Motorola EXORmacs

EXORmacs was Motorola’s 68000 development computer and the origin platform for the VERSAbus architecture. It combined a modular 16/32-bit processor system with hard-disk storage and professional software-development tools.

First shipped in January 1980, EXORmacs influenced the later VMEbus standard and supported development of a wide range of early 68000 products.

Notable Features

• Its VERSAbus backplane directly preceded the industry-standard VMEbus.
• Configurations offered 15MB, 32MB, 50MB or 96MB hard-disk storage.

Historical Significance

• First shipped in January 1980, EXORmacs influenced the later VMEbus standard and supported development of a wide range of early 68000 products.

Collector’s Notes

• Processor, memory and storage cabinets were sold in several configurations; original VERSAdos or Unix media are especially valuable.
• Memory, storage, displays and expansion hardware should be documented because configurations often changed during a system’s working life.

Specifications

Technical Information
Name	Motorola EXORmacs
Manufacturer	Motorola
Launched	Tuesday, January 1, 1980
Country	United States
CPU	Motorola MC68000
Units Sold
Form Factor	Multi-board desktop or rack development system
Power	Mains-powered modular chassis
Networking	Optional Ethernet and serial networking
Operating System	VERSAdos or Unix
Expansion / I/O	VERSAbus card cage, serial, parallel and development interfaces
Keyboard	External terminal keyboard
Storage	8-inch floppy plus 15MB–96MB hard-disk configurations
Sound	Terminal or optional hardware
Colours	Adapter-dependent
Graphics	Terminal text; graphics through optional boards
Display	External terminal
ROM	Boot and diagnostic firmware
RAM	Configuration-dependent, commonly hundreds of kilobytes to several megabytes
CPU Speed	Typically 8 MHz, depending on processor board