Origin of 'Straight 8' name

[allison]

On 12/21/2018 10:10 AM, Noel Chiappa via cctalk wrote:
> Does anyone know where the 'Straight 8' name for the first PDP-8 model came
> from? Obviously, it's probably a play on the car engine configuration name,
> but how did the connection get made? Thanks - I hope!
>
>     Noel
>
ssrsly?

It was the first PDP-8 no model letter like S, L, I, E, F, M, or A.  It
was also the direct decedent of the
PDP-5 (1963 and transistors) which was the first 12bit machine and
largely compatible with later
family of 8 machines.  The PDP-8 series started in 1965 and grew from there.

When looking at the history LINK and LINK-8, PDP12, and later LAB-8 are
also related and interleaved
as laboratory machines.

Simple answer, it was DECs first blockbuster machine that was
manufactured in high volume and was
very low cost in terms of the day.

The transistor to IC change...  The 8I:
Also commenting on ICs the 1970 Omnibus 8 (PDP-E)  was the largely MSI
IC based machine (M series).
The 8I/8L was the first TTL machine prior to that the systems were
transistor.    The march to higher density
ICs was well underway. 

FYI my first contact was the DEC PDP8I fall of 1969  as part of the
BOCES LIRICS timeshare system
(NY, LI, Sufflok county schools). The following year (fall 1970) it was
integrated into and part of the larger
DEC System 10 timeshare system running TOPS-10.

None of this is secret or difficult to find.  Doug Jones has a great
archive.   http://homepage.divms.uiowa.edu/~jones/pdp8/


Allison