8-BIT POWERED
RETRO COMPUTING
LIGHTNING FAST

Welcome to the8-Bit Era8-Bit Era

Dive deep into the world of and computer architecture. Experience computing fundamentals through a nostalgic pixel-perfect interface.

8+
Components
100%
Interactive
8-bit
Retro Style
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SCROLL TO EXPLORE
CORE CONCEPTS

Computer Architecture
Fundamentals

From bits to gigabytes, explore the building blocks that power modern computing

32/64
CPU Architecture
Explore the heart of computing - from instruction sets to pipelining and parallel processing.
8GB
Memory Hierarchy
Understand cache, RAM, and storage layers. Learn how data flows through the system.
0/1
Binary Logic
Master the language of computers - bits, bytes, and boolean algebra at the foundation.
1TB
Data Storage
Dive into how information is stored, retrieved, and managed across different media.
64-bit
Bus Systems
Learn about data highways connecting components - address, data, and control buses.
3.5GHz
Clock Cycles
Understand timing, frequency, and how computers synchronize operations.
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Bits Processed
1
1
1
0
1
0
0
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TIME IN BINARY

The Binary Clock

Time represented in pure binary - the language computers understand

HOURS
0
32
0
16
0
8
0
4
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1
00
MINUTES
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32
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16
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SECONDS
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32
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16
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00
00:00:00

Decimal Representation

Binary System
Base-2 number system using only 0 and 1

Each digit represents a power of 2: 32, 16, 8, 4, 2, 1

Reading Time
Add up the values where you see a 1

Example: 101010 = 32 + 8 + 2 = 42

Why Binary?
Computers use electrical signals

ON (1) and OFF (0) states are easy to represent electronically

INTERACTIVE LAB

Experiment with Binary Math

Play with bits and bytes in real-time. See how computers think!

Number System Converter
Convert between decimal, binary, and hexadecimal (8-bit range: 0-255)
Base 10
Base 2
Base 16
0
0
1
0
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1
0

Bit position: 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0

MEMORY SYSTEMS

How Memory Really Works

Watch data flow through memory cells in real-time

RAM - Random Access Memory
16 x 8-bit memory cells (128 bits total)

Lightning Fast Access

Access any memory location in constant time O(1)

~10 nanoseconds

Addressable Storage

Each byte has a unique address for direct access

16 addresses

Volatile Memory

Data is lost when power is turned off

RAM Type

Memory Bus Activity

Address Bus
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Data Bus
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Control Bus
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16
Memory Cells
8
Bits per Cell
128 bits
Total Capacity
< 1μs
Access Time
CPU ARCHITECTURE

Instruction Pipeline

Watch how modern CPUs execute multiple instructions simultaneously

5-Stage Pipeline
Cycle: 0 | Throughput: 1 instruction/cycle (after filling)
IF
ID
EX
MEM
WB
Parallelism
Multiple instructions execute simultaneously in different stages
5x faster
Efficiency
CPU resources are fully utilized every clock cycle
~100% usage
Throughput
One instruction completes per cycle (after pipeline fills)
1 inst/cycle
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