Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!unhd!unhtel!paul
From: paul@unhtel.uucp (Paul S. Sawyer)
Newsgroups: comp.misc
Subject: Re: Punched Cards (was C obfuscator)
Message-ID: <1990Jun1.211352.4749@unhtel.uucp>
Date: 1 Jun 90 21:13:52 GMT
References: <12546@netcom.UUCP> <220@taumet.COM> <12573@netcom.UUCP> <898@nlsun1.oracle.nl> <1990May29.132631.2253@pdn.paradyne.com> <1990May30.065025.25861@diku.dk>
Distribution: comp
Organization: UNH Telecommunications and Network Services
Lines: 31

In article <1990May30.065025.25861@diku.dk> jensting@skinfaxe.diku.dk (Jens Tingleff) writes:
>reggie@dinsdale.paradyne.com (George W. Leach) writes:
>>>But who uses punched cards these days?
>
>>    I do!  For book markers :-)
>...
>Actually, the use of magnetic media takes away a lot of the mechanical
>charm of computer background storage. Paper tape and punched cards are more
>*FUN*. Think of the endless fun you can have putting together a stack of cards
>dropped on the floor....

And the first big program I wrote AFTER the one I dropped and hand-sorted
had sequence numbers... (mid 70's)

Pre-computer data processing with cards was fascinating.  It seemed easier
(to me) to grasp the concepts behind data files, records, fields, sorting, 
merging, etc. when you could see the cards.  My first class in DP used
cards, sorters, punches, verifiers, and the brain of it all, the Electronic
Accounting Machine! (IBM 407 and 409, if I remember) (mid 60's)  These
machines were programmed using patch boards and wires, and could generate
cross totals, group totals, grand totals, skip to certain places on the 
form (channel 1 is what we now call form feed or top-of-form) etc.  The 
desired report was generated from one file (stack of cards) which had 
different types of records (cards) merged from other files (customer master, 
transaction, etc.) in the proper order.  All based on max. 80 column records.  
There was a common set of fields on all the cards related to a report or 
process, so dropped cards could be resorted....
-- 
Paul S. Sawyer              uunet!unh!unhtel!paul     paul@unhtel.UUCP
UNH Telecommunications        attmail!psawyer       p_sawyer@UNHH.BITNET
Durham, NH  03824-3523      VOX: +1 603 862 3262    FAX: +1 603 862 2030