#DEC PDP-1

[retrocompmx]

Un día como hoy (6 de diciembre) en la computación y videojuegos

El 6 de diciembre de 1961, los ingenieros de Digital Equipment Corporation Steve "Slug" Russell, Martin "Shag" Graetz y Wayne Wiitanen del ficticio "Instituto Hingham" concibieron el juego Spacewars!, con la intención de implementarlo en un DEC PDP-1 en el Instituto de Tecnología de Massachusetts. Después de que Alan Kotok obtuviera algunas rutinas de seno y coseno de DEC, Russell comenzó a codificar, y en febrero de 1962 había producido su primera versión. Se necesitaron aproximadamente 200 horas de trabajo para crear la versión inicial. Las características adicionales fueron desarrolladas por Dan Edwards, Peter Samson y Graetz. #retrocomputingmx #decpdp1 #spacewars #retrogaming #gaming

[adafruit]

🎄💾🗓️ Day 4: Retrocomputing Advent Calendar - The DEC PDP-11! 🎄💾🗓️

Released by Digital Equipment Corporation in 1970, the PDP-11 was a 16-bit minicomputer known for its orthogonal instruction set, allowing flexible and efficient programming. It introduced a Unibus architecture, which streamlined data communication and helped revolutionize computer design, making hardware design more modular and scalable. The PDP-11 was important in developing operating systems, including the early versions of UNIX. The PDP-11 was the hardware foundation for developing the C programming language and early UNIX systems. It supported multiple operating systems like RT-11, RSX-11, and UNIX, which directly shaped modern OS design principles. With over 600,000 units sold, the PDP-11 is celebrated as one of its era's most versatile and influential "minicomputers".

Check out the wikipedia page for some great history, photos (pictured here), and more -

And here's a story from Adafruit team member, Bill!

The DEC PDP-11 was the one of the first computers I ever programmed. That program was 'written' with a soldering iron.

I was an art student at the time, but spending most of my time in the engineering labs. There was a PDP-11-34 in the automation lab connected to an X-ray spectroscopy machine. Starting up the machine required toggling in a bootstrap loader via the front panel. This was a tedious process. So we ordered a diode-array boot ROM which had enough space to program 32 sixteen bit instructions.

Each instruction in the boot sequence needed to be broken down into binary (very straightforward with the PDP-11 instruction set). For each binary '1', a diode needed to be soldered into the array. The space was left empty for each '0'. 32 sixteen bit instructions was more than sufficient to load a secondary bootstrap from the floppy disk to launch the RT-11 operating system. So now it was possible to boot the system with just the push of a button.

I worked with a number DEC PDP-11/LSI-11 systems over the years. I still keep an LSI-11-23 system around for sentimental reasons.

Have first computer memories? Post’em up in the comments, or post yours on socialz’ and tag them #firstcomputer #retrocomputing – See you back here tomorrow!

[vax-official]

You might have heard of 32-bit and 64-bit applications before, and if you work with older software, maybe 16-bit and even 8-bit computers. But what came before 8-bit? Was it preceded by 4-bit computing? Were there 2-bit computers? 1-bit? Half-bit?

Well outside that one AVGN meme, half-bit isn't really a thing, but the answer is a bit weirder in other ways! The current most prominent CPU designs come from Intel and AMD, and Intel did produce 4-bit, 8-bit, 16-bit, 32-bit and 64-bit microprocessors (although 4-bit computers weren't really a thing). But what came before 4-bit microprocessors?

Mainframes and minicomputers did. These were large computers intended for organizations instead of personal use. Before microprocessors, they used transistorized integrated circuits (or in the early days even vacuum tubes) and required a much larger space to store the CPU.

And what bit length did these older computers have?

A large variety of bit lengths.

There were 16-bit, 32-bit and 64-bit mainframes/minicomputers, but you also had 36-bit computers (PDP-10), 12-bit (PDP-8), 18-bit (PDP-7), 24-bit (ICT 1900), 48-bit (Burroughs) and 60-bit (CDC 6000) computers among others. There were also computers that didn't use binary encoding to store numbers, such as decimal computers or the very rare ternary computers (Setun).

And you didn't always evolve by extending the bit length, you could upgrade from an 18-bit computer to a more powerful 16-bit computer, which is what the developers of early UNIX did when they switched over from the PDP-7 to the PDP-11, or offer 32-bit over 36-bit, which happened when IBM phased out the IBM 7090 in favor of the the System/360 or DEC phased out the PDP-10 in favor of the VAX.

[thejaymo]

COMPUTER SPACE (1971)

"In 1971, a Californian entrepreneur named Nolan Bushnell decided to deliver Spacewar! to the masses. Computer Space—essentially Spacewar repackaged—was the first modern coin-operated arcade game."

SPACE WAR! (1962)

Spacewar! is a space combat video game developed in 1962 by Steve Russell in collaboration with Martin Graetz, Wayne Wiitanen, Bob Saunders, Steve Piner, and others. It was written for the newly installed DEC PDP-1 minicomputer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

"the popularization of video games is better traced to Steve Russell, a graduate student who studied at MIT in the early 1960s. Russell is commonly credited for creating Spacewar with the help of collabora- tors. In Spacewar, each competitor controlled a spaceship. The players navigated the ships on a flat plane around a central sun (with simulated gravity) and attempted to destroy each other with missiles. In an interview with a reporter from Rolling Stone magazine, Russell described Spacewar not as a game, but as a way to “simulate a reasonably complicated physical system and actually see what is going on.”

Came across this whilst researching my book. Thought it was cool.

Quotes from Virtual Justice: The New Laws of Online Worlds by Greg Lastowka (2011) Read more about Computer Space at the Online Museum of play

[teknolojihaber]

Bilgisayar Tasarımcısı Gordon Bell 89 Yaşında Öldü

Bilgisayar teknolojisinin öncülerinden Gordon Bell vefat etti. PDP ve VAX bilgisayar sistemlerinin geliştirilmesinde önemli katkıları oldu. Bell daha sonra Microsoft'a katıldı ve burada insanların kişisel bilgilerinin küresel dijital arşivlenmesine yönelik MyLifeBits projesinde çalışmaya başladı. Gordon Bell, Ağustos 1934'te doğdu ve 1960'ların başından bu yana birçok devrim niteliğindeki bilgisayar sisteminin geliştirilmesinde aktif olarak yer aldı. Ken Olsen ve Harlan Anderson tarafından kurulan Amerikan bilgisayar şirketi Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) tarafından işe alındı. Bell, 1966 yılına kadar PDP-1 bilgisayarının giriş/çıkış alt sistemi üzerinde çalıştı ve PDP-4 ve PDP-6 modellerinin mimarı olarak görev yaptı. Gordon Bell ayrıca PDP-5'in (ilk 12 bit bilgisayar) ve PDP-11'in oluşturulmasına katıldı ve Genel Kayıt mimarisini geliştirdi. 1972 yılında Digital Equipment'ta VAX bilgisayar serisinin üretiminden sorumlu mühendislik başkan yardımcısı olarak çalışmaya devam etti. Bilişim teknolojisine imzasını taşıyan bir diğer önemli katkı da Genel Kayıt mimarisi oldu. Bell, 1983 yılında kalp krizi geçirdikten sonra DEC'ten istifa etti ve Encore Computer'ı kurdu. Kamu BT politikasında aktif rol aldı, paralel hesaplamaya yaptığı katkılardan dolayı Gordon Bell Ödülü'nü kurdu ve Boston Bilgisayar Müzesi'nin kurucularından oldu. 1990'larda Gordon Bell, Microsoft'un danışmanı oldu ve 1995 yazında, kullanıcıların kişisel bilgilerini "Bir Kişinin Hayatındaki Her Şey" kapsamında korumak amacıyla MyLifeBits projesinde çalışmak üzere şirkete çalışan olarak katıldı. Bu proje, Vannevar Bush'un Memex (bir prototip hiper metin sistemi) vizyonunu somutlaştırdı ve sosyal ağların ortaya çıkışını öngördü. Bell, Your Life, Uploaded: The Digital Way to Better Memory, Health, and Productivity adlı kitabında yenilikçi projesi MyLifeBits'i ayrıntılarıyla anlatıyor. Bu, katkıları gelecek nesiller tarafından takdir edilecek seçkin bir mühendis ve bilgisayar teknolojisi meraklısının birçok eserinden sadece bir tanesidir. Bell'in ölüm nedeni aspirasyon pnömonisiydi. Read the full article

[hackernewsrobot]

DEC PDP-1 emulator running "Spacewar", the earliest known digital video game

https://www.masswerk.at/spacewar/index.html

[hydralisk98]

Φlaumen Cooperative (Lisp-y style guide ref, part 1...)

Reads as Pflaumen, loosely inspired onto the eponymous information technology firm within Machinegames' Wolfenstein franchise (reference page card below...) & plenty of historically-informed inspirations like DEC, Symbolics, Konrad Zuse KG, KDE E.V, etc.

Context

Essentially, I build my way towards a small creative business to call my very own (with major technological & culturally-driven aspects), which is also related to personal worldbuilding projects & manifestation goals of mine.

Some reference pictures

Keywords dump

Groovy soft natural retro grunge warm natural filmic comfort, tramway at dusk from mesas to the ocean far away, distant future LISP DIY copyleft cartoons, symbolic CAS LISP Gruvbox poetic devkit, soft-rounded bold geometric shape language, fontmap vector prefab modules, slice-of-life cozy rollerwave cartoons, communal retrofuturistic optimism, Bauhaus, Art Deco, Art Nouveau, "Gruvbox Light Medium + OldBook Light Academia" mashup, seventies toon cel, copyleft GLOSS data transparency movement, soviet-bloc indie shareware culture, Nintendo 64 console with 64DD expansion cartridge, SEGA Dreamcast, DEC Alpha, Sanyo 3DO TRY, Nuon, Ouya, Commodore PETSCII CBM-II, Commodore Amiga 3000+4000, bronze-age historical time period, Chronokinesis, True Polymorph, lunarpunk mysticism, Teslafunk, Solarpunk, Cyberfunk, syndicalism, georgism, ecology, harmonious innovation, progressives, seventies rollerwave futurism, filmic, OGG container format, OGV, OPUS, Vorbis, OpenEXR, Animated SVG, CSS3 animations, PK3/ZIP file archives, USD format, harsh raster XY plotters & printers, selectric typewriters, comforting Shoshone music / songs / hymns; "Soyuzmultfilm", "Helluva Boss", "The Powerpuff Girls Z", "The Powerpuff Girls", "Jet Set Radio", "Newgrounds", "Jin-Roh The Wolf Brigade", "Android Arts", "Nicky Case", "Jucika", Nintendo 64 with N64DD module, SEGA Dreamcast, Sanyo 3DO, Nuon, Ouya, DEC Alpha, Commodore 64, DECmate II, DECmate III, Intersil 6100 & 6120 lineups, PETSCII, OpenXanadu web, IBM Z/16 Linux One mainframe, OpenPOWER, Libre GLOSS data-transparent Apple Silicon M3 system, RTTY protocols, Minitel / Videotex services, hard-copy terminals, Typex, Telex Teleprinters (read-only & Read/Write), block data terminals, explorable explainers, federated ActivityPub RSS feeds, SPARC Voyager, Xerox Daybreak, R2E Micral Portal, libre bio-modding & cyberware, Pflaumen, Utalics, Lambda Star, Lambda Nova, Wyatt, Sass, MathML, XML+XSL, OpenREXX, PDP-8/e, PDP-12, PDP-15, ALGOL68, LISP 1.5, Steel Bank Common Lisp, Trial Engine, GNU Hurd, Linux, Macroware, SoundTracker, Multi-Agent Simulations, Mixtapes, Android Clades/Classes (Robots, Droids, Synthetics), Open Virtual Worlds, "Rogue Servitors"; "Liberty" caucus within "Union Party", Al-Gore (2000), Trump + Michelle Oprah (2004), Theodore Roosevelt (1912), Charles Hugues (1916), Progressives party since ~1910-1915, Pedro II of Brazil + Haile Selassie equivalent figure during the later 19th century, political split around 2024-2025, female programmers still in charge, gender inclusivity, major 3D, animation & game engine-y frameworks abundant in Common LISP (Trial Engine + AutoLISP as copyleft GLOSS / open source licensed software); Rust red dark grunge wood, translucid glass, matte plastics, fuzzy wool, forest flora, ocean water, arcade cabinets, hyper mall shops & stores, conversation pits, wax cylinder records, 45rpm autoplay mini-vinyl records, datasettes, cassettes, analog Laserdiscs, DECtape, MiniDiscs, programmable androids, retro unit record equipment, mainframes, LTO tape cartridges, amber earmuffs, black spirals-pattern balls, black matte libstick, cloven hoof shoes;

Links

Implicitly includes this blog's archives, especially what deemed relevant under the "maskoch", "maskutchew" & "16^12" hashtags;

Additional detailwork

GRUB 2 Bootloader custom theme, custom global theme with window decorations / Plasma styles / application styles combo, splash-screen / lock screens / login screens, vector-based wallpapers + icons & animated? cursors, 3x4 (soft, medium, hard; dark Gruvbox-alike, light Gruvbox-esque, warm olive green & warm rust orange-red variations), ;

DETAILS

OS: TuxedoOS (will diversify drastically soon, seriously)

DE: KDE/Plasma & KDE/Liquid

WM: KWin

Terminal: Konsole

Shell: Fish shell, with Bash as fallback

Fonts: Cascadia Code & Cascadia Mono

PlasmaStyle: Daisy (+ Old Plastics?), Breeze

Cursor: Simp1e-Gruvbox-Light

ColorScheme: WarmColorsLight

Icons: Gruvbox Plus Dark

Web Browsers: Librewolf, Firefox...

Dotfiles: Not yet anywhere near ready at this time.

More to come relatively soon...

[aaron-gj]

HISTORIA DE LAS COMPUTADORAS

La computadora es un dispositivo informático que es capaz de recibir, procesar, almacenar y devolver información. Una computadora está preparada, gracias a sus circuitos y hardware, para llevar a cabo operaciones lógicas o aritméticas de forma automática cuando el usuario se lo indique, mediante comandos a través del software.

EVOLUCION DE LAS COMPUTADORAS

PRIMERA GENERACION:

Modelo Z1: fue fabricado por Konrad Zuse en 1938. Es considerada la primera máquina completamente electromecánica.

ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator And Computer ): se desarrolló durante la Segunda Guerra Mundial (1944). Esta fue la primera computadora digital en la historia, con la que se podían hacer hasta 5 mil operaciones aritméticas por minuto. Tuvo un propósito sobre todo experimental y fue creada como un proyecto de investigación por ingenieros de la Universidad de Pensilvania, en EE.UU.

IBM 701: en la década de 1950, IBM sacó al mercado el modelo 701, que fue utilizado en aplicaciones científicas, militares y de negocios. Este computador podía realizar operaciones a una velocidad de 12 mil operaciones por segundo; y fue una de los primeros en utilizar un sistema operativo a partir de 1956.

SEGUNDA GENERACION:

PDP-1 (Programmed Data Processor-1): este computador fue desarrollado por la Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) en 1960. La PDP-1 se destacó por su capacidad para ejecutar una amplia variedad de programas, incluyendo uno de los primeros videojuegos de la historia: Spacewar!. Esta utilizaba la cinta de papel perforado como medio de almacenaje primario.

UNIVAC 1107 (Universal Automatic Computer): fue parte de la serie Sperry Rand UNIVAC 1100, lanzada en octubre de 1962. Se le conoció como la computadora de película delgada debido a que usaba una película magnética para el almacenamiento de información.

TERCERA GENERACION

IBM 360: este modelo salió al mercado en 1964 y marcó el inicio de la tercera generación, ya que fue un computador comercial que usó circuitos integrados.

PDP-8: fabricada a partir de 1965, la PDP-8 se convirtió en una de las computadoras más populares de la tercera generación. Fue pionera por su medida y calificada como "minicomputadora", aunque era grande para los estándares de hoy.

CUARTA GENERACION

IBM 360: este modelo salió al mercado en 1964 y marcó el inicio de la tercera generación, ya que fue un computador comercial que usó circuitos integrados.

PDP-8: fabricada a partir de 1965, la PDP-8 se convirtió en una de las computadoras más populares de la tercera generación. Fue pionera por su medida y calificada como "minicomputadora", aunque era grande para los estándares de hoy.

QUINTA GENERACION

IBM 360: este modelo salió al mercado en 1964 y marcó el inicio de la tercera generación, ya que fue un computador comercial que usó circuitos integrados.

PDP-8: fabricada a partir de 1965, la PDP-8 se convirtió en una de las computadoras más populares de la tercera generación. Fue pionera por su medida y calificada como "minicomputadora", aunque era grande para los estándares de hoy.

[crimechannels]

By • Olalekan Fagbade JUST IN;Chicago University gives condition to release Tinubu’s academic records       Chicago State University (CSU) has given a condition to release the credentials of President Bola Tinubu. Tinubu’s main opponent in the last presidential election, Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), had filed an application for his rival’s academic record. Atiku had approached a US court at the northern district of Illinois in Chicago, for an order compelling the CSU to release the academic records of Tinubu. Documents sought by Atiku, through his counsel, Angela M. Liu, include record of his admission and acceptance at the university, dates of attendance including degrees, awards and honours attained by Tinubu at the university, among others. Atiku informed the court that subpoena was to test the truth and veracity of Tinubu’s assertions, adding that he is currently the President of Nigeria and is facing various court proceedings concerning his election and the authenticity of documents relating to his attendance at Chicago State University.” Reacting, the university, in a document seen by Daily Trust said it does not “understand” why Tinubu’s academic records “could possibly have any bearing on a 2023 election challenge in a foreign country”. However, it said once an order is granted by a court in the United States (US), Tinubu’s academic record would be made public. The document reads: “Pursuant to this Court’s Order dated August 9, 2023 (Doc. 15), Respondent Chicago State University (the “University), for its response to the 28 U.S.C. 1782 Application filed herein by Atiku Abubakar (“Abubakar), states and submits as follows: “The University Defers to Intervener Tinubu Concerning Privacy and Relevance Issues. “Bola Tinubu, the President of Nigeria, graduated from the University in 1979. One of his political opponents, Abubakar, socks discovery from the University of Tinubu’s student records and information about the dates and circumstances certain diplomas were issued by the University, asserting such discovery is pertinent to a Nigerian proceeding challenging Tinubu’s election earlier this year. “The student records Abubakar seeks from the University via a documents subpoena (Doc.1-1) and the information Abubakar seeks the University to provide pursuant to a deposition subpoena (Dec. 1-2) concem Tinubu’s private educational records. But since Tinubu has intervened to oppose this discovery, the University defers to Tinubu on the privacy issues implicated by Abubakar’s Application. “Similarly, the University defers to Tinubu on whether any of the discovery information sought here is appropriate under 28 U.S.C. 41782, including whether it is relevant to the pending Nigerian proceeding. “The University struggles to understand how-given that Tinubu did in fact graduate from the University in 1979-Tinubu’s grades and other student records from the 1970s and date and signatory information on subsequently issued ceremonial diplomas could possibly have any bearing on a 2023 election challenge in a foreign country. “But the University is admittedly not familiar with the issues in the Nigerian proceeding or the evidentiary and other legal principles applicable therein. Accordingly, the University defers to Tinubu-who obviously is familiar with these issues and directly involved in that foreign proceeding-to advance procedural and relevancy objections to the Application. “In a recent conference with Abubakar’s counsel about the Application, Abubakar’s counsel confirmed that the evidentiary phase of the Nigerian proceeding has concluded, but that the information sought in the Application might be introduced in appellate proceedings to come. “The University respectfully requests that this Court, in ruling on the Application, scrutinize both the actual status of the Nigerian proceeding and the likelihood that any discovery information provided by the University would in fact be considered in the Nigeri

an proceeding. “The University Reserves Objections to the Scope of the Discovery Sought by Abubakar. Finally, in the event the Court determines to allow any discovery to proceed here, the University urges the Court to direct only limited, targeted discovery on the University. “As leave to issue any discovery has not yet been granted, and the Court’s views on what if any discovery is appropriate here under 28 U.S.C. $1782 are not yet known, it is premature for the University to raise objections to the scope of the documents and information sought in Abubakar’s subpoenas. “But without limiting further objections, which the University expressly reserves, the University notes that the scope and relevancy of certain of Abubakar’s requests are clearly inappropriate. For example, Abubakar’s document subpoena Request No. 5 seeks information on diplomas issued by the University for a 44-year period (1979 to the present), and Abubakar’s deposition subpoena Topic No. 7 seeks information on the employment status and reasons for departure of a former employee in the University’s General Counsel’s Office. “Following this Court’s ruling on the Application, should any discovery be permitted, the University will meet and confer promptly and in good faith with Abubakar’s counsel to attempt to address all the University’s concerns.” Tinubu had earlier filed a motion to quash subpoena before the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, Chicago, USA.

[oldguydoesstuff]

The original SPACEWAR from 1962, running on a vector graphics display driven by a DEC PDP-1.

Strangely modern-looking for a 60 year old game, isn't it?

[riastarthe]

SIGGRAPH Computer Art Show July 27th - 31st, 1987

selected excerpts

Peter Voci: Displayscape

Hdw: DEC Micro-PDP 11 Sftw: CGL

Steve Dipaola: Blue Cirque

Hdw: VAX 11/785/Ikonas/Dicomed Sftw: N.Y.I.T.

Mr. Screens: Control

Hdw: Minivax PDP11/Genisco F B/Matrix QCR Sftw: Images I

Delle Maxwell: Sketches of Venice

Hdw: Ridge 32/Raster Tech F B Sftw: In-house Affiliation/Location: Pacific Data Images

Craig Caldwell: What in the World

Hdw: Marc2/VAX 780 Sftw: TWIXT Affiliation/Location: Ohio State University

Alyn P. Rockwood: Toroidal Knot

Hdw: VAX 11/780/E&S PS340 Sftw: By artist

Randy Bradley: The Light Stuff

Hdw: DG MV/10000/E&S PS300/Raster Tech 1/380/DUNN 635 Sftw: Clockworks Affiliation/Location: Rensselear Polytechnic Institute

Lucia Grossberger, B. Bishop: SpaceLace ’87

Hdw: Apple II GS Sftw: PACK developed By B. Bishop

Karin Schminke: Grid Frieze

Hdw: Mindset/Diablo C150 Prtr Sftw: Lumena Affiliation/Location: Eau Claire and University of Wisconsin

Patricia Search: Visions

Hdw: Data General MV10000/E&S PS300 Sftw: Getto-Long Ray Tracer Rensselear Polytechnic Institute

What’s the point? What is the art in a computer art exhibit? Why have this exhibit at SIGGRAPH at all? Why is it that computer art is still being “discovered”? It seems to go without saying that all these and other questions are asked each year. Nevertheless, as the SIGGRAPH ’86 Art Show so graphically illustrated in its retrospective, this “new art” has been around for at least the last twenty years. Yet, for each new Columbus, working with the computer seems to present a challenge in and of itself. A challenge independent of the product that is produced. Approaching the “medium” from every conceivable direction, the visual architect sculpts meaning and imagery from a general purpose tool with roots extending through both every computing and every visualizing device ever produced.

SIGGRAPH chair Joanne P. Culver, from the overview

[omega2669]

Today I got to play Spacewar! on a DEC PDP-1, the only known known functioning PDP-1, at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, CA. My first kill I used the gravity well in the center to slingshot behind the enemy ship and blast it to hell.

The Museum is amazing. Some of the tech just looks so ancient you’d think anyone who ever used it is long dead, but I went with my step mother and as we went through she would tell about how she would use all this equipment in her first job out of college.

I had such a blast. I would definitely recommend you check it out if you’re ever passing through.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Soviet computing graveyard

In the 1970s, the Soviet Union started to clone DEC's PDP workhorse minicomputers, especially the PDP-8, which was replicated in the USSR as the Saratov-2. Today, the Saratov-2 is a distant memory, with not even a single high-quality photo of the system online.

Until now. Russian urban explorer Ralph Mirebs's photos of a "Soviet Computing Cemetery" (location undisclosed) that features the rotting remains of a Saratov-2 amid the ashes and fire-suppresant residue of a long-ago data-center blaze.

https://rusue.com/cemetery-of-soviet-computers/

The Saratov-2 was wild: it didn't have a microprocessor; rather, it was broken down into components, each in its own drawer: a 12-bit computing unit, I/O, RAM (ferromagnetic cubes).

Also present in the cemetery: an Electronics 100/25 - the Soviet version of the PDP-11 - and some DVK-2Ms (early personal computers).

The author recalls their own computer science education in 1993, when "one teaching DVK could distribute programs for a couple of dozen Spectrums through the network."

One of my last trips before the crisis hit was my visit to the Computer History Museum's boneyard - a massive warehouse filled with priceless paleocomputing remnants. Though the location is a secret, they let me take and post my photos:

https://www.flickr.com/search/?sort=date-taken-desc&safe_search=1&tags=computerhistorymuseum&user_id=37996580417%40N01&view_all=1

It was the end of an incredibly educational day I spent with Museum personnel, doing research for my case studies on the role that adversarial interoperability played in competition in the tech industry:

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2019/10/adversarial-interoperability

That day reminded me powerfully of my visit to St Petersburg's Popov Museum in 2006, back when my (now dead) great-uncle Boris Rachman was curator:

https://www.flickr.com/search/?user_id=37996580417%40N01&sort=date-taken-desc&safe_search=1&view_all=1&tags=popov

Soviet computing history is heroic in a way that's hard to put into words: the constraints of the era - political, economic, material - required so much ingenuity. Mirebs' photos for Russian Urban Exploration were the best thing I've seen all weekend.

Image: Ralph Mirebs/Russian Urban Exploration https://rusue.com/cemetery-of-soviet-computers/

[commodorez]

Behold, the legendary Digital Equipment Corporation PDP-1

[tutorialsmate]

Computer Fundamentals

Nowadays, computers are making jobs easier for people.

Therefore, it is very necessary to have knowledge of Computer basics. In this article, we have covered all the basics of the computer such as what is a computer, definition of computer, basic functions of a computer, generations of computer, classification or types of computer, advantages and disadvantages of a computer, etc.

What is Computer

In 1640, the term ‘Computer’ was initially referred to as ‘ one who calculates ‘. Later in 1897, it was called the ‘ Calculating Machine ‘. In 1945, it was indicated as ‘ programmable digital electronic computer ‘ which is now called a ‘computer’.

What is Computer definition?

“ A computer is a programmable electronic machine designed to take input, perform prescribed arithmetic and logical operations at fast speeds, and provide the output of these operations. “

Basic Functions of Computer

There are four basic functions of the computer: Input, Processing, Output, and Storage.

Generations of Computer

There are five generations of the computer, which are listed below with approximate period:

First Generation (1946–1959)

- Electronic Valves (Vacuum Tubes). — ENIAC, EDVAC, UNIVAC, etc.

Second Generation (1959–1965)

- Transistors. — IBM 1620, IBM 1400 and 7000 series, CDC 3600, etc.

Third Generation (1965–1971)

- Integrated Circuits (ICs). — IBM 360, IBM 370, PDP, etc.

Fourth Generation (1971–1980)

- Very Large Scale Integrated (VLSI) Circuits. — DEC 10, STAR 1000, CRAY-1 and CRAY-X-MP, etc.

Fifth Generation (1980 — Present)

- Ultra Large Scale Integration (ULSI), Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Parallel Processing Hardware. — Desktop, Laptop, NoteBook, ChromeBook, and UltraBook, etc.

Uses of Computer

Here, we have explained the most important uses of the computer system:

* can store important data. * can communicate with people around the world. * used for the educational system. * used for office works like data entry, support, development, etc. * used in banking, finance, and marketing. * used in government sectors. * used in sports. * used for Press and publishing. * used for entertainment.

Classification of Computer

According to usage and functionalities, computers can be classified as:

Analog Computer

Digital Computer

Hybrid Computer

Types of Computer

Supercomputer

Mainframe Computer

Microcomputer

Mini Computer

Advantages and Disadvantages of Computer

Read more at TutorialsMate.

Read Complete Tutorial at https://www.tutorialsmate.com.

[hackernewsrobot]

The original "Spacewar!" running on a virtual DEC PDP-1

https://www.masswerk.at/spacewar/ Comments