Quote:
Originally Posted by **********
Yes that's exactly right!
When I was about 18 or 19, one of my first jobs was teaching computers at this little office that someone had set up. They had 6 TRS-80 Model 3's. The "Network Controller" from Radio Shack worked just as you described, by Cassette port.
My friend and I convinced the owner to let us build one for him because these things were too expensive (About $1400 I think). So what we did was connect the output of the Teaching computer to a simple audio amp (5 watts maybe, I don't remember), and sent the output of the amp to the input of each TRS-80 via audio cable, and it worked! The students typed CLOAD while the teacher typed CSAVE, and voila! |
Haha, should have known there was an overpriced product to provide this networking service, rather than a cool hack thought of by some employee. Tandy Electronics was always the dumbed down and expensive store, selling a mix of gadgets, and low level electronic components, but even the small components were always packaged in a pretty plastic and cardboard display box. The packaging for a couple of resistors probably cost more than the actual product, and took up a hell of a lot more space. At another hobbyist store you just popped open a small drawer and took as many as you needed to the counter.
The TRS-80 was pretty cool, though. But expensive.