
bulletin	O
boards	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
modification	O
enabled	O
the	O
Oric-1	O
user	O
to	O
add	O
a	O
second	O
ROM	B-Device
(	O
containing	O
the	O
Oric	B-Device
Atmos	O
system	O
)	O
to	O
a	O
spare	O
ROM-socket	O
on	O
the	O
Oric-1	O
circuit	O
board	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Then	O
,	O
using	O
a	O
switch	O
,	O
the	O
users	O
could	O
then	O
switch	O
between	O
the	O
new	O
Oric	B-Device
Atmos	O
ROM	B-Device
and	O
the	O
original	O
Oric-1	O
ROM	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
was	O
desirable	O
since	O
the	O
updated	O
ROM	B-Device
of	O
the	O
Atmos	O
contained	O
breaking	O
changes	O
for	O
some	O
games	O
which	O
relied	O
on	O
certain	O
behaviours	O
or	O
memory	O
addresses	O
within	O
the	O
ROM	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
led	O
to	O
tape	O
based	O
software	O
often	O
containing	O
a	O
1.1	O
ROM/Atmos	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
software	O
on	O
one	O
side	O
of	O
the	O
cassette	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
1.0	O
ROM/Oric	O
-1	O
version	O
on	O
the	O
other	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Earlier	O
titles	O
from	O
publishers	O
that	O
no	O
longer	O
existed	O
or	O
had	O
stopped	O
producing	O
software	O
for	O
the	O
Oric	B-Device
were	O
unlikely	O
to	O
be	O
updated	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
the	O
Oric	B-Device
Atmos	O
had	O
not	O
turned	O
around	O
Oric	B-Device
International	O
's	O
fortunes	O
,	O
in	O
February	O
1985	O
,	O
they	O
announced	O
several	O
models	O
including	O
the	O
Oric	B-Device
Stratos/IQ164	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Despite	O
their	O
backers	O
putting	O
them	O
into	O
receivership	O
the	O
following	O
day	O
,	O
Oric	B-Device
was	O
bought	O
by	O
French	O
company	O
Eureka	O
,	O
which	O
continued	O
to	O
produce	O
the	O
Stratos	O
,	O
followed	O
by	O
the	O
Oric	B-Device
Telestrat	O
in	O
late	O
1986	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Stratos	O
and	O
Telestrat	O
increased	O
the	O
RAM	B-Architecture
to	O
64	O
KB	O
and	O
added	O
more	O
ports	O
,	O
but	O
kept	O
the	O
same	O
processor	O
and	O
graphics	O
and	O
sound	O
hardware	O
as	O
the	O
Oric-1	O
and	O
Atmos	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
machine	O
is	O
backward	O
compatible	O
with	O
the	O
Oric-1	O
and	O
Oric	B-Device
Atmos	O
by	O
using	O
a	O
cartridge	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
December	O
1987	O
,	O
after	O
announcing	O
the	O
Telestrat	O
2	O
,	O
Oric	B-Device
International	O
went	O
into	O
receivership	O
for	O
the	O
second	O
and	O
final	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
display	O
adapter	O
will	O
drive	O
a	O
PAL	B-Language
UHF	O
colour	O
or	O
black	O
and	O
white	O
television	O
receiver	O
on	O
approximately	O
Channel	O
36	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
character	O
mode	O
the	O
Oric	B-Device
displays	O
28	O
lines	O
of	O
40	O
characters	O
,	O
producing	O
a	O
display	O
very	O
similar	O
to	O
Teletext	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
character	O
set	O
is	O
standard	O
ASCII	B-Protocol
which	O
is	O
enhanced	O
by	O
the	O
addition	O
of	O
80	O
user-definable	O
characters	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
ASCII	B-Protocol
characters	I-Protocol
may	O
also	O
be	O
re-defined	O
as	O
these	O
are	O
down	O
loaded	O
into	O
RAM	B-Architecture
on	O
power-up	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
feature	O
is	O
used	O
to	O
produce	O
Teletext-style	O
colour	O
graphics	O
without	O
the	O
need	O
for	O
additional	O
RAM	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
graphics	O
mode	O
consists	O
of	O
200	O
pixels	B-Algorithm
vertically	O
by	O
240	O
pixels	B-Algorithm
horizontally	O
plus	O
3	O
lines	O
of	O
40	O
characters	O
(	O
the	O
same	O
as	O
character	O
mode	O
)	O
at	O
the	O
bottom	O
of	O
the	O
screen	O
to	O
display	O
system	O
information	O
and	O
to	O
act	O
as	O
a	O
window	O
on	O
the	O
user	O
program	O
while	O
still	O
viewing	O
the	O
graphics	O
display	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
ASCII	B-Protocol
characters	I-Protocol
may	O
be	O
painted	O
over	O
the	O
graphics	O
area	O
,	O
thus	O
enabling	O
the	O
free	O
mixing	O
of	O
graphics	O
and	O
text	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Oric	B-Device
has	O
an	O
internal	O
loudspeaker	O
and	O
amplifier	O
and	O
can	O
also	O
be	O
connected	O
to	O
external	O
amplifiers	O
via	O
the	O
7	O
Pin	O
DIN	O
45329	O
shared	O
with	O
the	O
cassette	O
interface	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
General	B-Device
Instruments	I-Device
AY-3-8912	I-Device
provides	O
3	O
channel	O
sound	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
tone	O
leader	O
allows	O
tape	O
recorders	O
 '	O
automatic	O
level	O
control	O
to	O
stabilise	O
before	O
the	O
filename	O
,	O
followed	O
by	O
the	O
actual	O
data	O
with	O
parity	B-Error_Name
;	O
finally	O
,	O
checksums	B-Algorithm
are	O
recorded	O
to	O
allow	O
overall	O
verification	O
of	O
the	O
recording	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
was	O
however	O
a	O
bug	O
within	O
the	O
error-checking	O
of	O
recorded	O
programs	O
,	O
often	O
causing	O
user-created	O
programs	O
to	O
fail	O
when	O
loaded	O
back	O
in	O
,	O
this	O
bug	O
persist	O
in	O
the	O
updated	O
ROMs	O
for	O
the	O
Oric	B-Device
Atmos	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Available	O
basic	O
commands	O
are	O
CLOAD	O
,	O
CSAVE	O
(	O
for	O
programs	O
and	O
memory	O
dumps	O
)	O
,	O
STORE	O
,	O
RECALL	O
(	O
for	O
arrays	O
of	O
string	O
,	O
integer	O
or	O
real	O
,	O
added	O
with	O
Oric	B-Device
Atmos	O
roms	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
expansion	O
port	O
allows	O
full	O
access	O
to	O
the	O
CPU	B-General_Concept
's	O
data	O
address	O
and	O
control	O
lines	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
allows	O
connection	O
of	O
add-ons	O
specifically	O
designed	O
for	O
the	O
Oric	B-Device
,	O
including	O
user	O
designed	O
hardware	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
range	O
of	O
lines	O
exposed	O
allows	O
external	O
ROM	B-Device
and	O
RAM	B-Architecture
expansion	O
,	O
thus	O
allowing	O
for	O
ROM	B-Device
cartridges	O
or	O
for	O
expansion	O
devices	O
to	O
internally	O
include	O
the	O
required	O
operating	O
software	O
on	O
ROM	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
low-resolution	O
thermal	O
printers	O
)	O
to	O
high	O
quality	O
printers	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
fixed	O
font	O
daisy	O
wheel	O
printers	O
or	O
laser	O
printers	O
,	O
though	O
the	O
latter	O
were	O
uncommon	O
and	O
expensive	O
during	O
the	O
period	O
of	O
commercial	O
availability	O
of	O
the	O
Oric	B-Device
range	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
included	O
the	O
Atari	B-Device
1020	I-Device
,	O
the	O
Commodore	O
1520	O
,	O
the	O
Tandy/Radio	O
Shack	O
CGP-115	O
,	O
the	O
Texas	O
Instruments	O
HX-1000	O
,	O
the	O
Mattel	O
Aquarius	O
4615	O
,	O
and	O
probably	O
also	O
the	O
Sharp	O
MZ-1P16	O
(	O
for	O
MZ-800	O
series	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Prestel	B-General_Concept
adaptor	O
produced	O
by	O
Eureka	O
(	O
Informatika	O
)	O
was	O
the	O
first	O
adaptor	O
produced	O
for	O
the	O
Oric-1	O
and	O
Oric	B-Device
Atmos	O
computers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
clones	O
were	O
Atmos-based	O
,	O
the	O
only	O
difference	O
being	O
the	O
logo	O
indicating	O
ORIC	B-Device
NOVA	O
64	O
instead	O
of	O
Oric	B-Device
Atmos	O
48K	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
is	O
to	O
indicate	O
the	O
installed	O
64KB	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
–	O
which	O
was	O
also	O
true	O
of	O
the	O
Atmos	O
–	O
,	O
16KB	O
of	O
which	O
is	O
masked	O
in	O
both	O
by	O
the	O
ROM	B-Device
at	O
startup	O
,	O
leaving	O
48KB	O
to	O
work	O
with	O
the	O
BASIC	O
language	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
Bulgaria	O
,	O
the	O
Atmos	O
clone	O
was	O
named	O
Pravetz	B-Device
8D	I-Device
and	O
produced	O
between	O
1985	O
and	O
1991	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Pravetz	O
is	O
entirely	O
hardware	O
and	O
software	O
compatible	O
with	O
the	O
Oric	B-Device
Atmos	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
BASIC	O
ROM	B-Device
has	O
been	O
patched	O
to	O
host	O
both	O
a	O
Western	O
European	O
and	O
Cyrillic	O
alphabet	O
the	O
upper	O
case	O
character	O
set	O
produces	O
Western	O
European	O
characters	O
,	O
while	O
lower	O
case	O
gives	O
Cyrillic	O
letters	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
order	O
to	O
ease	O
the	O
use	O
of	O
the	O
two	O
alphabets	O
,	O
the	O
Pravetz	B-Device
8D	I-Device
is	O
fitted	O
with	O
a	O
Caps	B-Device
Lock	I-Device
key	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
Disk	B-Device
II	I-Device
compatible	O
interface	O
and	O
a	O
custom	O
DOS	B-Operating_System
,	O
called	O
DOS-8D	O
,	O
were	O
created	O
in	O
1987	O
–	O
88	O
by	O
Borislav	O
Zahariev	O
.	O
</s>
