Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Last call for Group Unix Exhibit
On Thu, Feb 21, 2019 at 12:29 PM Brian L. Stuart via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> wrote:
I haven't really decided for sure about what I want to exhibit this year. One option I've been considering is to set up one of Oscar's PiDP-11 model PDP-11/70s running 6ed UNIX to show some about early UNIX. Would there be interest in such an exhibit and would it be welcome in the group UNIX Exhibi
Let me preface my answer by saying that I've been Oscar's neighbor at VCF East and VCF Midwest, I built a PiDP-8, I helped with refining the toggle switch design on the PiDP-11, and I have a PiDP-11 enroute right now. That said, I think an early UNIX is a good idea but I'm less sold on doing it by means of simulation. Here's a list of supported hardware for 5th ed forward https://minnie.tuhs.org/PUPS/pupsfaq.html#pdp_versions If I had a known-good Unibus PDP-11, I'd seriously consider putting together my own 1970s UNIX box, but I'm still in the middle of going through a pile of PDP-11/04 and PDP-11/34 hardware and haven't yet gotten past what seems to be a slightly-broken BA-11L/front panel situation. I don't happen to have an 11/40 or 11/45 and an 11/70 won't fit in my Saturn wagon (newer stuff like an 11/23 is much easier to put together) My own goal has been for a while to show PDP-11 UNIX on early hardware for the 50th anniversary of UNIX on the PDP-11 (this year is the anniversary on the PDP-7). My target is 1st ed/2nd ed UNIX (as preserved by Warren Toomey) on an 11/20, which will take some additional time to restore and is out of scope for this year. The biggest hurdle for anything pre-7th ed is disk. Later UNIX editions (v7, 2.9BSD, 2.11BSD...) support 1980s disks like the RL02 or MSCP which are far, far easier to keep running. If someone wanted to put together an 11/34 w/128Kw (preferably with FP11-A floating point) and an RK11/RK05, that might make a viable v6 platform. I have all that gear but am hesitant to promise I can ensure it's all 100% functional by May. I can do it down the road but the time is tight right now. Keeping desktop-sized stuff running is a lot easier than big boxes. The time required does not scale linearly. So, yes, I think it would be great to have early UNIX but I'm in it for the hardware. -ethan
On Thu, Feb 21, 2019 at 12:29 PM Brian L. Stuart via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> wrote:
I haven't really decided for sure about what I want to exhibit this year. One option I've been considering is to set up one of Oscar's PiDP-11 model PDP-11/70s running 6ed UNIX to show some about early UNIX. Would there be interest in such an exhibit and would it be welcome in the group UNIX Exhibi
I would say yes. If real PDP-11 hardware can reasonably come together in time, I think everyone would love to have that, but if not, it'd still be great to see those early almost-50-year-old roots. On 2019-02-21 13:22, Ethan Dicks via vcf-midatlantic wrote:
So, yes, I think it would be great to have early UNIX but I'm in it for the hardware.
And absent the hardware I'd say, let's see the early UNIX on whatever we can. Print a poster showing the real hardware with a banana for scale and people will understand why the PiDP-11 is there instead. ;) -- Jameel Akari
I'll be bringing my PiDP-8 that I built. I didn't put on the serial port so it will be just for show, but I'll have a hidden Macintosh running SIMH and some old versions of unix with serial terminals if I can get it all working.
On Feb 21, 2019, at 2:32 PM, Jameel Akari via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> wrote:
On Thu, Feb 21, 2019 at 12:29 PM Brian L. Stuart via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> wrote:
I haven't really decided for sure about what I want to exhibit this year. One option I've been considering is to set up one of Oscar's PiDP-11 model PDP-11/70s running 6ed UNIX to show some about early UNIX. Would there be interest in such an exhibit and would it be welcome in the group UNIX Exhibi
I would say yes. If real PDP-11 hardware can reasonably come together in time, I think everyone would love to have that, but if not, it'd still be great to see those early almost-50-year-old roots.
On 2019-02-21 13:22, Ethan Dicks via vcf-midatlantic wrote:
So, yes, I think it would be great to have early UNIX but I'm in it for the hardware.
And absent the hardware I'd say, let's see the early UNIX on whatever we can. Print a poster showing the real hardware with a banana for scale and people will understand why the PiDP-11 is there instead. ;)
-- Jameel Akari
participants (3)
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Andrew Diller -
Ethan Dicks -
Jameel Akari