[author : Jim C. Warren, Jr.] #Edito
Last December, I had the very good fortune to attend a lecture on the history of the electronic digital computer given by Professor Henry S. Tropp. Not too long ago, Dr. Tropp spent several years directing a research project for the Smithsonian Institute concerning the history of computers in the period, 1935 to 1955. Much of his work consisted of traveling around interviewing many of the "old Timers" in the fast-moving world of digital computers. Because the field is as new as it is—the first "real" computer was invented in the 1940's-many of the original researchers in computer science and technology are still alive. Dr. Tropp often spent several days talking with them.
His December lecture was a rambling collage of fascinating anecdotes and facts about the people and the technology, and insights into the intellectual character of the times. Some of his observations come to my mind, repeatedly, as I interact with computer hobbyists:
Dr. Tropp noted that, in those first years, there was a tremendous amount of intellectual and technical ferment in the area of computers. A number of prodigious steps were taken in a relatively short time, outlining and developing the majority of the concepts, theories, and principles that remain the cornerstones of computer science and computer engineering. A number of intellectual giants were involved: John Von Neumann, Alan Turing, George Stibitz, Howard Aiken, John Mauchly, and many others. As often as not, however, it appears that they had little idea of where they were going, and almost stumbled upon their great discoveries. The research community involved in these efforts was relatively small; most of the researchers knew one another, and there was often close communication among them. It seems like each new discovery by any one person quickly triggered renewed excitement and activity on the part of many others, even though they were scattered all over the northeastern United States, and some were in England. Each new discovery or development was quickly shared, and often served as a foundation element for someone else’s discovery. This continued until the early 1950’s. Then, this great rush of creation and advancement seemed to slow to a crawl. Some of the researchers went off to work for industry. A number of them moved to the West Coast to apply their research to the aircraft industry. Computers came out of the experimental labs, and became a profitable area of activity for business and industry. Particularly important: It appears that the easy communication and exchange of ideas that was so evident in the ’40’s was greatly curtailed in the '50's.
I see several parallels between what happened in those early days, and what is now occuring in the hobbyist community:
I see a great deal of excitement and obvious pleasure in the hobbyists, as they learn about these funny machines and discover their phenomenal capabilities. It seems to me that those early researchers must have felt much of the same excitement and intellectual stimulation, for computers were as new and novel to them, then, as they now are to many of the hobbyists.
I hear of hobbyists who are spending most of their time in a great flurry of activity and experimentation. In the same way, those first computer scientists often worked night and day on their research, sometimes moving bunks into their labs to facilitate their continuous efforts.
I note the extensive development of very inexpensive hardware within the hobbyist community, often developed in a basement shop. Similarly, the computer researchers of the '40's often worked on a shoestring budget in antiquated facilities.
Perhaps most significantly, I note the great willingness to share ideas, developments, facilities, and solutions to problems among the hobbyists. This obviously compares with the easy and open communication that was perhaps invaluable to those early researchers.
It is this open sharing that particularly delights me, and with which I am particularly concerned. I hope that it continues. We must all do whatever we can to encourage it. The sharing of ideas is useful in that it allows us to stand on one another’s shoulders, instead of standing on one another’s feet. But, there is something else being shared that is of at least equal value: the enthusiasm and intellectual excitement. There is no doubt in my mind that the sharing of such enthusiasm, as well as information, was a significant factor in the prodigious creativity of those original researchers. When one of them was frustrated and "down," probably someone came flying through the door, "wired" over some new discovery, and ricocheting off the walls... and the depressed co-worker wasn’t "down" for very long. I believe the same holds true for the computer hobbyists. So... continue to share your ideas, and continue to share your excitement.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
#OtherMagazine
Information derived from the May 24th issue of Electronic News
Extract : « DROP IN DEC ORDERS CAUSES LSI/11 - CHIPMAKER MAJOR FINANCIAL PROBLEMS [...]
NATIONAL'S SC/MP KIT FOR $99 [...]
SEMICONDUCTOR SHIPMENTS EXPECTED TO NEAR $5 BILLION MARK, THIS YEAR [...]
MOTOROLA & AMD AGREE ON 2901 SECOND-SOURCE [...]
FLOATING POINT SOFTWARE IN P/ROM's FOR 8080's [...]
MONOLITHIC MEMORIES OFFERS MICROPROCESSOR-BASED NOVA COMPETITOR [...]
8K PDP-8/E MEMORY FOR $650 [...]
PASCAL COMPILER FOR PDP-11 EXTENDED FOR REAL-TIME FUNCTIONS [...] »
[author : Jim C. Warren, Jr.] #OperatingSystem
Command Language & Facilities Similar to DECSYSTEM-10
Extract : « We have the first tidbits of information on the floppy-disc operating system to which we have alluded in past issues:
The system, called "CP/M," runs on an 8080. It is available from Digital Research, Box 579, Pacific Grove CA 93950; (408) 373-3403. Its user interface is patterned after that of the DECSYSTEM-10. The file commands include RENAME, TYPE, ERASE, DIRECTORY, LOAD, and auto-load/execute facility (type the name of an object file; it will be loaded and begin execution). File-names follow the DEC standard of a 1-8 character name with a 1-3 character suffix. An Editor is included that has somewhat the flavor of TECO. There is a PIP facility that allows easy transfer of files to and from any available device, e.g., terminal, paper-tape I/O, cassettes, floppy discs on any drive, etc.. Note: PIP is DECeze for Peripheral Interchange Program. Other systems software is likely to be included. [...] »
[author : Lloyd Rice] #Audio
Detailed discussion of techniques & hardware/software trade-offs
[author : Erik T. Mueller] #BASIC
An outstanding implementation by a high school junior
[author : Charlie Pack] #OperatingSystem
Keyboard control over program loading, examination, modification & execution