16 Aug
2004
16 Aug
'04
5:37 p.m.
"Nico de Jong" <nico(a)farumdata.dk> wrote:
My first encounter with 8" floppies was with a
S/370, IIRC.
There was a vertical floppy drive near the top of the system.
What was that used for ? Microcode, diagnostics, .... ?
If the system was a bench-height, long box with the drive at one end, it was
most likely a 4341 or 4361. If so, the answer to your question is "All of
the above and more."
It normally did the IMPL (Initial Micro-Program Load) and was also used to
load diagnostics when required. It could also be used to load data from
data-entry system diskettes (e.g 3741/3742). There was also a feature/RPQ
that added a second drive "piggy backed" on the first one that was dedicated
to data entry.
If you needed to do bulk reading of diskettes, there was a channel-attached
box (that I forget the number of) that had a hopper on the top to take
stacks of diskettes.
--
Don Hills (dmhills at attglobaldotnet) Wellington, New Zealand
It's ironic that people who are too smart to engage in politics
are governed by people who are not as smart.