[userbinator]

Initial IP was 0 on the 8086/8088. I suspect that detailed technical information like this tends to be copy-pasted more than understood, which is why a lot of second-sourced information out there on it is just plain wrong or caveated. The sometimes self-contradicting information in Intel's own docs doesn't help either.

This is what I've figured out from Intel's docs:

    8086/88:   CS:IP = FFFF:0000 first instruction at FFFF0
    80186/188: CS:IP = FFFF:0000 first instruction at FFFF0
    80286:     CS:IP = F000:FFF0 first instruction at FFFF0
    80386:     CS:IP = 0000:0000FFF0 or F000:0000FFF0[1], first instruction at FFFFFFF0
    80486+:    CS:IP = F000:0000FFF0(?) first instruction at FFFFFFF0

[1] Depending on which datasheet/programmer's reference manual you read. I can't find any reference to someone who actually checked what the hardware did, however.

More interesting reading...

http://www.rcollins.org/Productivity/DescriptorCache.html

http://www.rcollins.org/ddj/Aug98/Aug98.html

https://www.pcjs.org/pubs/pc/reference/intel/80386/loadall/

[bytefire]

@userbinator thanks for clarification! this is indeed useful and helps understand contradictions.