I should post about the latest #retrocomputing project I started.
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I should post about the latest #retrocomputing project I started.
Problem: I'd like an open-source, self-hosting C compiler on 8086, that supports the large memory model, overlays, and enough C89 to build Lua.
This seems to not exist! K&R is much more common in this size category. Around the time of C89, many compilers bloated to the point of requiring a 386 or better host, though they could still target 8086. The 8086 holdouts were, in general, commercial products that never got a source release.
One notable exception was DeSmet C http://www.desmet-c.com. It seems to have started life as a commercial PC fork of Bell Labs PCC, a small and sturdy K&R compiler. DeSmet 3.1 added "draft ANSI C" support, but this is incomplete, and riddled with code-gen bugs. This version later found itself on Github as OpenDC https://github.com/the-grue/OpenDC.
Aside from all the bugs, this is a pretty cool package: its dis/assembler, debugger, text editor, and some other utilities were also open sourced, and it runs on an 8088 with 256K RAM and two 360K floppies.
The OpenDC person did a good job packaging things up into an easily buildable form, and fixing syntax errors that probably came from running the sources through a different compiler version than expected, so... yes, it does indeed build and self-host... and I've done this on my Book 8088.
So now I will try to fix the bugs and add the missing C89 features. There are many, many of both... gulp.
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Gli ultimi otto messaggi ricevuti dalla Federazione
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슬슬 Fedify 스티커도 좀 더 生產해야…
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Uno spremiagrumi e una cancellazione selettiva
Da un lato la graduazione si è cancellata, dall'altro no.
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RE: https://social.linux.pizza/@socallinuxexpo/116140317176513466
Looking forward to it!
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What did you want to be when you grew up?
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Wind Power Is Taking Off In China– All The Way to 2000 m AGL
2000 m above ground level (AGL), winds are stronger and much, much more consistent than they are at surface. Even if the Earth were a perfect sphere, there’d be a sluggish boundry layer at the surface, but since it’s got all these interesting bumps and bits and bobs, it’s not just sluggish but horribly turbulent, too. Getting above that, as much as possible, is why wind turbines are on big towers. Rather than build really big tower, Beijing Lanyi Yunchuan Energy Technology Co. has gone for a more ambitious approach: an aerostat to take power from the steady winds found at high altitude. Ambitiously called the Stratosphere Airborne Wind Energy System (SAWES), the megawatt-scale prototype has recently begun feeding into the grid in Yibin, Sichuan Province.
The name might be a bit ambitious, since its 2000 m test flight is only one tenth of the way to the stratosphere, but Yibin isn’t a bad choice for testing: as it is well inland, the S2000 prototype won’t have to contend with typhoons or other ocean storms. The prototype is arguably as ambitious as the name: its 12 flying turbines have a peak capacity of three megawatts. True, there are larger turbines in wind farms right now, but at 60 m in length and 40 m in diameter, the S2000 has a lot of room to grow before hitting any kind of limit or even record for aerostats. We’re particularly interested in the double-hull construction– it would seem the ring of the outer gas bag would do a good job funneling and accelerating air into those turbines, but we’d love to see some wind tunnel testing or even CFD renderings of what’s going on in there.
A rear view shows the 12 turbines inside the double hull. It should guide air into the gap, but we wonder how much turbulence the trusses in there are making.
During its first test flight in January 2026, the system generated generated 385 kilowatt-hours of electricity over the course of 30 minutes. That means it averaged about 25% capacity for the test, which is a good safe start. Doubtless the engineers have a full suite of test flights planned to demonstrate the endurance and power production capabilities of this prototype. Longer flights at higher capacity may have already happened by the time you read this.Flying wind turbines isn’t a new idea by any means; a few years ago we featured this homemade kite generator, and the pros have been in on it too. Using helium instead represents an interesting design choice–on the plus side, its probably easier to control, and obviously allowing large structures, but the downside is the added cost of the gas. It will be interesting to see how it develops.
We’re willing to bet it catches on faster than harvesting wind energy from trees.
All images from Beijing Lanyi Yunchuan Energy Technology Co., Ltd.
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I nuovi schiavi dell’algoritmo
@anarchia
di Mario Sommella (*). Abbiamo rubato le immagini (addirittura 8) al grande Mauro Biani. Caporalato digitale, sfruttamento sistemico e complicità delle multinazionali L’immagine che non vogliamo vedere Sono le sette del mattino. In una città italiana qualunque, un uomo di...Vedi l'articolo
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Large Hadron Collider, he typed carefully
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@reiver no, it's just a regular acct:
