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Java On 8-bit Platforms

Posted by Hemos on from the very-very-small dept.

ScrotalDwarf writes: " OneEighty software has released the world's first 8-bit Java VM. A fully functional Java VM, kilobytes rather than megabytes, in size! It's aimed at the mobile markets, but being smaller it's a whole lot faster - a fast Solaris JVM implementation!? If that wasn't enough, it's actually based on an implementation of a Turing machine. "

3 of 160 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Breakthrough? by willy_me · · Score: 4
    I can't believe this, since every single modern, useful chip has at least 16 bit words!

    Two reasons why we still have, and probably always will have 8 bit chips:

    Cost : 8 bit chips are cheaper to make.
    Power Consumption : 8 bit chips use less power.

    I can see no reason why a simple, non-scientific calculator would ever want to use a 16 bit chip. It would cost more to make and require a larger solar panel. What's the point? There are more 8 bit chips out in the marketplace then any other type of chip and this isn't going to change any time soon. Eight bits is hardly useless.

    Willy

  2. It's based on Forth by dmoen · · Score: 4
    I've seen Bernard Hodson's stuff on the net before. He has a Forth interpreter and a library of subroutines that occupies less than 32K, and he has been making grandious claims about his software for years. The last time around, he was claiming that his software constituted a revolutionary new "gene based" approach to programming (he calls Forth subroutines "genes"), and, just like this time around, he was making a big deal about his Forth system being equivalent to a Turing machine

    I guess he had problems convincing people to program in Forth, because now he has a Java front end.

    --
    I have written a truly remarkable program which this sig is too small to contain.
  3. There are already _millions_ of 8-bit java VMs by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4
    The JavaCard standard defines a very small java that can run on tiny platforms. There are already millions (literally) of card-JVMs already shipping.

    If you have an AMEX "Blue" card, then you have a JVM in your pocket (I believe its an Hitachi H8, but one of the tiny 8 bit versions).

    About half of all smartcards made right now (including almost all from European giant GemPlus) run JVMs.

    Anyone who went to Sun's JavaOne show a couple of years ago was handed a rather chunky ring, which had a Dallas Semiconductor iButton on it - this too has a JVM (I actually wrote some code for mine - using the same toolchain as for regular desktop java). I believe it is an 8051 microcontroller.

    I just received a TINI board from Dallas, which is the same as the iButton, but in a DIMM form-factor. It's sooooo cool. Info about it is here

    Maybe someone should code a 4-bit JVM, so we can run it on Voyager 2 (which has two 4-bit processors) - how's that for mobile code!