On Mon, Sep 11, 2017 at 8:47 AM, Camiel Vanderhoeven via cctech < [email protected]> wrote:
> For a change, rather than a request for help, here¹s a success story: I > managed to bring a Convex C220 (dual vector CPU mini supercomputer from > 1988) back to life. Both CPUs are working, but I¹m running with a single > CPU because of the power it draws with two CPUs. Next challenges: the > Convex C1, and quad vector processor C240 (not before I¹ve upgraded the > power feed). > > Running ConvexOS 11.5.1, it has FORTRAN 7.0.1 installed; I ran a little > benchmark, and with a single CPU the system clocks in at 49.1 MFLOPS on a > big multiply-add loop (advertised peak performance was 50 MFLOPS per CPU). > > Getting the system to the state where it is now was quite a journey > (though nowhere near as bad as it might have been). If you¹re interested > in the details, I have a (somewhat long) report of my work on my website; > if you go to http://www.vaxbarn.com/index.php/other-bits/603-convex-c220, > there are some links at the bottom that have much more details, as well as > photos of the system and the boards. > > Now I¹m looking for some FORTRAN code that would typically have run on > this kind of computer so I can show people what this kind of system was > used for. > > Congratulations! I've been too busy to do any restorations, so for now I live vicariously through people like you. :-) -- Ian -- Ian S. King, MSIS, MSCS, Ph.D. Candidate The Information School <http://ischool.uw.edu> Dissertation: "Why the Conversation Mattered: Constructing a Sociotechnical Narrative Through a Design Lens Principal Investigator, "Reflections on Early Computing and Social Change", UW IRB #42619 Archivist, Voices From the Rwanda Tribunal <http://tribunalvoices.org> Value Sensitive Design Research Lab <http://vsdesign.org> University of Washington There is an old Vulcan saying: "Only Nixon could go to China."
