Emulators of Classic Computers

From: Tom Uban <uban_at_ubanproductions.com>
Date: Wed Jan 14 17:46:24 2004

At 03:31 PM 1/14/2004 -0800, you wrote:


>OK, using a 1 million gate FPGA to replace a 7400 is
>overkill, but it would work
>
>--
>
>Not if the FPGA isn't 5v tolerant.
>
>It isn't very likely that a device produced in five years
>will be useful as a replacement for 7400 series logic, much
>less in 50.
>
>We've left the days of logic level compatibility behind us
>unfortunately. 3.3v logic is even disappearing pretty quickly
>now, and that didn't last a decade.

I am having problems getting enough information to make my Emulex
SC70 masbus disk controller work. If I have to repair it, I'm will
be in serious trouble. I doubt that I will be able to locate a
schematic given that I am having so much difficulty locating just
a manual. The SC70 uses a 16bit 290x bitslice processor, so after
those parts are no longer available, even though it would trivially
fit into a small FPGA of the time, and even if the logic levels are
compatible, reprogramming an FPGA to do what the 290x does will not
be a trivial task.

Just imagine trying to repair all of the proprietary components
in a PC or even the CAD program dongle 50 years from now.
Received on Wed Jan 14 2004 - 17:46:24 GMT