> On May 13, 2025, at 9:52 AM, Christian Liendo via cctalk
> <cctalk@classiccmp.org> wrote:
>
> Back in Nov of 2023 Ed Sharpe asked the following: “Was there ever a
> COMPUTER using a 4004 that you could really do something or did that
> finally arrive with the 8008”
> https://classiccmp.org/mailman3/hyperkitty/list/cctalk@classiccmp.org/message/LYKGFANNPN6S75X3IUEZVFDRVPD5MQKF/
>
> I hope to answer that question, or at least spark a discussion.
>
> For a number of years now I have been researching this computer called
> a Comstar System 4 which is based on the Intel 4004. The Comstar
> Corporation of Minneapolis was a developer of microcomputer control
> and automation systems and in 1972 released the System 4
> microcomputer. Comstar built a general purpose capable computer that
> could be programmed to do a multitude of tasks but their market focus
> was industrial automation. ...
Interesting.
Another data point, but not a commercial one: a university classmate of mine
created a 4004 based computer system of his own design, a large wire wrap board
with about 100 chips on it. It became his Honors project. I think it was
summer of 1974 that he spent at one of the US National Labs, and they were
sufficiently impressed with what he had built that they wanted copies of it.
Originally the machine didn't have a UART, so it needed a bit-banging serial
port driver to load code. Later on a friendly DEC field service tech gave him
a General Automation UART chip, I think that was the first single chip UART,
which made the job a whole lot simpler.
paul
