32 Mbps half-duplex transceiver in a through-hole DIP
The 1/1 driver/receiver count covers a single differential pair; for multi-drop RS-485 you wire the driver enable pin to the MCU's DE signal and let the protocol handle bus turn-around.
The 8-pin PDIP package (0.300" wide, 7.62 mm pitch) is through-hole — it fits socketed prototyping boards, legacy DIP footprints, and designs where the assembler prefers hand-solder or wave-solder over reflow. The 35 mV receiver hysteresis cleans up noise on long stub lines without external Schmidt triggers.
That means the part is still in normal production through TI's distribution channel and independent distributors alike.