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Mail Archives: geda-user/2016/10/24/18:04:36

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From: "Gene Heskett (gheskett AT shentel DOT net) [via geda-user AT delorie DOT com]" <geda-user AT delorie DOT com>
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To: geda-user AT delorie DOT com
Subject: Re: [geda-user] COSMAC ELF in gEDA and the power rail problem for logic ICs
Date: Mon, 24 Oct 2016 18:02:18 -0400
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Reply-To: geda-user AT delorie DOT com

On Monday 24 October 2016 17:18:24 Dave McGuire (mcguire AT neurotica DOT com) 
[via geda-user AT delorie DOT com] wrote:

>   Very, very cool story!
>
>   The 1802 is far from mainstream of course, but it's still a current
> product, made by Intersil.  The only ones still made are mil-spec,
> which oughtta tell us something.
>
>               -Dave

Yes, its ability to work in a radiation environmemt that would cook any 
of us in just a few minutes is the reason.  The deep space stuff we have 
out there is all running on 1802 family stuff.
>
> On 10/24/2016 04:55 PM, Bob Paddock (graceindustries AT gmail DOT com) [via
>
> geda-user AT delorie DOT com] wrote:
> > On Mon, Oct 24, 2016 at 9:39 AM, Dave McGuire
> > (mcguire AT neurotica DOT com)
> >
> > [via geda-user AT delorie DOT com] <geda-user AT delorie DOT com> wrote:
> >> On 10/23/2016 10:24 PM, Atommann (atommann AT gmail DOT com) [via
> >>
> >> geda-user AT delorie DOT com] wrote:
> >>> Recently I redraw[1] the cosmac elf microcomputer which was from
> >>> the Popular Electronics magazine 1976 August issue. And soldered
> >>> one[2], it works right away!
> >>
> >>   Hi!  I don't have any suggestions for your problem, but I just
> >> have to speak up about the Elf.
> >
> > Here is some 1802 trivia you'll not find anyplace else.
> >
> > The predecessor to the 1802 was a two chip set the 1800/1801
> > available only in ceramic packages.
> > It was used in some early satellites.  Perhaps some other Government
> > projects.
> >
> > As this predates my involvement I don't know the details, some how
> > what would become my boss in the future at Matric Limited,
> >  got a hold of one of these chip sets, probably still has it hidden
> > away someplace to his wife's dismay; I expect I'll be the one
> > cleaning out this stuff someday after Lee's passing no one else
> > would know what it was or where it was stashed in the old building.
> >
> > Matric got a contract form the government to build a Automatic Roof
> > Bolter for Coal Mines as a subcontract to Ingersoll Rand.
> > So there is some government connection back to RCA, this is the part
> > I'm missing, which got Lee the 1800/1801 chips.
> >
> > Lee designs a new Coal Mine control for a different contract about
> > the time the 1802 is released.
> > After the ELF came out, I was hired on to write software for the
> > 1802 for the new 1802 based control.
> >
> > Everyone is aware of the impact of the 1802 after the Popular
> > Electronics article comes out.
> > What people are not aware of is how it died.  I don't know what
> > happened internally at RCA.
> >
> > RCA was bought out, Harris etc.  Same people setting at the same
> > desks with new name on the door of the company for a while.
> >
> > RCA had a product line called MicroBoards, which were a 44-pin edge
> > card bus and a line of industrial membrane keyboards under the name
> > Cardinal Technology.
> >
> > The controls that ran the sub  Alvin from Woods Hole Oceanographic
> > Institution that found the Titanic was using these boards, because
> > the CMOS 1802 and rest of the 4000 family logic was the only thing
> > they found that would work through the dew point as the sub
> > descended at that time.
> >
> > Matric bought out the MicroBoard line from RCA (not sure who
> > actually owned it at this point.) I flew to New Jersey to learn the
> > testing procedures and over see the transfer for the board line. 
> > After awhile Matric also took over the keyboard line and Matric
> > ended up with all of the remaining inventory of the 18xx chips for
> > IO, Graphics, a few 1802, some 1805 (1805 had the 1802 stack code
> > hard-coded and a couple of other minor changes that escape me right
> > now) etc.
> >
> > After several years Matric retired the MicroBoard line and a few
> > more years retired the keyboard line.
> >
> > After a few more years setting the the warehouse at Matric all of
> > the related stuff including the chips were moved to a storage locker
> > where accountant kept their YEARS of paper work.  All just tossed
> > in.  It was no fun the one time I had to go find some 18xx chip to
> > fix something.
> >
> > After I left Matric for my current gig (Resume anyone?  Feel it is
> > time to move on and do something different), so this part is second
> > hand:
> >
> > Someone from the US State Department showed up at Matric with a
> > Cardinal keyboard in hand saying "You *WILL* fix this" (they had be
> > told on the phone that the line was no longer supported).
> >
> > The keyboard failed, I don't know why, and needed some of the chips
> > from the storage locker as no one else in the world had them.
> >
> > The keyboard controlled a Nuclear Power Plant in Japan.  Which one I
> > do not know.  No one wanted to do the paper work to use a new
> > keyboard to run the plant.
> > So *THAT* keyboard had to be repaired, which it was, it could not
> > even be replaced with an identical (not that there were any)
> > keyboard.
> >
> > So the last vestiges of the once proud 1802 family are decaying away
> > in a storage locker to the best of my knowledge (perhaps someone has
> > cleaned it out and trashed everything by now, I do not know)...


Cheers, Gene Heskett
-- 
"There are four boxes to be used in defense of liberty:
 soap, ballot, jury, and ammo. Please use in that order."
-Ed Howdershelt (Author)
Genes Web page <http://geneslinuxbox.net:6309/gene>

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