The Mark-8 is a

microcomputer A microcomputer is a small, relatively inexpensive computer having a central processing unit (CPU) made out of a microprocessor. The computer also includes memory and input/output (I/O) circuitry together mounted on a printed circuit board (P ...

design from 1974, based on the Intel 8008 CPU (which was the world's first

8-bit In computer architecture, 8-bit integers or other data units are those that are 8 bits wide (1 octet). Also, 8-bit central processing unit (CPU) and arithmetic logic unit (ALU) architectures are those that are based on registers or data bu ...

microprocessor). The Mark-8 was designed by Jonathan Titus, a

Virginia Tech The Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, commonly referred to as Virginia Tech (VT), is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia, United States ...

graduate student in chemistry. After building the machine, Titus decided to share its design with the community and reached out to ''

Radio-Electronics ''Radio-Electronics'' was an American electronics magazine that was published under various titles from 1929 to 2003. Hugo Gernsback, sometimes called the father of science fiction, started it as ''Radio-Craft'' in July 1929. The title was change ...

'' and ''

Popular Electronics ''Popular Electronics'' was an American magazine published by John August Media, LLC, and hosted at TechnicaCuriosa.com. The magazine was started by Ziff-Davis Publishing Company in October 1954 for electronics hobbyists and experimenters. It so ...

''. He was turned down by ''Popular Electronics'', but ''Radio-Electronics'' was interested and announced the Mark-8 as a 'loose kit' in the July 1974 issue of ''Radio-Electronics'' magazine.Radio-Electronics; July 1974 issue.
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Project kit

The Mark-8 was introduced as a 'build it yourself' project in ''Radio-Electronicss July 1974 cover article, offering a US$5 () booklet containing

circuit board A printed circuit board (PCB), also called printed wiring board (PWB), is a laminated sandwich structure of conductive and insulating layers, each with a pattern of traces, planes and other features (similar to wires on a flat surface) ...

layouts and DIY construction project descriptions, with Titus himself arranging for US$50 () circuit board sets to be made by a

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

company for delivery to hobbyists. Prospective Mark-8 builders had to gather the various electronics parts themselves from various sources. A couple of thousand booklets and some one hundred circuit board sets were eventually sold. The Mark-8 was introduced in Radio-Electronics as "Your Personal

Minicomputer A minicomputer, or colloquially mini, is a type of general-purpose computer mostly developed from the mid-1960s, built significantly smaller and sold at a much lower price than mainframe computers . By 21st century-standards however, a mini is ...

" as the word 'microcomputer' was still far from being commonly used for microprocessor-based computers. In their announcement of their computer kit, the editors placed the Mark-8 in the same category as the era's other 'minisize' computers. As quoted by an Intel official publication: "The Mark-8 is known as one of the first computers for the home."

Influences

Although not very successful commercially, the Mark-8 prompted the editors of ''

'' magazine to consider publishing a similar but more easily accessible microcomputer project, and just six months later, in January 1975, they went through with their plans announcing the

Altair 8800 The Altair 8800 is a microcomputer introduced in 1974 by Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems (MITS) based on the Intel 8080 CPU. It was the first commercially successful personal computer. Interest in the Altair 8800 grew quickly after i ...

. According to a 1998 Virginia Tech University article, Titus' Mark-8 microcomputer now resides in the Smithsonian Institution's "Information Age" display

References

{{Reflist

External links

Mark-8 Minicomputer
– an original Mark-8, restored to working condition
A Mark-8 Experience
– Terry Ritter's detailed memoir of building and running a Mark-8 in 1974.
Collection of old analog and digital computers at www.oldcomputermuseum.com

Jonathan A. Titus, Microcomputer Pioneer

Titus and the Mark-8, Bit-by-Bit, a Haverford College Publication
Early microcomputers 8-bit computers Computer-related introductions in 1974

Project kit

Influences

See also

References

External links