Memory Size versus Computation Speed for various calculators and computers ffiM1Q90 1M t ow A leD o • lOOK •• EDVAC lASo SEAC • Whirlwind ....... ---, o ENlAC SWAC /~ " Harvard.' .\ EDSAC o o · o • Mark I • Pilot / 0 \ ACE • • ABC o I I Manchester MKI • • em+l ! oZ3(f1·pt.) ! 1.000 I • oENIAC I lem l i • • Colossus \ I o •\ Bn I (complexV • 100 • 0 • ...... ;' .. -.. -- Comptometer - lme l ' with constants ID U 1.0 ID 100 1K IDK lOOK 1M GENERATIONS: ITJ = electronic- vacuum tube Iml = manual m= transistor Ime I = mechanical I]] = integrated circuit lem I = electromechanical m= large scale integrated. circuit • CONTENTS THE COMPUTER MUSEUM BOARD OF DIRECTORS The Computer Museum is (] non-proHI, Kenneth H. Olsen. Chairman public. charitable foundation dedicated, 10 Digital Equipment Corporation preserving and eJ:hibiling on indus try-wide, broad-based collection of the history olln­ Charles W. Bachman formation processing. Computer hillory is CuJJjnone Dotabase Systems A CD" a10II to the "-"r interpreted through exhibits. publico:tions, C . Gordon Bell ~n..U- videotapes. lectures, educational p rograms. and other programs. The Museum archives Digital Equipment Corporation 1 Introduction both artifacts and documentation and Gwe n Bell makes the materials available for The Computer Museum 2 Bell TeJephone Laboratories scholarly use. Harvey D. Crogan Modell Complex Calculator The Computer Museum i. open to the public '/exas Insrroments Sunday truough Friday Itom 1:00 to 6:00 pm. 3 Zuae Zl. Z3 There is no charge Jar admission. The Robert Everett Museum's lecture hall and reception The Mitre Corporation 4 ABC. AtanalOff Berry Computer facilities are available lor rent on a mM ASCC (Harvani M<uk n preatYanged basis. For information co:lI C. Lester Hogan 5 Colo•• us 617-467-4443. fairchild Camera and Instroment Corporation Museum membernhip is available to Theodore G . Johnson 6 ENlAC individuals and non-profil organizations Digital Equipmenr Corporation 7 EDVAC for $25 annually and to businesses lor $125 annually. Members receive the quarterly Andrew C. Knowles, m 8 lAS Computer Report, invitations to all lectures and spe­ Digital Equipment Corporotion cial programs. new posters, and a ten g EDSAC percent d iscount in the Museum IIlore. John Lacey Conrrol Dota Corporation 10 Manchester University Mark I A Founders program is in ellect during the initial two-year period 01 the Museum. until Pat McGovern 11 Pilot ACE June 10. 1984. During this period individuals ComputerWorld 12 National Bureau of Standards and non-profit organizations may become George Michael Founders for $2SO and businessell and chelli· Lawrence Uvennore Laborarories SEAC and SWAC table Foundations may become Founders for 13 Whirlwind $2500. Founders receive all benefitll 01 memo Robert N. Noyce bership and recognition for their important Intel 14 The Pioneer Computer: role in establishing the Museum. Brian Randell Comparative Statistics University of NewcastJe-upon-1}me THE COMPUTER MUSEUM REPORT 16 Additional Source Material Edward A. Schwartz The Computer Museum Repoft is published Digital Equipment CorpolOrion quarterly by The Computer Museum, One Iron Way. Marlboro, MA 01752. Annual sub­ Miehael Spock scription is part 01 the members hip 01 the The Children's Museum of Booron Museum ($25 per yem for individuals , and nonprofit organizations and $125 Er win O. Tomash Jar corporations). Dotaproducts (retired) The purpose is to report on the programs The HonorClble Poul E. Tsongas and exhibitions of the Museum. The con­ U.S. Senator from Massochuserts tents of The Computer Museum Report may not be reproduced without written consent. STAFF The Museum Staff is res ponsible lor the con­ tents 01 the Report. The opinions expressed Gwen Bell do not necessarily represent those 01 The Director Computer Museum or ils Boord of Directors. Jamie Parker Exhibit Coordinator The design and p roduction of the Report is done by Benson and Clemons. Cruistine Rudomin Program Coordinator Gregor'IHnkous·Randall Archivist Gali Rogers Offloo Manager David Bromfield Business Manager John McKeIl%ie TX'(} 'Jechnician Beth Parkhurst Research Assisronr Store Personnel: Linda Davidson Merle Insigna Corol Strecker Photo Credits: p.3, from Konrad ZUle; p. 4, top from John Vincent Atanasoll; p. 5. col­ umn 1. Harvard University, Cruft Laboratory; Th. Comput. , Museum p. 6, from Arthur Burks: p. 7, William M. One Iron Way Ritlase; p. B, Institute lor Advanced Studies, Marlboro, Mas8achuseUs 01752 Princeton University: p. 12, National Bureau 617-467-4036 of Standardll: ppli. 2. 4, 5, 9, 10. bock cover. David BlOmlield 1C 1982ITHE COMPUTER MUSEUM A Companion to the Pioneer Computer Timeline INTRODUCTION Beth Parkhurst carried out the research and compiled the text for This booklet is meant to be an both the exhibit and its companion. exemplary companion: informative, The Timeline has the' specifications attractive and user-friendly. People spelled out for each machine. an who visit the Timeline. a perma­ overall view of the machine, and nent gallery devoted. to the first. basic descriptive materials. For the one-of-a-kind computers, can use companion, Beth chose quotations this companion as a supplement to that would begin to approximate the exhibit, and those who read it the sentiments of F. C. Williams: "It as the Winter 82183 issue of the Re­ is fairly easy by reference to such port can gain a sense of the Pioneer records as survive to describe what Computer Timeline. had been achieved. twenty-five years ago. What is difficult is to The concept of developing a recreate the environment of uncer­ permanent gallery devoted. to the taintyand excitement in which first computers grew out of the those achievements occurred.· Pioneer Computer lecture series ini­ (F. C. Williams, The Radio and tiated. by the curator, Gordon Bell. Electronic Engineer, 45, 1975. ) The lecture series, archived. on videotape. was led. off on Septem­ Coordinating the companion. ber 23rd, 1979, by Maurice Wilkes my main concern was to provide a on the EDSAC. Then George Stibitz picture indicative of the Museum's not only talked. about the Bell Tele­ exhibit. In some cases, I chose phone Relay Computers but repro­ photographs of the artifacts on dis­ duced his "Model K ~ adder for the play at the Museum. in others -pe­ Museum. John Vincent Atanasoff. riod ~ drawings. and in still others the fourth speaker, loaned the the portraits of the machine itself. breadboard Atanasoff-Berry Com­ And I also insisted on the reference puter for display. With these pieces, page that would indicate where as well as the major Whirlwind primary materials existed on these artifacts and the information gath­ pioneer computers. While many of ered. at the lectures, the idea of as­ the original sites of the machines sembling them into an integrated. maintain an exhibit and archives. exhibit emerged.. the Computer Museum is the only place that has an integrated exhibit The exhibit itself, 100 feet long of the Pioneer Computers. on the balcony of the Museum's lecture hall, was designed. and Gordon Bell insisted that this mounted by Jamie Parker and light­ companion. as well as the timeline, ing consultant Christopher Ripman. put the pioneer computers in their Their concerns were attractiveness historic perspective, and made the and legibility- both for the person comparative table that appears on in the lecture hall and the studious page 14 and the graph on the visitor- as well as flexibility for cover. In compiling the data, we've growth and change. selected from sometimes conflicting information and will keep a run­ ning corrected. table. The Timeline is not yet com­ plete. The next Pioneer Computer Lecture, by Captain Grace Hopper on the Harvard Mark I is sched.uled. for April 14. At some time. we will PIONEER integrate video-taped. material O MPUTER into the exhibit; but for now have settled. on keeping it available in the archive. Your suggestions, cor­ rections, and donations relevant to this exhibit. the lecture series and the archive are encouraged.. - Gwen Bell Director The Compuler MWl8Um Repo,lIWlnler 1983 1 BeU Telephone Laboratories Modell Complex Calculator George Stibitz worked at Bell math course I had learned a little Around that time, the head Labs as a mathematician in the about the binary notation fo r repre­ of the mathematical engineering 1930s. In his spare time, he experi­ senting numbers. That notation has group came to Stibitz with a prob· mented with using telephone relays digits with only two values, such as lem. Recent developments in filter for electro-mechanical calculation. zero and one, much as the relay has and transmission line theory were only two 'values': open and closed. overloading the desk calculator -The original notions that led team with complex number work. to the aeries of relay computers had '" It occurred to me that perhaps Could a lorge-scale relay calculator nothing to do with usefulness. I just the two positions of a relay could handle the work? wondered whether it would be pos­ be used to represent the two values sible to make such simple things of a binary digit. Then perhaps Bell Lobs mode Stibitz's relay as relays do complicated calcula­ circuits through the contacts of project official with a budget and tions ... several relays might represent the circuit designer. The Model I. first two values of a binary digit. I soon in a series of Bell Lobs relay calcu­ "I was then a 'mathematical lators and computers. was finished engineer' at the Bell Telephone found out that this was true-two relays could be wired together to in 1939. Technically, the Modell Labs. and as such I was asked to add two binary digits. was not a true computer because look into the magnetic circuits of it was not controlled by a program. the telephone relay. As you know.