70's computers

[Chuck Guzis]

On 10/25/18 11:33 AM, Al Kossow via cctalk wrote:
> 
> 
> On 10/25/18 10:45 AM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk wrote:
> 
>> Didn't at least one of the more popular MPU designs employ a serial ALU?
>>  TMS9900?
> 
> You've mentioned this a couple of times.
> 
> Are you confusing this with the serial CRU I/O scheme TI computers used?
> I double-checked and the 960,980 and 990 minicomputers are all 16 bit parallel machines.
> 
> The 9980/1 and 9995 had an 8 bit memory bus but internally are 16.
> 
> I double-checked, and the TMS9900 has a 16 bit ALU (page 6 in
> TMS_9900_Microprocessor_Data_Manual_May76.pdf on bitsavers)

Dunno, the mind is foggy on this detail, since I never played with the
beast.  But it seems to me that there was at least one "too slow" MPU
out there in production at some point.

--Chuck