Re: IBM 9020 FAA/ATC Systems from 1960's

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#210927

From: jav... John Varela
Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 20:10

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On Thu, 16 Aug 2001 01:01:44, "Daniel House" <d.h...@computer.org> wrote:

> Yikes.  I've never seen a button like that.  My hopes of finding one dimmed.
  
This is a story that I've told on this news group before, but it's worth 
repeating.

We had a lab at MITRE that used a Raytheon minicomputer that came in an 
orange box and had model number 704.  (To Chris Bigos: the same machine that
was used in DARC.)  It was subsequently upgraded to some other model number,
I forget what.  Anyway, the lead software guy was convinced that when he ran
certain programs he had to have the system in 704 mode and he started 
opening panels to throw switches.  The lead hardware guy had a padlock put 
on the panels, and he also had a technician mount a toggle switch on one of 
the panels and label it "704".  Whenever the software guy came in to run one
of his old programs he would dutifully throw that switch to 704 and when he 
was done he would just as dutifully throw it back.  Of course the toggle was
wired to nothing.

When the lab was decommissioned they cut out the part of the panel that 
contained the switch, framed it, and presented it to the software guy.  We 
have all now retired, but I saw the framed switch panel hanging in the 
software guy's den about a year ago.

-- 
     John Varela

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From: jav...@earthlink.net (John Varela)
Reply-To: jav...@earthlink.net
Message-ID: <NKQS2gVdCOMx-pn2-zctPg3sef7vd@dialup-64.157.50.39.Dial1.Washington1.Level3.net>
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Re: IBM 9020 FAA/ATC Systems from 1960's
References: <7HU77.9333$TM5.980906@typhoon.southeast.rr.com> <memo.20010727094436.36989A@mikekingston.compulink.co.uk> <vd2NzVOTNb7v-pn2-vdi55dTSr5Cy@dialup-63.208.164.65.Dial1.Washington2.Level3.net> <jwU87.26231$J37.6143999@typhoon.southeast.rr.com> <vd2NzVOTNb7v-pn2-S9FIPi2udxUW@dialup-63.208.164.94.Dial1.Washington2.Level3.net> <9k3oan$t35$1@top.mitre.org> <vd2NzVOTNb7v-pn2-kRuq3Z30rY3O@dialup-209.244.87.87.Dial1.Washington2.Level3.net>  <9l0m6j$la3$1@top.mitre.org> <K2Tc7.108947$TM5.16755795@typhoon.southeast.rr.com> <6aie7.52269$e%3.8225465@news2-win.server.ntlworld.com> <YXEe7.125079$TM5.22033161@typhoon.southeast.rr.com>
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