The New World Order Intel invented the general-purpose
microprocessor back in 1971, with the calculator-based 4004.
Through the years, their influence has spread considerably, and
Intel CPUs, the brains behind the most popular personal
computers, have powered the PC through over 6 generations of
development and competition. Any new line of Intel CPU, either
praised or criticized, has always had a lasting effect on the
computing industry. The i386 introduced the PC to 32-bit
computing, and introduced the "virtual x86 mode," a new
processor state which allowed DOS (real-mode) applications to
execute in protected mode (a major flaw in the 286, in which
protected mode was incompatible with DOS apps). The 386 era also
introduced the high-speed cache to the PC. The i486 integrated
the "80387 floating point unit" onto the processor core
(oldtimers might remember having to buy a separate floating
point processor for their 386 systems), while the main core-
logic remained virtually the same. The Pentium processor great