MOS 6502

Chapter 46 MOS 6502

Although Ethan Jones wasn't in the tech industry in his previous life, and his understanding of it was limited to the autobiographies written by various tech giants, their autobiographies actually mentioned the reasons for the emergence and popularization of personal computers.

The former refers to the birth of the central microprocessor.

The latter is the low price of personal computers.

So when Steve Wozniak mentioned finding cheap chips, Ethan Jones immediately thought of Apple.

Because if he remembers correctly, Apple initially succeeded by offering high-quality products at low prices.

As for other topics, such as how Apple reduces costs and how it gains market share through price wars, these are all important questions.

If Ethan could recite this thing by heart, would he still be sitting here now?

They've been incredibly busy for ages!

However, none of this matters anymore.

When Steve Wozniak said he had found a CPU for $42, Ethan immediately perked up, and when Steve Jobs asked about the details, Ethan listened intently.

The chubby boy didn't hide anything and directly revealed his discovery.

"Oh Steve, it's actually quite a coincidence."

"You know, when I discovered that the design of Altair's personal computer was not up to the level of my high school practice project, an idea popped into my head, an idea to recreate past inventions."

"So, after the party last month, I redesigned my ideal personal computer, and while designing, I also carefully reviewed the prices and specifications of central microprocessors on the market."

"When I discovered that the Intel 8080 and the Motorola 6800 were priced the same at $360, but the Motorola 6800 was slightly better, I decided to use the Motorola 6800 as the core of my computer."

"But just as I finished drawing the circuit diagram and was ready to build it, my colleague suddenly told me that there was a company in Wisconsin that was selling cheap central microprocessors, and their products retailed for $42 each."

Upon hearing this, Steve Jobs' eyes widened instantly. "WTF?"

"This news is so amazing!"

Witnessing all of this, Steve Wozniak pouted and said, "Shocking, right?"

"certainly!"

Jobs waved his hands, trying to keep his voice down, but he couldn't contain his excitement. "What does a $42 chip mean? When Motorola and Intel were selling chips for $360, that price was heaven!"

"Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!"

The chubby boy nodded vigorously and said, "I was just as excited as you were!"

"If California and Wisconsin weren't so far apart, I would have rushed over to see the chips that night!"

"Because of the great distance, I had to ask my colleagues for their contact information."

"Initially, I hoped they could send me a central microprocessor, but when I learned that they would be coming to San Francisco at the beginning of this month to promote their products, I decided to meet with them."

"Then……"

"I feel like I've seen God!"

Wozniak waved his hands and said, "Even though several weeks have passed, I'm still incredibly excited. I can't describe how I felt, but I knew this was what I was looking for!"

"Once I got my hands on it, I couldn't wait to solder it onto my circuit board!"

"And these past few days, I've been busy revising the circuit diagrams!"

"So... I was really annoyed when those people called me over today!"

"Because they're really wasting my time!"

At this point, Steve Wozniak looked indignant again.

Steve Jobs was ecstatic. "Oh, Stephen! So you'll be able to finish it right away?"

Jobs screamed, "We'll have our own computers soon?"

"If today's accident doesn't happen again, I think I can finish it in the next few days." Wozniak nodded seriously.

"Oh! This is such a surprise!"

Jobs pumped his fist. "Dxmn! That's the best news I've heard all day!"

The next second, he erupted in rage again, "Sxxt! Steven Levy and his gang are sons of bitches! They're wasting your time, no! They're executioners! Murdering your precious life!"

"Oh, bro! Let's eat now! I'm definitely going back with you later! I want to witness that exciting moment! I, Steven Jobs, will have a microcomputer too! Hahahaha!"

At this point, Steve Jobs turned to Ethan and warmly invited, "Ethan, do you have time? Want to come and see? Really! I guarantee Stephen's skills will absolutely blow your mind!"

Before he could finish speaking, he realized something was amiss, turned to Steve Wozniak, and asked, "Oh Steve, I'm sorry, I got a little excited. What I was actually trying to say was, you wouldn't mind showing off your skills in front of Ethan, would you?"

"Of course!" The chubby boy pouted and smiled at Ethan, "You can come if you have time."

"Steve told me about you before. He said you're a great friend, very generous, unlike those miserly guys. You know who you should share your joys with."

"Oh, thank you." Ethan knew Wozniak was referring to the thousand dollars he had given Jobs.

"That was just normal cooperation," he emphasized.

"But you did help Steve." The chubby guy shrugged. "He was happy, and I was happy too."

"Okay, okay, let's not keep emphasizing this. I'll get embarrassed if you keep talking about it." Ethan nodded and said, "I have time. I'm honored to receive your invitation."

Ethan was certainly interested!

After hearing Wozniak's description of the inexpensive chip, he knew that this must be the moment Apple was born.

When such a moment arrives, leaving a significant mark on the history of science and technology, it is truly a privilege to witness it firsthand.

Overwhelmed by this pleasant surprise, the three quickly finished their lunch and then headed to Palo Alto.

At that time, Wozniak was an engineer at Hewlett-Packard, so he settled down here.

When Steve Wozniak, the chubby guy, invited Ethan and Steve Jobs into his house, he excitedly showed them the cheap central microprocessor he had acquired. The black packaged chip, about a third the size of a modern memory stick, appeared in front of Ethan.

On both sides of the chip are two rows of symmetrical pins, while in the center of the chip are white printed text.

The logo consists of three vertical bars, a circle, and three horizontal bars.

The string of numbers 6502 is the name of the chip.

To be honest, this is a historic moment.

But when Ethan saw what the chip looked like, he was struck dumb, frozen in place, unable to believe his eyes!

Because at that moment, he suddenly realized that he seemed to have seen this chip before!

Time must have been in a past life!

At that time, the chip was probably in the teacher's PowerPoint presentation!

As for its name?

If Ethan remembers correctly, its name is the printed text on the chip—

MOS 6502!

Note: ① If you've checked the information, you'll find discrepancies between the text and Baidu Encyclopedia. Baidu's Wozniak entry states that Wozniak discovered the 6502 at the Western Electronics Show in June 1975, so Ethan couldn't possibly be unaware of it, but this is incorrect. The University of California Library's digital archives contain records of the Electronics Show, confirming that the 6502 was officially released there. However, the Electronics Show was held from September 16th to 19th, so according to the records, the text's account is correct. ② Wozniak created the Apple I on June 29th, 1975, before the official release of the 6502. ③ Why did Wozniak obtain the chip before the 6502's official release? This is also consistent with the text: before its official release, the 6502 was only briefly mentioned in a Wisconsin magazine. Because it was so cheap, others thought they might be scammers, but Woz had plenty of money, so he bought it directly. After using it, he found that it was actually genuine.

(End of this chapter)