Back in my CS 101 class, we, too, had a simple CPU simulator.
Nothing like this. It was a simple assembly language with, perhaps, 16 or so instructions. The simulator was written in BASIC PLUS on the RSTS/E PDP 11/70.
I only mention it anecdotally to comment on, perhaps, how little early CS education has changed over the years.
The other fun anecdote was a friend of mine also took the class. The assignment was to multiply two numbers. We’re talking a very simple loop, not even binary multiplication with shifts and what not.
Rather than writing the simple loop, my friend changed the simulator and added a multiply instruction.
The instructor was not amused by his out of box problem solving.
Now that is some dream machine... Hardware has become so standardized and dull with x86 and ARM "cattle" boxes running Windows or Linux, there's hardly any pleasure or emotional attachment to the hardware anymore. I own a PiDP-11 but that doesn't cut it.
Nothing like this. It was a simple assembly language with, perhaps, 16 or so instructions. The simulator was written in BASIC PLUS on the RSTS/E PDP 11/70.
I only mention it anecdotally to comment on, perhaps, how little early CS education has changed over the years.
The other fun anecdote was a friend of mine also took the class. The assignment was to multiply two numbers. We’re talking a very simple loop, not even binary multiplication with shifts and what not.
Rather than writing the simple loop, my friend changed the simulator and added a multiply instruction.
The instructor was not amused by his out of box problem solving.