Team 6502: The Story of the Team Behind the Chip That Launched the Personal Computing Revolution
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- Опубликовано: 7 фев 2025
- One of the most influential microprocessors ever designed, the MOS 6502 is credited with ushering in the most rapid democratization of technology in human history: the personal computing revolution.
When it was introduced in 1975 by MOS Technology of Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, the 8-bit microprocessor sold for a fraction of the cost of other microprocessors, causing rapid decreases across the industry. Featured in such seminal products as the Apple I and II, the Commodore PET and the BBC Micro, as well as Atari and Nintendo game consoles, the 6502 microprocessor has been the brains inside toys, office machines, and medical devices too numerous to mention. As one of the most widely used microprocessor architectures of all time, the CMOS related form of the 65XX developed by the Western Design Center is still in production today, with an estimated 6 billion units so far produced.
While the story of Chuck Peddle, the visionary who conceived of the 6502, and that of design team member and founder of the Western Design Center, Bill Mensch, are widely recognized and recorded, the stories of the other MOS Technology engineers and employees who also worked on the 6502 and their contributions are not. Team6502.org seeks to change that.
Through personal accounts or those of family related to the original 6502 design team members including Terry Holdt, Wil Mathys, Rod Orgill, Ray Hirt, Harry Bawcom, Sydney Ann Holt, Walt Eisenhower, and John Paivinen, as well as historical documents including MOS Technology brochures, 6502 schematics, inter-office memos, notes from brainstorming sessions, patent awards, and 6502 testing procedures and results, team6506.org tells the stories of the other MOS Technology engineers and employees behind the chip that put the transformative power of the microprocessor into everybody's hands.
From the moment of its legendary introduction at the Western Electronics Show and Convention (Westcon) more than 40 years ago, where computer enthusiasts from across Silicon Valley, including a young Steve Wozniak, flocked to San Francisco to purchase the 6502, to the legions of computer programmers and historians who continue to debate, discuss, program, and experiment with the iconic chip to this day, the 6502's appeal has spanned time and generations. May team6502.org fan the flame of that enthusiasm by providing new information about the people and processes behind its production, and with it, new food for thought and discussion for those who have carved out a special place in their hearts for the little chip that changed the world.
Music by scottholmesmusic.com. Creative Commons license.
This was great, thank you!
The 6502 also had a huge impact on culture. When the original Terminator film came out, I was nearly kicked out of the theater for laughing because (as a self-taught programmer who hand-assembled 6502 code for games I wrote for my family's Apple II), I immediately recognized the HI-TECH, FUTURISTIC, 21st century computer code scrolling behind the Terminator/Arnold's eyes as commented(!) 6502 assembly language. I only stopped laughing when my friends shushed me in embarrassment.
I've since seen 6502 code continue to appear in a few screen shots for hacker movies.
21st Century? Bender the bending robot (circa 3000AD) was "powered" by the 6502!! 😁😃
During the police station shootout you can see one of the code lines read: POKE 16K RAM BANK. I always thought that 16K of memory really wasn't that impressive for a cyborg from 2029...
In loving memory: Chuck Peddle (1937-2019) :-/
The VIC20 was my first computer. Taught myself BASIC and then 6502 assembly language. I owe my career to Chuck Peddle.
@@MolecularArts That's cool man :-)
6502 changed my life. While it was not my first CPU, it was the first one that I programmed with any kind of complexity. I am literally programming 6502 assembly language at the moment and have off-n-on for the last 36 years. Thanks to your dad and the entire 6502 team.
This is exciting! I'm looking forward to learning more about the whole 6502 team.
I'm surprised this is the only video on this channel. It is very well done! It looks very nice, it's entertaining, and the information is presented very well.
Jennifer, you must be very proud of your father. His invention influenced so many people, myself included.
Same
Thanks for the kind words...I will pass them along to my Dad. For so very many years, he really had no conception of how beloved that little chip really is.
@@jenniferwinograd tell him I am coding on the 6510 (in c64) since ~1991 non stop, and there are still hundreds guys out there doing that (in the demoscene). its a religion for us :)
wow that ending was spectacular. He must be so proud !
Sorry, saw nothing out of the ordinary. Methinks you must be just happy it ended, period.
Thanks Jennifer.
Thanks to your dad Terry.
Jennifer, I wanted to know why PETER SEHNAL Mechanicial Engineer and MOS Team 6502 member was completely left out of your video? He was my father and he worked with this entire team, we lived in New Jersey and worked at Valley Forge. He worked with Chuck Peddle from 1965 in Honeywell Arizona up until his passing in 1995 at Victor Technologies. He also worked with MOS Team in Hayward, CA. where they were located in the early 1972 before the Commodore take over. I think he should be acknowledged as a part of the 6502 Team in your video.
I'm chuck daughter and remember peter I agree. Debbie
It's really interesting to see how history is recording the 6502. Peddle and Mensch have been most vocal, and so are getting most of the credit. But really the entire Motorola 6800 team from the early 1970's should be recognized. Failure to develop the 6800, and allowing the design team to leave and take the technology with them to make the 6502 elsewhere, is just one in a long series of huge blunders on Motorola's part.
See the Wikipedia page for "Motorola 6800" for the whole story. It was many more people than this video mentions.
The 6502 was a revolutionary chip. It went on to power a range of computers and devices, the most historic of all, the Commodore 64.
🖖 65🙂2 👍 ❗
I still remember soldering together the kit of my first computer, it was an ACORN ATOM and had a "sixfiveOtwo" processor and 2K (that is 2048 Byte) RAM.
All else one needed was a black and white TV set and a cheep mono tape recorder, just switch it on and you could make scientific calculations with graphs !
Absolutely amazing I hope there's another part to this video someday
I am thrilled about this!
Whaaaat? Can't hear a word you're saying. Music too damn loud or cat got ya tongue!
The first CPU I did any programming for. It sure helped usher in the home PC!
Hi Jennifer. Nice job on the video. I hope you and your dad are well. Tim S.
Will we see a _Micro Men_ style docu-drama?
The same people behind the BBC Micro went on to invent the ARM processor - the little chip that runs everything. All because they wanted an upgrade to the 6502 in the BBC for the Archimedes but couldn't find one they thought was good enough!
As a Brit, I still feel a little national pride in that, even if ARM themselves have gone through Japanese ownership only to be passed onto nVidia (though to be fair, that was very recently)
"Too much head" in the 70's? Not something that I recall as a stude at the time!
Hey Jennifer -- I just stumbled upon this and I just wanted to say thanks for putting this info together. I'm quite a fan of 2 processors your dad worked on .. 6502 (obviously) and 6800 (an assumption on my part).
How do you manage to mention the Commodore PET but do not mention the best selling 8bit micro the Commodore 64?
I suppose because the C64 technically did not use the 6502, but the 6510. I know, it's basically the same chip, but...
I guess since the C64 was a branch in the PET evolutionary tree, it was covered. In my opinion, though, it deserves a specific mention, along with the VIC-20, which first took the next big step in making computers more affordable and therefore more accessible for people.
@@Wishbone1977 That probably wasn't the reason, because the Nintendo Entertainment System was mentioned, and strictly speaking, it did not use an actual 6502, either. Its CPU was definitely based directly on the 6502, but it lacked the BCD arithmetic mode and had the NES' sound generator on the same chip. It was a lot more different from the 6502 than the 6510, which has an I/O port (six bits) added and tri-state address lines.
Music really inappropriate here, at least this style. I may not consume and comprehend what is said with all those bumps on my years
I LOVE C64 👍🥂🎩
The 65xx line is very efficient in its code execution, to the point that many have said that it could almost be considered a RisC chip. I don't know about that, but I do wonder sometimes what would have happened if MOS had been able to increase the maximum clockspeed to something higher than 4mhz and maybe increase the data bandwidth to 32 bits and the address bus to 24 or 32 bit.
Nicely written, I struggle to hear your voice over the music though.
Something tells me that the women is a PAID voice over artist.. probably sourced on FIVER!!
Keep it up make another one
Interesting subject which I would very much like to watch but it is impossible with that background music.
nice video! :D
Why is this your only upload?
Ok, video was good. But that ending, very cool!
Sorry, saw nothing out of the ordinary. Methinks you must be just happy it ended, period.
Apple, Apple, Apple. MOS Tech was bought by Commodore and formed the basis of the most sold microcomputer in history, the Commodore 64. I can't believe that you failed to mention this.
Yeah, I have a feeling her Dad probably doesn't have too many kind words to say about Chicken Lips.
6502 4ever!
The background music is too loud. There were places where the narrator could not be clearly heard.
Great video. I owned an Acorn Electron and then a BBC Micro, so this is the chip I grew up with. Can you change BCC Micro to BBC Micro at 2:39?
I noticed that too.
please same video without background music
Indeed, pleaee @Jennifer Winograd upload this without that loudy music :(
Early 80s I worked with bunch of ex-Motorola engineers, they claim 6502 was direct ripoff of 6800, including Motorola batwing logo on their mask. I have no opinion, they were very adamant.
wow.., just bouth a neo6502 just for fun.., maybe I am too old..
I don't wanna take away from the awesomeness of your video, but its the BBC micro, not the "BCC" sorry for being picky. Awesome video!!!
This background is horrible. Not needed for anything in the video. For non native speakers this is horrible.
The background is too loud.
I am interested in your content and have subscribed to your magazine. 😋
While you mentioned the Commodore PET and Atari game system, you overlooked its use in the Atari 8-bit computers (400/800/XL/XE etc) and Commodore VIC-20, C64 & C128
It only launched the microcomputer revolution. You can't do business if you can only address 64k of memory although my defunct Z88 used triple addressing. It took the spreadsheet to take this to the masses.
The first spreadsheet ran on a 6502
1:26 You can NEVER have too much head.
Too much disrespect and too much ignorance. Half way in and still has not gotten to the theme of the title. Only criticizing the past in the way only a spoiled child can. Very sad.
"The past is a foreign land. You must learn it's customs before you can comment on it."
Thumb's down.
Hmm... yeah ... I started on a 6502 ... but I would really have hoped I'd started on a 6809.
Music is louder than the voice.
I don't understand the interesting narration because the shitty music is way too loud 😕
Where is the story ?
Maybe visit the web site?
I find it disheartening that Commodore chose the 68x00 series for its Amiga line of computers, since Chuck Peddle left Motorola to under cut the 6801.
No, the AMIGA was developed by former ATARI employees. Commodore later bought the AMIGA company 🙃
If MOS had made a 16/32 bit version of the 65xx series, I imagine they might have used that instead. Not sure why they didn't expand the 65xx line to more data bandwidth and address lines.
@@JustWasted3HoursHere They did it with the 65816. The Apple IIGS and the C65 use this CPU.
Nice video.
Your stylized photo of the team with the 6502 is flipped left / right. The people are actually right handed. And the chip schematic is backwards. This is a copy of the mistake made by the EE Times which you referenced to make the stylized version. On your site, the other photos from the same session are correct which you can use to verify this claim.
Nice tribute to your father.
Hello. Thanks! As I mentioned on the website, I knew the photo was published backward. But because I added 2 people (MOS Technology founders, John Paivinen and Walt Eisenhower) and turned it into an illustration, I didn't want it to become unrecognizable by also flipping its orientation. Plus, backward or not, it's now iconic. :)
heheh.. BCC micro.. thats a new one :)
Amazing how motorolla is still around just throwing their money at everything and buying it instead of pioneering technology and the pioneers of real technology are gone.
Motorola is not still around. The only division left makes police radios. A Chinese company bought the cell-phone brand. The chip making division was broken up and sold off and spun out over 20 years ago.
Motorola is a great example of a corporation that had all the potential in the world, but was brought down by mismanagement at all levels.
@@larrymelman Google bought Motorolas phone business in 2012 dummy and sold it to Lenovo 2 years later. You clearly don't have a clue what you are talking about. As for Motorola in general they are still alive and well doing all kinds of stuff. The main problem is competition. Taiwan is what killed Motorola as a whole and many others. But Motorola is still a viable corporation.
@@darrelldarrell1447 Prove it. You can't because all that's left is Motorola Solutions which is the public radio stuff. The rest of it was spun off or sold off. This is not even debatable, it's basic fact.
Wrong - no democratization, but free (non restricted - market based) access to technology. Democratic access to technology would be if everybody would vote which technology should be in use by everyone. Democracy is forcing others to something, that most people want - it is not freedom.
"Wrong"? Not even a discussion? Because it would seem from your comment that you are conflating "freedom" with "democracy." The video doesn't say anything about "freedom." One definition of democratization is this: "the action of making something accessible to everyone." I'm not sure how a significant reduction in the cost of microprocessors which made digital technology so affordable as to make it accessible across the U.S. and, in large part globally, doesn't qualify.
2nd definition is intended use. Jennifer is correct....
de·moc·ra·tize
/dəˈmäkrəˌtīz/
verb
gerund or present participle: democratizing
1)introduce a democratic system or democratic principles to.
"public institutions need to be democratized"
2)make (something) accessible to everyone.
"mass production has not democratized fashion"
Worst YT video yet that has attempted to cover the 6502 - really hate videos with this kind of production approach
this video was produced by Chuck Peddle's daughter, AFAIK. It was not intended to be professional, I guess.