[inforoots] [Fwd: Re: The IBM 1401 at the Computer Restore.]

Fri May 20 09:59:59 PDT 2005

I forgot to copy /inforoots/ in my response to Ed and Jason discussing 
my "historic" encounter with RPG.

-- 
Regards, Bill
BillWorthington at comcast.net

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: 	Re: The IBM 1401 at the Computer Restore.
Date: 	Thu, 19 May 2005 15:35:48 -0700
From: 	Bill Worthington <BillWorthington at comcast.net>
To: 	Jason Olson <jolso at amkor.com>
CC: 	Ed Thelen <ed at ed-thelen.org>, "Selmeier, Bill" 
<bills at right-net.com>, 1401 Software Team 
<1401_software at computerhistory.org>
References: 	<OF723AFCF0.3FBD4259-ON07257004.007F732F at amkor.com>

Jason and Ed, you do bring back my memory of when I first saw RPG.  I 
had just started my 1401 education back in 1961 and had gone to IBM's 
Boston Education Center.  I was working for a bank at the time and was 
new to Data Processing as it was then called.  The class consisted of 
three weeks of basic 1401 programming and was taught by two female 
instructors.  On the next to last day of the class, one of them came 
dancing into the classroom and said that we had seen almost everything 
regarding programming for the 1401 and that IBM had just announced a new 
programming language for the 1401 called Report Program Generator and 
abbreviated as RPG.

The rest of that day was spent confusing us all with Input, Calc, 
Output, etc. Specs.  We had just learned about adding, moving, editing, 
branching if sense switch on, etc.; and here was this new method of 
programming that did all of that behind the scenes based on indicators 
being set.  Wow!  Did our heads swim!!  Well, we headed back to our 
programming jobs and my company shelved RPG in favor of Autocoder.

However, in 1964, I found myself working for IBM -- just in time for the 
System/360 to be announced a month after I joined.  At that time, there 
was not only RPG for the 1401, there was also FARGO.  (I believe the 
acronym stood for "Fourteen-oh-one Automatic Report Generating Operation 
program.")  A couple of years later, all the sales reps and systems 
engineers spent evenings learning about a new computer called the 
System/360, Model 20 and its primary programming language called RPG.  I 
was amazed at how much I had retained from that haze in 1961.  I must 
admit that my track through IBM did not give me much access to RPG 
customers; but I could at least discuss it with some intelligence.

Thanks for stimulating that section of my "on-line storage."

Regards, Bill
BillWorthington at comcast.net

Jason Olson wrote:

>OK then I will ( in my spare time of course ) get to work on trying to find
>the deck for RPG.
>
>Also WE means just Cliff and myself. I have been following the website
>really close, and got him interested in the restore.
>
>I myself am very young in the computer business ( 26) , but I really love
>older machines and IBM in particular.
>
>I do have one question before I go. Is there a good day to visit in June? I
>did see your note on after 10:00 AM so we will plan accordingly
>
>
>
>Thank you,
>
>Jason Olson
>
>IBM ISeries Engineer
>Amkor Technology
>480.821.5000.5625
>jolso at amkor.com
>
>"User Requests Are What Computers Are For."
>"TRON" 1982
>
>
>
>Thanks!
>
>Jason
>
>
>
>
>
>
>"Ed Thelen" <ed at ed-thelen.org> on 05/17/2005 04:00:24 PM
>
>
>To:    Jason Olson/CHAZ/AAWW at Amkor
>cc:    "Selmeier, Bill" <bills at right-net.com>, "1401 Software Team"
>       <1401_software at computerhistory.org>
>
>
>Subject:    Re: The IBM 1401 at the Computer Restore.
>
>
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "Jason Olson" <jolso at amkor.com>
>
>
>  
>
>>Hello!
>>
>>Glad to see such a well made website documenting the process to restore
>>    
>>
>the
>  
>
>>1401. It is great to see people who are still so interested in the
>>    
>>
>history
>  
>
>>of computing! A good friend of mine and myself are RPG programmers on the
>>IBM iSeries, and we also love to study the history of language of RPG.
>>    
>>
>
>Hmmm - history of RPG ???
>   I have never heard !!
>
>  
>
>>We would like to know if the 1401 has come far enough to be able to run
>>    
>>
>new
>  
>
>>RPG programs.
>>    
>>
>
>No - we - well Ron Williams is - still hauling bad cards
>out of the 1401.  I'm being to wonder about "solid state reliability".
>It couldn't have been that bad when it shut down for the last time.
>
>
>  
>
>>We would enjoy creating simple RPG programs and seeing the
>>results.
>>    
>>
>
>I don't remember seeing an RPG deck !!!  ???
>
>Really !!!  We have a SORT 7 "object" deck.
>
>But I don't think we have a
>   FORTRAN
>     especially a card only FORTRAN
>nor
>   RPG
>
>Hmmmmm --  some open areas -
>
>
>  
>
>>Also does the CHM have other machines such as a System/360 or
>>System/370 where RPG work could be performed?
>>    
>>
>
>Some folks dream of restoring the IBM 360 mod 30 -
>  but to the best of my knowledge,
>    there has net been any serious restoration proposal.
>  I would guess that more than the two big restoration projects
>    currently on would be a stretch.
>
>  
>
>>Ed you and your fine group keep up the good work!
>>    
>>
>
>Thank you - actually, I'm an ex-competitor,
>   but the ex-IBM guys let me hang out here  :-))
>
>  
>
>>We are planning a trip out to see the machine
>>in the month of June and I am very excited to see my
>>first 1401.
>>    
>>
>
>I trust "we" is a moderate sized group? Not a bus load  ;-))
>Wednesdays after 10 AM is a great time to visit -
>   lots of folks "working"   ;-))
>
>Cheers
>   Ed Thelen
>
>
>  
>
>>Thank you,
>>   Jason Olson
>>
>>IBM ISeries Engineer
>>Amkor Technology
>>480.821.5000.5625
>>jolso at amkor.com
>>
>>"User Requests Are What Computers Are For."
>>"TRON" 1982
>>
>>
>>    
>>
>
>
>
>
>
>  
>
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