2 ms·
I’d say it was because the VAX (and the PDP-11 family that preceded it) has one of the cleanest instruction sets of any processor family that was ever extensive
by bwanab 5y ago
I’d say it was because the VAX (and the PDP-11 family that preceded it) has one of the cleanest instruction sets of any processor family that was ever extensively used. It was almost as easy as C to program in its assembly language.
- GeorgeTirebiter 5y agoYes, and... each of the earlier processors had certain 'corner cases' in the way they handled setting (or not) flag bits; DEC s/w had to check these corner cases and execute a proper set of instructions for that specific machine. But yes, conceptually, the orthogonal addressing modes, and 'obvious' instruction names influenced probably 2 generations of students (for the better). The major lesson learned tho, I think, was: never be stingy with address bits! (16 is way too few; and even later 22-bit addresses weren't enough.)