TRS-80 Model 4P: aka Sigrid

Named at random. The name Sigrid just popped into my head, despite my never having heard of her before.. I learned later that Sigrid was a medieval Swedish queen.

Specs:

CPU: Zilog Z-80A running at a brisk 4 MHz
RAM: 128K
OS: LS-DOS 6.5.3
Storage: Two SSDD 5-1/4" floppy drives
Expansion: external 56K modem
Display: Green monochrome, 80 x 24 lines

Every time I looked at a Radio Shack catalog in the mid-eighties, I always drooled over the TRS-80 line. Sure, I was an avid Coco user, but there was something about those big expensive machines... maybe because they were unattainable to a 12-year old with a meager allowance...

I finally bought one in early 2005. My first "real" TRS-80... a supposedly portable Model 4P.

Now that some of Sigrid's hardware bugs have been sorted out, I'm eager to use her as my main productivity machine. After all, the Model 4P was basically a scaled down and marginally lighter version of the standard TRS-80 Model 4, which itself was the flagship of Tandy's Z80-based line of business computers. Meant for the travelling professional, it was designed to ensure us travelling professionals were productive on the go while being compatible with the machines at the office (assuming the office had Model 4s).

Here you go again... How will things be better this time?

Well, shut up for a second and I'll tell you! Geez!

When I first heard that I'd be away on business for half of the Retrochallenge, I figured I may just take Sigrid with me. Why not? The 4P was designed for just such a thing! So, I made sure my stock of applications was ready, that I had a working spreadsheet, word processor, terminal program, etc.

Then, I thought about the airline.

Do I really want to be lugging Sigrid around with me? Will I make it past security without being flagged as a terrorist? (Honest! I'm part of this contest on the 'net, where we use old computers for a month and -what's that? No, I wouldn't mind going to the security office to answer a few questions!)

Ultimately, I decided "No" and opted to take Gibraltar with me instead.

Sigrid will again act as my productivity machine while I'm in town, and will likely be used to process/beautify any documents produced by Gibraltar when I return from my trip. She'll also act as my internet machine until Mira is up and running. I also have a couple of hardware related things to do as well, such as getting all 128K of RAM to show up for work consistently (still flutters between 64K and 96K), and possibly installing a 3-1/2" floppy drive as well.

CJ
05/25/08