6 Oct
2008
6 Oct
'08
2:54 a.m.
Hi.
I'm looking for reference materials regarding very early implementations
of virtual memory and/or memory protection. I'm really most interested
in exploring the evolution of these features in operating systems.
Anyone have any pointers for me as to where to look for this information?
Thanks.
Peace... Sridhar
6 Oct
6 Oct
3:26 a.m.
On Sunday 05 October 2008 21:54, Sridhar Ayengar wrote:
Hi.
I'm looking for reference materials regarding very early implementations
of virtual memory and/or memory protection. I'm really most interested
in exploring the evolution of these features in operating systems.
Anyone have any pointers for me as to where to look for this information?
Not me, but perhaps when you do get your list together you can post it, that
sounds like a rather interesting subject...
--
Member of the toughest, meanest, deadliest, most unrelenting -- and
ablest -- form of life in this section of space, a critter that can
be killed but can't be tamed. --Robert A. Heinlein, "The Puppet Masters"
-
Information is more dangerous than cannon to a society ruled by lies. --James
M Dakin
3:30 a.m.
Roy J. Tellason wrote:
On Sunday 05 October 2008 21:54, Sridhar Ayengar
wrote:
I definitely will!
Peace... Sridhar
Hi.
I'm looking for reference materials regarding very early implementations
of virtual memory and/or memory protection. I'm really most interested
in exploring the evolution of these features in operating systems.
Anyone have any pointers for me as to where to look for this information?
Not me, but perhaps when you do get your list together you can post it, that
sounds like a rather interesting subject... 
3:40 a.m.
bfranchuk at jetnet.ab.ca wrote:
Roy J. Tellason wrote:
Well, certainly the storage system in the Manchester Atlas would be
considered virtual memory.
Peace... Sridhar
Not me, but perhaps when you do get your list
together you can post
it, that sounds like a rather interesting subject...
Other than the very early pre-computer computers, would not the drum
be considered virtual memory? 
3:47 a.m.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Sridhar Ayengar" <ploopster at gmail.com>
To: "General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts"
<cctalk at classiccmp.org>
Sent: Sunday, October 05, 2008 10:40 PM
Subject: Re: Evolution of Memory Protection and Virtual Memory
bfranchuk at jetnet.ab.ca wrote:
I find references pointing to the Atlas being the first to have it DESIGNED
in, and the Burroughs B5000 as the first commercial computer to actually
SHIP with virtual memory support, using segmentation, as opposed to paging.
Tony
Roy J. Tellason wrote:
Well, certainly the storage system in the Manchester Atlas would be
considered virtual memory.
Not me, but perhaps when you do get your list
together you can post it,
that sounds like a rather interesting subject...
Other than the very early pre-computer computers, would not the drum
be considered virtual memory?
4:04 a.m.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Sridhar Ayengar" <ploopster at gmail.com>
To: "General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts"
<cctalk at classiccmp.org>
Sent: Sunday, October 05, 2008 10:40 PM
Subject: Re: Evolution of Memory Protection and Virtual Memory
bfranchuk at jetnet.ab.ca wrote:
Oh - found a paper written in 1996 by Peter Denning of George Mason
University, on the history of virtual memory.
http://cs.gmu.edu/cne/pjd/PUBS/bvm.pdf
Here's another on the Burroughs B5000, released in 1961. The Atlas was not
completed until 1962.
http://www.smecc.org/The%20Architecture%20%20of%20the%20Burroughs%20B-5000.…
Tony
Roy J. Tellason wrote:
Well, certainly the storage system in the Manchester Atlas would be
considered virtual memory.
Not me, but perhaps when you do get your list
together you can post it,
that sounds like a rather interesting subject...
Other than the very early pre-computer computers, would not the drum
be considered virtual memory?
3:31 a.m.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Sridhar Ayengar" <ploopster at gmail.com>
To: "General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts"
<cctalk at classiccmp.org>
Sent: Sunday, October 05, 2008 9:54 PM
Subject: Evolution of Memory Protection and Virtual Memory
Hi.
I'm looking for reference materials regarding very early implementations
of virtual memory and/or memory protection. I'm really most interested in
exploring the evolution of these features in operating systems.
Anyone have any pointers for me as to where to look for this information?
Micro, mini, or mainframe? I know I have some docs I set aside in acrobat
format, from
one of the IBM research journals, where they discussed the addition of
virtual storage to
the IBM 360, I think the 360-67 might've been the first? At least from IBM -
I think there
was another system, the "blaauw box" added to another 360 just before it, if
my memory is
correct.
Found the IBM link:
http://www.research.ibm.com/journal/rd/255/ibmrd2505D.pdf
covers how the model 67 introduced "virtual storage."
Tony
5:19 a.m.
On 5 Oct 2008 at 21:54, Sridhar Ayengar wrote:
I'm looking for reference materials regarding very
early implementations
of virtual memory and/or memory protection. I'm really most interested
in exploring the evolution of these features in operating systems.
Anyone have any pointers for me as to where to look for this information?
There are some issues of periodicals I never thow out. Get your
hands on a copy of Vol. 26, No. 1 (January, 1983) of the
Communcations of the ACM. This was a special 25th anniversary issue
of the CACM and featured reprints of seminal papers that may be
relevant.
The first that comes to mind is Dennis and Van Horn's "Programming
Semantics of Multiprogrammed Computations" (1966). Another is Peter
Deming's "The Working Set Model for Program Behavior" (1967).
Hardware memory protection may well go back to the 1950s. ISTR
Project MAC had some interesting work on virtual memory also. You
may want to look through 1960's FJCC and FIPS proceedings also.
Cheers,
Chuck
2:58 p.m.
A very nice reference is "Computer Structures -- readings and examples" by Bell
and Newell (McGraw-Hill, 1971). There's a section in it about "Virtual-address
space and memory mapping" (page 77-80). It describes a whole lot of schemes and
lists early instances. For example, there is a scheme that has protection but not
relocation (IBM 1800 -- per word, and SDS Sigma-2 -- per page). There are schemes with a
base address and length (PDP-6, CDC 6000) or two of those (PDP-10). And there are page
mapping schemes (Atlas, CDC 3500) and segment descriptor table ones (Burroughs 5500). All
those are early to mid 1960s.
paul
3:59 p.m.
Paul_Koning at Dell.com wrote:
A very nice reference is "Computer Structures --
readings and examples" by Bell and Newell (McGraw-Hill, 1971). There's a section
in it about "Virtual-address space and memory mapping" (page 77-80). It
describes a whole lot of schemes and lists early instances. For example, there is a
scheme that has protection but not relocation (IBM 1800 -- per word, and SDS Sigma-2 --
per page). There are schemes with a base address and length (PDP-6, CDC 6000) or two of
those (PDP-10). And there are page mapping schemes (Atlas, CDC 3500) and segment
descriptor table ones (Burroughs 5500). All those are early to mid 1960s.
paul
Search for some material on the Scientific Data Systems (SDS) 32 bit
Sigma line (the 6,7 and 9) and UTS. These had multiple register sets
and page protection / mapping. You might also search for the Xerox TTL
follow on versions, the XDS 500 series boxes.
--
Joe Chisolm
Computer Translations, Inc.
Marble Falls, Tx.
830-265-8018
3:58 p.m.
I'm looking for reference materials regarding very
early implementations
of virtual memory and/or memory protection. I'm really most interested
in exploring the evolution of these features in operating systems.
Anyone have any pointers for me as to where to look for this information?
In addition to the other suggestions, don't forget Multics.
http://www.multicians.org has a wealth of material, including
the newly released source code.
BLS
9:51 p.m.
For memory protection, look for the book on CTSS, the title of which
escapes me at the moment. For virtual memory, look for material
regarding the Manchester/Ferranti/Plessy Atlas computer. The Wikipedia
articles have useful references.
Eric
5705
days inactive
5705
days old
12 comments
9 participants
participants (9)
-
bfranchuk＠jetnet.ab.ca -
blstuart＠bellsouth.net -
cclist＠sydex.com -
eric＠brouhaha.com -
jchisolm＠computer.org -
Paul_Koning＠Dell.com -
ploopster＠gmail.com -
rtellason＠verizon.net -
tonym＠compusource.net