AW: When did Memory- and IO Protection Emerge (Esp. in Minis)?

[Dave Wade]

But an original PDP/11 is almost as massive......

> -----Original Message-----
> From: cctalk [mailto:cctalk-bounces at classiccmp.org] On Behalf Of Curious
> Marc
> Sent: 05 May 2016 06:11
> To: General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts <cctalk at classiccmp.org>
> Subject: Re: AW: When did Memory- and IO Protection Emerge (Esp. in Minis)?
> 
> For the fun of the argument: I was privileged enough to see Carl's IBM 1130,
> and to my newbie eye, it may justifiably earn the title of "small" computer,
> when compared to its brethren of the time. But it would never occur to me to
> call it a mini! It's quite a biggie computer actually. Heavy stuff, forklift or winch
> needed to put it safely in the truck as I recall. Then I thought our IBM 1401 was
> big. That's when more knowledgeable people pointed me to the IBM 7090. Now
> that's *really* big. And then you have SAGE. Now that's huge. Or insane,
> depending on your engineering point of view :-).
> Marc
> 
> Sent from my iPad
> 
> > On May 4, 2016, at 8:24 PM, ANDY HOLT <andy.holt at tesco.net> wrote:
> >
> > Could someone with access to the OED please check up the first use of the
> term "minicomputer"
> > I strongly suspect it was around the time that the PDP11/20 came out or
> slightly later.
> > The IBM 1130 and 1800 were comparable to the /original/ CDC 1700, were
> > similarly launched in the mid 60s, but similarly they were not /at that time/
> referred to as minis.
> >
> > In retrospect we might well call these minicomputers but that is not the
> question as stated.
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "Chuck Guzis" <cclist at sydex.com>
> > To: "General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts"
> > <cctalk at classiccmp.org>
> > Sent: Thursday, 5 May, 2016 3:33:03 AM
> > Subject: Re: AW: When did Memory- and IO Protection Emerge (Esp. in
> Minis)?
> >
> >> On 05/04/2016 05:07 PM, ANDY HOLT wrote:
> >>
> >>> Is the CDC 1700 considered to be in the family of "minicomputers"?
> >>> (i.e. was the word invented before then?).
> >>
> >> Though functionally it sort of had the minicomputer nature, it was
> >> physically a bit large for that term … would have been called a
> >> "process control" computer. I also don't think I heard the word
> >> "minicomputer" until a couple of years after I first saw a CDC 1700.
> >
> > Well, I don't know.  By the time the Cyber 18 came out, it was a 120
> > VAC powered unit that a strongish person could lift off the floor
> > (about 90 lbs)--and functionally pretty much the same machine as the
> > original 1700, just implemented with more advanced technology.
> >
> > If that's not a minicomputer, I don't know what is.
> >
> > We used them as data concentrators hooked to leased lines, card
> > readers and punches and various other peripherals.
> >
> > If the 1700 isn't a minicomputer, you'll have to correct the Wikipedia
> > article.
> >
> > --Chuck
> >