7/11/2026 MakerLisp 1.5 Update
Luther Johnson • July 11, 2026
Updated software, improved terminal I/O
With this release of the MakerLisp software, the system uses the DTR pin ("data terminal ready", see doc/HOWTO/gpio.txt) on the VGA display board, to do hardware flow control when sending characters to the display. This is faster and more reliable than the X-ON/X-OFF style software flow control used before. The VGA display board also now supports an HDMI monitor. See the release notes for more information. To get access to these features, you'll want to update both the MakerLisp system rom, and the VGA rom for the monitor/display format you are using (see doc/HOWTO/update.txt). Get the release notes and the full MakerLisp archive here.
The COR24-TB is designed around the Lattice MachXO* FPGA. It can be used to learn about and create solutions based on the COR24 soft CPU, or it can be used as a general purpose MachXO FPGA development platform. See a product description, and technical documentation, here . You can purchase this product on Tindie, here . We developed this board as a step toward replacing the Zilog eZ80 microprocessor on the MakerLisp Machine CPU. We'll use the I/O that is broken out to headers on this board, to prototype hardware and software for I2C, and SPI SD card support. Then we'll make a new MakerLisp CPU card that has it all on-board, like the current MakerLisp CPU. The eZ80 on the MakerLisp Machine CPU runs at 50 MHz, the COR24 here runs at a little over 100 MHz - the COR24 instruction execution mechanism and the C compiler are of similar efficiency, so we should see a 2x boost in performance, and be free from any future Zilog eZ80 supply chain issues. * Lattice MachXO is a trademark of Lattice Semiconductor, Inc.
2020 and 2021 have been busy years, but MakerLisp Language and Machine Development Continues
We are currently running a crowdfunding campaign on Kiva, a "micro-finance" platform, in order to support our effort to achieve FDA authorization - this is not a donation, it's a loan - you can lend as little as $25, and you get paid back, a little every month. Please check out our campaign . Thanks !
Lately I've been spending almost all my time creating an open source ventilator, the "MakerVent Model T" . Of course contact me as usual for MakerLisp product information and support.
CP/M 2.2 is ported and released for the MakerLisp Machine ! Download the release notes and archive.
The MakerLisp Machine was at the Vintage Computer Festival West, in Mountain View, Ca: http://vcfed.org/wp/festivals/vintage-computer-festival-west
I was in Gouda, NL, for the Nuttx 2019 International Nuttx Workshop: https://nuttx2019.org Nuttx is a Unix-like, real-time embedded OS, which has a great following, including makers of robotic vehicles. Nuttx has booted and run on the MakerLisp Machine, a supported port will be available soon !
I was just in Chicago, at the Chicago Functional Programming meetup ! https://www.meetup.com/Chicago-Functional-Programming-Meetup/events/261402402
Max Maxfield at EEWeb wrote a nice overview of the project: https://www.eeweb.com/profile/max-maxfield/articles/makerlisp-boasts-lisp-and-cp-m-for-makers-and-embedded-designers Thanks Max !
