Fidelity_Electronics - peregrineshahin/ChessProgrammingWiki GitHub Wiki

title: Fidelity Electronics

Home * Organizations * Fidelity Electronics

[ Fidelity Logo [1] Fidelity Electronics (Fidelity International Inc.),

was an American hearing-aid manufacturing company, founded in 1959, and in March 1970 purchased by Sidney and Myron Samole [2] . Among its other cutting-edge technology, Fidelity Electronics produced high-tech, bio-medical products, such as myo-electric hands, prostheses that could actually be controlled by the brain impulses of amputees. Since 1976, Fidelity Electronics developed and produced dedicated chess computers.

Photos

[3]

Director of Engineering: Ron Nelson

Kathe and Dan Spracklen debugging Challenger with Apple II in-circuit emulator [4]

History

Sidney Samole was the man who dreamed, patented and produced the first commercial chess computer. He closely cooperated with Ron Nelson and later with Dan and Kathe Spracklen. He was credited with inventing the first commercial electronic chess game in the 1970s after watching a Star Trek episode [5] . It seems that he actually had the idea but it was Ron Nelson who really created the machine, called Fidelity Chess Challenger 1 [6] [7] . After building three working models and four non-working models, Sidney Samole decided to promote his new brainchild at Chicago's Consumer Electronics Show in January 1977 [8] . Fidelity prospered. In fact, it seems that the success of the Fidelity Chess Challenger 7 computer [9] , which sold about 600,000 units was responsible for the move from Chicago, Illinois to Miami Florida in January 1981. Fidelity also produced computerized Bridge, Checkers, and Othello games. Fidelity manufactured all its games in the US.

By 1989, a recession was in the wind, and Sidney Samole was sensitive to its warning breezes. He sold Fidelity Electronics at the top of its value to Hegener & Glaser. Sidney's son, Shane Samole, who already started Fidelity Canada in 1984 [10] took a loan from his father and started Excalibur Electronics in 1992. Sidney Samole died on July 30, 2000 [11] .

Achievements

Fidelity chess computers won the first four World Microcomputer Chess Championships: Chess Challenger won in London 1980, Fidelity X in Travemünde 1981, Elite A/S in Budapest 1983, and Elite X in Glasgow 1984. Moreover, they won the four United States Open Computer Chess Championships, all held in Mobile, Alabama, in 1985, 1986, 1987 and 1988 (Chessmaster 2100) . A remarkable performance is its first place in the ACM 1988 Championship, tied with Deep Thought.

People

Programmers

Ron Nelson, Kathe and Dan Spracklen were Samole's protégés and "house" programmers. Nelson programs were all Intel 8080 or Zilog Z80 based, while the Spracklens relied on MOS Technology 6502 and later on Motorola 68000 and successors. Soon after Samole sold Fidelity to Hegener & Glaser, some more programmers were associated with Fidelity chess computers.

| Author | List of computers [12] | | --- | --- | | Kaare Danielsen | Danielsen, Kaare | | Frank Duason | | | Ed English | | | Richard Lang | Lang, Richard | | Ron Nelson | Nelson, Ron | | Frans Morsch | Morsch, Frans | | Eric van Riet Paap | Van Riet Paap, Eric | | Dan Spracklen | Spracklen, Dan & Kathe | | Kathe Spracklen | Spracklen, Dan & Kathe | | Mark Taylor | Taylor, Mark |

Misc

Fidelity Computers

Fidelity had various brand names for their chess computers, most notably Chess Challenger. While competing at official tournaments, development- or experimental versions were called Fidelity X or Challenger X.

See also

Publications

Forum Posts

Fidelity and Fast Hardware by ChessChallenger, Hiarcs Forum, December 31, 2015 External Links

Fidelity

ICGA Tournaments

Chess Computers

| Year | Product Link(s) [15] [16] | Author(s) | Processor | Tournaments | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1977 | Fidelity Chess Challenger 1Fidelity Chess Challenger (CC1)Fidelity Chess Challenger 1 | Ron Nelson | 8080 | | | Fidelity Chess Challenger 3Chess Challenger 3, CC1 vs CC3 | Ron Nelson | 8080, 2 MHz | | | 1978 | Fidelity Chess Challenger 10 | Ron Nelson | Z80, 4 MHz | | | 1979 | Fidelity Chess Challenger 7 | Ron Nelson | Z80 | | | Fidelity Chess Challenger Voice | Ron Nelson | Z80, 4 MHz | | | 1980 | Fidelity Sensory 8 | Ron Nelson | Z80, 4 MHz | | | Fidelity Voice Sensory Chess Challenger | Ron Nelson | Z80, 4 MHz | | | Fidelity Decorator Challenger | Ron Nelson | Z80, 4 MHz | | | 1981 | Fidelity Chess Challenger Mini Sensory | Ron Nelson | 80C50, 6 MHz | | | Fidelity Champion Sensory Chess Challenger | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 2 MHz | WMCCC 1980, 1st | | 1982 | Fidelity Super 9 Sensory Chess ChallengerFidelity Super 9 | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 2 MHz | | | Fidelity USCF Special EditionFidelity USCF Special Edition | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 2.5 MHz | | | Fidelity Elite Champion Sensory Chess ChallengerFidelity Elite Champion | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 4 MHz | WMCCC 1981, 1st | | Fidelity Elegance | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 3, 3.6 MHz | | | Fidelity PrestigeFidelity Prestige | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 4 MHz | | | 1983 | Fidelity Playmatic S | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 3.1 MHz | | | Fidelity Elite A/S Budapest | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 3.2 MHz | WMCCC 1983, 1st | | Fidelity Poppy | Ron Nelson | Z80, 4 MHz | | | 1984 | Fidelity Elite A/S Glasgow | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 3.6, 4 MHz | WMCCC 1984, 1st | | Fidelity Sensory 12 | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 3, 4 MHz | | | Fidelity Septennial Chess ChallengerFidelity Champion Septennial | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 3 MHz | | | Fidelity Elite Privat | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 5 MHz | | | 1985 | Fidelity Classic | Ron Nelson | Z80, 4 MHz | | | Fidelity Excellence | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 3, 4, 5 MHz | | | 1986 | Fidelity Silver Bullet | Ron Nelson | Z80 | | | Fidelity Elite Avant Garde | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 5 MHz | | | Fidelity Elite Avant Garde 2100 | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 6 MHz | | | Fidelity Par Excellence | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 5 MHz | | | Chess Challenger X | Dan and Kathe SpracklenRon Nelson, Danny Kopec | Z80, 16 x 68000 | ACM 1986, 7th | | Fidelity X | Dan and Kathe SpracklenDanny Kopec | 68020 | ACM 1986, 10th | | 1987 | Fidelity The Gambit | Ron Nelson | 80C50, 6 MHz | | | Fidelity Gambit Voice | Ron Nelson | Z80, 4 MHz | | | Fidelity Excel 68000 | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 68000, 12 MHz | | | Fidelity Excel 68000 Mach II | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 68000, 12 MHz | | | 1988 | Fidelity Excel Display | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 3 MHz | | | Fidelity Designer 2000 | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 3 MHz | | | Fidelity Phantom | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 5 MHz | | | Fidelity Designer 2100 Display | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 6 MHz | | | Chess Challenger X [17] | Dan and Kathe SpracklenRon Nelson | 68030 | ACM 1988, 2nd | | Fidelity Excel Mach III | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 68000 | | | 1989 | Fidelity Elite Avant Garde V2 | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 68000, 16 MHz | | | Fidelity Elite Avant Garde V6 | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 68020, 20 MHz | | | Fidelity Excel Mach IV | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 68020, 20 MHz | Aegon 1989 | | Fidelity Elite Avant Garde V9 | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 68030, 32 MHz | | | Fidelity X [18] | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 68030 [19] | WCCC 1989, 6th | | Fidelity Chess Card | David Levy, Mark Taylor | HMCS40, 0.5 MHz, 4 Bit | | | Fidelity Chess Pal | David Levy, Mark Taylor | HMCS40, 0.6 MHz, 4 Bit | | | 1990 | Fidelity Elite Avant Garde V10 [20] | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 68040, 25 MHz | | | Fidelity Chesster Challenger, Kishon ChessterFidelity Chesster Phantom Eyeball | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 6502, 5Mhz65C02, 3.6 MHz | | | Fidelity Designer 1500 | Ron Nelson | Z80, 4 MHz | | | Fidelity Designer 2265 Master | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 68000, 16 MHz | | | Fidelity Marauder | Eric van Riet Paap | M50743, 8 MHz | | | Fidelity Genesis | Kaare Danielsen | 6301V, 7.2 MHz | | | 1991 | Fidelity Tiny | Eric van Riet Paap | M50743, 8 MHz | | | Fidelity Chess Challenger Micro | David Levy, Mark Taylor | HMCS40, 0.6 MHz, 4 Bit | | | Fidelity Designer 2325 Master | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 68020, 20 MHz | | | 1992 | Fidelity Travel Master | Frans Morsch | H8/330, 10 MHz | | | Fidelity Eldorado | Ron Nelson | 80C49, 6 MHz, 8 Bit | | | Fidelity Elite PremiereFidelity Elite Premiere | Dan and Kathe Spracklen,Richard Lang | 68000, 16 MHz | | | 1994 | Fidelity Elite Avant Garde V11Fidelity Elite Avant Garde V.11 | Dan and Kathe Spracklen | 68060, 75 MHz | |

References

  1. ↑ Fidelity Electronics from Wikipedia
  2. ↑ The Fidelity Story, Image hosted by Schachcomputer.info Wiki
  3. ↑ 16.Fidelity ..The Golden Years | Flickr - Fotosharing by Chewbanta
  4. ↑ John D. Ferguson (1983). In-Circuit Emulation for the Apple II Computer. Byte Magazine, September 1983, pdf
  5. ↑ Göran Grottling (1988). Thank you Mister Spock! Ein Interview mit Sid Samole. Modul 4/88, pp. 36-38 (German), pdf hosted by Hein Veldhuis
  6. ↑ Fidelity Chess Challenger 1 from chesscomputers.org
  7. ↑ Fidelity Chess Challenger (CC1) from Chess Computer UK by Mike Watters
  8. ↑ Lev Alburt and Al Lawrence (2000). "How About a Nice Game of Chess?" - Any Time. Sidney Samole (1935-2000). Chess Café, October 17, 2000, pdf
  9. ↑ Fidelity Chess Challenger 7 from Schachcomputer.info Wiki (German)
  10. ↑ Fidelity Electronics Inc. - About Us
  11. ↑ The Editor (2000). SIDNEY SAMOLE (1935-2000). ICGA Journal Vol. 23, No. 4 - December 2000
  12. ↑ Schachcomputer.info Wiki
  13. ↑ Furstenberg (Dutch)
  14. ↑ Levy, David from Schachcomputer.info Wiki
  15. ↑ Fidelity from Schachcomputer.info Wiki (German)
  16. ↑ Chess Computer UK by Mike Watters
  17. ↑ Monty Newborn and Danny Kopec (1989). Results of The Nineteenth ACM North American Computer Chess Championship, in The Twentieth ACM North American Computer Chess Championship from The Computer History Museum, pdf
  18. ↑ Fidelity X chess computer at the 6th World Chess Championship in Edmonton, Alberta, The Computer History Museum
  19. ↑ Kings Move - Welcome to the 1989 AGT World Computer Chess Championship. Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, Courtesy of Peter Jennings, from The Computer History Museum, pdf
  20. ↑ Frederic Friedel (1990). Elektronischer Sekundant ein Fidelity-Computer bei der Schach-WM in New-York. Computerschach und Spiele 6/90 (German)

Up one Level