Part 2: Story: Important: Read the Manual!

Important: Read the Manual!



It looks like Carl's got some advice for me before I start.

I’ve had a look at the book. It doesn’t seem too complicated. There’s your basic moving-data-around instructions, and add, subtract, multiply… no divide, though. Nothing too fancy. In fact, it feels bargain-basement, compared to the hardware-mapping exercises I did in school. But I guess programmable, modular microcontrollers turned out cheaper than custom silicon in this timeline.

There’s a space at the back of the manual for datasheets, but there’s only one so far: the MC4000. It’s a basic microcontroller. I was a little surprised to hear they cost 3 Yuan each— about a dollar— but apparently there’s a discount for purchasing them in bulk.
I’m a little MORE disconcerted at the specs. One register, four I/O pins - that I can deal with. But each can store only 9 lines of code…!

I wonder if I can start up a custom silicon fabrication company in my spare time.