[cctalk] Re: Minicomputer front panel.

[Joshua Rice via cctalk]

> On Sep 23, 2022, at 5:45 PM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk <cctalk@classiccmp.org> 
> wrote:
> 
> I thought it curious that many 1960s-1970s supercomputers lacked front
> panels and blinking lights altogether.    (e.g. Cray I, CDC
> Cyber/600/700, etc.)  Indeed, the Cray couldn't even spin a tape without
> help from another system doing the I/O.
> 
> --Chuck
> 

The Cray was often coupled witha DG nova for bootstrapping, which very much did 
have a front panel on it. Indeed, many models of PDP-10 were bootstrapped by 
PDP-11’s with front panels, even if the PDP-10 lacked one. The CDC Cyber 
however, had “dead start” panels hidden behind shouding, which could be used in 
a very similar way to a front panel.

By the mid 70’s and early 80’s, ROM chips had largely replaced front panels, 
initialising the system and performing boot routines that were otherwise done 
by front panel. You can see this approach in later PDP-11/s and even PDP-8’s

Josh