Intel 4004 - test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

9 Feb 1999

Actually, I'm not that excitable about making old hardware work.  I am
interested when someone does some of the things I did with parts with which
I didn't.  I didn't get interested in microprocessors until the 8008,
which, by the way, though still functional when I unplugged it from the
circuit board, became a "high-tech tie-tack" which I wore from time to time
along with others of about the same ilk and vintage.

With all the fascination over the internet and GUI OS's, etc, it's easy to
forget that the old 8080 can still process the words and generate the
payroll as well as it did 20 years ago.  Printers are faster too, I guess,
but since the essential demise of multi-part paper, it takes about as long
to generate the 4-part documents as ever.  

Some things will just always be painful . . . <sigh>

I find it interesting to note, however, that you've taken the pain to do
this work yourself.  Rest assured, it can't be any worse than the tools
everyone who worked with this primitive beastie had to use.  

Dick
----------
...
  From: Dwight Elvey &lt;elvey(a)hal.com&gt;
 To: Discussion re-collecting of classic computers
&lt;classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu&gt;
...
  Subject: Re[2]: Intel 4004
 Date: Tuesday, February 09, 1999 2:28 PM

 "Richard Erlacher" &lt;edick(a)idcomm.com&gt; wrote:
 > Good Work!
 > 
 > Now, do these tools run on the machine itself, or do they require
 > cross-development?  Either one's fine, of course.  What do you have your
...
   machine
doing?

 Dick  
 Hi Dick
  I use a PC to develop on. I don't have enough ROM space
 on the 4004 system to do very much. The developement
 system is currently running the code that came with
 it. It was intended to program 1702A's. It does this
 well.
  I am writing code to make a 4 function calculator
 that runs through the serial line used for the programmer.
 I've desided to use BCD math since it has instructions
 built in that deal with doing BCD corrections. The RAM
 orginization is well suited for 16 digits of BCD for
 each data value.
  To get copies of my tool set, down load:
 ftp://ftp.hal.com/pub/elvey/I4004.ZIP
  You'll also need a Forth interpreter because everything
 is in source and not precompiled. I used the Freeware
 Forth called FPC. You can download a copy from the
 site:
 http://www.forth.org/compilers.html
  I also included tools to convert Intel hex to binary
 and back for those that need this format for their
 particular programmer. There are some assembly example
 files called *.AS4 that will get you started.
  Let me know if you have any questions. You don't need
 to know Forth to use the tools but you can do more
 advanced things if you do. For the most part, the READ.ME
 file should be enough to get you started.
  What is your interest in working with the 4004?
 Dwight 