Details about IBM's early 'scientific' computers

Grumpy Ol' Fred wrote: "personal computers" We tend to forget about earlier "personal" computers...machines that were generally designed for one individual to be able to sit down and use interactively. That isn't to say that said individual "owned" the computer, nor did many of these end up originally purchased by individuals for personal use. However, many of them did end up in people's homes as "personal computers" after they aged enough that they were no longer commercially viable and were inexpensive enough for an enthusiast to purchase or even get for free..mainly the machines from the 1950's and early 1960's that, by the late 1960's and early 1970's were completely obsolete. There were a number of small, generally single-user computer systems built even in the 1950's. Examples: - Royal McBee/Librascope/General Precision LGP-30 (1956) -- Tube-based machine with magnetic drum memory and Friden Flexowriter - Bendix G-15 (1956) - Tube based, drum memory, IBM I/O typewriter, punched tape reader. Numerous periperhals - Monroe Monrobot III/V (~1958-1961) -- Desk-sized CPU, drum memory, decimal math, and punched tape programming - IBM 650 Autopoint (1957) -- Tube logic, magnetic drum storage, paper tape programming, decimal math - Autonetics Recomp II (1958) -- Mini-refrigerator-sized, desk-side CPU, IBM typewriter, paper tape, IBM I/O Typewriter - Clary DE-60 (1960) -- Transistor-based, drum memory, decimal math, diode-ROM-based add-on math(Trig, etc.), small numeric printer - IBM 1130 (1965) -- Transistor-based(SLT), core memory, cartridge hard-disk, IBM I/O Typewriter, numerous peripherals - DEC PDP-8 (1965) -- Transistor based 12-bit CPU, core memory, teletype I/O, numerous peripherals - Data General Nova (1969) -- IC-based 16-bit CPU, core memory, teletype I/O, numerous peripherals - Wang 2200 (1973) -- IC-based(TTL) deskside CPU, BASIC built-in, cassette tape, solid state memory, CRT display - HP 9830 (1972) -- IC-based desktop, BASIC built-in, cassette tape, solid state memory, LED alphanumeric display, many peripherals These are just a few examples of computers (or in some of the earlier cases, highly programmable calculators) built before and during the '68-73 timeframe that were designed with the intent of an individual interacting directly with the machine. Most ran off of standard residential/office power, required no special air-conditioning, and were simple enough that only a moderate amount of training was required to allow someone to make use of the machines. While the definition of the term "personal computer" varies depending on who is using the term, these machines, and others like them, were designed to be used at a much more personal level than the large-scale mainframe machines housed in the glass-walled rooms where only "special" people were allowed anywhere near them. -Rick --- Rick Bensene The Old Calculator Museum http://oldcalculatormuseum.com