<s>
Shepardson	B-Device
Microsystems	I-Device
,	O
Inc	O
.	O
(	O
SMI	O
)	O
was	O
a	O
small	O
company	O
producing	O
operating	B-General_Concept
systems	I-General_Concept
and	O
programming	O
languages	O
for	O
CP/M	B-Application
,	O
the	O
Atari	B-Device
8-bit	I-Device
family	I-Device
and	O
Apple	B-Device
II	I-Device
computers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
SMI	O
is	O
most	O
noted	O
for	O
the	O
original	O
Apple	B-Device
II	I-Device
disk	B-Operating_System
operating	I-Operating_System
system	I-Operating_System
,	O
Atari	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
,	O
and	O
Atari	O
's	O
disk	B-Operating_System
operating	I-Operating_System
system	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Shepardson	B-Device
Microsystems	I-Device
was	O
founded	O
by	O
Robert	O
Shepardson	O
in	O
Saratoga	O
Springs	O
,	O
New	O
York	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
company	O
got	O
its	O
start	O
in	O
the	O
microcomputer	O
arena	O
by	O
producing	O
a	O
series	O
of	O
BASIC	B-Language
programming	I-Language
language	I-Language
interpreters	O
for	O
the	O
burgeoning	O
S-100	B-Architecture
bus	I-Architecture
computer	O
market	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Their	O
first	O
product	O
was	O
Cromemco	O
16k	O
BASIC	O
,	O
which	O
,	O
as	O
the	O
name	O
implies	O
,	O
was	O
intended	O
to	O
run	O
on	O
Cromemco	O
Z-series	O
Z80-based	O
computers	O
with	O
16kB	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
machines	O
shipped	O
with	O
ever-increasing	O
amounts	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
,	O
due	O
largely	O
to	O
the	O
replacement	O
of	O
SRAM	B-Architecture
with	O
the	O
much	O
denser	O
DRAM	O
in	O
the	O
mid-1970s	O
,	O
SMI	O
further	O
expanded	O
their	O
version	O
as	O
the	O
26kB	O
Cromemco	O
Structured	O
BASIC	O
,	O
while	O
a	O
cut-down	O
12kB	O
version	O
was	O
released	O
as	O
CP/A	O
Business	O
BASIC	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
the	O
time	O
they	O
were	O
written	O
,	O
Microsoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
was	O
widespread	O
but	O
not	O
as	O
universal	O
as	O
it	O
would	O
be	O
by	O
the	O
early	O
1980s	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
SMI	O
's	O
BASICs	O
were	O
based	O
on	O
the	O
concepts	O
and	O
syntax	O
of	O
Data	B-Language
General	I-Language
Business	I-Language
Basic	I-Language
(	O
which	O
was	O
very	O
similar	O
to	O
HP	B-Language
Time-Shared	I-Language
BASIC	I-Language
)	O
,	O
as	O
opposed	O
to	O
Digital	O
's	O
BASIC-PLUS	B-Language
that	O
formed	O
the	O
basis	O
for	O
MS	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
April	O
10	O
,	O
1978	O
,	O
Shepardson	B-Device
Microsystems	I-Device
signed	O
a	O
contract	O
with	O
Apple	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
up	O
front	O
,	O
and	O
on	O
delivery	O
,	O
and	O
no	O
additional	O
royalties	O
Shepardson	B-Device
Microsystems	I-Device
would	O
build	O
Apple	O
's	O
first	O
DOS	B-Operating_System
and	O
hand	O
it	O
over	O
just	O
35	O
days	O
later	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
its	O
money	O
,	O
Apple	O
would	O
get	O
a	O
file	B-Application
manager	I-Application
,	O
an	O
interface	O
for	O
Integer	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
and	O
Applesoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
,	O
and	O
utilities	O
that	O
would	O
allow	O
disk	O
backup	O
,	O
disk	O
recovery	O
,	O
and	O
file	O
copying	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Apple	O
provided	O
detailed	O
specifications	O
,	O
and	O
early	O
Apple	O
employee	O
Randy	O
Wigginton	O
worked	O
closely	O
with	O
Shepardson	O
's	O
Paul	O
Laughton	O
as	O
the	O
latter	O
wrote	O
the	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
with	O
punched	B-Architecture
cards	I-Architecture
and	O
a	O
minicomputer	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
Atari	O
,	O
Inc	O
.	O
planned	O
to	O
follow	O
up	O
its	O
successful	O
Atari	B-General_Concept
VCS	I-General_Concept
console	O
with	O
a	O
more	O
powerful	O
home	O
computer	O
(	O
the	O
Atari	B-Device
400	I-Device
and	I-Device
800	I-Device
)	O
,	O
to	O
be	O
introduced	O
at	O
the	O
January	O
1979	O
Consumer	O
Electronics	O
Show	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
version	O
of	O
Microsoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
for	O
the	O
MOS	B-General_Concept
6502	I-General_Concept
had	O
been	O
licensed	O
for	O
this	O
purpose	O
,	O
but	O
the	O
task	O
of	O
retrofitting	O
the	O
code	O
into	O
an	O
8k	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
proved	O
too	O
difficult	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Atari	O
turned	O
to	O
Shepardson	B-Device
Microsystems	I-Device
to	O
help	O
with	O
the	O
port	O
,	O
but	O
after	O
struggling	O
with	O
it	O
themselves	O
,	O
they	O
proposed	O
developing	O
a	O
new	O
BASIC	O
instead	O
of	O
using	O
Microsoft	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
Atari	O
contracted	O
with	O
SMI	O
not	O
only	O
for	O
Atari	B-Language
BASIC	I-Language
,	O
but	O
the	O
Atari	B-Operating_System
Disk	I-Operating_System
Operating	I-Operating_System
System	I-Operating_System
as	O
well	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
early	O
1981	O
,	O
SMI	O
concluded	O
that	O
their	O
BASIC	O
and	O
DOS	B-Operating_System
products	O
were	O
not	O
viable	O
and	O
permitted	O
them	O
,	O
along	O
with	O
the	O
Atari	B-Application
Assembler	I-Application
Editor	I-Application
,	O
to	O
be	O
purchased	O
by	O
Bill	O
Wilkinson	O
and	O
Mike	O
Peters	O
,	O
who	O
formed	O
Optimized	B-Operating_System
Systems	I-Operating_System
Software	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
