Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!clyde.concordia.ca!uunet!kaukau.comp.vuw.ac.nz!brian
From: brian@comp.vuw.ac.nz (Brian Boutel)
Newsgroups: comp.arch
Subject: Re: Yet Another Upgrade Anecdote
Message-ID: <1990May06.222954.27261@comp.vuw.ac.nz>
Date: 6 May 90 22:29:54 GMT
References: <23254.26434102@ccavax.camb.com> <43777@iuvax.cs.indiana.edu> <1161.263f4987@gp.govt.nz>
Sender: news@comp.vuw.ac.nz (News Admin)
Reply-To: brian@comp.vuw.ac.nz (Brian Boutel)
Organization: Dept. of Comp. Sci., Victoria Uni. of Wellington, New Zealand.
Lines: 20

IN the '70s the Computer Centre here had a Burroughs 6700. This came in
two main versions, a 2.5/5.0 and a 5.0/5.0. These numbers referred to
clock rates in MHz for various procesor activities.

The Centre had some credit with Burroughs, and decided to spend some of
it on upgrading the 2.5/5.0 to a 5.0/5.0. Changing only involved a
switch flip,  but there was a big difference in the list price of the
models, and the supplier wanted to charge for the upgrade, and increase
the maintenance charge. They argued that at the higher rate, some
components would be marginal and could be expected to fail.

A deal was done, and the field engineer came to make the big switch -
and found the machine was already running at the higher speed!


Internet: brian@comp.vuw.ac.nz
Postal: Brian Boutel, Computer Science Dept, Victoria University of Wellington,
        PO Box 600, Wellington, New Zealand
Phone: +64 4 721000
Fax:   +64 4 712070