I was called on to speak for 20 mins or so on the nature of high performance CPUs the other day, in the context of Apple’s latest platform shift, and I opened with a nice diagram from this excellent short work:
How it Works: The Computer (Ladybird books, 1971 edition)
This was the diagram I felt I needed:
The completist might want to compare with the 1979 edition. Of course, I have both!
(Ladybird books were initially aimed at children, but they were never condescending, and this particular one was bulk-bought by large companies to educate management about the new thing - computers. There’s a fascinating documentary about the company - it was highly unusual, in that a printer decided to become a publisher and arrange its own content. The books are short because of paper shortages, and arguably better for it. They have become somewhat collectible.)
