80 Micro
Encyclopedia
80 Micro was a home computing magazine published by CWC/I publications (Wayne Green
) between 1980 and 1988. It featured articles, humor (including the monthly Kitchen Table International
satire/parody column), letters and reviews about the TRS-80
microcomputer built by Tandy Corporation
and sold through Radio Shack
. Another major feature was program listings for the machine, primarily written in BASIC
and Z80 assembly language
. These programs were printed in the magazine, but could be purchased on cassette tape and diskette media under the name Load 80 to save some typing.
Starting out under the name "80 Microcomputing", the magazine was renamed to "80 Micro" on its 30th issue. Founded by Byte
magazine founder Wayne Green, it was later sold to CW Communications. Green attributed the magazine's success to Radio Shack's policy of not allowing other companies to distribute their products through their stores, while other stores would not carry the products as Radio Shack customers did not frequent them. Thus 80 Micro became the most accessible venue for small companies to advertise in. Tandy also prohibited the Radio Shack stores it owned from selling or displaying 80 Micro to not lose sales to the magazine's advertisers, and Green—who claimed that most stores kept a copy hidden from "company spies"—asked readers to persuade franchise and other non Tandy-owned stores to sell the magazine.
In 1982, 80 Micro was the third largest magazine in terms of obtaining advertising, selling 152,000 issues. Programming contests for young children were featured annually, and were endorsed by both the Scholastic Corporation and the Boy Scouts of America
.
Wayne Green
Wayne Green is an American publisher and writer, and consultant. He was formerly editor of CQ magazine before he went on to found 73, 80 Micro, Byte, CD Review, Cold Fusion, Kilobaud Microcomputing, RUN , InCider, and Pico, as well as publishing books and running a software company...
) between 1980 and 1988. It featured articles, humor (including the monthly Kitchen Table International
Kitchen Table International
Kitchen Table International, an outrageous, albeit fictitious computer company created as a faux amalgam of Radio Shack, Apple, Commodore, and other organizations of the time, was the subject of one of the earliest regular computer humor columns, appearing in Wayne Green’s 80 Micro magazine from...
satire/parody column), letters and reviews about the TRS-80
TRS-80
TRS-80 was Tandy Corporation's desktop microcomputer model line, sold through Tandy's Radio Shack stores in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The first units, ordered unseen, were delivered in November 1977, and rolled out to the stores the third week of December. The line won popularity with...
microcomputer built by Tandy Corporation
Tandy Corporation
Tandy Corporation was a family-owned leather goods company based in Fort Worth, Texas. Tandy was founded in 1919 as a leather supply store, and acquired RadioShack in 1963. The Tandy name was dropped in May 2000, when RadioShack Corporation was made the official name.-History:Tandy began in 1919...
and sold through Radio Shack
Radio shack
Radio shack is a slang term for a room or structure for housing radio equipment.-History:In the early days of radio, equipment was experimental and home-built. The first radio transmitters used a noisy spark to generate radio waves and were often housed in a garage or shed. When radio was first...
. Another major feature was program listings for the machine, primarily written in BASIC
BASIC
BASIC is a family of general-purpose, high-level programming languages whose design philosophy emphasizes ease of use - the name is an acronym from Beginner's All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code....
and Z80 assembly language
Assembly language
An assembly language is a low-level programming language for computers, microprocessors, microcontrollers, and other programmable devices. It implements a symbolic representation of the machine codes and other constants needed to program a given CPU architecture...
. These programs were printed in the magazine, but could be purchased on cassette tape and diskette media under the name Load 80 to save some typing.
Starting out under the name "80 Microcomputing", the magazine was renamed to "80 Micro" on its 30th issue. Founded by Byte
Byte (magazine)
BYTE magazine was a microcomputer magazine, influential in the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s because of its wide-ranging editorial coverage...
magazine founder Wayne Green, it was later sold to CW Communications. Green attributed the magazine's success to Radio Shack's policy of not allowing other companies to distribute their products through their stores, while other stores would not carry the products as Radio Shack customers did not frequent them. Thus 80 Micro became the most accessible venue for small companies to advertise in. Tandy also prohibited the Radio Shack stores it owned from selling or displaying 80 Micro to not lose sales to the magazine's advertisers, and Green—who claimed that most stores kept a copy hidden from "company spies"—asked readers to persuade franchise and other non Tandy-owned stores to sell the magazine.
In 1982, 80 Micro was the third largest magazine in terms of obtaining advertising, selling 152,000 issues. Programming contests for young children were featured annually, and were endorsed by both the Scholastic Corporation and the Boy Scouts of America
Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
.
See also
- Kilobaud Microcomputing magazine
- Byte magazineByte (magazine)BYTE magazine was a microcomputer magazine, influential in the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s because of its wide-ranging editorial coverage...