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In our book, Bebop BYTES Back (An Unconventional Guide to
Computers), we described a simple microcomputer that we named a Beboputer. As
opposed to building this microcomputer out of physical devices, we implemented it as a
computer simulator that was delivered on the CD-ROM accompanying the book. In conjunction with the Department of Electronics Engineering at the University of Hull in England we then designed a physical manifestation of the Beboputer. The result - created by exceptionally gifted student Andrew John Ayre as his final year project- we called the PhizzyB (which stands for "Physical Beboputer"). Instructions for building your own PhizzyB are presented in the November 1998 issue of the EPE Online electronics and computing hobbyist magazine. |
| Now comes the cunning part of our tale, because we also created a special PhizzyB Simulator, which provides an accurate virtual representation of the real PhizzyB. (The simulator runs under Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows NT.) You can purchase the simulator from the EPE Online Store. |
| Note that the large circuit board at the bottom of the PhizzyB
Simulator corresponds to the main PhizzyB. The small boards to the left and
right represent generic input and output devices. The other large board (at the top of the screen) represents an expansion board containing extra stuff like a counter timer and interrupt controller (this expansion board will be made available in early 1999). The PhizzyB Simulator comes equipped with a variety of tools and utilities, including an assembler, memory walker display, and CPU register display. |
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The
simulator also includes the PBLink
utility, which provides a bi-directional communications link between your host PC and the PhizzyB.
Amongst other things, this allows you to:
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| As just one of its many features, the PBLink utility allows you to control your PhizzyB over a local area network (LAN) or the Internet. This is ideal for classroom environments -- a single PhizzyB can be shared by many students! |
| In addition to its superb online help, the PhizzyB simulator also comes equipped with two user manuals. The PhizzyB User Manual Volume 1: PhizzyB Simulator introduces the various components of the main PhizzyB Simulator and describes how to create and run programs on the simulator, including how to use the various tools and utilities. The PhizzyB User Manual Volume 2: Development System describes how to use the PBLink utility to download programs from the PhizzyB Simulator to the real PhizzyB. | ||
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| PhizzyB
User Manual Vol. 1 (The "Blue Book") |
PhizzyB
User Manual Vol. 2 (The "Red Book") |
The Official Beboputer Microprocessor Databook |
| Also of
interest is The Official Beboputer Microprocessor Databook, which,
amongst many other things, describes our assembly language, instruction set, and
addressing modes. This databook and both of the PhizzyB's user manuals are provided in the form of e-books (electronic books) in Adobe Acrobat PDF format, which means that they can be viewed on the screen with the Adobe Acrobat Reader (a copy of which is provided on the CD) or you can print out a copy on your home printer.
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| But wait, there's more! In fact we're working on a number of Beboputer and PhizzyB-related projects. Click Here for more information on some of these little beauties. |
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