russian PDP-11 like K1801BM2 CPU Startup reading w/o address? - test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

12 Dec 2011

...
    In my experience, "solderless breadboard" is
the usual term, at   least
  if you're talking about the things I suspect
you are.    Occasionally a
  brand name gets used to refer to them. 
 That's what I've always heard them called.  I know they're generally
 considered terrible, but I've had lots of luck with them for 
 low-speed
 projects (especially power supplies for tube amps; I've got one 
 that's
 covered with capacitor juice from various electrolytics exploding 
 and
 has some melted-out holes resulting from diodes installed backwards 
 but
 still manages to work just fine). 
 They're probaly fine if used within their limitations. That is that 
 stray
 capacitance doesn't matter too much (and be warned it can matter even
 when the system appears to be low-speed) and if the odd poor 
 connection
 won't cause too many problems.

 That said, I don't think they save much tiem. The time taken to form
 component leads to fit into one of these breadboards, or to strip a 
 piece
 of isulated wire to go in, is not much less than soldering the 
 components
 to stripboard (assuming your iron is already hot). And doing the 
 latter
 will at least eliminate poor conenctions.

 -tony 
 Around 1980-1981 I was working for Volvo Cars. At one time I was given 
 the task of evaluating the optimum location for a knock sensor. I had an 
 engine fitted with a number of knock sensors in various locations on a 
 dynamometer test bench, and a device connected to the ignition which 
 allowed me to advance the ignition from TDC in increments of a few 
 degrees. This thing was provided as an official test device from a large 
 US manufacturer, I have forgotten which one - RCA? GE? GM? It was built 
 with CMOS 4000-series ICs IIRC, and constructed on - solderless 
 plugboard... Changing the amount of ignition advance was done by moving 
 a wire between different holes in the plugboard.

 Using this kind of thing in an engine test cell, with an engine running 
 under heavy load close by and me standing next to it, struck me as 
 rather shaky to say the least. Especially as a bad connection, or 
 plugging the wire in the wrong hole, could make the engine produce 
 "interesting" noises. Had something serious happened to the engine there 
 might well have suddenly been large parts of metal flying around and 
 plenty of hot oil and water spraying about. It did actually work OK 
 though.

 /Jonas