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LT6502: A 6502-based homebrew laptop (github.com)

417 points by classichasclass · 154 days ago · 222 comments on HN

Article summary

The article discusses a homebrew laptop design based on the 6502 processor. The project has been moved to a new platform due to the creator's dissatisfaction with Microsoft. The laptop design is an example of a retrocomputing project, where old technology is used to create new devices. The project's details are no longer available on the original GitHub page, but it has been relocated to a new repository.

Main themes

  • Retrocomputing
  • Homebrew laptops
  • 6502 processor
  • Alternative computing platforms
  • Nostalgia for old technology

What commenters say

  • The advancement of semiconductor technology has enabled the development of modern web browsers and digital transformation, and without it, the internet would be very different.
  • The rise of JavaScript is not the primary reason for the decline of old computers, but rather the increasing demand for more powerful hardware to support modern web applications.
  • If semiconductor advances had ended in the eighties, the internet would likely have developed differently, with a focus on text-based content and limited video capabilities.
  • The idea that Moore's Law would stop suddenly is unlikely, and it is more plausible that alternative technologies, such as mechanical computers, could have become more popular.
  • The development of modern computers was not inevitable, and there were concerns in the past that PCB signal integrity would limit further improvements in processor speed.
  • The use of transputers and parallel architecture was explored in the 1980s as a potential solution to the perceived plateau in CPU speed, but it was ultimately not successful at the time.
  • The current internet would not have been possible without the advancement of semiconductor technology, and the development of modern web applications would have been severely limited by the lack of powerful hardware.
  • The notion that ads and tracking would not have existed in an alternate reality with limited internet speeds is disputed, with some arguing that ads would have still found a way to exist in some form.