question regarding bytes - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / beginners

author: krappleby
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: September 28, 2019, 11:05:39 pm
content: hi guys,i didn't know what to call this post so i just called it question regarding bytes, as it is something to do with that.OK.i am currently working on the possibility of creating a new for of processor, for an 8 bit system however, instead of being a 8 bit system its a 8 trit systemlol.. confused.. let me explainan 8 bit system uses as you know two states on or off, a series of 1 and 0 to give 255 possible optionshoweveri am working on a idea that will give you 3 options rather than the 2 in an 8 bit system resulting in over 3200 possible options. this is based on 3 potential states for each bit, they being (using 5v as an example) +5 0 -5if a computer is created using a 3 state system it would mean that an 8 trit system using a 16 trit address bus could handle 21.5mb of information with ease.do you think this is possible, i know that using electronics we can determine whether a power line is positive or negative so would this be possible, with work of course.your ideas are welcome.cheerskeith

author: sleemanj
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 28, 2019, 11:14:49 pm
content: That sounds like a balanced ternary computerhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ternary_computer

author: mariush
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 28, 2019, 11:17:45 pm
content: In a processor, they're using 0v and something like 0.7v or higher for a digital 1, not 0v and 5v. If they did that, you wouldn't have 8 bit microcontrollers running at 1.8v for example.Yes, you could make 3 state processors... but you could simulate such a processor by simply using 2 bits at a time to store only 3 states.You would need to reinvent a lot of math... as having only two states per bit makes it super easy to do multiplications and divisions for example ... ex /2 is just shifting a bit to the right... multiplying by 2 is shifting bits to left by one.and btw you'd have 6,561 possible values. In binary you have 1 byte = 2^8 = 256 values, in ternary you have 3^8 = 6,561 and 3^16 is 43,046,721 bytes... unless I'm so tired I'm not doing math well anymore.having 3 states could be useful for some things, like the carry bit, overflow, dealing with negative and unsigned/signed issues etc etc but would really complicate a cpu design.

author: rstofer
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 29, 2019, 12:25:11 am
content: Somewhere in a textbook I was using, there was a discussion of the costs of building computers (mainframes) versus various number systems. The outcome was that, if it were possible, based on prices in the '70s, base 'e' would be optimal. I don't know if it is possible, I would expect it to be very difficult.Then there are analog computers which have signals instead of bits but a single wire could represent an infinite number of values within the voltage range of the computer. What's more, mathematical operations like integration, multiplication, addition and subtraction are trivial. It is difficult to get a lot of precision but real-time response is pretty much a given.

author: epigramx
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 29, 2019, 10:45:47 am
content: Quote from: sleemanj on September 28, 2019, 11:14:49 pmUnderrated post, quoting for further exposure.

author: MosherIV
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 29, 2019, 12:02:11 pm
content: The problem is not the processing core but how to store the data. You will have to invent the ternary memory as well!Fyi, there is already decimal memory and a decimal computer.Look up dekatron for the memory.Look up Harwell Dekatron or Witch computer.

author: atmfjstc
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 29, 2019, 03:11:22 pm
content: Other than as an educational exercise, what use would such a design be? What benefits would it introduce that would offset its greatly increased complexity?The only benefit I can see at a glance for multiple logic levels is that you can pack more data on the same number of bus lines or in the same number of memory cells. However, this comes with significant problems: reduced noise margins, more severe impact of crosstalk, lower maximum speed, etc. And in fact this technology is already used, where the benefits outweigh the problems: MLC flash memory, and modulation modes for serial buses. Note how these applications only refer to data storage and transportation. For actual data processing and arithmetic, binary still seems to be the most efficient way of doing things.