Subject:
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Re: Mechanical Memory for Computing
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.off-topic.geek
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Date:
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Thu, 26 Jun 2003 10:12:48 GMT
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Viewed:
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344 times
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In lugnet.technic, Ross Crawford wrote:
> In lugnet.build, Michael Cotsford wrote:
> > Very cool design.
> >
> > > The 4-bit byte is a function of #12 axles being the longest available, but
> > > the design is extendable to link multiple bytes together into longer length
> > > words.
> >
> > Question:
> > Why are you calling 4 bits a byte? 4 bits is a nibble, while 8 bits would be a
> > byte. Obviously the design can be extended to 8 bits like you mentioned. They
> > you would have your byte.
>
> Actually a byte is whatever you define it to be - a nibble is generally half a
> byte, and a word is generally 2 bytes. I haven't seen a machine using 4 bit
> bytes, but I've seen 8, 16, 32 and 64. And I'm sure there are other weird ones
> floating around ;)
I've been around computer hardware since the intel 8008 (about 1978), and a byte
has always been 8 bits, and a nibble 4 bits. I do not claim to know all
architectures though).
In some machines 16 bits is a word, and in others a half word, 32 bits is a word
or a double word, 64 bits is a double word or a quad word..... Typically though
in modern architectures (which may not include intel ;^) a byte is 8, half word
is 16, a word is 32, double word is 64, and quad-word is 128.
>
> FUT: .off-topic.geek
>
> ROSCO
Kevin
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Message has 2 Replies:
 | | Re: Mechanical Memory for Computing
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| (...) Other-sized bytes are much older than that. I think 8 bits became the standard in the 60s or early 70s. I believe the PDP-10, a 36-bit computer, used 9-bit bytes. Hmmm. We've got this thing called "The Internet". I bet it's good for finding (...) (21 years ago, 26-Jun-03, to lugnet.off-topic.geek)
| | | Re: Mechanical Memory for Computing
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| (...) In early mainframes the byte size varied quite a bit (pun intended). The first mainframe I worked on was a Univac 1100 which had a 36 bit word which could be referenced as either six 6-bit bytes or four 9-bit bytes. A byte is generally defined (...) (21 years ago, 26-Jun-03, to lugnet.off-topic.geek)
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