Name/Title
1982- Osborne ExecutiveTags
OsborneDescription
1982- The Executive is the successor of the Osborne 1, from which it keeps the good points and correct its flaws. More memory, bigger screen, more powerful software and... higher price. When closed, the Executive looks like a sewing machine! Once opened, the detachable keyboard is connected to the main unit through a quite short coiled cord. The keyboard can be tilted for a better typing. It has a separated numeric keypad and 4 cursor keys. The layout of these keys is not very convenient. There is "left" & "up" on one row, and "down" & "right" on the other... The front panel of the Executive is divided in four parts. In the center, one can find the built-in amber monitor (13 x 10 cm) bigger than the Osborne 1 one. On the right hand side, there is the fan grid, the Executive logo and the on/off button. The two 5.25" half-height disk drives, are mounted horizontaly just above an empty disk storage space. Different connectors are placed at the bottom of the front panel: two RS232c/serial (for printers and modem), one Centronics and the keyboard connector. Next to them are brightness and contrast control knobs, as well as a reset button. At the back of the system is the handle to carry the system once it is closed. Under this handle is the fan trap door, which you have to open before starting to work. The Executive has of course its own power supply unit, but what is more uncommon, is that it can accept 110v or 220v, the system will convert both. This was useful for people traveling a lot. The built-in monitor was the main flaw of the Osborne 1. This tiny screen was displaying 52 of 132 virtual columns (this was done by scrolling), resulting in 2 mm high characters! The Executive has a wider screen which can really display 80 columns, though some critics said it was still too small. The characters can be displayed in normal mode, half intensity, inverse or blink. Two-character sets are available, and independent windows can be defined.Acquisition
Acquisition Method
EBayDate
Mar 18, 2007
