Editing Acorn Archimedes (section)

=== Parallel and data processing ===

A range of podules providing access to parallel processing capabilities using [[Inmos]] [[Transputer]] processors were announced by Gnome Computing in late 1989. Aside from a "Link Adaptor" podule for interfacing to external Transputer hardware, the "TRAM Motherboard" podule combined the Link Adaptor's interfacing logic with the hosting of up to four "TRAMs" (Transputer plus RAM modules), providing a complete development system based on the Archimedes. Also offered was a "Transputer Baseboard" podule featuring a T425 or T800 with up to 8&nbsp;MB of RAM.<ref name="archive198910_gnome">{{ cite magazine | url=https://archive.org/details/Archive_1989-10_OCR/page/n4/mode/2up | title=Products Available | magazine=Archive | date=October 1989 | access-date=5 August 2021 | pages=3–4 }}</ref> A single podule with four TRAMs, each employing a T800 processor, was stated as giving 40&nbsp;MIPS of performance, with a hypothetical 160&nbsp;MIPS available on an Archimedes with four podule slots.<ref name="acornuser198910_gnome">{{ cite magazine | url=https://archive.org/details/AcornUser087-Oct89/page/n10/mode/1up | title=Parallel Archimedes | magazine=Acorn User | date=October 1989 | access-date=5 August 2021 | pages=9 }}</ref>

[[Digital signal processing]] capabilities were provided by the Burden Neuroscience 56001 DSP Card, originally developed by the [[Burden Neurological Institute]] as in-house hardware for use in conjunction with Archimedes systems but marketed by The Serial Port. This card was fitted as a single-width podule but, unusually, needed manual configuration instead of identifying itself to the host computer. The podule itself offered a 32&nbsp;MHz [[Motorola 56001]] digital signal processor together with 192&nbsp;KB of RAM, two 16-bit analogue-to-digital converters, two 16-bit digital-to-analogue converters, and serial communications capabilities. A 25-pin connector provided the means to interface the board to other hardware. An assembler was provided, although this reportedly required Acorn's Desktop Development Environment to function, and software was also provided to interact with the board, view memory and register contents, and to visualise memory ranges in real time. Described as appropriate for "high speed analogue data acquisition or output" supporting real time signal processing, the product was considered "a useful 56001 development test bed", requiring a certain level of expertise, but was also considered good value at a price of £449 plus VAT.<ref name="acornuser199412_56001">{{ cite magazine | url=https://archive.org/details/AcornUser149-Dec94/page/n43/mode/2up | title=A card with 56001 uses? | magazine=Acorn User | date=December 1994 | access-date=1 December 2021 | last1=Craig-Wood | first1=Nick | pages=44–45 }}</ref>