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The Television Interface Adaptor[1] (TIA) is the custom computer chip which, along with a variant of the MOS Technology 6502, constitutes the heart of the 1977 Atari Video Computer System game console. The TIA generates the screen display, sound effects, and reads the controllers. At the time the Atari VCS was designed, even small amounts of RAM were expensive. The chip was designed without the extra circuitry of a framebuffer, instead requiring detailed programming to create even a simple display.[2]
Development of the CO10444/CO11903[3] TIA was led by Jay Miner, who continued at Atari expanding on the design of the TIA for the Atari 8-bit computers with the ANTIC,CTIA/GTIA and POKEY chips which allow for more graphical and sound capabilities. Miner later led the design of the custom chips for the Amiga computer.
- ^ "I. Theory of Operation". Atari Video Computer System Field Service Manual - Model 2600/2600A Domestic (PDF). Rev. 02. Atari, Inc. January 21, 1983. pp. 1–4. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 15, 2017. Retrieved September 10, 2010.
- ^ Hague, James (September 10, 2013). "Why Do Dedicated Game Consoles Exist?". Programming in the Twenty-First Century.
- ^ Stilphen, Scott (February 5, 2020). "ATARI VCS/2600 TIA CHIPS". Retrieved February 24, 2020.