Tektronix 4054A with Option 30+31 Color Dynamic Vector Graphics Demo

Tektronix introduced the 4054 Desktop Vector Graphics Computer with 19 inch direct view storage tube in 1979 and also introduced the Option 30 Dynamic Graphics card at the same time. This video shows the Dynamic Graphics coprocessor drawing refresh vector graphics at over 1000 vectors per second on my 4054A computer which also has the Option 31 Color Dynamic Graphics CRT which was introduced in 1982.

The Color Dynamic Graphics CRT contains both green and red phospors and the red phospor has very short persistence while the green phospor can be written at higher energy and persist on the CRT. At lower beam energy for refresh vectors - both green and red phospor glow with a combined color of orange.

I recovered all of the Option 30 demo programs from a tape from the estate of Jack Everson, a Tektronix sales engineer. In this demo - all the programs have been saved to my GPIB Flash Drive - which completely replaces the need for a working DC300 tape - and supports saving and loading 100's of tapes in separate directories on a microSD flash card!

This video will demonstrate all the programs on the Option 30 Demo Tape in COLOR on my 4054A with Option 31 Color Enhanced Dynamic Graphics CRT!

[grossteilfahrer]

Wow. What you are doing is archaeology. Computing history must be preserved now unless we want to lose it to the pioneers dying off

[UTUBMRBUZZ]

the demo really gives the TRON vibe....

[BitNaptime]

You have convinced me sir, I would like to purchase this fine graphics workstation.

[heavysystemsinc.]

The one thing going through my mind was how Tron's world in certain scenes is drawn into existence this exact same way. I thought it was a stylistic choice, but turns out they were mimicking what happens on a vector workstation like this. Very cool bit of history here.

[DrDanielHoward]

I remember using the Textronix in 1985 when I started my PhD and even earlier in 1983 doing my Masters degree both in computational mechanics/fluid dynamics/finite element methods. Don't forget we had nothing else. The green light was mesmerizing and it pierced the screen, it was very precise but drawing was slow. It was a wonderful experience that the kids these days who just pick up packages to code and draw never experienced as we did. We wrote all of our software in FORTRAN and used these sorts of tools to display results: streamlines, streaklines, velocity vectors etc.

[adriansdigitalbasement]

Thanks for showing off the demo, it really is magical to see this in operation. I don't think when I was a kid with my VIC-20 that something could produce such crisp and sharp graphics like this machine can.

[frog]

As an owner of Vectrex (I've coded several demos for it) I envy you :) 4054 - awesome machine!

[GrahamToal]

These so outperform the Vectrex that I doubt we could even emulate that many of them. Wonderful old tech. Glad you're keeping them alive. At the risk of sounding morbid, I think we old guys need to make sure these are disposed of properly in our wills so they don't end up at Goodwill etc when we're gone. We need to specify that these go to some suitable computer museum where they'll be kept running. (And I need to take my own advice and do likewise).

[victorc]

This is amazing. Thanks for posting this. I remember my dad showing me this with early cad applications. I tried explaining vector graphics to my computer high-school teacher and he couldn't grasp any other concept other than pixels.😅

[AppliedCryogenics]

I love this machine. I guessed right that it has AMD 2901 bit slice processors, but was surprised to read that it is microcoded to emulate some 6800 CPU features for backwards compatibility. Thanks for preserving this quite classy (and aesthetically superior) bit of history! ;D

[pjcnet]

Amazing for the time, vector displays were a great way to maximize graphics with the minimal processing power and memory that they had available in those days, this would have been at the cutting edge of technology however and definitely wasn't cheap.

[suvetar]

This machine is an absolute beast and to think that it's in its 40's too!! Thank you so very much for sharing this with us, I feel privileged to have seen it in action!

[wheelwarrior]

Wow, thanks for recovering that from tape and posting it! What an incredible display ...

[arduous]

This is wonderful! Thank you for making this demonstration.

I work in astronomy, and we have a lot of programs that dates back to 70s. I have been always wondering why certain programs have horrible graphical interfaces despite them being updated in recent years, and what was the original purpose of those graphics that looks horrible in pixel-based graphics. Assuming they were intended to be displayed on screens like this one, I believe they make far more senses.

[MichaelKingsfordGray]

Another impressive demo, for the time.

[roystonlodge]

I have the opening theme from The Black Hole running in my head while watching some of these graphics demos.

:-)

[soviet]

Truly amazing system, could be cool how the tube looks in 4k quality video :D

[Tromite]

This is really cool! I find smooth textureless polygons really charming to look at, but there's something even cooler at looking at these vector graphics on real sharp displays, and even today, despite technology advancing so much, nothing has really been able to surpass how clean these vector graphics look. I always wonder if we'll ever get some sort of successor to the long obsolete vector monitors, like a vector based LCD screen. The closest I've seen are some light projectors that were trying to emulate these arcade games, and they look really good. And it's a shame the Vectrex was the only vector based console to ever come out. Though it's a no wonder they died out, as raster graphics can do basically everything that they can do, but in more complex detail. I think there's a hobbyist following for it nowadays. Do you know if there was ever a 3D platformer that was made with this vector technology?

[ismaelabdulwadud]

with red-green glasses you can even see the objects in 3d. really very impressive. super high resolution as in ultra hd. Thank you for this great video.👋

[TR-]

holy sh this looks cool. You should do a patreon or some service wher eyou draw and video submitters images. this is so cool