Why can I get “access” to todays computer hardware like the “good old days” computers?
A discussion in 2003 in comp.os.cpm was about the alledged great loss of access to the “hardware bits”, or the “nuts and bolts” of computers today. Concurrent to this complaint was how people “really don’t know computers” because they don’t “understand” the hardware. Here’s a typical comment, with my reply: *>Sadly, it’s because we’re so removed from the underlying hardware. *> *>Computers used to have real “front panels” with toggle switches and displays, *>usually hard-wired to specific registers and status lines. *>Now you’re lucky to have any firmware assist for debugging the system… *>…folks clamor for blinking lights again, *>thus all the PCs with light-show stuff, Linux’s LCD projects and such… My reply is that there are all kinds of computers now: which ones do you have in mind? Many processors intended for “embedded” applications (control or data reporting) have in circuit debugging features. Those features are accessed through a “port” which usually has a few lines (pin
