computer science

Terak 8510/a

Terak 8510/a is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Terak 8510/a rather than just read about it. In short: The Terak 8510/a was a graphical desktop workstation developed by the Terak Corporation in 1977. It was among the first desktop personal computers with a bitmap graphics display.

Key takeaways

Terak 8510/a belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Terak 8510/a to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Terak 8510/a from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Terak 8510/a was a graphical desktop workstation developed by the Terak Corporation in 1977. It was among the first desktop personal computers with a bitmap graphics display. It was a desktop workstation with an LSI-11 compatible processor, a graphical framebuffer, and a text mode with downloadable fonts. The combined weight of processor, display, and keyboard was approximately 50 lb (23 kg). Despite the lack of an MMU, it was capable of running a stripped version of UNIX version 6. It was the first personal machine on which the UCSD p-System was widely used. Various universities in the USA used it in the late 1970s through mid-1980s to teach Pascal programming. It provided immediate graphic feedback from simple programs encouraging students to learn. Three entrepreneurs started the Terak Corporation in 1975: Brian Benzar, William Mayberry and Dennis Kodimer. Terak products were manufactured in Scottsdale, Arizona from 1976 thru 1984. Sales reached $10M and Terak was publicly traded in 1983-84. Besides the original frame-buffer-centric 8510/a, other products were developed: color graphics and a Unix workstation. A Terak computer was on display at the Boston Museum of Science and also the Jefferson Computer Museum.

References

External links Terak information by Mark Riordan (mirror) Terak information at www.threedee.com Terak information at www.bitsavers.org

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Terak 8510/a

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Terak 8510/a claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Terak 8510/a before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Terak 8510/a ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Terak 8510/a

In research: Terak 8510/a appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Terak 8510/a in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Terak 8510/a is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Computer-related introductions in 1977, Computer hardware stubs, Computer workstations, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Terak 8510/a outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Terak 8510/a in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Terak 8510/a means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Terak 8510/a out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Terak 8510/a in simple terms?

The Terak 8510/a was a graphical desktop workstation developed by the Terak Corporation in 1977. It was among the first desktop personal computers with a bitmap graphics display.

Why does Terak 8510/a matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Terak 8510/a?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Terak 8510/a.