The NDR Klein Computer, abbreviated NKC, was a

do-it-yourself "Do it yourself" ("DIY") is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things by oneself without the direct aid of professionals or certified experts. Academic research has described DIY as behaviors where "individuals use raw and se ...

computer project from the early 1980s developed by (RDK) and Joachim Arendt. In 1984, the computer was featured in the educational television series ''NDR-Klein-Computer'' for NDR-Schulfernsehen (NDR School Television). It was also broadcast on the computer television show ' on the Bavarian TV network Bayerisches Fernsehen (BFS).

History

The NDR Klein Computer was created by Rolf-Dieter Klein, a computer enthusiast who regularly contributed articles to the German computer magazine '' mc''. His plan was not only to give a basic introduction to the way a computer operates, but also to introduce a modular system through which

laymen In religious organizations, the laity () consists of all members who are not part of the clergy, usually including any non-ordained members of religious orders, e.g. a nun or a lay brother. In both religious and wider secular usage, a layperson ...

could learn to complete basic programming exercises, as well as acquire the skills to operate a high-end home computer. Under the direction of Joachim Arendt, they developed a television series that was picked up by

Norddeutscher Rundfunk Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR; ''Northern German Broadcasting'') is a public broadcasting, public radio and television broadcaster, based in Hamburg. In addition to the city-state of Hamburg, NDR broadcasts for the German states of Lower Saxony, M ...

(NDR) for its NDR-Schulfernsehen (NDR School Television) channel. The series, titled ''NDR-Klein-Computer'', consisted of twenty-six episodes of fifteen minutes each. Klein hosted the show and wrote articles in ''mc'' to supplement the series. He published a book on the same subject, titled: ''Microcomputer Selbstgebaut und Programmiert'' (DIY Microcomputer Building and Programming), through

Franzis Verlag The Franzis Verlag GmbH is a German publisher based in Haar, Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies b ...

, which also released the TV series on VHS. The computer's hardware was provided by Graf Elektronik System in

Kempten Kempten (, (Swabian German: )) is the largest town of Allgäu, in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany. The population was about 68,000 in 2016. The area was possibly settled originally by Celts, but was later taken over by the Romans, who called the town '' ...

, and sold at an electronics store in

Detmold Detmold () is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, with a population of . It was the capital of the small Principality of Lippe from 1468 until 1918 and then of the Free State of Lippe until 1947. Today it is the administrative center of t ...

. The company

Fischertechnik Fischertechnik is a brand of construction toy. It was invented by Artur Fischer and is produced by fischertechnik GmbH in Waldachtal, Germany. Fans often refer to Fischertechnik as "FT" or "ft". It is used in education for teaching about sim ...

also produced a robot kit, which was one of the most comprehensive

32-bit In computer architecture, 32-bit computing refers to computer systems with a processor, memory, and other major system components that operate on data in 32- bit units. Compared to smaller bit widths, 32-bit computers can perform large calcula ...

programming language A programming language is a system of notation for writing computer programs. Most programming languages are text-based formal languages, but they may also be graphical. They are a kind of computer language. The description of a programming l ...

applications at the time.

Features

The NKC was built with several different hardware configurations, from a simple 8-bit

single-board computer A single-board computer (SBC) is a complete computer built on a single circuit board, with microprocessor(s), memory, input/output (I/O) and other features required of a functional computer. Single-board computers are commonly made as demonstrat ...

based on a

Zilog Z80A The Z80 is an 8-bit microprocessor introduced by Zilog as the startup company's first product. The Z80 was conceived by Federico Faggin in late 1974 and developed by him and his 11 employees starting in early 1975. The first working samples we ...

processor to a 32-bit system equipped with a

Motorola 68020 The Motorola 68020 ("''sixty-eight-oh-twenty''", "''sixty-eight-oh-two-oh''" or "''six-eight-oh-two-oh''") is a 32-bit microprocessor from Motorola, released in 1984. A lower-cost version was also made available, known as the 68EC020. In keepin ...

CPU. The software could be loaded with

EPROM An EPROM (rarely EROM), or erasable programmable read-only memory, is a type of programmable read-only memory (PROM) chip that retains its data when its power supply is switched off. Computer memory that can retrieve stored data after a power ...

s or involve an operating system such as CP/M which could handle executable programs in various programming languages. A helper card with an

Intel 8088 The Intel 8088 ("''eighty-eighty-eight''", also called iAPX 88) microprocessor is a variant of the Intel 8086. Introduced on June 1, 1979, the 8088 has an eight-bit external Bus (computing), data bus instead of the 16-bit computing, 16-bit bus of ...

processor allowed the NKC to run

MS-DOS MS-DOS ( ; acronym for Microsoft Disk Operating System, also known as Microsoft DOS) is an operating system for x86-based personal computers mostly developed by Microsoft. Collectively, MS-DOS, its rebranding as IBM PC DOS, and a few oper ...

. Systems could be customized to handle many different peripherals including PS/2 keyboard,

3½-inch floppy disk A floppy disk or floppy diskette (casually referred to as a floppy, or a diskette) is an obsolescent type of disk storage composed of a thin and flexible disk of a magnetic storage medium in a square or nearly square plastic enclosure lined wi ...

s, IDE-hard drives and modern storage. Users have developed new cards which replaced the former specialized components. For instance, a system could contain a new graphics card (with

VGA connector The Video Graphics Array (VGA) connector is a standard connector used for computer video output. Originating with the 1987 IBM PS/2 and its VGA graphics system, the 15-pin connector went on to become ubiquitous on PCs, as well as many monitor ...

), one serial port, a sound card, and a mouse connector. Another system configuration that supports booting via the IDE-interface has been developed for the 68xxx family.

Gallery

Image:NDR Klein Computer 68K Bausatz.JPG, Kit for a 68K-card Image:NDR Klein Computer SER Bausatz.JPG, Kit for serial card Image:NDR Klein Computer KEY Bausatz.JPG, Kit for keyboard interface Image:NDR Klein Computer GDP64 Karte.JPG, Assembled graphics card Image:Buch_NDR_Klein_Computer.JPG, The book Image:Fischertechnik Roboter mit C64 Interface.JPG, Fischertechnik Computing with Commodore 64 interface Image:NDR Klein Computer CAS Karte.JPG, CAS-card for NDR-Klein Computers

Books

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References

External links