PET

The Commodore PET (Personal Electronic Transactor) is a line of home/personal computers produced starting in 1977 by Commodore International. A top-seller in the Canadian and United States educational markets, it was Commodore’s first full-featured computer, and formed the basis for their entire 8-bit product line, including the Commodore 64. The first model, which was named the PET 2001, was the first personal computer ever made available to retail consumers.

“Commodore were a company previously known for their calculators, and had acquired chip company, MOS in 1976 to ensure they had a steady supply of integrated circuits for them. MOS’s Chuck Peddle became Commodore’s chief engineer and persuaded Commodore head, Jack Tramiel to enter into the microcomputer market, and the PET was born.

The Commodore PET was part of what BYTE Magazine dubbed the “1977 Trinity”, alongside the Apple II and Tandy’s TRS-80.
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## Emul
Emulating the PET can be done using the VICE emulator, which is available on many platforms and as well as the PET, will also emulate all of Commodore’s 8-bit machines. One thing to be aware of when emulating the PET is that all the numbers were in the numeric keypad (there wasn’t a separate row on the top of the main keyboard), so if you find that numbers aren’t working, try the numeric keypad. (If you have one… )

System | Emulator | Notes
:- | – | –
Windows / Mac OS / Linux | [MAME/MESS](https://www.mamedev.org) | Preliminary Support. Setname: `pet`
Windows / MacOS / Linux / more | [VICE](https://vice-emu.sourceforge.io) | Also emulates VIC-20, C64, Plus/4 and C128

*Emulator information last updated 1st April 2020*
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## Tech
**Name** | PET
:- | –
**Origin** | United States
**Processor** | MOS 6502
**Developed by** | Chuck Peddle, John Feagans, Bill Seiler
**Memory** | 4K, 8K, 16K, 32K, 96K RAM depending on model
**Display Output** | Built-in monitor
**Display Size** (characters) | 40×25 (lo-res), 80×25 (hi-res)
**Colours** | Monochrome
**Audio** | Beeper
**Storage** | Cassette, 8″ Floppy Disk, 5.25″ Floppy Disk
**Input** | Built-in Keyboard
**Cost** | $795 at launch
**Additional Names** | Known as CBM in some parts of Europe due to Philips having a trademark on the name PET
**Models** | PET 2001, PET 4000, SuperPET 9000
**Dedicated Publications** | Commodore PET Users Club Newsletter, PET Gazette, The PET Paper
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## Reso
* [CBM/PET LIbrary](http://petlibrary.tripod.com/index-2.html)
* [PET at the 6502.org website](http://www.6502.org/users/andre/petindex/index.html)”