17 Aug
2010
17 Aug
'10
8:34 p.m.
I did not even know there *was* a PDP-1, which is not
surprising I guess
I can't remember just which of the PDP-n series were actually produced,
but it's more than the PDP-8 and PDP-11 that most people remember these
days.
PDP stood for 'Programmed Data Processor'. The machines were not actually
claled 'computers' in the early days (for they most certainly were
computers), there have been several expllanations as to why..
far of the PDP-1, it does appear to be rather large to
fit my mental
image of a mini, FWIW (not much). In some ways I'm reminded of the
It was nto a small machine, that's certan. But it's unclear just what a
'minicomputer' is :-). I believe the PDP1 did not need an air-conditioned
room, and that is one criterion for distinguishing a mini from a
mainframe.
As an aside, the only machines I _know_ to be minicomputers are the
Philips P800 series. They say 'Minicomputer' on the front panel :-)
-tony