Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!mcdchg!ddsw1!bigtex!james
From: james@bigtex.uucp (James Van Artsdalen)
Newsgroups: comp.misc
Subject: Re: Mythical microprocessors
Message-ID: <5226@bigtex.uucp>
Date: 3 Aug 88 04:52:41 GMT
References: <677@buengc.BU.EDU>
Reply-To: james@bigtex.UUCP (James Van Artsdalen)
Organization: F.B.N. Software, Austin TX
Lines: 22

In article <677@buengc.BU.EDU>, bph@buengc.UUCP (Blair P. Houghton) wrote:
> While the topic of microprocessor chips is floating around, I'd like to ask

> Whatever happened to the Zilog Z80000?

> I remember getting a preliminary spec. for the thing, and it looked
> fairly decent; it could have competed with the M68000, TI32000, or
> the **86 series with ease.  

I'm not sure that the Z80000 ever worked.  The Z8000 was as brain
damaged as the the 8086 (segments with 16 bit limits) and died when it
didn't get picked up by a major vendor like IBM.  This didn't help the
Z80000 any.

Zilog never seems to have had much credibility with systems designers
anyway.  Another thing to consider is that Zilog never made any money
- it was a money sink for its parent, which I think was Exxon.  Zilog
is apparently still in business, but I don't know who the current
owner is or if they've abandoned the processor market entirely.
-- 
James R. Van Artsdalen   ...!ut-sally!utastro!bigtex!james   "Live Free or Die"
Home: 512-346-2444 Work: 328-0282; 110 Wild Basin Rd. Ste #230, Austin TX 78746