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From: tim@ism780c.UUCP
Newsgroups: comp.sys.intel
Subject: Why are segment selectors arranged the way they are?
Message-ID: <4664@ism780c.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 21-Nov-86 19:47:15 EST
Article-I.D.: ism780c.4664
Posted: Fri Nov 21 19:47:15 1986
Date-Received: Sun, 23-Nov-86 04:00:47 EST
Reply-To: tim@ism780c.UUCP (Tim Smith)
Distribution: net
Organization: Interactive Systems Corp., Santa Monica, CA
Lines: 13

On a 286, a selector has 13 bits of index, two bits of protection
information, and a bit that tells if it is local or global.

Why is the index in the high order bits instead of the low order
bits?  It seems to me that if the index had been put in the low
order bits, then one could simulate a linear address space by making
consecutive segments be 64k, thus getting rid of the biggest objection
most people have to the 286.
-- 
emordnilapanalpanama

Tim Smith       USENET: sdcrdcf!ism780c!tim   Compuserve: 72257,3706
                Delphi or GEnie: mnementh