1. Getting Started

What You See

You must now decide on the video display for your computer. The video pad at the back right comer of the COSMAC VIP card provides a video signal which you can connect directly to the high-impedance input of most standard video monitors. The horizontal sync frequency is 15,720 Hz and the vertical sync frequency is 60 Hz. One solution to your video display need is a commercial video monitor having a suitable input -- not rf or antenna input. Another option is your TV receiver used with a relatively inexpensive FCC-approved modulator. Do not use a standard TV receiver with the VIP output connected to the VHF or UHF antenna terminals. Do not use transformerless TV receivers.

Turning It On

After attaching a suitable video display, apply power. Make sure the RUN switch is in the down (or reset) position. Hold hex key C down while you flip the RUN switch up. You should hear a tone with key

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C pressed and the Q light should be on. When you release key C the tone and Q light should both go off. (The tone occurs whenever the Q light is on.) You should now see a random pattern of small square spots on the display. Push hex keys 8008 in sequence and you should see 8008 at the bottom left of the screen and 64 at the lower right. Adjust your display controls for the best picture (white spots on a-black background). You can experiment with changing the values of RI, R2, and R4 on the COSMAC VIP card to improve picture quality although this step shouldn't be necessary. Certain modulators work better with an R4 of 1 kilohm instead of 200 ohms. If you don't get a video picture refer to Section VII for troubleshooting hints.

After completing the above set-up procedure, you are ready to enter and run programs on your COSMAC VIP.

The COSMAC VIP operating system, explained in the next section, permits you to load programs into memory from the hex keyboard, verify them, and record them on cassettes for later reuse.

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RCA CDP18S711 manual What You See, Turning It On, Getting Started