Thirty Years of X86: The story of the architecture that dominates computing

Posted at: Monday 9th June 2008 by David Fearon

It's been 30 years since the release of Intel's first X86 processor. In honour of its thirtieth birthday, we've taken a look at exactly what it is, how it works, and how it has come to dominate computing

The x86 architecture is one of the most successful technologies in the history of computing. Developed by Intel, it’s fundamental to the operation of almost every program written on a PC for the past 30 years. And that’s a lot of code.

The x86 architecture has become a symbol of what’s both good and bad about modern computing. Some see its total dominance as a bad thing, purely because the alternatives are so few and far between, and becoming fewer all the time. On the other hand, it has succeeded where others have failed, offering performance and compatibility at a competitive price. On its 30th anniversary, we take a look at what it is and where it’s going.

Click on the numbered sections below to find out what drove X86's incredible success.