6502 vs the world (was Re: hard-sector 5 1/4 disk)

From: Ethan Dicks <erd_6502_at_yahoo.com>
Date: Thu Nov 15 12:28:18 2001

--- "Eric J. Korpela" <korpela_at_ssl.berkeley.edu> wrote:
>
> Then again, I don't join my fellow Apple ][ collectors in claiming that
> the 6502 was the best processor on the market either. Like all
religions,
> the true believers will always shout down the heretics.

Well... For the era and for price/performance I think it _was_ one of the
best processors on the market in 1977 (the field being so small, it's
easier to be the best ;-) Of course, best at _what_ is always the
question. It was hardly the best for running CP/M, so if that's what
you wanted, it wasn't even a contender. It was the best at doing what
it ended up doing - being an inexpensive general-purpose processor at
the heart of consumer machines. Plus at it's initial $20/each price,
it was hard to approach from an Intel or Motorola standpoint. Make it
very attractive for the <$1000 market.

Personally, I've always liked the Commodore machines, but, then my
first experience was with a 4K PET. Made lots of money on the Apple ][
(and the C-64), so does _that_ make it better? Maybe. In any case,
if I have the time to play with 8-bitters, I prefer spending the time
on the PET and its relatives as opposed to "newer" computers, but it's
strictly a personal preference, not a ringing endorsement.

-ethan


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Received on Thu Nov 15 2001 - 12:28:18 GMT

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