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I like the concept, but does anyone know why the old Z80 was chosen instead of a newer processor?
by new4thaccount 7y ago
I like the concept, but does anyone know why the old Z80 was chosen instead of a newer processor?
- cmrdporcupine 7y agoeZ80, not original Z80. Three stage pipeline, higher clock speed, can address 16MB of memory, available up to 50mhz clock speed. It's a neat processor.
- new4thaccount 7y agoThat sounds better, but still pretty underpowered. I suppose if you wanted something high performance, you wouldn't want to use baremetal lisp anyway and this is more for fun and experimentation so a cheap and easier to understand processor wins.
- KirinDave 7y agoThe entire project seems such that you're buying it more as a piece of art than a functional computer. It certainly would explain the price.
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- MakerLisp 7y agoI chose this processor because it was available for under $10.00 and had the capability of addressing at least 1 Mb of external RAM. Regardles of architecture, when I searched, there were only two processors that I could buy on Digi-Key or Mouser that had these parameters, and they were both Z80 variants ! And then, bonus, it can also run retro software. It has been an exceptionally easy and capable processor to use. And although I'd always like more performance, for the kind of of software experience I'm trying to recreate, it's plenty.
- new4thaccount 7y agoThanks! I wondered if it could run retro software.
- cmrdporcupine 7y agoLooks like a good platform for Fuzix
- MakerLisp 7y agoYes, I would love to get Fuzix on the platform. Do you know anyone who would be interested in doing a port ?
- cmrdporcupine 7y agoYou could probably just send Alan Cox a free board and see what he does with it :-) I imagine it's not a hard port. I'm no Z80 coder, and not a Fuzix user. Just watching from a distance.