Macintosh Plus
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| Macintosh Plus | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Apple Computer |
| Introduced | January 16, 1986 |
| Discontinued | October 15, 1990 |
| Price | US$2599 |
| CPU | Motorola 68000, 8 MHz |
| RAM | 1 MB, expandable to 4 MB, 150 ns 30-pin SIMM |
| OS | System 3.0, later 3.2-6.0.x |
The Macintosh Plus computer was the third model in the Macintosh line, introduced two years after the original Macintosh and a little more than a year after the Macintosh 512K. It originally had a beige case, but in 1987, the case color was changed to the long-lived "platinum" color.
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[edit] Overview
The Mac Plus was the first Macintosh model to include a SCSI port, which launched the popularity of external SCSI devices for Macs, including hard disks, tape drives, CD-ROM drives, printers, and even monitors. Its SCSI implementation was engineered shortly before the initial SCSI spec was finalized and, as such, is not 100% SCSI-compliant (but is close). SCSI ports remained standard equipment for all Macs until the introduction of the iMac in 1998.
It had a new 3.5" double-sided 800 KB floppy drive, offering double the capacity of previous Macs along with backward compatibility. Like the 400 KB drive in earlier models, the drive used variable speed GCR, making disks written with it incompatible with PC drives. The 800 KB drive had two read/write heads, enabling it to simultaneously use both sides of the floppy disk and thereby double storage capacity.
The Mac Plus was the first of many Macintoshes to use SIMMs (single in-line memory modules) for its memory. It came standard with 1 MB of RAM (four 256 KB SIMMs) and could be upgraded to 4 MB of RAM. It had 128 KB of ROM on the motherboard, which was double the amount of ROM that was in previous Macs; the new System software and ROMs included routines to support SCSI, the new 800 KB floppy drive, and the Hierarchical File System (HFS), which used a true directory structure on disks (as opposed to the earlier MFS, Macintosh File System in which all files were stored in a single directory, with one level of pseudo-folders overlaid on them). For programmers, the fourth Inside Macintosh volume detailed how to utilize HFS and the rest of the Mac Plus's new system software.
A compact Mac, the Plus had a one-bit, nine-inch 512 by 342 pixel black & white display with a resolution of 72 PPI, identical to that of previous Macintosh models. Unlike earlier Macs, the Mac Plus's keyboard included a numeric keypad, and, as with previous Macs, it had a one-button mouse and no fan, making it extremely quiet in operation.
The applications MacPaint and MacWrite were bundled with the Mac Plus. After August of 1987, HyperCard and MultiFinder were also bundled. Third-party software applications available included MacDraw, Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, as well as Aldus's PageMaker. This was the first time GUI versions of Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint were introduced on any personal computer platform.
[edit] The long life of the Mac Plus
Although the Mac Plus became overshadowed by two new Macs in March 1987 (the Macintosh SE and the Macintosh II), it remained in production as a cheaper alternative until the introduction of Macintosh Classic on 15 October 1990. This makes the Macintosh Plus the longest-produced Macintosh ever. It continued to be supported by versions of the Mac OS up to version 7.5.5, released in 1996.
[edit] Heat Issues
The lack of fan could cause the life of a Macintosh Plus to end early for some users, however. As the power supply would heat up, solder joints inside it would fracture causing a bright vertical power line to run down the center of the screen. It is possible for a competent electrician to repair this damage.
WARNING: The picture tube inside the Compact Macintosh models is capable of retaining a lethal charge for time even after the power has been disconnected from the unit. Do not attempt to service these model computers if you do not have enough electronics knowlege to avoid the high voltage portions of the picture tube.
If you are to attempt fixing a Macintosh Plus you will wish to open the case (a long-neck Torx screwdriver is required), remove the mylar protector, and then examine the power supply solder joints closely (this may require a magnifying glass). If you can get to this point, it should be fairly easy to re-solder the fractured joints.
Ensuring proper airflow around the unit is the best way to avoid this problem. From the debut of the Macintosh 128K through the Macintosh Plus, various third-party cooling add-ons were available to help increase airflow through the unit (including the fanless Mac Chimney which cooled by convection). Apple finally reorganized the Compact Macintosh case to accommodate a fan with the release of the Macintosh SE.
[edit] Trivia
There is a program called vMac that will emulate a Mac Plus on a variety of platforms, including Unix, Windows, DOS, Mac OS and Mac OS X.
A Mac Plus made an appearance in the 1986 science fiction movie Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. In the scene, engineer Scotty, having traveled to the 1980s from the late 23rd century, tries to use the Mac to demonstrate the formula for a material known as transparent aluminum. However, he is perplexed by its failure to respond to his voice commands. Scotty is handed the mouse, which he holds up to his mouth like a microphone and cheerfully says, "Hello computer!" The machine's owner directs him to the use the keyboard, which he calls "quaint" but quickly accomplishes the task.
A Mac Plus also made an appearance in Flubber; it is located in the main character's kitchen.
An anthropomorphized version of the Mac Plus named Max is the default Office Assistant for Macintosh versions of Microsoft Office starting with Office 98.
