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This shows you the differences between two versions of the page.

--- qlwiki:history [2019/11/10 15:20] – just removing unnecessarry new lines vezhlys
+++ qlwiki:history [2023/08/25 12:22] (current) – external edit 127.0.0.1
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-{{qlwiki:transparent_,microdrive.jpg?direct&240x180  |The Inside of a Sinclair Microdrive Cartridge}}The QL also suffered from reliability problems of its Microdrives. These problems were later rectified, by Sinclair engineers, especially on Samsung produced models, as well as by aftermarket firms such as [[qlwiki:Adman Services]] and [[qlwiki:TF Services]] "to the point where several QL users report their Microdrives working perfectly even after almost 17 years of service (for Samsung QLs)" but in any case much too late to redeem the negative image they had already created.
+{{qlwiki:transparent_,microdrive.jpg?direct&240x180  |The Inside of a Sinclair Microdrive Cartridge}}The QL also suffered from reliability problems of its Microdrives. These problems were later rectified, by Sinclair engineers, especially on Samsung produced models, as well as by aftermarket firms such as [[qlwiki:Adman Services]] and [[qlwiki:TF Services]] "to the point where several QL users report their Microdrives working perfectly even after almost 17 years of service (for Samsung QLs)" but in any case much too late to redeem the negative image they had already created.  Over the years, issues have arisen with the longevity of the [[qlwiki:Microdrive Cartridge]] but with re-felting, often these can be recovered.
-Although the computer was hyped as being advanced for its time, and relatively cheap, it failed to sell well, and UK production was suspended in 1985, due to lack of demand. After Amstrad acquired Sinclair's computer products lines in April 1986, the QL was officially discontinued. Apart from its reliability issues, the target business market was becoming wedded to the IBM PC platform, whilst the majority of ZX Spectrum owners were uninterested in upgrading to a machine which had a minimal library of games. Sinclair's persistence with the non-standard Microdrive and uncomfortable keyboard did not endear it to the business market; coupled with the machine's resemblance to a ZX Spectrum, they led many to perceive the QL as something akin to a toy. Software publishers were also reluctant to support the QL due to the necessity of using Microdrive cartridges as a distribution medium.
+Although the computer was hyped as being advanced for its time, and relatively cheap, it failed to sell well, and UK production was suspended in 1985, due to lack of demand. After Amstrad acquired Sinclair's computer products lines in April 1986, the QL was officially discontinued. Apart from its reliability issues, the target business market was becoming wedded to the IBM PC platform, whilst the majority of ZX Spectrum owners were uninterested in upgrading to a machine which had a minimal library of games. Sinclair's persistence with the non-standard Microdrive and uncomfortable keyboard did not endear it to the business market; coupled with the machine's resemblance to a ZX Spectrum, they led many to perceive the QL as something akin to a toy. Software publishers were also reluctant to support the QL due to the necessity of using the [[qlwiki:Microdrive Cartridge]] as a distribution medium.
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  ====== Post-1986 developments ======
-After Amstrad abandoned the QL, several companies previously involved in the QL peripherals market stepped in to fill the void. These included [[qlwiki:CST]] and [[qlwiki:DanSoft]], creators of the Thor line of compatible systems; [[qlwiki:Miracle Systems]], creator of the [[qlwiki:Gold Card]] and [[qlwiki:Super Gold Card]] processor/memory upgrade cards and the QXL PC-based hardware emulator; and [[qlwiki:Qubbesoft]], with the [[qlwiki:Aurora]], the first replacement QL mainboard, featuring enhanced graphics modes.
+After Amstrad abandoned the QL, several companies previously involved in the QL peripherals market stepped in to fill the void. These included [[qlwiki:CST]] and [[qlwiki:DanSoft]], creators of the Thor line of compatible systems; [[qlwiki:Miracle Systems]], creator of the [[qlwiki:Gold Card]] and [[qlwiki:Super Gold Card]] processor/memory upgrade cards and the [[qlwiki:QXL Card]] PC-based hardware emulator; and [[qlwiki:Qubbesoft]], with the [[qlwiki:Aurora]], the first replacement QL mainboard, featuring enhanced graphics modes.
-The QL lives on in the form of two self-contained mainboards named [[qlwiki:Q40]] and [[qlwiki:Q60]] (collectively referred to as Qx0) created by [[qlwiki:Peter Graf]] and marketed by [[qlwiki:D  D Systems]]. The Q40 and Q60, being based around the 68040 and 68060 CPUs respectively, are much more powerful than the original QL and have the ability among other things (such as multimedia, high resolution graphics, Ethernet networking etc.) to run the Linux operating system.
+The QL lived on in the form of two self-contained mainboards named [[qlwiki:Q40]] and [[qlwiki:Q60]] (collectively referred to as Qx0) created by [[qlwiki:Peter Graf]] and marketed by [[qlwiki:D  D Systems]]. The Q40 and Q60, being based around the 68040 and 68060 CPUs respectively, were much more powerful than the original QL and had the ability, among other things (such as multimedia, high resolution graphics, Ethernet networking etc.) to run the Linux operating system. The only currently available (mid 2020) QL compatible computer is the [[qlwiki:Q68]], also created by Peter Graf.
+Hardware add-ons were produced up to about 2009 for the original QL by [[qlwiki:TF Services]] who supplied the [[qlwiki:Romdisq]], the [[qlwiki:Minerva]] replacement Operating System, [[qlwiki:I2C interfaces]] bus based peripherals, SuperHermes (keyboard interface, fast RS232 etc) and [[qlwiki:MPlane]] buffered backplane systems.
-Hardware add-ons are still being produced for the original QL mainly by [[qlwiki:TF Services]] who supply the [[qlwiki:Romdisq]], the [[qlwiki:Minerva]] replacement Operating System, [[qlwiki:I2C interfaces]] bus based peripherals, superHermes (keyboard interface, fast RS232 etc) and [[qlwiki:MPlane]] buffered backplane systems.
+Currently (mid 2020) there are various add-ons available for the original QL from [[qlwiki:Tetroid]], including floppy/hard disk interfaces, Gold Card and Super Gold card clones as well as complete replacement motherboards, backplane kits and plug-in switchable ROMs (including [[qlwiki:Minerva]] and [[qlwiki:Toolkit II]]).
  ======Trivia ======