Auto-Answer Device

The Coleco's ADAM Auto-Answer Device by ADAMLink of Utah is a highly specialized, community-engineered hardware accessory designed in the mid-to-late 1980s to expand the telecommunication capabilities of the Coleco ADAM home computer system.

The Problem It Solved

Coleco natively sold the ADAMLink 300 Baud Modem (Model 7818), an internal expansion card designed to fit into Expansion Slot 1. While this allowed ADAM users to dial out to early Bulletin Board Systems (BBSes) and online services like CompuServe, the factory modem hardware lacked the necessary independent circuitry to detect a standard telephone "ring" signal.

As a result, a stock ADAM computer couldn't automatically answer incoming phone calls. This meant users couldn't host their own independent 24/7 BBSes, receive incoming file transfers while away from the desk, or set up remote-access terminals without manually picking up the line.

The ADAMLink of Utah Fix:

To transform the ADAM into a fully automated receiver, the user group ADAMLink of Utah custom-built the Auto-Answer Device:

• The Interface: Instead of using a rare internal expansion card slot, this clever device plugged directly into one of the ADAM’s D-sub game ports (originally meant for hand controllers).
• Ring Detection: It acted as a hardware bridge between the phone line and the computer. When an incoming telephone call occurred, the device mechanically or electronically intercepted the high-voltage AC ring signal.
• The Trigger: It translated that ring into a digital input signal that the ADAM could read through the game port pins.
• The Result: Compatible terminal software would recognize this game port input and immediately command the internal ADAMLink modem to "pick up" the line, establishing a standard handshake connection automatically.

Historical Legacy

Because hosting a local Bulletin Board System required the computer to be online around the clock, devices like the Auto-Answer Device were vital to the mid-1980s homebrew telecom scene. Today, surviving physical units are incredibly rare artifacts of the early digital age.