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Introduction To Ben Eater's 8 Bit Computer
Introduction To Ben Eater's 8 Bit Computer
An Introduction will go here... Soon... For sure before Jan 2021 :-) Covid-19 got in the way this year...
Ben's web site for this cool 8 bit computer is found https://eater.net/8bit where you can buy a complete kit
My goal, is to turn his AWESOME video tutorials and self paced instructions into a High School / College curriculum that can be taught in a class room setting to 20-30 students
To track or join the project check out the project blog "My Wild Ride... Creating a Class & Curriculum for Ben Eater's 8 Bit Computer" I'm using to post our progress developing this curriculum.
Getting Started
Getting Started
Step 1: Start by opening a Google Doc to record your progress, save questions and cut and paste screen shots for later review.
Pro Tip: When you are watching the video's and there is a good diagram or chart, take a screen shot of it, and paste it into your document.
Intro and Prep of Components
Intro and Prep of Components
PART 1 - Intro and Prep of Components
Notes for module creation: - create presentation, with links to videos, and close up pictures of prepping parts
PART 2 - Bread Board Basics
Notes for module creation:
in student lab doc, link back to any bread board basics for review
break video down to just prep power on the board
PART 4 - DMM Intro to Current Measurements
PART 5 - More DMM Basics
Clock Module
Clock Module
Ben Eater's Tutorial link https://eater.net/8bit/clock links you to his 4 part video series for building the clock module
PART 1 - Clock Logic - Insert Chips
PART 2 - Clock Logic -Test All Gates
PART 3 - Clock Logic - AND Gate as Control
2) Sequential Logic*
2) Sequential Logic*
8BC FoF Vids - Sequential Logic
8BC FoF Slides - Sequential Logic
Ben Eater Video on D Flip Flop
Ben Eater Video on 1-Bit Register
Uncovering the Silicon: Demystifying How Chips are Built and How They Work 5min
https://www.evilmadscientist.com/2019/uncovering-the-silicon-%CE%BCl914/
3) Registers and Bus
3) Registers and Bus
https://eater.net/8bit/registers
Ben Eater Youtube Video - Bus architecture and how register transfers work - 8 bit register - Part 1
4) Counters
4) Counters
8BC FoF Slides - Output Display
Skip to Slides 26-35 which cover the 2-Bit Counter and Decoder
8BC FoF Slides - Program Counter
5) Output Display
5) Output Display
Note - you will be doing the manual EEPROM programming "in situ", meaning not building the manual EEPROM programmer on a separate breadboard as Ben Eater does but instead using the EEPROM in the same spot it goes for the Display build and adding the WRITE circuit next to your B Regsiter (as in the FoF videos).
8BC FoF Slides - Output Display
Start at beginning of slides, learning about 7-Segment Displays and EEPROM's
Slide 41 - Start of Output Register build
5B) Arduino Programmer*
5B) Arduino Programmer*
The Arduino Programmer is a standalone single breadboard EEPROM programmer that uses an Ardunio Nano. Remember that an EEPROM is an electronic lookup table - you give it an address (in our case 11 bits, a number from 0-2047) and it outputs an 8-bit value. The Arduino Programmer is how you get the information into the EEPROM, i.e. how you create the lookup table so you can use the EEPROM in the 8-bit Computer builds. You use EEPROMs in 2 places: 1) the Output Display, as the lookup for the 4 Digit 7-Segment display, and 2) the Microcode lookup for how the control signals are set given an instruction op code (4 bits) and microcode step (3 bits).
The Arduino code (in the Sketches) is fairly involved and I don't expect you to type it from scratch along with Ben Eater in his videos. You can download from the links from a few places:
- Youtube Description below videos
- from Ben Eater's EEPROM Programmer github
- from my 8BC FOF Ardunio Folder
8BC FoF Arduino EEPROM Progammer
Ben Eater Youtube Video - Build an Arduino EEPROM programmer
6) ALU
6) ALU
No FoF Videos yet
7) RAM
7) RAM
No FoF Videos yet
8) Control
8) Control
No FoF Videos yet
https://eater.net/8bit/control
9) Programs*
9) Programs*
Now you're at the fun part!
Remember that you can also create new opcodes/instructions in order to make your programs doable with the mere 16 bytes of RAM (only room for 16 lines in your program).
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