LOOK AT TRENDS IN MICROPROCESSOR/MICROCOMPUTER SOFTWARE SYSTEMS.

Microcomputers can be programmed in any of several ways, each with its own advantages and disadvantages, each appropriate in certain environments and inappropriate in others. Programs for microprocessor-based systems typically contain between 256 and 4000 instructions. In most cases, programs are written, debugged, and stored in read-only memory (ROM) and programmable-ROM (p/ROM) chips. The means which microprocessor manufacturers provide to accomplish this is in the form of assemblers, simulators, higher-level languages, development systems, and other, less sophisticated tools. Some software systems are semi-portable and are available on time-sharing and large batch computers. In other cases, however, they are modified versions of in-house methods used to design and develop a microprocessor product line, and are not specifically designed for the end-user. Thus, to simply write a small microprocessor program, users have had to contend with substantial software development costs.