Coin Slot Magazine - #V8N4 - 1982 - December [International Arcade Museum]
How big
is a
micro
computer?
by Rick Schlueter
This is the second in a series
available to the small business owner
ically changed on each copy. For in
of articles introducing the
microcomputer. In the first
because of the price. Now computers
are within the price range of every
stance, instead of a letter beginning
with 'Dear Sir,' it would begin with
business. Even a minicomputer is a
sizeable investment for a business.
Also, the increasing availability of
productivity software (programs)
has influenced the use of the micro's
Productivity software comes in three
categories. Word processing, fi
nancial modeling, and data base
management. To help you see how
a micro could help your business, I
want to describe in some detail
each of these processes. After all,
the increase in productivity is what
we are after in the use of computera
I am writing this article using an
IBM Personal Computerand a word
'Dear Bob' or'Dear Mike' where the
'Bob' and 'Mike' were retrieved from
article we examined the major ele
ments of a computer. These are in
put devices, the processor (some
times called the Central Processing
Unit or C.P.U.), and output devices.
This month I want to explain the dif
ferences between micro's, mini's
(minicomputers), and mainframes.
The main difference is power. In
computers,
power
translates
to
memory size and speed. A micro
computer is a system for one user
to do one job at a time. A minicom
puter can have several terminals
(one for each user), simultaneously
running a program for each. Since
the mini has more memory than a
processing program called Word
micro, a separate section of memory
can be dedicated to each user. And
because of the higher speed proces
Star. Since the IBM has a detachable
keyboard, I am stretched back in
my recliner chair with the keyboard
sor there is no noticeable loss of
in my lap and the display screen off
a file of names and substituted auto
matically in each copy. The size of
the document can range from a few
paragraphs to a complete book. Of
course, in the case of the book,
each chapter would be created and
edited separately for a number of
'canned' paragraphs stored on disk
so they can be called into a docu
ment in the appropriate places with
out re-entry. This saves an enormous
amount of time and eliminates the
possibility of costly errors in wording.
I will be covering electronic mail
and telecommunications in a later
article, but for now suffice it to say
that after a document has been
created in a computer, it can be
speed to the user. The mainframe
to my right. A word processing pro
sent through the telephone lines to
any other computer in the world
computer has another increase in
gram replaces a typewriter. How
where it can be viewed on the screen
memory and speed. This allows liter
ally hundreds of terminals all hooked
to the same C.P. U. (Central Proces
sing Unit). Of course, the ranges of
power translate to ranges of prices.
Microcomputers range in price from
$200 to $20,000. Mini's range from
$15,000 to $100,000. Mainframes
are $100,000 and up. These prices
are only approximate and vary from
brand to brand.
Now let's look at some reasons
for the increasing popularity of micro's
Prior to the introduction of the micro,
ever, since the document is created
and edited all on the screen before
the power of a computer was un-
the appropriate words are automat
ever being printed, the text is never
printed until all corrections have
and delivery is immediate.
been made. Also, the computer will
check the spelling, punctuation, and
grammar
com before the text is sent to
.
m
:
u printer. The document can be
from -muse the
d
saved
on disk and retrieved at a
e
oad .arcade
l
later date for further editing or re
n
printing. If the document is to be a
Dow //www
:
form
letter, it can be merged with a
p
htt
mailing list. The same document is
12
© The International Arcade Museum
or printed out. The transmission
time is so small that it can be cheaper
to send the letter by electronic mail
printed out for each recipient but
ow
let's look at financial
modeling. The program that
started ail the fuss in this
area is Visicalc It is marketed by a
company that used to be called
Personal Software, but due to the
popularity of Visicalc, was renamed
Visicorp. This type of program is
also called a spreadsheet simulator.
It creates a work area on the screen
where the same information that
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