Dr. Dobb's Python-URL! - weekly Python news and links (Aug 12)

[Greg Ewing]

Tom Loredo wrote:

> Greg Ewing wrote:
> 
>>I did, at one stage of my life. Not much choice when
>>you've only got 256 bytes of memory...
> 
> That wouldn't have happened to have been a CDP1802 micro, would it?


No, it was a National SC/MP. The design was based on
the "Miniscamp" project published in Electronics
Australia.

Initial I/O devices were switches and LEDs. I added
a hex keyboard and display built into an old calculator
case, which worked well, and a cassette interface,
which didn't work so well (probably due to my trying
to use discrete components salvaged from old TV sets).

Later the memory got expanded to 512 bytes, then
1.5KB. Then the CPU got replaced with a 6800 (that's
two zeroes, not three:-).

It started out neatly assembled on a PC board
(EA designed), but by the time all the above
modifications were made it was an utter rat's
nest. I was pretty clueless about how to put
hardware together tidily in those days!

-- 
Greg Ewing, Computer Science Dept,
University of Canterbury,	
Christchurch, New Zealand
http://www.cosc.canterbury.ac.nz/~greg