commit bea6e9aae0e9bd4006224b4fca86268d9c8b5dd8
parent 113060dbce153f38e99f5760ed3d77e701991761
Author: viznut_web <viznut_web@web>
Date: Fri, 3 Jun 2022 12:27:03 +0200
Diffstat:
1 file changed, 22 insertions(+), 0 deletions(-)
diff --git a/bedrock_platform.mdwn b/bedrock_platform.mdwn
@@ -0,0 +1,22 @@
+A **bedrock platform** is a [[hardware]] platform or a simple [[virtual machine]] that can be expected to remain compatible with any [[software]] that has ever been written for it.
+
+Some possible criteria for bedrock hardware:
+
+* The hardware has been popular and commonly available at some point of history.
+* Every detail of the hardware is well-known and fully documented. (Having a 100% compatible open-source emulator can be considered full documentation)
+* There have been several independent manufacturers for each component.
+* Multiple emulators for the platform are commonly available for many different environments.
+* There are no copyright issues in regards to the hardware design, firmware IP, etc.
+
+Candidates for bedrock hardware:
+
+* [[IBM PC]]: Widely cloned, remains ubiquitous, every type of common component has had multiple manufacturers in different parts of the world (with the exception of common classical soundcards that may depend on single-manufacturer chips such as Yamaha's OPL2/OPL3 or Gravis's GF1), can be emulated by open-source software such as [[QEMU]], Dosbox or Bochs. There are also several different [[DOS]]-compatible operating systems, including FreeDOS.
+* [[NES]]/Famicom: Widely cloned especially in China/Taiwan. Huge amount of available emulators, and running a ROM file with one is very straightforward. No software dependencies (as there's no internal firmware ROM).
+* [[ZX Spectrum]]: Simple design that was easy enough to duplicate in Eastern-block countries even with 100% non-Western components. Clones are still manufactured, emulators are widely available.
+* [[MSX]]: Standardized platform, every chip used in MSX-1 computers has had both U.S.American and a Japanese manufacturers. (MSX-2 on the other hand depends on specific Yamaha chips). Emulators widely available. The firmware ROMs may pose issues as long as Microsoft exists.
+
+For virtual bedrock hardware, the main criterion is that the specification is simple enough that it can be implemented in a small effort for commonly available computers.
+
+Candidates for virtual machine bedrocks:
+
+* [[Uxn]]
