Delete comment from: Ken Shirriff's blog
Blogger Unknown said...
I wish someone would make a VR simulation of working with these old mainframe computers. Would be cool to be in an old data center running jobs, loading tapes, programming, debugging.....
October 23, 2019 at 11:22 AM
Dear Unknown,
Having to meet batch scheduling windows to ensure availability of reports and any "online" services meant sometimes backbreaking work finding, hauling around, mounting, dismounting, filing and FIXING the data 'stores' of cards, tapes, disks and in banking, CHECKS to make it come together on a GOOD day! Have an error or 'out of balance' condition meant repeating yesterday's run to fix the input to today's run, which made that schedule immediately at least double (based on transaction volumes). While watching a 2400 foot tape rewind to be dismounted for another volume mount kept reminding me the great words of wisdom from seasoned "operators" that every unit "mount" request waits the computer at "wall clock time". THAT was my inspiration for devising ways of keeping the monster fed and constantly working, not waiting for carbon units.
Dec 26, 2019, 5:43:58 PM
Posted to How "special register groups" invaded computer dictionaries for decades