Monotron - Making a 80s Style Computer with a $20 Dev Kit

Explore the creation of an 80s-style computer using a $20 development kit in this 30-minute conference talk from RustFest Paris 2018. Discover how Jonathan Pallant tackles the challenge of generating VGA without a video chip, rendering text without sufficient RAM for a framebuffer, and reading from a PS/2 keyboard using embedded Rust on a Cortex M4 devboard. Learn about the project's goals, hardware components, and software implementation, including video signal generation, timing, resolution, BIOS, display, and menu system. Gain insights into the nostalgic appeal of retro computing and the potential of modern embedded systems programming with Rust.

Intro
Why Monotron
Goals
First platform
The board
The chip
SVD to Rust
Crates
Video signals
Timing
Pixel Clock
Resolution
BIOS
Display
Software
The magic number
Menu system
Art
Productivity
ASCII art