Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!lll-winken!lll-lcc!ames!ncar!oddjob!uwvax!rutgers!aramis.rutgers.edu!porthos.rutgers.edu!webber From: webber@porthos.rutgers.edu (Bob Webber) Newsgroups: news.stargate Subject: Re: questions on stargate Message-ID: Date: 11 Jun 88 08:54:49 GMT References: <5892@cup.portal.com> <8500001@hpsemc.HP.COM> Organization: Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick, N.J. Lines: 59 To: webber@aramis.rutgers.edu In article <8500001@hpsemc.HP.COM>, jat@hpsemc.HP.COM (Joe Talmadge) writes: > ... > I urged the current net.eniac leaders to put output on paper tape > instead of punch cards. That way you just have one big roll, and you > can't drop the box and thus ruin the order of basenotes and responses. Didn't our reply reach you? We sent you mail via the path rutgers!violet.berkeley.edu!mcdchg!hpsemc!jat Anyway, the problem with paper tape is that it breaks. It has taken over 40 years to design a card reader that doesn't jam, we are not about to start a new project trying to work with the flimsier paper tape media. Of course, better rag content would help the paper tape problem, but then we wouldn't be using old paper tape but rather would have to be creating new paper tape. [Incidently, the problem of spilling boxes of paper tapes is solved by keeping index numbers in columns 73 thru 80. Of course, the last time I mentioned this to someone who had just spilled a tray, it didn't improve their mood -- perhaps they weren't budgetted to rent time on a card sorter.] > Having recently obtained an old eniac myself, I am indeed excited > about the new star network, and I've already gotten a few boxes of > punched cards. Glad to hear of your interest. Due to the flood of requests, queries, etc., we have organized this venture under the name: Vaporware Systems, Unlimited with the motto: Other people advertise vaporware, but only we build it. We expect to have an introductory document available soon for people unfamiliar with the basic ENIAC architecture (draft copies are available upon request: just send mail to the address in the signature below). It is currently nearly 5 pages long, so we are investigating the merits of posting it in uuencoded compressed format. Other projects currently underway are listed below: 1) P -- the public domain portable programming language successor to C -- platform for the other software projects (which will, of course, all have public domain source implementations). 2) EniACK -- the networking protocol that forms the basis for distributed ENIAC programming as well as the foundation on top of which tcp/ip will be implemented. 3) EAVESDROP -- our termcap-based hypertext news retrieval interface which will make it easier for you to keep track of ENIAC related discussions throughout the net. 4) FLOHRISH -- a chess program that wins. 5) HAMETE - a GO program that wins. 6) ENCREDIBLE -- our hardware design group (these are the guys that designed the non-jamming card reader). 7) ENLIGHTNING -- our documentation group (dedicated to the premise that the source is just a convenience as the user should be told enough about how it works so that they could write it themselves). 8) SCITLUM -- our distributed operating system project. 9) ENG -- our natural language design project. 10) EDITOR -- the ultimate text-editor/document-processor/spelling-checker/ grammar-checker handling both natural and programming languages. 11) VR -- our computer graphics group (you'll see what we mean). ------- BOB (webber@athos.rutgers.edu ; rutgers!athos.rutgers.edu!webber)