5 May
2016
5 May
'16
10:06 a.m.
On 05/05/2016 12:29 AM, Chuck Guzis wrote:
On the other hand, the PB250 was contained in a single 5' rack (table
model), ran off of a single 15A 120V circuit and weighed a bit over 100
lbs. I'd call it a minicomputer if it weren't for the fact that it was
brought out around 1961. 22 bit words. Up to about 16KW in the box;
magnetostrictive delay line memory, bit-serial ALU. IIRC, lotsa diodes,
but comparatively few (ca. 300-400) transistors.
Another "mini" was the Bendix G-15, 300+ vacuum tubes, 3000
diodes and a drum memory.
Certainly no memory protection on it. It was the size of a
refrigerator.
And another, the LINC, discrete transistor machine, 2K
12-bit words and a software driven screen, so it was
actually interactive. Storage was LINCtapes, the predecessor
to DECtapes. Fit in a single 5' relay rack, with a console
on a desk.
Jon