Using PDP-11 to build 6502 makes a lot of sense but using that 6502 to prototype for a even simpler processer is very clever. I'm just getting into electronics as something to do over COVID; I feel I'm re-visiting a bit of that era.
The 8-bit computer I'm working on 6502-based. One of the first things I did after "Hello World" on the hardware was write an emulator/debugger for the whole system in C#. I also get to use a pretty nice macro assembler compared to what you would have had back in the day.
You may have encouraged me to go back to a project I've put on hold: I started writing a high-level language that compiles to 6502 assembly. I could use C but it's not very 8-bit friendly and I want to go higher level than that but still keep the 8-bit-ness in mind. I've created a lot of macros but that only gets you so far.
If I had to do a lot of 6502 work today, I'd develop a custom language for it. Much like C is a custom language for the PDP-11 instruction set. C doesn't map very well onto the 6502, but customizing it would.
A custom language for the 6502 reminds me of the Action! language for the Atari computers. Wikipedia describes it as an ALGOL like language that included an editor, compiler, monitor, and runtime on a bank switching 16k cartridge. It was open sourced in 2015.
The 8-bit computer I'm working on 6502-based. One of the first things I did after "Hello World" on the hardware was write an emulator/debugger for the whole system in C#. I also get to use a pretty nice macro assembler compared to what you would have had back in the day.
You may have encouraged me to go back to a project I've put on hold: I started writing a high-level language that compiles to 6502 assembly. I could use C but it's not very 8-bit friendly and I want to go higher level than that but still keep the 8-bit-ness in mind. I've created a lot of macros but that only gets you so far.