Introduction to 8-Bit Microprocessors
8-bit microprocessors were the first widely used microprocessors in the computing industry, marking a major shift from mainframes and minicomputers to smaller, more affordable systems. The introduction of 8-bit processors in the 1970s enabled the production of personal computers, leading to the popularization of computing and setting the foundation for the modern computing landscape. 8008 The first commercial 8-bit processor was the Intel 8008 in 1972 which was originally intended for the Datapoint 2200 intelligent terminal. Intel's first 8-bit microprocessor, designed by a team including Ted Hoff, Stan Mazor, and Federico Faggin, who had also worked on the 4004. The chip, limited by its 18-pin DIP, has a single 8-bit bus working triple duty to transfer 8 data bits, 14 address bits, and two status bits. The small package requires about 30 TTL support chips to interface to memory. For example, the 14-bit address, which can access "16 K × 8 bits of memory", needs to be lat...