←back to thread

118 points mariuz | 1 comments | | HN request time: 0.243s | source
Show context
mati365 ◴[] No.45655689[source]
Writing compilers for old CPUs has some real magic in it. It helps you see how processors really work and brings back the old days when hardware was simple and easy to understand. I miss that time. I once wrote a small C compiler in TypeScript for the Intel 8086 and 8087 ([1]), and I have huge respect for the people who coded for those chips. It’s super hard but also very rewarding.

[1] https://github.com/Mati365/ts-c-compiler

replies(4): >>45655833 #>>45656775 #>>45658223 #>>45662182 #
1. kjs3 ◴[] No.45662182[source]
8086 was a cakewalk compared to some of the weirder old chips. 6502 is a notoriously bad compiler target but things like the Signetics 2650 or RCA 1802 had a completely different set of challenges.