I really didn't know that the 6502 is still being used that often. But it makes sense. It's simple, it's hardy, and it's "good enough(tm)" for a lot of tasks that don't need much processing power, but need more flexibility than an FPGA.
That reminds me of my early working days. Around the turn of the 80's to 90's I worked for a computer service that serviced (even at that time) old IBM PC's (you know the 8088, 640KB, two 320KB floppy type). My operating area was mostly office buildings, and old steel mills around Saarbrücken. I one time went into an old fabrication hall (I think it was close to being shut down already) where they had a raised office above the ground floor right in the middle of the hall.
They had an ole' IBM sitting there which was chugging along just fine. Just a hiccup every once in a while. When I opened the thing I almost got a heart attack. That thing was covered in metal grindings and stuff, like the whole board, the power supply, EVERYTHING.
And it was still working. Getting a bit long in the tooth, took a while to boot, but it was WORKING.
I gained new respect for these bricks from there on. Indestructible.
Just got reminded by Garth not to add too much garbage to this thread, so I will stop now.
Where’s Jeff??? 
