20 Oct
2011
20 Oct
'11
3:32 p.m.
This forum was recommended to me as a place to find people who appreciate
vintage computing technology, so it seems like an appropriate place to
advertise this:
A PDP 11/70 Front Panel -
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=280758702820&
Reference material:
http://www.hampage.hu/pdp-11/1170.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PDP-11
http://www.village.org/pdp11/faq.pages/pricing.html
The PDP-11/x was perhaps the best selling, most powerful series of
supercomputers in the world, going through over ten major revisions in it's
lifecycle. A PDP-11 setup would cost tens, if not hundreds of thousands of
dollars. It often required a whole team of people dedicated to overseeing
it's operation and managing it's moment-to-moment usage. They were used in
everything from business, science and academic research applications to
real-time control applications (PBX, traffic, industrial).
This is the front control-panel and user interface to the PDP-11/70. It's
been in storage for some time and the condition is unknown, but with minimal
signs of wear and tear it looks able to be restored to functional condition.
Get a legendary piece of computer history right here. You'll have a hard
time finding many like it.
21 Oct
21 Oct
2:35 p.m.
From: Brian Robinson
Sent: Thursday, October 20, 2011 3:32 PM
The PDP-11/x was perhaps the best selling, most
powerful series of
supercomputers in the world, going through over ten major revisions in it's
lifecycle. A PDP-11 setup would cost tens, if not hundreds of thousands of
dollars. It often required a whole team of people dedicated to overseeing
it's operation and managing it's moment-to-moment usage. They were used in
everything from business, science and academic research applications to
real-time control applications (PBX, traffic, industrial).
This is a joke, right?
Rich Alderson
Vintage Computing Sr. Server Engineer
Vulcan, Inc.
505 5th Avenue S, Suite 900
Seattle, WA 98104
mailto:RichA at vulcan.com
mailto:RichA at LivingComputerMuseum.org
http://www.LivingComputerMuseum.org/
3:14 p.m.
On 10/21/2011 3:35 PM, Rich Alderson wrote:
From: Brian Robinson
Sent: Thursday, October 20, 2011 3:32 PM
I could see the high price if embeded as controller in some lab equipment.
The PDP-11/x was perhaps the best selling, most
powerful series of
supercomputers in the world, going through over ten major revisions in it's
lifecycle. A PDP-11 setup would cost tens, if not hundreds of thousands of
dollars. It often required a whole team of people dedicated to overseeing
it's operation and managing it's moment-to-moment usage. They were used in
everything from business, science and academic research applications to
real-time control applications (PBX, traffic, industrial).
This is a joke, right?
Rich Alderson
Vintage Computing Sr. Server Engineer
Vulcan, Inc.
505 5th Avenue S, Suite 900
Seattle, WA 98104
mailto:RichA at vulcan.com
mailto:RichA at LivingComputerMuseum.org
http://www.LivingComputerMuseum.org/
3:44 p.m.
On Oct 21, 2011, at 6:14 PM, ben <bfranchuk at jetnet.ab.ca> wrote:
On 10/21/2011 3:35 PM, Rich Alderson wrote:
The pricing is the only part of that that's even close to being accurate.
-Dave
--
Dave McGuire
New Kensington, PA
From: Brian Robinson
Sent: Thursday, October 20, 2011 3:32 PM
I could see the high price if embeded as controller in some lab equipment. The PDP-11/x was perhaps the best selling, most
powerful series of
supercomputers in the world, going through over ten major revisions in it's
lifecycle. A PDP-11 setup would cost tens, if not hundreds of thousands of
dollars. It often required a whole team of people dedicated to overseeing
it's operation and managing it's moment-to-moment usage. They were used in
everything from business, science and academic research applications to
real-time control applications (PBX, traffic, industrial).
This is a joke, right?
4:17 p.m.
On Oct 21, 2011, at 6:44 PM, Dave McGuire wrote:
I could see the high price if embeded as controller in some lab equipment.
The pricing is the only part of that that's even close to being accurate.
I laughed out loud at the "supercomputers" part. Nice machines, but
supercomputers they weren't, even when new.
- Dave
The PDP-11/x
was perhaps the best selling, most powerful series of
supercomputers in the world, going through over ten major revisions in it's
lifecycle. A PDP-11 setup would cost tens, if not hundreds of thousands of
dollars. It often required a whole team of people dedicated to overseeing
it's operation and managing it's moment-to-moment usage. They were used in
everything from business, science and academic research applications to
real-time control applications (PBX, traffic, industrial).
This is a joke, right?
4:23 p.m.
On 10/21/2011 07:17 PM, David Riley wrote:
The pricing is the only part of that that's even close to being accurate.
I laughed out loud at the "supercomputers" part. Nice machines, but
supercomputers they weren't, even when new.
Nor were they ever intended to be.
-Dave
--
Dave McGuire
New Kensington, PA
> The
PDP-11/x was perhaps the best selling, most powerful series of
> supercomputers in the world, going through over ten major revisions in it's
> lifecycle. A PDP-11 setup would cost tens, if not hundreds of thousands of
> dollars. It often required a whole team of people dedicated to overseeing
> it's operation and managing it's moment-to-moment usage. They were used in
> everything from business, science and academic research applications to
> real-time control applications (PBX, traffic, industrial).
This is a joke, right?
I could see the high price if embeded as controller in some lab equipment. 
11:51 p.m.
From: Sridhar Ayengar
Sent: Tuesday, October 25, 2011 8:01 AM
David Riley wrote:
> I laughed out loud at the
"supercomputers" part. Nice machines, but
> supercomputers they weren't, even when new.
I don't think it could even have been considered
the most powerful
computers made by DEC, at the time.
Oh, Hell, no.
Rich
(you know)
26 Oct
26 Oct
6:19 a.m.
>> I laughed out loud at the
"supercomputers" part. Nice machines, but
>> supercomputers they weren't, even when new.
> I don't think it could even have been
considered the most powerful
> computers made by DEC, at the time.
Oh, Hell, no.
There's no doubt that the 11/70 was not a supercomputer in any sense of
the definition.
Wasn't the 11/70 in a class of machines called "supermini"
computers...machines that were based on the architecture of
minicomputers, but with CPU extensions(e.g., multiple CPU modes[kernel,
supervisor, user]), larger memory capacity(including virtual memory
capabilities), and significantly improved I/O architectures and
bandwidth? I wonder if the poster of the auction on eBay misread
"supermini" and thought "supercomputer"?
I'm probably giving WAY too much benefit of the doubt to the auction
poster.
-Rick
28 Oct
28 Oct
6:44 p.m.
From: Rick Bensene
Sent: Wednesday, October 26, 2011 6:19 AM
>>> I laughed out loud at the
"supercomputers" part. Nice machines, but
>>> supercomputers they weren't, even when new.
>> I don't think it could even have been
considered the most powerful
>> computers made by DEC, at the time.
> Oh, Hell, no.
There's no doubt that the 11/70 was not a
supercomputer in any sense of
the definition.
Wasn't the 11/70 in a class of machines called
"supermini"
computers...
Nope, not that, either.
"Supermini" was a designation given in trade rags like ComputerWorld to
the new 32-bit systems coming out from DEC, DG, and other minicomputer
manufacturers in packaging that looked like their 16-bit predecessors.
It wasn't often, if at all, used in the literature from the manufacturers.
An 11/70 was a very nice, large capacity 16-bit minicomputer. There's
nothing wrong with that. :-)
machines that were based on the architecture of
minicomputers, but with CPU extensions(e.g., multiple CPU modes[kernel,
supervisor, user]), larger memory capacity(including virtual memory
capabilities), and significantly improved I/O architectures and
bandwidth? I wonder if the poster of the auction on eBay misread
"supermini" and thought "supercomputer"?
I'm probably giving WAY too much benefit of the
doubt to the auction
poster.
I'm afraid so.
Rich Alderson
Vintage Computing Sr. Server Engineer
Vulcan, Inc.
505 5th Avenue S, Suite 900
Seattle, WA 98104
mailto:RichA at vulcan.com
mailto:RichA at LivingComputerMuseum.org
http://www.LivingComputerMuseum.org/
22 Oct
22 Oct
11:47 a.m.
On Oct 21, 2011, at 6:14 PM, ben <bfranchuk at jetnet.ab.ca> wrote:
The list of applications is not too far from the truth is it? I've come
across PDP11s being used for business applications (databases, stocl
control), science/academic(obviously) and real time control.
But no way is a PDP11 (of any time) a supercomputer, and nor was it
designed to be.
-tony
On 10/21/2011 3:35 PM, Rich Alderson wrote:
The pricing is the only part of that that's even close to being accurate. From: Brian Robinson
Sent: Thursday, October 20, 2011 3:32 PM
I could see the high price if embeded as controller in some lab equipment. The PDP-11/x was perhaps the best selling, most
powerful series of
supercomputers in the world, going through over ten major revisions in it's
lifecycle. A PDP-11 setup would cost tens, if not hundreds of thousands of
dollars. It often required a whole team of people dedicated to overseeing
it's operation and managing it's moment-to-moment usage. They were used in
everything from business, science and academic research applications to
real-time control applications (PBX, traffic, industrial).
This is a joke, right?
4585
days inactive
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10 comments
8 participants
participants (8)
-
ard＠p850ug1.demon.co.uk -
bfranchuk＠jetnet.ab.ca -
fraveydank＠gmail.com -
mcguire＠neurotica.com -
ploopster＠gmail.com -
RichA＠vulcan.com -
rickb＠bensene.com -
robinsonbrian07＠gmail.com