website/content/museum/franklin-ace-100.md

title, categories, types, origins, years, cpus, params

title	categories	types	origins	years	cpus	params
Franklin ACE 100	Computers	Professional Computer	U.S.A.	1981	6502	name image logo company company_name specs tabs photos adverts links oc_id source ACE 100 /media/museum/photos/franklin_ace100_system_s1.jpg /media/museum/logos/franklin_ace100_logo_s2.gif /companies/franklin Franklin label value NAME ACE 100 label value MANUFACTURER Franklin label value TYPE Professional Computer label value ORIGIN U.S.A. label value YEAR 1981 label value END OF PRODUCTION 1982 label value BUILT IN LANGUAGE AppleSoft BASIC label value KEYBOARD Typewriter style, 73 keys with numeric keypad label value CPU 6502 label value SPEED 1 MHz label value RAM 48 KB - Allowed for a 16 KB Language card label value ROM 12 KB label value TEXT MODES 40 columns x 24 lines label value GRAPHIC MODES 40 x 48 / 208 x 160 / 280 x 192 dots label value COLORS Monochrome label value SOUND 1 voice - Built-in speaker label value SIZE / WEIGHT Unknown label value I/O PORTS Joystick, 8 Apple II compatible slots (No tape recorder jacks) label value BUILT IN MEDIA None label value OS Apple DOS label value POWER SUPPLY Built-in switching PSU with cooling fan label value PERIPHERALS All Apple II cards and peripherals label value PRICE $900 photos adverts links title subtitle text image ANOTHER VIEW /media/museum/photos/franklin_ace100_system_3.jpg title subtitle text image COMPLETE SYSTEM The **[Maine Computer Museum](http://www.mainecomputermuseum.org)** displayed this complete version at the Vintage Computer Festival exhibition. Thanks to **Vinal Applebee** /media/museum/photos/franklin_ace100_compsystem_s1.jpg title subtitle text image US ADVERT, 1981 /media/museum/pubs/franklin_ace100_pub_s1.jpg title url text Dave Dunfield ACE 100 page http://www.parse.com/~ddunfield/museum/franklin/index.htm More information and pictures 1070 url date https://web.archive.org/web/20230206185937/http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=1070 2023-02-06

Four years after Apple introduced its computer, Franklin Computer Corporation thought to duplicate Apple’s achievement and released its first computer, the Franklin Ace 100.

The ACE 100 was a pure copy of the Apple II. The main board had quite the same design and the ROM content was also exactly identical, aside from the Apple copyright which was removed!

Nevertheless, it supported some features that were missing in the Apple II, lower-case letters, and a numeric keypad. The ACE 100 had a short life, hardly one year, and was soon replaced by the ACE 1000

It found however one's place in computing history when Apple took legal action against Franklin for counterfeiting and the US Court of Appeals eventually decided in August 1983 that computer programs in ROMs could legally be copyrighted.

We need more info about this computer ! If you designed, used, or have more info about this system, please send us pictures or anything you might find useful.