HP1345A (and Wargames) – PHKs Bikeshed
8 hours ago
- #HP1345A
- #vector-display
- #WarGames
- The author reverse-engineered the character generator of an HP1345A digital vector display.
- The HP1345A has two built-in service modes with specific glyphs for alignment and focus screens.
- The focus screen is displayed by an i8748 microcontroller when a jumper is mounted.
- The original and newer Character ROMs differ only in the comma glyph.
- The focus-window glyphs exist in two aspect ratios, hinting at a possible 1:1 aspect ratio option.
- The movie WarGames (1983) featured a plot involving a kid accidentally triggering a nuclear war simulation.
- WarGames is notable for its themes, including the Cold War, game theory, and social engineering.
- The movie's graphics were designed on an HP9845 computer and drawn on an HP1345A vector display.
- Some alphanumerics in the movie were generated as vectors, not matching the HP1345A's character generator.