Microsystems Opinion: Critique of the F8 Microprocessor

The Fairchild F8 is a control microprocessor whose architecture is considerably different from most machines in the same price and performance class. Good computer architecture is consistent, symmetrical, and coherent; the programmer is provided with the maximum amount of information possible after each operation and his freedom of action is limited as little as possible. A machine with these qualities behaves in the way one expects it to behave; it is free of special cases and peculiar quirks. The F8 falls considerably short of meeting these goals. It predates most equivalent micros; its designers seem to have had little contact with others doing similar things. This background has resulted in a machine combining brilliant design concepts with ugly flaws.