Motorola EXORciser

The EXORciser was Motorola’s professional development computer for the 6800 family. Its modular card cage, monitor firmware and terminal interface supported software development, hardware debugging and in-circuit emulation.

It became an important reference platform for engineers creating the first generation of 6800-based industrial and commercial products.

Notable Features

• A modular EXORbus card cage accepted processor, memory, I/O and emulator modules.
• EXbug monitor firmware provided examination, modification and debugging facilities.

Historical Significance

• It became an important reference platform for engineers creating the first generation of 6800-based industrial and commercial products.

Collector’s Notes

• A representative system includes its chassis, processor and debugger boards, terminal, disk hardware and manuals.
• Memory, storage, displays and expansion hardware should be documented because configurations often changed during a system’s working life.

Specifications

Technical Information
Name	Motorola EXORciser
Manufacturer	Motorola
Launched	Wednesday, January 1, 1975
Country	United States
CPU	Motorola MC6800 at 1 MHz
Units Sold
Form Factor	Desktop development-system card cage
Power	Mains-powered modular chassis
Networking	Not integrated
Operating System	EXbug; later MDOS with disk hardware
Expansion / I/O	EXORbus slots, serial terminal and development/emulation interfaces
Keyboard	External terminal keyboard
Storage	Paper tape or cassette initially; EXORdisk floppy systems optional
Sound	Terminal bell only
Colours	Terminal-dependent
Graphics	Terminal text only
Display	External serial terminal
ROM	EXbug monitor ROM
RAM	Configuration-dependent expansion memory
CPU Speed	1 MHz