<s>
The	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
Family	I-Device
Computer	I-Device
(	O
model	O
101	O
)	O
is	O
an	O
8-bit	O
home	O
computer	O
manufactured	O
by	O
Umtech	O
Incorporated	O
,	O
starting	O
in	O
1977	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
based	O
on	O
the	O
Fairchild	O
Semiconductor	O
F8	B-General_Concept
CPU	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
of	O
its	O
lack	O
of	O
success	O
has	O
been	O
attributed	O
to	O
the	O
decision	O
to	O
substitute	O
the	O
APL/S	B-Language
programming	O
language	O
over	O
the	O
then-standard	O
BASIC	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Due	O
to	O
the	O
high	O
cost	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
memory	I-Architecture
,	O
it	O
only	O
contained	O
1	O
KB	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
had	O
a	O
full-travel	O
keyboard	B-Device
,	O
unlike	O
some	O
early	O
home	O
computers	O
that	O
featured	O
membrane	O
keypads	O
(	O
and	O
earlier	O
kit	O
machines	O
that	O
used	O
switches	O
)	O
,	O
but	O
with	O
a	O
very	O
non-standard	O
layout	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
Family	I-Device
Computer	I-Device
was	O
designed	O
and	O
produced	O
by	O
Umtech	O
Inc.	O
,	O
doing	O
business	O
as	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
Computer	I-Device
Company	O
of	O
California	O
in	O
1977	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
New	O
software	O
for	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
was	O
available	O
on	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
,	O
which	O
was	O
a	O
first	O
for	O
home	O
computer	O
systems	O
(	O
Later	O
price	O
reductions	O
brought	O
costs	O
down	O
to	O
$300	O
for	O
the	O
computer	O
by	O
itself	O
,	O
and	O
$350	O
–	O
900	O
for	O
the	O
packaged	O
deals	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Available	O
software	O
ranged	O
in	O
price	O
from	O
$20	O
to	O
$40	O
for	O
video	O
games	O
and	O
educational	B-Application
software	I-Application
,	O
and	O
$70	O
to	O
$150	O
for	O
productivity	O
tools	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
Family	I-Device
Computer	I-Device
was	O
built	O
around	O
the	O
F8	B-General_Concept
processor	B-General_Concept
from	O
Fairchild	O
Semiconductor	O
,	O
and	O
featured	O
1KB	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
and	O
a	O
4KB	O
ROM	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
able	O
to	O
output	O
384	O
x	O
336	O
graphics	O
and	O
128	O
x	O
56	O
semigraphic	B-Data_Structure
characters	O
in	O
16	O
colors	O
,	O
(	O
based	O
on	O
UV-201	O
and	O
UV-202	O
proprietary	O
chips	O
)	O
and	O
sound	O
to	O
a	O
connected	O
television	O
set	O
through	O
an	O
RF	B-Protocol
connector	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
far	O
its	O
most	O
striking	O
feature	O
was	O
the	O
36-key	O
keyboard	B-Device
-	O
though	O
the	O
keyboard	B-Device
of	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
was	O
poorly	O
designed	O
and	O
difficult	O
to	O
use	O
,	O
keyboards	B-Device
were	O
not	O
available	O
on	O
any	O
of	O
the	O
more	O
common	O
video	B-Application
game	I-Application
consoles	I-Application
of	I-Application
the	I-Application
time	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
popular	O
kit-based	O
computers	O
also	O
typically	O
lacked	O
a	O
keyboard	B-Device
,	O
opting	O
for	O
toggle	O
switches	O
instead	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
system	O
also	O
features	O
four	O
joystick	B-Device
ports	O
,	O
a	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
connector	O
,	O
and	O
an	O
expansion	O
port	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
system	O
included	O
four	O
built-in	O
software	O
titles	O
,	O
available	O
if	O
the	O
unit	O
is	O
powered	O
on	O
without	O
a	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
inserted	O
-	O
a	O
simple	O
text	B-Application
editor	I-Application
,	O
a	O
clock	O
,	O
a	O
countdown	O
timer	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
Color	O
Bar	O
generator	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Two	O
additional	O
hardware	B-Architecture
modules	O
were	O
marketed	O
that	O
would	O
extend	O
the	O
capabilities	O
of	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Expander	O
1	O
was	O
an	O
interface	O
to	O
various	O
I/O	B-General_Concept
devices	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
allowed	O
users	O
to	O
connect	O
a	O
cassette	B-Device
tape	I-Device
recorder	I-Device
for	O
saving	O
or	O
loading	O
data	O
,	O
and	O
included	O
two	O
RS-232	O
ports	O
for	O
attaching	O
a	O
printer	O
and	O
the	O
Expander	O
2	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Expander	O
2	O
was	O
a	O
300	O
baud	O
acoustic	B-Device
modem	B-Application
used	O
by	O
a	O
single	O
program	O
(	O
Timeshare	O
)	O
that	O
allowed	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
to	O
act	O
as	O
a	O
terminal	B-General_Concept
when	O
dialed	O
into	O
a	O
compatible	O
mainframe	B-Architecture
computer	I-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
Additional	O
software	O
was	O
sold	O
on	O
cartridges	B-Protocol
measuring	O
approximately	O
the	O
size	O
of	O
a	O
Betamax	O
tape	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
interface	O
was	O
unique	O
:	O
unlike	O
most	O
video	O
game	O
systems	O
,	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
cartridges	B-Protocol
had	O
an	O
exposed	O
strip	O
of	O
conductive	O
traces	O
that	O
simply	O
lie	O
flush	O
against	O
a	O
set	O
of	O
pins	O
on	O
the	O
computer	O
itself	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Cartridges	B-Protocol
could	O
contain	O
up	O
to	O
12KiB	O
of	O
data	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Patent	O
4232374	O
titled	O
"	O
Segment	O
Ordering	O
for	O
Television	O
Receiver	O
Control	O
Unit	O
"	O
describes	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
display	O
hardware	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
Because	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
computer	I-Device
was	O
discontinued	O
so	O
quickly	O
,	O
fewer	O
than	O
25	O
software	O
titles	O
were	O
ever	O
marketed	O
for	O
the	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
+	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
Family	I-Device
Computer	I-Device
titles	O
Title	O
Model	O
Description	O
Cite	O
APL/S	B-Language
:	O
The	O
Computational	O
Language	O
APL/S	B-Language
APL/S	B-Language
-	O
the	O
only	O
programming	O
language	O
available	O
for	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
gives	O
the	O
user	O
access	O
the	O
data	O
banks	O
of	O
other	O
computers	O
with	O
which	O
the	O
user	O
is	O
doing	O
business	O
,	O
in	O
effect	O
transforming	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
into	O
a	O
timeshare	O
terminal	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Music	O
Teacher	O
1	O
ED01	O
This	O
program	O
converts	O
the	O
keyboard	B-Device
into	O
a	O
piano	O
keyboard	B-Device
,	O
teaching	O
users	O
how	O
to	O
sight-read	O
,	O
compose	O
,	O
and	O
play	O
music	O
in	O
a	O
4-octave	O
range	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Music	O
that	O
the	O
user	O
composes	O
can	O
be	O
played	O
back	O
via	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
using	O
the	O
television	O
's	O
speakers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Two	O
pre-encoded	O
songs	O
come	O
built-in	O
on	O
the	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
:	O
"	O
Happy	O
Birthday	O
"	O
and	O
"	O
Row	O
,	O
Row	O
,	O
Row	O
Your	O
Boat	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Wordwise	O
2	O
ED04	O
The	O
program	O
is	O
intended	O
to	O
familiarize	O
users	O
with	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
keyboard	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Users	O
are	O
subjected	O
to	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
touch-typing	O
exercises	O
and	O
are	O
presented	O
with	O
a	O
final	O
words	B-Device
per	I-Device
minute	I-Device
count	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
educational	O
word	O
game	O
is	O
also	O
available	O
on	O
the	O
same	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Lemonade	B-Application
Stand	I-Application
ED06	O
This	O
program	O
functions	O
as	O
an	O
educational	O
business	B-Application
simulation	I-Application
game	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Users	O
operate	O
a	O
virtual	O
lemonade	B-Application
stand	I-Application
where	O
decisions	O
like	O
how	O
much	O
lemonade	O
to	O
produce	O
,	O
how	O
much	O
to	O
charge	O
,	O
and	O
how	O
much	O
to	O
spend	O
on	O
advertising	O
must	O
be	O
weighed	O
against	O
a	O
variety	O
of	O
market	O
factors	O
including	O
market	O
competition	O
and	O
the	O
vagaries	O
of	O
the	O
weather	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Gladiator	O
EN01	O
This	O
video	B-Protocol
game	I-Protocol
cartridge	I-Protocol
provides	O
players	O
with	O
three	O
basic	O
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pinball	B-Application
EN02	O
This	O
video	B-Protocol
game	I-Protocol
cartridge	I-Protocol
simulates	O
a	O
pinball	B-Application
machine	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Using	O
two	O
joysticks	B-Device
(	O
one	O
for	O
each	O
flipper	O
)	O
,	O
players	O
take	O
turns	O
trying	O
to	O
score	O
as	O
many	O
points	O
as	O
possible	O
with	O
the	O
five	O
balls	O
they	O
start	O
with	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Tennis	B-Device
EN03	O
This	O
video	B-Protocol
game	I-Protocol
cartridge	I-Protocol
simulates	O
the	O
game	O
of	O
Tennis	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Checkers	O
EN04	O
This	O
video	B-Protocol
game	I-Protocol
cartridge	I-Protocol
simulates	O
the	O
standard	O
game	O
of	O
Checkers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Blackjack	B-Application
EN05	O
This	O
video	B-Protocol
game	I-Protocol
cartridge	I-Protocol
simulates	O
the	O
standard	O
game	O
of	O
Blackjack	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Vice	O
Versa	O
EN06	O
This	O
video	B-Protocol
game	I-Protocol
cartridge	I-Protocol
simulates	O
the	O
game	O
of	O
Go	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Demonstration	O
ST01	O
This	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
was	O
intended	O
for	O
store	O
displays	O
as	O
a	O
way	O
to	O
show	O
off	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
's	O
capabilities	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Financier	O
VB-81	O
This	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
shipped	O
with	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
,	O
and	O
could	O
be	O
used	O
to	O
solve	O
financial	O
equations	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
functions	O
as	O
an	O
expanded	O
calculator	B-Application
with	O
twelve	O
built-in	O
formulae	O
for	O
calculating	O
such	O
things	O
as	O
mortgage	O
cost	O
,	O
accumulated	O
principal	O
and	O
interest	O
,	O
compound	O
interest	O
,	O
and	O
depreciation	O
among	O
others	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Money	O
Minder	O
(	O
Money	O
Manager	O
)	O
VB-1000	O
This	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
acts	O
as	O
personal	O
accounting	B-Application
software	I-Application
,	O
allowing	O
the	O
creation	O
of	O
detailed	O
personal	O
financial	O
information	O
that	O
could	O
be	O
saved	O
on	O
audiocassette	B-Device
tapes	O
via	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
's	O
Expander	O
1	O
port	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
largely	O
failed	O
to	O
achieve	O
commercial	O
viability	O
for	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
reasons	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Poor	O
design	O
decisions	O
hindered	O
user	O
acceptance	O
;	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
's	O
confusing	O
and	O
user-unfriendly	B-General_Concept
keyboard	B-Device
made	O
even	O
simple	O
text	O
entry	O
a	O
tedious	O
process	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Moreover	O
,	O
the	O
computer	O
did	O
not	O
offer	O
the	O
then-popular	O
programming	O
language	O
BASIC	O
,	O
forcing	O
users	O
to	O
instead	O
adopt	O
APL/S	B-Language
-	O
a	O
far	O
more	O
obscure	O
and	O
difficult	O
programming	O
language	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Finally	O
,	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
software	O
library	O
had	O
trouble	O
reaching	O
a	O
key	O
audience	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Perhaps	O
the	O
largest	O
contributor	O
to	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
's	O
failure	O
was	O
simply	O
a	O
lack	O
of	O
proper	O
marketing	O
and	O
hardware	B-Architecture
availability	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Additionally	O
,	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
was	O
mainly	O
sold	O
through	O
mail-order	O
outfits	O
,	O
and	O
only	O
made	O
a	O
brief	O
retail	O
showing	O
at	O
Macy	O
's	O
Department	O
Stores	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
(	O
By	O
contrast	O
,	O
video	B-Device
game	I-Device
consoles	I-Device
at	O
the	O
time	O
were	O
easily	O
available	O
in	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
department	O
and	O
toy	O
chains	O
,	O
allowing	O
them	O
to	O
far	O
outsell	O
the	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
Computer	I-Device
System	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Yu	O
also	O
said	O
Grove	O
was	O
skeptical	O
about	O
the	O
Apple	B-Device
II	I-Device
as	O
well	O
but	O
Yu	O
felt	O
that	O
the	O
Apple	O
was	O
successful	O
because	O
it	O
targeted	O
a	O
market	O
(	O
computer	O
enthusiasts	O
)	O
that	O
was	O
easier	O
to	O
sell	O
to	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
an	O
open	O
system	O
,	O
with	O
many	O
expansion	O
slots	O
and	O
fully	O
documented	O
software	O
and	O
hardware	B-Architecture
–	O
to	O
target	O
the	O
enthusiast	O
community	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
it	O
lacked	O
lowercase	O
,	O
its	O
keyboard	B-Device
was	O
both	O
full-travel	O
and	O
of	O
a	O
normal	O
layout	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
VideoBrain	B-Device
,	O
by	O
contrast	O
,	O
was	O
a	O
much	O
more	O
closed	O
design	O
targeting	O
home	O
users	O
with	O
more	O
simplicity	O
and	O
low	O
cost	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Even	O
the	O
keyboard	B-Device
was	O
simplified	O
,	O
in	O
terms	O
of	O
the	O
number	O
of	O
keys	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Apple	O
created	O
closed	O
systems	O
designed	O
around	O
simplicity	O
later	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
original	O
Macintosh	O
(	O
which	O
eschewed	O
slots	O
,	O
hard	O
disk	O
support	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
numeric	O
keypad	O
)	O
and	O
the	O
much	O
later	O
iMac	B-Device
(	O
which	O
eschewed	O
slots	O
and	O
the	O
floppy	O
disk	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
