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From: buckland@cheddar.ucs.ubc.ca (Tony Buckland)
Newsgroups: comp.misc
Subject: Re: Punched Cards
Message-ID: <8119@ubc-cs.UUCP>
Date: 5 Jun 90 21:28:56 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> <1990Jun1.211352.4749@unhtel.uucp> <5157@stpstn.UUCP> <124@bohra.cpg.oz>
Sender: news@cs.ubc.ca
Reply-To: buckland@cheddar.ucs.ubc.ca (Tony Buckland)
Organization: UBC Computing Centre, Vancouver, B.C., Canada
Lines: 19

In article <124@bohra.cpg.oz> ejp@bohra.cpg.oz.au (Esmond Pitt) writes:
>In article <5157@stpstn.UUCP> lerman@stpstn.UUCP (Ken Lerman) writes:
>
>>As I recall, the 7090 class machine had a 36 bit word and could thus
>>contain 24 words of data (in binary mode) plus have an 8 character
>>sequence number.
>
>I do not understand this statement.
>
 In the usual character mode, one card column represents one
 character.  In binary mode, each possible hole position
 represents one bit, for twelve bits per column.  Thus a 36-bit
 word can be represented in 3 columns.  24 words, * 3 columns
 per word, = 72 columns.  Deep in my memory is a recollection
 that some IBM machines, possibly 7090s, had an instruction
 that would load 24 words in binary mode from one card into
 memory and then begin execution with the first word.  This was
 the first step in bootstrapping (the 24-word program said
 "load a whole bunch more stuff and execute *that*").