# djhworld/simple-computer

the scott CPU from "But How Do It Know?" by J. Clark Scott

Repository: https://github.com/djhworld/simple-computer
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/simple-computer
Language: Go
License Family: other
Last push: 2026-05-29T11:25:55+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 70/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 84, release rhythm 35, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 2669, "days_push": 96, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: no_releases, no_license
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 1990, forks 159 (observed 2026-08-28T04:06:03.082324+00:00)

## What it is
A Go-based simulator of the 16-bit CPU described in 'But How Do It Know?' by J. Clark Scott, built from NAND gates up through registers, RAM, ALU, and control unit. It includes an assembler, a graphical display, and I/O support, making it a fully functional educational machine.

## Use cases
- simulate a CPU built from logic gates
- learn how CPUs work at the gate level
- write and run assembly programs on a simple 16-bit machine
- study computer architecture concepts like ALU and control unit
- visualize CPU execution with a screen output
- teach low-level computing fundamentals

## When to choose
- you want to understand CPU internals from NAND gates upward
- you're following the 'But How Do It Know?' book and want a working model
- you need an educational, hackable CPU simulator in Go
- you want to experiment with assembly on a minimal architecture

## When to avoid
- you need a production-grade or performant CPU emulator
- you require modern CPU features like interrupts, stacks, or floating point
- you want to simulate a real-world commercial processor
- you need a general-purpose virtual machine for running real software

## Facets
- artifact type: library
- maturity: active
- function: simulation, interpreter, graphics
- domain: education, simulation, hardware, developer-tools
- platform: cross-platform
- tags: cpu-simulator, logic-gates, nand-gates, 16-bit-cpu, assembly, educational, computer-architecture, scott-cpu, emulator, desktop

## Member repositories
- djhworld/simple-computer (main) score 70

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:06:03.082324+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T03:02:43.719822+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/djhworld/simple-computer (fetched 2026-08-28T04:06:03.082324+00:00, sha 1a2c9a169b67)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.