80-column expansion cards
80-column expansion cards were hardware accessories for early personal computers, notably the Apple II and some CP/M machines, designed to enable the display of text in a standard 80-character width. This significantly increased the amount of information viewable on screen, making these…
Key facts
- First appeared
- 1979
- Category
- technology
- Problem solved
- The primary problem solved was the severely limited horizontal text display on early personal computers, often restricted to 40 characters per line. This constraint made professional tasks like word processing, programming, and using spreadsheet applications extremely cumbersome and inefficient, hindering the adoption of personal computers in business environments.
- Platforms
- Commodore 64 (via specific third-party cards), Apple II, II+, IIe, Some S-100 bus computers (for CP/M)
Related technologies
Notable users
- Writers and journalists
- Small businesses
- Early adopters of personal computers for productivity
- Educators
- Programmers