Discussion of large systems

[Tony Duell]

> 
> ard at p850ug1.demon.co.uk (Tony Duell) wrote:
> > I would agree. I haev 3 or 4 pre-1975 Unibus PDP11s, a PDP8/e, a Philips 
> > P850 and an HP9830 (along with a couple of 9100Bs, a couple of 9810s and 
> > a 9820 if you count those as computers).
> 
> I can forsee a world where computers are being saved, but peripherals
> and special-purpose machines (calculators, industrial controllers,
> sequencers, etc.) are not.
> 
> Why?
> 
> Well, they aren't computers. And we're all here talking about computers.

As I haev said many times on this list, my main interest is electronics. 
Not computing per se. Sure I like computers, but I regard them as being 
ingenious digital [1] electronic systems which happen to be programmable.

[1] As yet Iv'e not obtained an analogue computer, unless you count some 
of the servo systems in my hard drives, which IMHO are dedicated analogue 
comptuers.

And so I can see as much beauty and interest in, say, the motor 
controller of a plotter as in some CPUs. This is one reason I prefer the 
old TTL-built machines -- there is little to investigate when you have a 
few large ICs connected together, espeically when you don't have proper 
data on them. There's a lot more interest to me in a few boads of simple 
ICs -- gates, flip-flops, and the like -- which I can understand and 
watch the signals on the inputs and outputs.

So yes, I collect peripherals, calculators, odd bits of control systems 
[2] and so on. And of course processors

[2] I haev part (most?) of the control system from some kind of Xray 
defraction system (no, I don't have the 'optics'). It's patchboard 
programmable, uses DM160s as status indicators, etc. The papertape I/O 
uses the punch and reader from a fride flexowriter, mounted on 19" rack 
panels, and with their own motors. The printer is based on a Victor 
Comptometer adding machine with solenoids over the keys. I am not sure 
I'll ever use it, but it seemed worth rescuing...

-tony