Editing KoalaPad

{{split|KoalaPainter|date=December 2023}}
{{short description|1980s computer graphics tablet}}
{{Infobox information appliance
| title = KoalaPad
| image = Koalapad loz CIMG1891.jpg
| caption = KoalaPad
| developer = Koala Technologies Corporation
| manufacturer = 
| type = [[Graphics tablet]]
| generation = 
| power = 
| input =  drawing stylus, finger
| connectivity = 
| predecessor = 
| successor = 
| dimensions = 6 x 8 x 1 inches
| weight = 
| release date = 1983 
}}

The '''KoalaPad''' is a [[graphics tablet]], released in 1983 by US company Koala Technologies Corporation, for the [[Apple II]], [[TRS-80 Color Computer]] (as the '''TRS-80 Touch Pad'''), [[Atari 8-bit computers]], [[Commodore 64]], and [[IBM PC compatible]]s.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Petersen |first=Marty |date=October 10, 1983 |title=Koalapad touch tablet & Micro Illustrator software |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1i8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA76 |journal=InfoWorld |publisher=InfoWorld Media Group, Inc. |volume=5 |issue=41 |pages=76 |issn=0199-6649 |via=Google books}}</ref>

Originally designed by Dr. David Thornburg as a low-cost computer drawing tool for schools, the Koala Pad and the bundled [[bitmap graphics editor|drawing program]], '''KoalaPainter''', was popular with home users as well. KoalaPainter was called '''KoalaPaint''' in some versions for the Apple II, and '''PC Design''' for the IBM PC. A program called '''Graphics Exhibitor''' was included for creating [[slideshow]] presentations from KoalaPainter drawings.

==Description==
The pad was four inches square (i.e. roughly 10×10&nbsp;cm) and mounted on a slightly inclined base with the back of the pad higher than the front. At the top, "behind" the pad, were two buttons. The pad hooked into the computer using the analog signals of the [[joystick]] ports (the so-called [[paddle (game controller)|paddle]] inputs), which meant that it had a  low resolution and tended to jostle the [[Cursor (user interface)|cursor]] if moved during use.

As an alternative to the drawing stylus, the pad could as easily be operated by the user's fingers for tasks that demanded less precision, such as selecting between [[menu (computing)|menu]] items (thus using the pad as a kind of "indirect [[touch screen]]").<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.graphicstablet.org/2011/03/koalapad-the-mother-of-them-all/|title=KoalaPad: the mother of them all - Graphics Tablet Anonymous|website=Graphicstablet.org|access-date=8 June 2016}}</ref>

The top-mounted buttons tended to be somewhat frustrating to use, as the user had to "reach around" the stylus to push the buttons in order to start or stop drawing. A similar tablet from Atari, the [[Atari_8-bit_computer_peripherals#XL_era_.281982-1984.29|Atari CX77 Touch Tablet]], addressed this with a built-in button on the stylus,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.best-electronics-ca.com/quickguide.htm|title=index|website=Best-electronics-ca.com|access-date=8 June 2016}}</ref> which some enterprising users adapted for use with their KoalaPad.

==KoalaPainter==
{{infobox software
| name = KoalaPainter
| screenshot = C64 Koala Painter.png
| caption = C64 KoalaPainter menu screen. The "[[undo]]" command is called "Oops" (2nd row, left). The lowermost part of the screen contains the color choice chart (16 pure colors, 16 [[dither#Digital photography and image processing|dithered]]). Immediately above the color chart is the brush shape bar (8 different shapes).
| developer = Audio Light (C64)<br/> Island Graphics (Apple II, Atari 8-bit)
| released = {{Start date and age|1983}}
| latest_release_version = 
| latest_release_date = 
| operating_system =  [[Apple II]],  [[TRS-80 Color Computer]], [[Atari 8-bit]], [[Commodore 64]], [[IBM PC]]
| genre = [[bitmap graphics editor]]
| license = [[proprietary software|Proprietary]]
| website =
}}
The pad shipped with a simple [[Raster graphics editor|bitmap graphics editor]] developed by Audio Light called KoalaPainter, PC Design or Micro Illustrator depending on the target machine (see release history). Although bundled with the pad, KoalaPainter could also be operated using an ordinary digital [[joystick]].

One unique feature of the program, for its time, was that it held two pictures in the computer's [[random-access memory|memory]], allowing the user to flip from one to the other—a function commonly used in order to study the differences between an original and a modified picture, and to [[copy and paste]] between two different pictures.

Some third-party bitmap editors could also be used with the KoalaPad, such as [[Broderbund]]'s [[Dazzle Draw]] for the Apple II.

===Release history===
*'''KoalaPainter''' for Commodore 64 (1983)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lemon64.com/?mainurl=http://www.lemon64.com/apps/list.php?Genre=gfx|title=All about Commodore 64|website=Lemon64.com|access-date=8 June 2016}}</ref> and Atari 8-bit computers (1983)<ref>{{cite web |title=Atari 400 800 XL XE KoalaPainter |website=Atarimania |url=http://www.atarimania.com/utility-atari-400-800-xl-xe-koalapainter_29756.html |access-date=2018-12-08}}</ref>
*'''PC Design''' for the IBM PC (1983) <ref name="InfoWorld 10 Oct 1983">{{Google books |id=1i8EAAAAMBAJ |page=76 |title=InfoWorld 10 Oct 1983 }}</ref>
*'''Micro Illustrator''' for the Apple II (1983),<ref name="InfoWorld 10 Oct 1983" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://macgui.net/downloads/?file_id=7814|title=Mac GUI :: Koala Micro Illustrator|website=Macgui.net|access-date=8 June 2016}}</ref> Atari 8-bit computers (1983)<ref>{{cite web |title=Atari 400 800 XL XE Micro Illustrator |website=Atarimania |url=http://www.atarimania.com/utility-atari-400-800-xl-xe-micro-illustrator_30240.html |access-date=2018-12-08}}</ref> and Commodore Plus/4 (1984)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://plus4world.powweb.com/software/Micro_Illustrator|title=Micro Illustrator - Software Details - Plus/4 World|website=Plus4world.powweb.com|access-date=8 June 2016}}</ref>
*'''KoalaPainter II''' for Commodore 64 (1984)

===Reception===
''[[Ahoy!]]'' called KoalaPainter "a very powerful and effective color drawing package", and concluded that it and the KoalaPad were "excellent in ease of use, a fine choice for a beginner as well as young children".<ref name="kevelson198410">{{cite news | url=https://archive.org/stream/Ahoy_Issue_10_1984-10_Ion_International_US#page/n35/mode/2up | title=Graphics Programs on the Commodore 64 | work=Ahoy! | date=October 1984 | access-date=27 June 2014 | author=Kevelson, Morton | pages=37}}</ref> ''[[Byte (magazine)|BYTE]]''{{'}}s reviewer stated in December 1984 that he made far fewer errors when using an [[Apple pointing devices|Apple Mouse]] with [[MousePaint]] than with a KoalaPad and its software. He found that MousePaint was easier to use and more efficient, predicting that the mouse would receive more software support than the pad.<ref name="eldred198412">{{cite news | url=https://archive.org/stream/byte-magazine-1984-12/1984_12_BYTE_09-13_Communications#page/n403/mode/2up | title=Artistic Tools for the Apple II Family | work=BYTE | date=December 1984 | access-date=23 October 2013 | author=Eldred, Eric | pages=A8}}</ref> Cassie Stahl in ''[[InfoWorld]]'s Essential Guide to Atari Computers'' praised the tablet and its documentation, rating it "Excellent" among all categories and stating that "Playing with the KoalaPad becomes addictive. It does everything it claims to, and it does it well". She also liked Micro Illustrator, rating it "Excellent" except for "Good" for Performance. While criticizing the limited erase function, Stahl reported an [[undocumented feature]] enabling exporting pictures to other software.<ref name="mace1984">{{Cite book |last=Mace |first=Scott |url=https://archive.org/details/InfoWorlds_Essential_Guide_to_Atari/page/n231/mode/2up?view=theater |title=InfoWorld's Essential Guide to Atari Computers |date=1984 |publisher=Harper & Row |isbn=978-0-06-669006-3 |pages=222–224}}</ref>

===File format===
The Commodore 64 version of KoalaPainter used a fairly simple file format corresponding directly to the way bitmapped graphics are handled on the computer:  A two-byte load address, followed immediately by 8,000 bytes of raw bitmap data, 1,000 bytes of raw "Video Matrix" data, 1,000 bytes of raw "Color RAM" data, and a one-byte Background Color field.

==KoalaWare==
Koala Technologies offered more software beyond the bundled KoalaPainter and Graphics Exhibitor for use with the pad. Among these applications, marketed under the moniker '''KoalaWare''' (like KoalaPainter itself), was [[educational software]] for use with customized keypads and overlays, such as spelling tools, music programs, and mathematics instruction software, as well as software for "translating" graphical designs into [[Logo programming language|LOGO]] programs.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{Cite web |url=http://homepage.mac.com/vectronic/appleii/koala.html |title=Vectronic's Koala Pad |access-date=November 3, 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120214095328/http://homepage.mac.com/vectronic/appleii/koala.html |archive-date=February 14, 2012 |url-status=bot: unknown |df=mdy-all }} – An Apple II collector's description of the KoalaPad and software, with photos and screenshots

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[[Category:Atari 8-bit computers]]
[[Category:Raster graphics editors]]
[[Category:Graphics tablets]]
[[Category:Graphics software]]
[[Category:Proprietary software]]
[[Category:Products introduced in 1984]]
[[Category:Commodore 64 peripheral manufacturers]]

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