PDP-8
Sign in to saveThe PDP-8 is a family of 12-bit minicomputers that was produced by Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC). Launched in 1965, it was the first minicomputer to sell for under $20,000, and the $25,000 mark for a complete system would later be a defining characteristic of the minicomputer class. Over 50,000 units were sold during the model's lifetime.
Key facts
- Computing device.name
- PDP-8
- Computing device.logo
- PDP-8 wordmark.svg
- Computing device.image
- PDP-8 (1).jpg
- Computing device.caption
- A PDP-8 on display at The National Museum of Computing in Bletchley, England. This example is from the first generation of PDP-8s, built with discrete transistors and later known as the Straight 8.
- Computing device.developer
- Digital Equipment Corporation
- Computing device.family
- Programmed Data Processor
- Computing device.type
- Minicomputer
- Computing device.price
- ,
- Computing device.units_sold
- 50,000+
- Computing device.platform
- PDP 12-bit
- Computing device.predecessor
- PDP-5
- Computing device.successor
- PDP-12
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Image
- DEC PDP-8, Stuttgart.jpg
Show 2 more facts
- Commons category
- PDP-8
- publication date
- 1965-03-22
via Wikidata · CC0
~43 min read
Article
28 sectionsContents
- Overview
- Architectural significance
- Description
- Models
- Latter-day implementations
- Input/output
- Programming facilities
- Instruction set
- Basic instructions
- IOT (Input-Output Transfer) instructions
- OPR (OPeRate)
- Group 1
- Group 2, Or Group
- Group 2, And Group
- Group 3
- Memory control
- Examples
- Comparing two numbers
- Logical OR
- String output
- Subroutines
- Software stack
- Linked list
- Interrupts
- Books
- Unlicensed clones
- References
- External links
The PDP-8 is a family of 12-bit minicomputers that was produced by Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC). Launched in 1965, it was the first minicomputer to sell for under $20,000, and the $25,000 mark for a complete system would later be a defining characteristic of the minicomputer class. Over 50,000 units were sold during the model's lifetime.
Its basic design follows the pioneering LINC but has a smaller instruction set, which is an expanded version of the PDP-5 instruction set. To lower the cost of implementation, the system leaves out a number of commonly used functions which have to be written using combinations of other instructions. This leads to complex programs.