Date   : Wed, 16 Jan 1985 15:58:31 GMT
From   : "R.BOTWIN" <rb%houxn.uucp@BRL-TGR.ARPA>
Subject: Re: an old idea whose time has come again

[]
Ah, yes...Memories of my first machine....an old 4K 1130.
I miss it muchly...The techniques learned on that machine, at least for
me, predate any formal CS training, and are "instinctive" rather than
learned by rote...

We used to call SOCAL and LOCAL "cram and crunch"....and got around large
programming problems by making ALL variables COMMON.  We had large
payroll systems, personnel systems, even large linear algebra matrix
manipulations using this technique.

The whole concept of linking, speed trade-offs using core-image
loads, relocating programs.....ah, yes.....that was the way to learn!

We even knew if we had diagnostics in our compile by the sound of the
old 1132 printer....It had a different "rhythm.".....I remember talking
on the phone from home to a friend at the computer...in the background was
the printer ker-chunking out a listing for him.....I heard the
unmistakable tones of a diagnostic report, and told him he had better
fix his bugs and re-compile....He thought I was psychic!

       Rob Botwin, N2FC
    .....{utah-cs|seismo|decvax}!harpo!eagle!hogpc!houxn!rb
       ATT/IS Labs (201) 577-5016 (Cornet 8-270-5016)
       FJ 1B-130