Re: Punch cards

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>When I first learned to program in 1964 we used an IBM 1620, fondly known
>as CADET (Can't Add, Doesn't Even Try).  It had 20,000 memory cells, each
>of which stored one decimal digit.  Words were delimited by a flag bit in the
>most significant digit -- i.e. they were variable length.  Since there were no
>integrated circuits then, the whole desk-sized machine, complete with blinking
>lights, console switches, and a built-in IBM Executive electric typewriter for
>small amounts of input and output, was made with individual transistors.  My
>ex could type faster than that machine, especially with a Selectric, but this
>was before the Selectric too.
>
>For larger amounts of input or output one of course used the read-punch unit.
>You typed your Fortran program on a keypunch, went to the machine, set the
>switches, read in a deck with the Fortran compiler, reset the switches, read in
>your program and it punched out the object code on a deck of cards.  If you 
>needed any subroutines (sine, exp, etc.) they were on a separate deck you read
>in and it punched out the necessary code.  Finally you took your compiled deck
>from the punch side, reset the switches, and read it in and got your output off
>the typewriter.  If you had a lot of output, you punched it to a deck of cards and
>took them over to the listing machine, put in an appropriate pegboard to get the
>formatting you wanted, and printed out the deck.
>
>The variable word length was very useful for calculating Fibonacci numbers to
>1000's of digits.  Incidentally, 3/5/08 last month is a Fibonacci date, the last
>one for about 5 years till 5/8/13.  After that it's 8/13/21 and that's it for this
>century.
>
>Please do not bend, fold, staple or mutilate these cards.
>
>Bob

In the middle seventies I got a job as a computer operator for an 
auto parts jobber in San Bernardino.  They had a General Automation 
1830 which was a clone of the IBM 1130.  Ours had 16K of core memory, 
two disk drives the size of washing machines and a card reader.  We 
had four full time keypunch operators and I fed cards into that thing 
all day long, about 30,000 per month.  We had an IBM sorter in the 
back room that I sorted cards on and a decollator that I used to 
separate the multi-part paper from the carbons.  Those were the days.

-- 

Knute Johnson
Molon Labe...


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