View source for BCC 500

[[Image:BCC-500_1.jpg|300px|right|thumb|BCC 500]]

The '''BCC 500''' was a computer made by the [[Berkeley Computer Corporation]], from an initial design at [[Project GENIE]].  When the company went bankrupt in 1971, the prototype was sold to University of Hawaii.  After two years of refurbishment it was successfully deployed as an [[ARPANET]] host until 1980.  It was also the hub of the [[ALOHA network]] which inspired [[Ethernet]].

The computer consisted of six independent [[microcode]]d processors, having a 24-bit word width, 18-bit addressing, and access to a shared memory.  The microcode implemented an [[instruction set]] with a 6-bit [[operation code|opcode]] and 18-bit [[address]] field, as well as a subset of the [[SDS 940|940]] instruction set.  Two of the processors had expanded hardware capabilities and ran user code.  The other four were each responsible for implementing their own part of the [[operating system]]; part in microcode and part in [[macrocode]].

At BCC, an [[IBM System/360|IBM 360/30]] acted as a [[front end]], handling tape drives, card readers, and printers.  This was replaced by an [[HP2100]]A at Hawaii.  A [[PDP-11/10]] running [[ELF operating system|ELF]] connected to the ARPANET.

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==See also==

* [[:Image:BCC-500-microengine.png|Internal architecture of the BCC 500 microengine]]

== External links ==

* [http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/bcc/ BCC] - documentation at [[Bitsavers]] 
* [http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/univOfHawaii/Aloha_BCC-500/ Aloha BCC-500] - more
** [http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/univOfHawaii/R-1_BCC500_DesignFeatures_Rev_Mar74.pdf Design Features of the BCC 500 CPU]
** [http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/univOfHawaii/Aloha_BCC-500/pictures/hawaii_bcc500_block_diagram.jpg BCC500 block diagram]
** [http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/univOfHawaii/Aloha_BCC-500/logbooks/Last_BCC500_HW_Log_Entry_19800229.pdf Last BCC500 Log Entry]
** [http://www.bitsavers.org/bits/UniversityOfHawaii/BCC-500/ Tape image "BCC 500 Proof Tape"]
* [https://github.com/larsbrinkhoff/bcc-500/ Files from the BCC 500 computer at University of Hawaii] - extracted from the above
** [https://github.com/larsbrinkhoff/bcc-500/tree/master/doc BCC 500 documents] - from Butler Lampson
** [https://github.com/larsbrinkhoff/bcc-500/tree/master/text Extracted files]
*** [https://github.com/larsbrinkhoff/bcc-500/blob/master/text/WWL%3A%20(PERSONAL%20FILES)/ARCHITECTURE The BCC 500 Computing System: An Introduction and Overview]
*** [https://github.com/larsbrinkhoff/bcc-500/blob/master/text/SYSTEM-10%3A%20(DOCUMENTATION)/PFS-MANUAL PFS Reference Manual] - '"PFS" probably stands for 'Preliminary File System'
* [http://bwlampson.site/06a-BCC500Notes/06a-BCC500Notes.pdf Some Remarks on a Large New Time-Sharing System]
* [http://bwlampson.site/06-DynamicProtect/06-DynamicProtect.pdf Dynamic protection structures]

[[Category: Mainframes]]
[[Category: 24-bit Computers]]
[[Category: Unique Computers]]