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IBM's 'dinosaur' turns 40
San Francisco Chronicle
| April 5, 2004
| Benjamin Pimentel
Posted on 04/05/2004 5:35:14 PM PDT by NCjim
Edited on 04/05/2004 5:40:44 PM PDT by Admin Moderator.
[history]
Known as drab-looking machines that sit in huge air-conditioned rooms, the IBM mainframe computer has been called the dinosaur of the technology world.
About a decade ago, pundits predicted it would soon become extinct.
But the machine, which companies all over the world have used to manage payroll and monitor expense accounts, and which enabled scientists to send the first men to the moon, is celebrating its 40th birthday this week.
TOPICS: Business/Economy; News/Current Events; Technical
KEYWORDS: anniversary; ibm
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I'm proud to have worked with the beast for over 35 years!
1
posted on
04/05/2004 5:35:15 PM PDT
by
NCjim
To: All
2
posted on
04/05/2004 5:38:56 PM PDT
by
Support Free Republic
(I'd rather be sleeping. Let's get this over with so I can go back to sleep!)
To: NCjim; Admin Moderator
Sorry, but all SF Chron/SFGate articles have to be excerpted. This is a recent development.
3
posted on
04/05/2004 5:39:27 PM PDT
by
CFC__VRWC
(AIDS, abortion, euthanasia - don't liberals just kill ya?)
To: NCjim
AS 400 bump.
4
posted on
04/05/2004 5:46:08 PM PDT
by
FreedomFarmer
(In memory of FReeper Harpseal. Yorktown.)
To: NCjim
me 3..........What other machine can run J2EE, UNIX, Linux, z/OS, CICS, etc all in one box with all the 9's (99.999 up time)
To: FreedomFarmer
AS 400 AS 400 is a "mainframe"?????
We called those "mini computers" back when I worked on 370-168's.
I forget the desination of the real bruts that came right after the 370-168 line, and right before the 43x1 line. Now THAT was a great big honking, water cooled, beast.
6
posted on
04/05/2004 5:50:29 PM PDT
by
narby
(Clarke's job was to prevent terrorist attacks, but he's better at CYA)
To: narby
The 3033
7
posted on
04/05/2004 5:51:29 PM PDT
by
NCjim
To: narby
desination = designation (my spellings horrible, that one was unrecognizable)
8
posted on
04/05/2004 5:51:56 PM PDT
by
narby
(Clarke's job was to prevent terrorist attacks, but he's better at CYA)
To: NCjim
I'm proud to have worked with the beast for over 35 years! Congratulations!
9
posted on
04/05/2004 5:52:01 PM PDT
by
syriacus
(2001: The Daschle-Schumer Gang obstructed Bush's attempts to organize his administration -->9/11)
To: NCjim
3033 .... Yeah. That was it.
The last mainframe that I ever changed a magnetic tape on. The UPS was in it's own building out back with rows of batteries and a diesel generator.
10
posted on
04/05/2004 5:53:22 PM PDT
by
narby
(Clarke's job was to prevent terrorist attacks, but he's better at CYA)
To: narby
The 370/168s were the most-space-consuming if I recall. Out 370/168MP with dual sets of outboard channel boxes was impressive. Of course the largest I/O device will always be the 3850 B4 - IBM's honeycomb hideout... :-)
11
posted on
04/05/2004 5:53:51 PM PDT
by
NCjim
To: narby
AS/400 IS a mainframe. You'd be amazed how much those little toasters can keep track of, for their size.
The now dead HP3000s were the same. You could run the IRS on a $150K box, with an acre of EMC drives.
12
posted on
04/05/2004 5:56:04 PM PDT
by
txhurl
(The Jihadists: spectacular media violence, zero military significance, huge psych significance.)
To: NCjim
Just about to get ride of our last FEP. Some people just can't stand to get rid of their 2400 baud EP lines....
13
posted on
04/05/2004 5:56:46 PM PDT
by
PogySailor
(Proud member of the RAM)
To: NCjim
I still get a charge out od seeing the classic 3270 terminal display - even on current systems. Those bad old dinosaurs are sure hard to extinct-i-ficate!
14
posted on
04/05/2004 5:57:05 PM PDT
by
Wally_Kalbacken
(Seldom right, never in doubt!)
To: NCjim
I was working late one night and got bad fever chills from the flu. It got so bad I went into the machine room and lay down on the floor behind the computer's hot air exhaust.
To: narby
As I remember, forty years ago it was the 1401. Thirty five years ago was the 1410. Thirty years ago the 365 was going and the 370 was coming.
To: Wally_Kalbacken
Anyone else remember playng tunes on the 1403 printers?
CE's didn't think much of us doing that!
To: NCjim
I worked for Big Blue for 18 years: 1979-1996.
Made my quota one year on a halon-drop; replaced over seven million dollars worth of hardware due to a false fire alarm!!!
18
posted on
04/05/2004 6:02:39 PM PDT
by
sinkspur
(Adopt a dog or a cat from an animal shelter! It will save one life, and may save two.)
To: Vermonter
Yes - and card decks to draw Edith and a few others... :-)
19
posted on
04/05/2004 6:03:55 PM PDT
by
NCjim
To: NCjim
I remember the 1401. We used it to replace IBM 402 and 407 accounting machines (and for a million other things).
Anybody out there remember wiring boards?
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