A historical past of ARM, half 1: Constructing the primary chip

A history of ARM, part 1: Building the first chip

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It was 1983, and Acorn Computer systems was on prime of the world. Sadly, bother was simply across the nook.

The small UK firm was well-known for profitable a contract with the British Broadcasting Company to provide a pc for a nationwide tv present. Gross sales of its BBC Micro had been skyrocketing and on tempo to exceed 1.2 million models.

A magazine ad for the BBC Micro. The tagline was "The Shape of Things to Come."

{A magazine} advert for the BBC Micro. The tagline was “The Form of Issues to Come.”

However the world of non-public computer systems was altering. The marketplace for low-cost 8-bit micros that oldsters would purchase to assist children with their homework was turning into saturated. And new machines from throughout the pond, just like the IBM PC and the upcoming Apple Macintosh, promised considerably extra energy and ease of use. Acorn wanted a strategy to compete, but it surely didn’t have a lot cash for analysis and improvement.

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