Computer Intro!# 9406

By the late 1970s, it had become apparent that personal computers were the wave of the future. The general public's interest in computers was growing rapidly, but PCs were still rather expensive and therefore not as commonplace as today. Most parents were unwilling to purchase both video game systems and computers -- both could play games, and "real" computers could do much more as well. So, many game companies promised add-on modules or special cartridges that would turn their game systems into real computers, giving consumers the best of both worlds.

This is one area where Odyssey² truly outdid its competition -- when it released Computer Intro, a cartridge which allowed users to learn fundamental Assembly-language programming. The cartridge came packaged with a spiral-bound, 104-page manual entitled "A Beginner's Guide to Computer Technology" that featured a brief history of computers, an introduction to programming techniques, sample programs, key codes, and more.

The sample programs include:

• Creepy Crawler - Creates a randomized display of flashing blocks on the screen. Creepy Crawler is also built into the cartridge and may be accessed by pressing 1 at startup.
• Addition programs.
• One Digit Multiplication.
• One Digit Division.
• "Go to Subroutine" and "Return" programs.
• One Digit Addition Flash Card Game.
• Three Ways to Enter and Output a Letter.
• Six Letter Guess - A game where one player enters a six-letter word and another player guesses it.
• Message - A program that displays a message after a key is pressed.

The cartridge also contains four built-in games:

• Flash Card - An addition game (Press 2).
• Computer Telepathy - A number-guessing game (Press 3).
• Between the Sheets - A different number-guessing game (Press 4).