[Info-vax] Whither VMS?

[Richard B. Gilbert]

glen herrmannsfeldt wrote:
> Richard B. Gilbert <rgilbert88 at comcast.net> wrote:
>  
> (snip)
>  
> < Back in 1960, just about everything was unit record; e.g. punched cards. 
> <  Programming was done by plugging patch cords into frames that were 
> < then plugged into various sorters, collators, and maybe even a CPC (Card 
> < Programmed Calculator)
>  
> < Computers were few and far between and used vacuum tubes!!
> 
> Well, Fortran goes back to 1956, but yes the others were pretty
> popular for a while after that.  Sometimes for pre/post processing
> for computers.  Some computers would write the output onto tape,
> which was later put through a tape to print machine.
>  
> < I carry more processing capability in my shirt pocket than you could fit 
> < in an 18 wheeler back in 1960; it's the PDA features on my phone; 
> < calculator, appointment calendar, memo pad, address/phone book, . . . .
> 
> The last one I saw said more computing power in a singing
> greeting card than all the computers in 1950.
>  
> < In 1970, we still used punched cards.  Uppercase only.  The word 
> < processing program was "runoff" or "roff".  I believe it was written by 
> < Brian Kernighan while he was a student at Princeton.  It would lowercase 
> < everything unless you escaped it by preceding it with a $.
>  
> < The 1403N1 printer could print mixed case at a decent speed.
> 
> Some books were printed directly from the output.
>  
> < I don't miss it!  I have more processing power under my desk than 
> < Princeton University's Computer Center had in 1970; an IBM System/360 
> < Model 91 (90 nanosecond register to register addition) with a whole 16 
> < megabytes of magnetic core memory.  My printer is about 1/20 the size 
> < and weight of the 1403N1 printers that we used and is a lot faster and 
> < much quieter.  The output is better looking too!
> 
> I thought it was 2 megabytes maximum for the 360/91, and that was
> 750ns core, 16 way interleaved to come close to the processor speed.
> (I believe 60ns clock.)  
> 

You're right about the memory.  It was two megebytes.  It consisted of 
sixteen water cooled "bombs" and one spare bomb.