AutoConfig is a feature of Amiga computers which gives features similar to today's Plug and Play, although it was introduced in 1985 with the A1000, years before Windows 95.
When the computer is switched on, Kickstart (the Amiga equivalent of a BIOS) interrogates each expansion slot and automatically allocates each expansion card resources depending on what is installed in the slot. This is all done before Workbench starts to boot, rather than in the PC world where resources are allocated at bootup. It is, as such, similar to Plug and Play in the PC sense of the word, although the mechanism is different.
However, Amiga expansion slots were not the same as today's PCI and AGP slots; instead there were various expansion slots available for different uses, such as the trapdoor slot on the A500, A500+, A600 and A1200, used for memory expansion, and either a 84-pin (?) side-expansion slot for RAM expansion and addition of hard drives on the A500 series, or a PCMCIA (PC Card) expansion slot on the side of A600s and A1200s (these models included a built-in IDE interface and so the method for adding hard drives was different). However, as time went on different expansions became available, including processor upgrades for the trapdoor slot, and CD-ROM drives (eg the A570) for the side-expansion slot. In this way, the hardware was more constrained and designed for the Amiga rather than today's myriad manufacturers making PCI and AGP slots, however there were a number of companies creating expansions for Amigas.
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Last updated: 08-03-2005 05:26:15
