[Coco] Feralcore: An Internet Protocol Based on the 6809

Fri Jun 25 15:42:21 EDT 2010

I was able to play both files with VLC on Window$
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Brett Gordon" <beretta42 at gmail.com>
To: "CoCoList for Color Computer Enthusiasts" <coco at maltedmedia.com>
Sent: Friday, June 25, 2010 12:07 PM
Subject: Re: [Coco] Feralcore: An Internet Protocol Based on the 6809


> Same thing happened here.  I'm running linux, and using mplayer, which
> rarely cannot open/play a AV file....
>
> On Fri, Jun 25, 2010 at 12:38 PM, Wayne Campbell <asa.rand at gmail.com> 
> wrote:
>
>> Adam,
>>
>> I downloaded the MPEG-4 version of the video. Quicktime Player opened it,
>> but only in audio mode (no video screen). WMP could not play the video. 
>> Real
>> Player stated it needs a MPEG-2 decoder installed to play the video.
>>
>> I downloaded the Microsoft ASF version. WMP plays it without a problem.
>>
>> I downloaded the Feralcore.zip file. Upon trying to extract the archive, 
>> I
>> am asked for a password. I have no password to provide, and WinZip won't
>> extract the files, or even show me what's in the archive.
>>
>> Is there something I need to know?
>>
>> I am running Windows XP Professional (all service packs and updates
>> installed) on a HP/Compaq nx9020 notebook (Intel Celeron M 1.5 GHz), 2 GB
>> RAM, 80 GB HD (28% free).
>>
>> Wayne
>>
>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Adam Young" <ay235 at yahoo.com>
>> To: <coco at maltedmedia.com>
>> Sent: Thursday, June 24, 2010 6:19 PM
>> Subject: [Coco] Feralcore: An Internet Protocol Based on the 6809
>>
>>
>>
>>  All,
>>>
>>> Based on the responses of Brett, Aaron, Sean, and
>>> Andrew regarding Darwin, Corewar, and Network Tierra,
>>> it seems like there might be some interest in
>>> Feralcore (thanks for your feedback guys). Moti and I
>>> (along with other contributors) are actively researching
>>> Feralcore and welcome experimentation and feedback. It
>>> is written in C++ and is POSIX compatible for the most
>>> part. Below is a blurb on what it is.
>>>
>>> A Feralcore network is a network consisting of n nodes.
>>> Each node in the network has a unique personal identity
>>> (R. Pandya. Emerging mobile and personal communication systems.
>>> IEEE Communications Magazine, vol. 33, pages 44-52,
>>> June 1995). Every node can send a message to every other
>>> node. So, the network forms the complete graph on n vertices.
>>>
>>> Feralcore was inspired in part by the computer game Darwin
>>> (Aleph-Null. Computer Recreations. Software: Practice and
>>> Experience, vol. 2, pages 93-96, 1972). Core war was also
>>> inspired by Darwin. Each player submits a set of programs,
>>> called a species, to the game. An umpire program
>>> oversees the execution of the programs in memory. Programs
>>> can clobber one another since they run in the same address
>>> space. The last species standing wins. We adopt the term
>>> feralcore kernel to describe the program that
>>> oversees program execution.
>>>
>>> In feralcore each node has 256 memory cores.
>>> Each memory core consists of 65536 bytes. The kernel can
>>> run up to 256 processes at once spread out across the 256
>>> cores. Each process has a set of private registers that
>>> includes the program counter. Each process also has an
>>> associated integer corresponding to which core the process
>>> is in. The program counter points to the next instruction
>>> to be executed in this core. The privacy of the registers
>>> is not ensured, since one process can indirectly read
>>> or write the registers of another.
>>>
>>> At any given time, m processes are running in a node.
>>> The kernel implements a time sharing strategy to
>>> execute them. They are not executed in parallel (at least
>>> when viewed at the C++ source code level). For the purposes
>>> of illustration, suppose the processes are labeled from
>>> 1 to m. Let c be an m-sided coin having sides labeled from
>>> 1 to m. The kernel flips c to get a result r. The kernel lets
>>> process r execute a single instruction. The kernel flips
>>> c to get a result r. The kernel lets process r execute
>>> a single instruction, and so on. If one process dies
>>> then a coin having m - 1 sides is used, etc.
>>>
>>> This randomized strategy is clearly fair, especially when
>>> you consider the issue of which process gets to execute
>>> first. This design was chosen over a deterministic
>>> round-robin scheduler since it simplifies the
>>> implementation of break-points in the feralcore
>>> debugger.
>>>
>>> The kernel implements a virtual machine based on the
>>> feralcore instruction set. This instruction set is
>>> similar to the Motorola 6809 instruction set.
>>> So, processes execute 6809 instructions.
>>> However, 6809 instructions relating to hardware interrupts
>>> are not part of the feralcore instruction set. Also,
>>> an instruction using opcode 0x02 is included in
>>> the feralcore instruction set. The opcode 0x02 is
>>> not a valid instruction for the 6809. The 0x02
>>> instruction implements the feralcore API call.
>>> It is 0x02 followed by a 16-bit API vector.
>>>
>>> The API calls supplement the 6809 instructions by
>>> providing some very powerful functionality. There
>>> is an API call that lets a process spawn another
>>> feralcore process. There is an API call that
>>> lets a feralcore process move itself to another
>>> core within the same node. There is also an API
>>> call that lets a process move itself to another
>>> feralcore node in the network instantly.
>>>
>>> The kernel terminates a process when that process
>>> executes an invalid instruction. Executing an
>>> invalid instruction is the normal way for a process
>>> to terminate itself. Process A can clobber process B
>>> by writing an invalid instruction at the memory
>>> location pointed to by the program counter in
>>> process B.
>>>
>>> There are other situations that can cause a process
>>> to be terminated. When the 256th process is created,
>>> a random process is terminated. A node that is
>>> spammed with incoming feralcore programs may drop
>>> some incoming programs.
>>>
>>> Feralcore is an experiment. The documentation is
>>> currently available at:
>>>
>>> http://www.feralcore.com/download/tfcdocuments/feralcore.pdf
>>>
>>> A video of the 6809 program slowhopper is available
>>> at: www.feralcore.com
>>>
>>> slowhopper hops randomly around the feralcore network.
>>>
>>> Please let us know if you are interested in learning
>>> more or experimenting with it. It is not ready for
>>> general distribution due to unresolved bandwidth issues.
>>>
>>> I view feralcore in many different ways. The CoCo nut
>>> in me likes it since it is a new way to bring the 6809
>>> to life. I am wondering if any of you will feel the
>>> same way.
>>>
>>> regards,
>>>
>>> Adam
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> Coco mailing list
>>> Coco at maltedmedia.com
>>> http://five.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/coco
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Coco mailing list
>> Coco at maltedmedia.com
>> http://five.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/coco
>>
>
>
>
> -- 
> Brett M. Gordon,
> beretta42 at gmail.com
>
> --
> Coco mailing list
> Coco at maltedmedia.com
> http://five.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/coco


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