PDP-8 family

2022-12-14T06:25:14Z

DavidCary: add link to PDP-8 related implementations

The '''PDP-8 family''' was a range of 12-[[bit]] [[minicomputer]]s produced by [[Digital Equipment Corporation|DEC]].

== Models ==

{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Model Name || Introduced || Discontinued || Cost || Implementation || Notes
|-
| [[PDP-5]] || 1963 || 1967 || ??? || [[Transistor]] [[System Module]]s || Effectively, the prototype
|-
| [[PDP-8]] || 1965 || 1969 || $18,500 || Transistor [[FLIP CHIP]]s
|-
| [[LINC-8]] || 1966 || 1969 || ??? || Transistor FLIP CHIPs
|-
| [[PDP-8/S]] || 1967 || 1970 || $10,000 || Transistor FLIP CHIPs || [[Serial computer|Serial]], ''unbelievably'' slow
|-
| [[PDP-8/I]] || 1968 || 1971 || ??? || [[Transistor-transistor logic|TTL]] FLIP CHIPs ||
|-
| [[PDP-8/L]] || 1968 || 1971 || ??? || TTL FLIP CHIPs || Stripped down PDP-8/I
|-
| [[LAB-8]] || 1968 || || || ||
|-
| [[PDP-12]] || 1969 || ??? || ??? || TTL FLIP CHIPs || New version of LINC-8
|-
| [[PDP-8/E]] || 1970 || 1978 || ??? || [[DEC card form factor|quad]] [[printed circuit board|PCBs]] || First [[OMNIBUS]]
|-
| [[PDP-8/E|PDP-8/F]] || 1972 || ??? || ??? || quad PCBs || Smaller PDP-8/E
|-
| [[PDP-8/E|PDP-8/M]] || 1972 || ??? || ??? || quad PCBs || [[Original Equipment Manufacturer|OEM]] PDP-8/F
|-
| [[PDP-8/A]] || 1975 || ??? || ??? || single hex PCB ||
|-
| [[VT78]] || 1978 || 1980 || ??? || [[Intersil 6100]] || [[Personal computer|Desktop]]
|-
| [[DECmate I]]|| 1980 || 1984 || ??? || [[Harris 6120]] || Desktop
|-
| [[DECmate II]]|| 1982 || 1986 || ??? || Harris 6120 || Desktop
|-
| [[DECmate III]] || 1984 || 1990 || ??? || Harris 6120 || Desktop
|-
| [[DECmate III|DECmate III+]] || 1985 || 1990 || ??? || Harris 6120 || Desktop
|}
as well as two [[microprocessor]] implementations:

* Intersil 6100 used in the [[VT78]]
* Harris 6120, used in the [[DECmate]] systems

== Architecture ==

See [[PDP-8 architecture]]

== Operating Systems ==

* [[OS/8]]
* [[TSS/8]]
* [[RTS/8]]

==See also==

* [[PDP-8 Memory Extension units‎‎]]

==External links==

* [http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/dec/pdp8 PDP-8] - Original PDP-8 documents at Bitsavers
* [http://www.vaxarchive.org/hardware/pdp11/pdp8rc.tar PDP-8 reference card] (images in TAR file)
* C. Gordon Bell and John E. McNamara, [http://gordonbell.azurewebsites.net/Computer_Engineering/00000201.htm The PDP-8 and Other 12-Bit Computers], in C. Gordon Bell, J. Craig Mudge, John. E. McNamara, ''Computer Engineering: A DEC View of Hardware Systems Design'', Digital Press, Bedford, 1978
* [https://www.pdp8online.com/ Online PDP-8 Home Page] - David Gesswein's PDP-8 site
* [http://homepage.cs.uiowa.edu/~jones/pdp8/models/ PDP-8 Models and Options] - Douglas Jones' PDP-8 site
* [https://ethw.org/File:OMNI-pdp8.pdf The PDP-8] - "The first ‘personal’ computer for engineers and scientists ushered in the minicomputer era", John Voelker, IEEE Spectrum
* [https://www.ricomputermuseum.org/collections-gallery/equipment/pdp-8s "Rhode Island Computer Museum: Digital Equipment PDP-8/S, S/N 517"] - "The PDP-8/S ... was designed by Saul P. Dinman and was the first CPU to cost less than $10,000. It ... does not contain any integrated circuits. Just the processor contains 1001 transistors."
* [https://relaysbc.sourceforge.net/devlog.html "A relay PDP-8 ?"] is a paper design by Joe Allen for a 227-[[relay]] computer implementation that executes the PDP-8 instruction set.

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PDP-8 family