Submitted by On the heels of the recent 6.0.2 [ed. note: and I posted it again because I’m dumb] build of the Apple IIgs System Disk set, comes the next revision. Many loose ends have been tied up and documentation has been updated with changes described in detail.
This release has been packaged as six 800K disk images in BXY format (Shrinkit Compatible Binary II Encoded), .PO format, and as a versatile 32MB ‘Live Installer in .PO format that boots to Finder for immediate access to all portions of the System Software and installing without the need of mounting multiple images or swapping floppies. This image can also be installed to a 32MB partition, CD ROM, etc.
An absolutely amazing initiative, and so far, it seems like it’s sticking. Awesome.
It’s a fun proof of concept thing that a really old OS can be updated, but other than that, why is it absolutely awesome? Who uses a IIgs these days?
It deserves some love. Many of the todays mature age programmers had 6502 assembly imprinted in their genes and could possibly list it addressing modes when woken up at the middle of the night.
Looking at it’s evolution with the 65816 I wonder what would it looked like if it evolved to 32 and 64 bits like 8088 did.
IMHO there is no “what if” because there are technical reasons (as well) why things went one way and not another.
It’s like Darwinian’s survival of the fittest. There was never a future for this implementation and what happen is a proof.
What was unique about those platforms (not CPUs) was just people getting attached to them. Now times are different and it does not make sense to go over “why” again and again.
Having said that I do have my own collection of vintage computers to remind myself of those magical times when I was stepping into that world … but fantasizing about them … NOP
Like a 65816 with wider A, X, Y registers. Not that Bill Mensch didn’t try to pitch that to Apple. Preliminary 65SC832 Data Sheet:
http://www.downloads.reactivemicro.com/Public/Electronics/CPU/W65C8…
Feels like a bit of a dead end, though, because it always retained its 8-bit core and was exceptionally register starved. Amazingly, Intel progressed from much the same basis, while Motorola sorted that early with the 6800 -> 6809 -> 68000 development.
Maybe a super-6502 descendant might have had some register shadowing logic on top of the zero/direct page adressing?!
The GS4510 is a super-65EC02 used in the WIP MEGA65 computer. It’s still 8bit but with some 32bit extensions and run @ 48MHz. Quite an achievement for such a retro design.
Check it out : http://c65gs.blogspot.fr/search/label/GS4510
Edited 2015-08-05 08:45 UTC