UNCOL failed because of many reasons, none that I know of.
I put the blame on hardware design,throw some logic and memory together
CHEAP,QUICK and DIRTY and call it a computer if you can sell one.
Call it a computer standard if it for a PHD.
Today's memory is loosely based on 8 bit byte addressing, yet there
is no Mathematical abstract model to base the computing side of the
picture. What are the problems that need to be solved? What are the real
world hardware problems like I/O? Are things defined recursivity, in
that a simple version, can expand to a complex, and really complex
version. Register addressing,base register addressing, array, base
register addressing ... Algol 9000.
UNCOL is from the era, that it was thought lower cost hardware as gates
and memory it would possible have general purpose computer of 32K words
or more. 36 bits or bigger word length for single precision floating
point. A character set of LATIN upper and lower case letters,and a
limited ALGOL 60 character set, like '10' and 'BEGIN' keys.
The RLV12 (RL02 drive controller) in my PDP-11/23+ has decided to quit
working when it gets hot in the room.
RT-11 won't boot, with an ERR 15 Controller Error.
The defect may have become permanent, will have to check in the morning
when everything's cool.
The drives themselves are not indicating any faults, and both of them
exhibit the same behavior on boot.
Trying to rig up an emulator (or boot XXDP from the Teac 3.5" floppy)
introduces a whole new set of hair-pullers.
Since the RLV12 is so complex, I am tempted just to replace it, if one
can be had... so does anyone have one they don't need? :)
thanks
Charles
Anyone do any real work with either the Icon or Unicon language family? I recall fondly sending off for a 1/2" tape with an early Icon distribution from the University of Arizona. I played around with it personally, but never got to use either professionally.
Darn - my beloved Planar ELT320 terminal has died. I was just sitting
there using it and suddenly the screen went blank. The keyboard still works
and the power LED lights, so not a simply power supply failure.
Does anybody have a schematic or service manual for these guys? It's one
of my favorite terminals - not only does it have a beautiful orange/amber EL
display, but it's also way smaller and lighter than any VTxxx terminal of
the era.
Thanks
Bob
Hello!
Last year I rescued a HP 2116B that was going to be scrapped. It has been
in storage for quite many years but now the storage building was going to
be demolished and a quite urgent rescue operation took place.
The machine is now sitting and waiting to be restored to operational
condition.
When examining the machine it was quickly discovered that it was lacking a
few boards.
Notably the Memory Module Decoder board which goes into slot 2 and the
Power fail board in slot 1 were missing.
When I pulled out the card cage to examine the PSU it turned out that also
the two regulator modules for the PSU were missing.
Since I received the machine I have been able to find a Power Fail board on
Ebay, but three boards are still missing:
Memory Module Decoder (02116-6274 or 02116-6300)
Logic Supply Regulator (02116-6014)
Memory Supply Regulator (02116-6015 or 02116-63214)
Is there anyone here on the list that happens to have these spare boards or
a HP 2116 that is beyond repair? I have been thinking of replicating these
boards but it would be nice to find the original and spend the time on
something else than tedious replicating work.
Reading a 12 year old cctalk thread I saw that Tim Riker had an HP 2116 in
not so good condition once upon a time. I wonder if there is anything left
from that one?
/Mattis
I bought one of Vince Slyngstad's PDP-8 Omnibus 32Kword board kits
(battery backed-up RAM) a few years ago. I assembled it and it worked as
designed.
(I had an 8/A with 32K of actual core so I didn't use it other than a test).
Having sold my PDP-8/A system and not contemplating owning another, I'd
like to sell this board to someone who could use it.
But I have no idea what it's worth... make me an offer, or at least
recommend a price?
thanks
Charles
Didn't show up on the list, so re-sending it:
---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, 10 Jun 2026 12:14:39 -0700 (PDT)
From: Fred Cisin <cisin(a)xenosoft.com>
Subject: [cctalk] Ramac : The real first disk drive? (Was: Floppy disk
The first known and recognized disk drive of ANY type (hard disk preceded
floppy) was the Ramac, 70 years ago, 1956
https://www.computerhistory.org/storageengine/first-commercial-hard-disk-dr…
First one shipped was to Crown-Zellerbach Paper Company
CHM says June;
EDN and Google AI (Gemini) say September 13, 1956
https://www.edn.com/ibm-intros-1st-computer-disk-storage-unit-september-13-…
But, Gemini seems to also hallucinate RAMAC as being a company!
"At the 1958 Worlds Fair, RAMAC showcased its revolutionary random-access
capabilities by answering world history questions in 10 different languages."
(There was no Ramac Company exhibiting at the 1958 Worlds Fair)
Ramac had fifty 2 foot diameter double sided platters, and could hold a total
of about 5MB. Modern drives can have even higher density!
I have a crashed Ramac platter, that I have made into a patio table, with the
platter under glass.
In 1959, Nikita Khrushchev visited USA for 12 days, to try to calm the cold war
a bit.
On September 19, 1959, he tried to visit Disneyland,
State Department and Disneyland consulted with each other, and they would not
let him go to disneyland! Khrushchev was angry about that:
"What is it? Is there an epidemic of cholera there or something? Or have
gangsters taken over the place that can destroy me?"
Frank Sinatra hosted a massive celebrity lunch for him at 20th Century Fox
Studios, attended by Marilyn Monroe, Shirley MacLaine, Gary Cooper, etc.
When Nina Khrushchev expressed her disappointment about Disneyland, Sinatra
said to David Niven, "Hmm, tell the old broad that WE will sneak them in".
Apparently that visit didn't happen, or was very sneaky.
I remember a New Yorker cartoon that showed a soviet sub surfacing off-shore to
sneak him in.
Y'know, if they hadn't banned them from Disneyland, the entire Cuban missile
crisis would have been a lot less hostile!
To make up for not letting him go to Disneyland, the State Department, on
September 21, 1959, took him to San Jose, to tour IBM's facility, and see
Ramac.
S'posedly, Khrushchev was more impressed by the operation and efficiency of the
company self service cafeteria, than by Ramac.
--
Grumpy Ol' Fred cisin(a)xenosoft.com
Does anyone have any HN482764G or other 250nS or faster 2764 EPROMs they
can let go of inexpensively?
I could use 4 or 5. I will generate the shipping label from here so you
don't have to worry about the shipping costs.
Thank you,
Mike
In trying to make some Polymorphic docs available to a larger (but
probably still small) group of people, one thing I have is a LOT of
Polymorphic documentation/manuals. This all came from Polymorphic
Systems after they shut down here in Santa Barbara. and is arranged by
part # in folders in about three or four file cabinet drawers. While I
haven't counted them, a WAG is probably around 100 or so manuals, each
with a printed out manual and some (most?) have a floppy disk with the
manual on them. Years ago, I had some uneducated person say these
couldn't be original manuals since none of them have any pictures or
graphics (that someone hadn't heard of cut and paste back when these
manuals were put together.) I don't recall any graphics in the manuals,
but it has been a LONG time since Ive looked at them so I could be wrong
about that.
If anyone needs a copy of a Polymorphic manual, let me know that part
number and I'll see if I have it. I have a 600 dpi scanner and it is
fairly easy to make copies. The 5 1/4" disks are probably around 50
years old, and I have no idea if they are still readable.
Among all this stuff is about 20 assembly floor manuals I have looked
at, but not done anything with. This is more stuff I would like to get
scanned to avoid it being lost to posterity. Included in them are mods
to the computer boards.
Part of the motivation to do this was a post by Sellam (founder of VCF)
a while ago talking about people passing away with potentially a lot of
irreplaceable or uncommon stuff in their possession (I'm currently 80.)
Normally I would bring some of this stuff to VCFMW, but I couldn't get a
room at the convention hotel since they were apparently sold out, and
thus I won't be attending this year.
