18 Feb
2010
18 Feb
'10
5:23 p.m.
Murray McCullough wrote:
Speaking of tubes, television variety or otherwise, does anyone know
if there are any tube-based computers, large or small, still in
existence?
I saw parts of one a few years ago at the Computer History Museum in
Silicon Valley but none that have approached a 'working' unit or
sub-unit!
I should think it would well be possible to get those remaining accumulators
from ENIAC working again in some sort of
counter/display mode. The Smithsonian
has a couple I believe, does the CHM have any
of them?
With that said, I also understand the priority - particularly of the
Smithsonian - is presumably to preserve them in original condition rather than
repair/muck-around with them.
Apologies to those who have heard me mention them here too often, but to (help)
satisfy my interest in tube-digital equipment I maintain some old tube-based
frequency counters (~100 tubes).