7 Sep
2019
7 Sep
'19
6:46 p.m.
On 09/07/2019 08:11 PM, Cory Heisterkamp via cctalk wrote:
Hey Guys,
I recently picked up an MDS 6401 Key-To-Tape unit in NCR guise to park next to my
keypunches. It's been in storage for a couple decades and is in pretty decent shape.
Even has a tape on it from when the university that had it pulled the plug and sent it off
for surplus. Found an internal date code of 1971.
The unit does actually show signs of life, but I suspect a power supply issue. Does
anyone have a lead on a schematic?
This here is basically what I'm working with:
http://www.thecorememory.com/NCR_C-735_-_MDS_6401_Memories.pdf
Thanks,
Cory
Wow, MDS was a REALLY small outfit. Or. maybe there was
another company in a related field with the same acronym
MDS. They made some systems for accounting, order entry and
such that were not computer-based. The data was stored on a
4' diameter fixed-head disk, and they had a bunch of
stations that looked like fancy desk calculators. All the
logic was in the stations, and was implemented with about 50
ICs and wire-wrap. But, I'm pretty sure this was made by
Mohawk Digital Sciences.
I got a Pertec key to tape system on the surplus market in
about 1981 or so. It had a little core memory, a keyboard
and a panel of lights so you could step through a record and
view the characters. It came from the surplus outfit with
schematics. I found the right place to break into the logic
and interfaced it to my Z-80 CP/M system. I used it for
backup. (I added a Memorex SASI-bus 8" hard drive to the
CP/M system, and didn't really trust the reliability of
floppies, so mag tape was a good thing to use.)
Jon