PC12
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| Artronix PC12 | |
| File:Pc12avi.png | |
| Character Information | |
|---|---|
| Common Names | Artronix PC12 |
| Other Names | Four Week Wonder, Programmed Console or "PC", PC-12, PC-1200 or PC-12/7 |
| Faction | Independent, had ties to the MIT-tans |
| Lineage | Conceptually linked to LINC, 12-bit DEC line |
| Appearance | |
| Height | 5'5" |
| Hair Color | Amber |
| Eye Color | Grey |
| Weapon(s) | N/A |
| Design | |
| First Appearance | 2012 |
| Technical Information | |
| System Personified | PC12 hardware and software, predecessors and variants |
| Developer(s) | Artronix |
| Debut | Circa late 1960s |
| Latest release | Circa 1976 |
Technical details
The PC12 was a small medical/laboratory computer produced by Artronix. The earliest incarnation of the PC12 was a computer built as a class project at Washington university. This machine, nicknamed the "Four Week Wonder", was built from DEC logic modules and later dismantled.
With an NIH grant, Washington University Biomedical Computer Lab adapted the Four Week Wonder into a graphics terminal used in radiation treatment planning. These Programmed Consoles ("PCs") were built by a Massachusetts company, Spear Inc., in a wheeled rack and included various digital-to-analog (and vice-versa) converters, a modem, graphical input devices and plotter. During this time it was discovered that the PC was capable of processing information on its own and software was developed for it.
Spear Inc. stopped building the PC by 1970. Artronix picked up the design and further modified it, including a LINCtape dual unit drive and faster memory cycle. This machine, the PC12, ran the LINC's LAP6 software and later a more advanced OS built upon it, OS/PC. It was also capable of running MUMPS.
Production on the PC12 ended sometime around 1976, but they were in use for many years after.
Character details
General
PC12-tan is depicted as a woman of average height and light physical build, lightly tanned skin, amber-colored hair and light gray eyes. She generally dresses in a 1960s-era nurse uniform, reflecting her primary role as radiation technician.