Pheobe Archive

Phoebe Risc PC 2 : Detailed Technical Specifications

Design Objectives:

The main objectives behind the development of Phoebe Risc PC 2 were to:
• Bring the Risc PC up to date with other modern PCs
• Develop a computer that was far more superior and faster than other PCs out in the market
• Develop a product that harnessed the full strength of the StrongARM
• Enable high performance products to be run
• Make everything that was good on the Risc PC even better
• Remove the bottle neck on the main memory bus

Software:

• New kernel: to support the new hardware, better task swapping, cached screen etc.
• New Advanced Disk Filing System (ADFS): to support new IDE interface with multiple drives and support for PIO mode 4
• New and improved desktop including:
  • new icons: using 256 colours and fine lines tailored to the higher screen desktops
  • new Wimp: numerous features including iconise window tool and nested wimp
  • New pinboard: much enhanced, with options to select and categorise files, directories and tidy away anywhere users choose
  • new filer: allowing Alt rename and saving to filer icons on icon bar.
  • new configure: enables third party applications to be added to the configuration, rather than having to search through the hard drive to find your app. Just double-click on !Boot to go straight into the application's configuration. Improved new icons and more useful machine configuration options
  • new help: running interactivity, positioned at the cursor
• New filecore which delivers:
  • Long filenames: up to 255 characters with hard spaces as opposed to 10 previously
  • Larger directory capacity: upto 80,000 files per directory instead of the previous 77
  • Bigger discs: up to 128GB for IDE
• Improved sound support: utilising the 8bit sound from VIDC20 with a new industry standard codec enabling:
  • midi sound
  • hardware volume control and software mixing of all sound sources including VIDC, Codec, line input and CD to provide a versatile sound system,
  • expandable using a waveblaster card to give real synthesiser performance
• Auto power shutdown
• New disc images/sounds and games
• Apps
  !Chars
  !Draw
  !EasiWriter
  !Edit
  !Help
  !Organizer
  !Paint
  !PCAPaint
  !SciCalc
  
• Audio
  !ReMidi
  !Sampler
  MIDIs - TBC
  Speech recognition - DERA - TBC
• !Boot
  Java VM
  Shockwave
  New !configure
  Lots more! TBC
• Diversions - Iron dignity, Descent, Ankh, tbc
• Images
  !SlideShow
  100 x pictures
• Internet:
  ANT Internet Suite - TBC
  Browser
• Manuals
  Phoebe User Guide
  ANT Internet Suite
  Organizer Guide
  PCAPaint Guide
  Browse User Guide
  RISC OS 4.0 User Guide
• Printing
  !Printers
  Printer defs
• Network
  Access+
  AccessCD
  OmniClient
  ICA Client
• Public
  !ReadMe
• Utilities
  !Calibrate
  !CDPlayer
  !ChangeFSI
  !CloseUp
  !Diff
  !Find
  !ShowScrap
  !SparkFS or !Sparkplug
  !Squash
• Video
  Replay III
  MovieFS

  Hardware

• 233MHz SA110 RevT
• New IOMD2 delivering:
  • 64M bus speeds
  • PCI interfacing
  • multiprocessing capability in hardware
  • 8 DMA channels - previously 2
  • SDRAM control, new timers, new interrupt handler
• Improved bus speed 64 MHz: to overcome the issue of the memory bus strangling StongARM in the Risc PC which lead to certain applications running slowly.
• New industry standard PS2 keyboard and mouse ports: any PS2 keyboard or mouse can be used with Phoebe
• Up to 512M SDRAM: 32M as standard (current industry standard)
• New VIDC20: 100% performance increase over Risc PC, die shrunk to 0.6�
• 4M EDO VRAM
• 4M ROM
• E-IDE: allowing 4 drives running 16M transfers
• 32x slot Sony CD drive
• PC style game port: with twin analogue joysticks and midi support.
• Soundblaster compatible codec providing:
  • stereo line in and out
  • headphones
  • microphone
  • hardware volume controls
  • waveblaster expansion
• 2 serial ports, IrDA support and a parallel port: note - 1 serial port limited to software handshaking only
• Multiprocessing support in hardware
• New case design:
  • the new Intel NLX standard form factor, being developed for next generation Intel motherboards.
  • design enables the motherboard to slide in and out easily.
  • 7 expansion cards including:
    • 3 standard podule slots
    • 4 PCI slots running 32bit 33Mhz interface
  • 3 x 5.25" bays; 2 x 3.5" hidden bays; 1 x 3.5" visible bay
  • unique to Acorn development
  • delivers the professional look of a mini tower.
  • styling is modern, professional, upmarket, different - and not like a PC.
  • provides tamper detection to prevent access inside the machine with the power on