HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: World's first ATM; was: Re: Jackpotting ATM's for $$$$
Organization: AI Programs, University of Georgia, Athens
Date: Tue, 24 Nov 1992 05:27:40 GMT

Does anybody know where and when the world's first automatic teller
machine was placed into service?

I've been told it was at the C&S Bank in Valdosta, Georgia in about
1974.

Not too many historic things have happened in Valdosta [the only other
one I can think of is that I was born there :) ] so I'm interested in
knowing if this is true.

-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington     internet mcovingt@uga.cc.uga.edu 
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs       phone 706 542-0358
:-  The University of Georgia                fax 706 542-0349
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI
From: pashley@sdcc13.ucsd.edu (Montykins)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Re: World's Toughest Computers
Date: 21 Nov 92 00:52:53 GMT
Organization: University of California, San Diego

In article <silk.722291765@mcl>, silk@mcl.ucsb.edu (ken mencher) writes:
>
>Of course, coming home from school once and finding the computer buried
>under two inches of dust (with the cover gone, no less) and being bored,
>and having two other computers to play with, I just turned it on...I had to
>clean off the scorch marks, the dust being not that packed, so it just went
>"Whoom!!!" and no damage...
>

The first IBM PC I owned had a boring standard monochrome monitor
and a color monitor with no box. That is, there was a screen, and
lots of electronic-looking stuff sticking out the back.

It worked fine, except that the on/off switch was a little close to
a live wire, which can be a shocking experience <rim shot>.

 -Paul "Monty" Ashley
-- 
All just the opinions of pashley@sdcc13.ucsd.edu.
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers,alt.folklore.urban
From: dp@world.std.com (Jeff DelPapa)
Subject: Re: How to kill chickens with your computer...
Organization: The World Public Access UNIX, Brookline, MA
Date: Fri, 20 Nov 1992 22:05:58 GMT

>
>This may be Urban Legend, but I vaguely remember a story of some police force
>(the French CRS comes to mind) that thought of using a 'sound cannon' to blast
>7Hz - 15Hz at rioters, to the effect that their guts would resonate and   
>they would be too busy chucking their lunch to be lobbing Molotovs at the
>police.
> I know that standing too near the Bass bins at a rock concert where there
>is a lot of sub-sonic stuff can really hit you where you live :-)
> I wonder if sci.med has anything to say on this?
>

10 Hz triggers a fear/flight reaction in most people (claimed USN
study), and old telephone bells in the US were tuned 10hz apart to
make it hard to ignore a ringing phone... (they had maximum resources
tied up at that point, but the meter wouldn't start running till the
phone was picked up)
From: phil@iagu.itd.adelaide.edu.au (Phil Kernick)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Re: command abbreviation
Date: 23 Nov 1992 00:16:25 GMT
Organization: Psychology Department, University of Adelaide
Distribution: world
Reply-To: phil@adam.adelaide.edu.au
NNTP-Posting-Host: iagu.itd.adelaide.edu.au

In article <1ei49vINNr2c@uniwa.uwa.edu.au>, john@gu.uwa.edu.au (John West) writes:
> Zilog got it right (LoaD dest,src)
> Motorola got it right (MOVE src,dest)
> Intel got it wrong (MOVe dest,src)
> 
> You can have the operands either way around, but *please*, at least get the
> name right. strcpy should be src,dest (copy THIS to THAT).

But you need to realise *why* strcpy is there.

  strcpy(t, s)

is semantically equal in other languages to:

  t := s;

That is, it is an assignment, and as such it should have its operands in the
same order as an assignment.  Since strings in C are not a primative type,
but the assignment operator is still a requirement, strcpy is necessary.
Now I grant you it might have been better to call is strassign...

> Oh dear. Is this called a religious issue?

Yep.



Regards,
Phil.

--
   _-_|\    Phil Kernick                        "Sleep all day,
  /     \   University of Adelaide               Party all night,
  \_.-*_/   E-Mail: phil@adam.adelaide.edu.au    It's fun to be a
       v    Phone:  +61 8 228 5914               Vampire!"
From: jtk@netcom.com (Jane Valencia)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Re: Phone number delete (was: You know you've been hacking too long...)
Date: 21 Nov 92 04:48:46 GMT
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services  (408 241-9760 guest)

johnv@acix.DIALix.oz.au (John Verhoeven) writes:

>I believe they were the equivalent of the Ford Edsel in terms of runaway
>sales success :-)

Have you ever seen a Workslate?  It was from a company called
Convergent Technologies (RIP)--a square plastic case with circular
pushbutton keys in a fairly QWERTY-ish shape.  A single digital
cassette drive, a little LCD screen, and a phone jack.  Most awful
thing you've ever seen, a complete marketing fiasco.  About the
only positive claim to fame it had was it played the part of one
of the control consoles in the Airwolf series. :-)

					Andy Valencia
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
From: mcdowell@exlog.com (Steve McDowell)
Subject: Re: World's Toughest Computers
Organization: EXLOG, Inc.
Date: Thu, 19 Nov 92 20:25:14 GMT

In message <1992Nov19.190739.18948@rchland.ibm.com> jdahl@rchland.vnet.ibm.com (Jared Dahl) asks:
> Which computers do you consider the most rugged?  Why?
> What are some stories that you have heard about them?

The toughest computer I ever encountered was the Zilog System/8000 minicomputer
(it also had the weakest operating system I've ever encountered). 

It was at Exxon Shipping Company and the project was to put a Zilog machine 
on every oil tanker in the fleet. During the installation these things were
dropped off cranes and down stairs and none would fail. 

During normal operation in a room just above the engine room these machines would face 
constant vibration and shock and none would fail. During normal operation in seas of 8 
to 15 feet, these machines would work their way loose of their mounts and fly across the
room or things would fly into them, and still they would not fail. 

A commericial ship is one of the most rugged environments that I have witnessed a 
computer in and the Zilog was marvelous in that role. 

They ran for 5 years before being replaced by IBM RT's -- a machine which failed several
times a year per ship. A machine which has my vote for "weakest" computer. The only computer
I have ever seen where an official letter was sent by the manufactoror requesting a 
customer not to place the computer too close to the elevator shaft, for the elevators
generated too much noise for the ESDI disk hardware. But this is another thread....

-- 
Steve McDowell             . . . . o o o o o 		Opinions are 
Exlog, Inc.	                  _____      o     	mine, not my 
mcdowell@exlog.com      _____====  ]OO|_n_n__][.    	employers..
		       [_________]_|__|________)<   
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers,comp.sys.cbm,soc.culture.nordic,soc.culture.german,soc.culture.french
From: michael@chpc.utexas.edu (Michael Lemke)
Subject: Re: 8-bit news (was Re: Commodore keyboard layout.)
Organization: The University of Texas System - CHPC
Date: Sat, 21 Nov 92 19:15:45 GMT

In article <1992Nov21.144553.22647@osf.org> dbrooks@osf.org (David Brooks) writes:
>
>In alt.folklore.computers and comp.sys.cbm, edwardp@ra.cs.umb.edu (Edward P. Piecewicz) writes:
>> 
>
>eru@tnso04.tele.nokia.fi (Erkki Ruohtula) writes:
>>>#########
>
>But Peter da Silva claims Erkki writes:
>>>
>
>I got the sterling signs from Edward and Peter, but by the time Erkki's
>article got to me (via a fairly tortuous path) they had been mutated into
>hash marks.  Incidentally, talking about this is not helped by the American
>habit of referring to hash marks as pound signs.
>
>I have noticed more and more 8-bit characters successfully showing up in
>postings, and would like to encourage the habit as much as possible, if
>only to shame the software that strips the top bit into being fixed.
>
>Consider this a call for action!  Peter's and my current sigs are test
>cases...
>

I second this!  It is a real pleasure to read texts that have real 
umlauts and not some humungous conglomeration of vowels (not to mention 
computerese with "B\ %$#$@!#).

The pound signs came as pound signs here and the hash marks as hash
marks.  Let's see if they make it back this way.  Now I only need to
convince this crazy OS to not strip any of my *entered* 8-bit
characters.  For some reason the shell or something strips the 8th bit
despite all my trials with stty and setty.  Maybe, it is just Convex
that doesn't do it right -- the Suns here get it with the same tty 
settings.  Strange.

Michael
-- 
Michael Lemke
Astronomy, UT Austin, Texas
(michael@io.as.utexas.edu or UTSPAN::UTADNX::IO::MICHAEL [SPAN])
From: lstowell@pyrnova.mis.pyramid.com (Lon Stowell)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: National Enq..: Question: books on industry history?
Date: 24 Nov 92 01:16:59 GMT
Reply-To: lstowell@pyrnova.pyramid.com (Lon Stowell)
Organization: Pyramid Technology Corp., Mountain View, CA

In article <1992Nov23.151714.16128@vax5.cit.cornell.edu> c3q@vax5.cit.cornell.edu writes:
>I'm currently a senior majoring in CS and history.  Somehow, I conned my
>history prof into letting me do my research paper on the [recent] history of
>computer companies- research shouldn't be bad, as I've already read >1/2 the
>books! :)


  No compendium of this sort would be complete without some of the
  dirt on several companies.  

  The most outstanding ones I can think of are:

    o  How RCA's management totally fouled up not ONE but multiple
       chances to dominate the mainframe and computer market.
       [The best write-up of this was in Electronics magazine
       back in the 70-71 era...]  There were famous quotes from RCA
       corporate officers, including the statement that the easiest
       way [for RCA] to beat IBM was to buy them and let RCA's sales
       force sell the IBM products.

    o  The Itel computer leasing scandals...made Billy Sol Estes
       look like an amatuer.  

   I'm certain there are others folks on this board have lived
   thru...
From: IEGS@MUSICB.MCGILL.CA (IEGS)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: ASSEMBLY LANGUAGE IBM
Date: 16 Nov 92 16:14:36 GMT
Organization: McGill University

COULD SOMEONE HELP ME TO SOLVE THIS:
WRITE AN (MAC-1) ASSEMBLY IBM PROGRAM TO COMPUTE X= MIN(A<B){ IF (A<B)
X=A ELSE X=B}
PLEASE REPLY TO MC.BER
Organization: Stanford Linear Accelerator Center
Date: Wednesday, 18 Nov 1992 07:59:07 PST
From: <PBONG@SLACVM.SLAC.STANFORD.EDU>
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.ghost-stories
Subject: Re: THE WHITE WITCH OF BLACK DIAMOND
 <1992Nov15.172308.8312@edsr.eds.com> <1992Nov17.164248.9749@ptdcs2.intel.com>
 <seaverw.65.0@columbia.dsu.edu>

A bird probly would have been better, or a mass spectrometer... not!
all we had in those days were candles and that was better than a
flashlight for detecting oxygen.
From: mcmurtrey@iscsvax.uni.edu
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.ghost-stories
Subject: Update on the Unknown Soldier
Date: 20 Nov 92 12:34:16 -0600
Organization: University of Northern Iowa

        Hi, just an update of the previous story about the Unknown Soldier.

        I talked to my mom the other day and she said that the community is
attempting to prove that the grave belongs to a civil war soldier.  If so they
hope to have it declared a historical site.  Even if they don't succeed,
they have decided to put up a small fence around the grave and a placard to
honor the young man.

                                                        Diana McMurtrey
From: CSMSETS@MVS.OAC.UCLA.EDU
Subject: Re: The Death Car and the Real Story
Date: 16 Nov 92 16:04:35 PST

In article <1992Nov10.145329.20133@news.acns.nwu.edu>,
lls@casbah.acns.nwu.edu (Lori Smallwood) writes:

>I think it has happened to me -- I would wake up, know I was awake, yet
>barely be able to open my eyes.  I wouldn't be able to move at all.  It's a
>very disconcerting feeling.  I always attributed it to not being fully
>awake -- like my brain hasn't re-connected itself to my muscles or
>something.  Is this supposed to be something supernatural?
>
>-- Lori 

Some claim that this is what ya feel like after astro-projecting and
being 'snapped' back into your body. Did you happen to have a vivid
'dream' before you 'woke-up'?
    --Ed
From: hkelly@tantalum.eds.com (Kelly Shuldberg)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.ghost-stories
Subject: Re: THE WHITE WITCH OF BLACK DIAMOND
Date: 15 Nov 92 17:23:08 GMT
Organization: EDS Research, Albuquerque, NM

In article <92318.121533PBONG@SLACVM.SLAC.STANFORD.EDU> PBONG@SLACVM.SLAC.STANFORD.EDU writes:
>and "THE GAS ROOM" with its skull and crossbones painted in red.  I've been
>inside the gas room with a candle and the candle went out, I couldn't smell
>anything, yet the gas is there.

My father-in-law was a hard-rock miner, and from the stories he used to
tell, it's not the presence of some evil gas, but the lack of a necessary
one, namely oxygen.  That's why your candle went out.  He said that miners
used to carry canaries in small cages into the mines, and if they expired,
the miners knew that they had to get the hell out of there or asphyxsiate I
don't know about your ghost, but if she exists, she sould be blue from
cyanosis, not white.

h. kelly shuldberg
hkelly@edsr.eds.com
Albuquerque, NM
From: ath@linkoping.trab.se (Anders Thulin)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.ghost-stories
Subject: Re: Hans Holzer/Colin Wilson
Date: 18 Nov 92 07:24:44 GMT
Organization: Telia Research AB, Teknikringen 2B, S-583 30 Linkoping, Sweden

In article <BxuIuM.G4F@umassd.edu> s13989bc@UMASSD.EDU writes:

>Could I please have some information on Colin Wilson?

British author. First and most well-known work is 'The Outsider'.  A
kind of all-rounder: writes literary criticism, novels, horror
stories, sex, and parapsychology.

Some of his works are:

	Mysteries
	Dictionary of Possibilities (co-authored)

These might be a good starting point.

I personally find his literary criticism to be his most convincing
writing, although his other works occasionally are very
thought-provoking.

-- 
Anders Thulin       ath@linkoping.trab.se 	013-23 55 32
Telia Research AB, Teknikringen 2B, S-583 30 Linkoping, Sweden
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.ghost-stories
From: vbaker@hamp.hampshire.edu
Subject: Re: Shy Ghosts & A Question
Organization: Hampshire College
Date: Sun, 15 Nov 1992 21:34:29 GMT

In article <1992Nov13.002333.22773@wam.umd.edu>, sfjr@wam.umd.edu (Steve Russell) writes:
> I have been intrigued by the reply's to my "shy ghost" post, especially
> by the claim that ghosts are around all of the time for those with
> perceptual abilities sensitive enought to see them.
> 
> Do these sensitive people, seeing these ghosts, take it as a proof
> of an afterlife or of a particular religion.  Do they believe
> a ghost is just like a person, except they have no body?
> 
> 1.  Could it be that some trauma perserved the essence of a person
>     in a ghost, only to dissipate into nothingness later?
> 
> 2.  Could it be that ghosts are nonsentient phenomena like a rainbow?
>

One of my favorite theories, about whose truth I of course have no idea, is
that the things witnessing an event can maintain what amounts to a psychic
videotape, which they then replay over and over.  This accounts really nicely
for Highwayman-type ghosts, who perform the same actions whenever the
appropriate conditions arise.

It accounts not very well at all for ghosts that are more free-spirited (so to
speak).

> Fascinating, very fascinating
> 

Indeed.

> Steve
> 

Vincent
From: mcmurtrey@iscsvax.uni.edu
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.ghost-stories
Subject: Re: ghost-bride
Date: 21 Nov 92 18:05:25 -0600
Organization: University of Northern Iowa

In article <1ejp3rINN7e6@agate.berkeley.edu>, thankyou@work.berkeley.edu (you're welcome) writes:


>  
> 


What???

:-I,  great name for a story..  ???
   



--



  =];()****<=====|     Laughing monocled man in tux and cummerbund,
      <)____)=oooo     wearing a Jetson jet-pack. (look sideways).
From: mcmurtrey@iscsvax.uni.edu
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.ghost-stories
Subject: Re: Shy Ghosts & A Question
Date: 15 Nov 92 18:12:50 -0600
Summary: Yin-Yang eyes
Organization: University of Northern Iowa

In article <aec1.721686697@crux1.cit.cornell.edu>, aec1@crux2.cit.cornell.edu (Allen Chen) writes:
> sfjr@wam.umd.edu (Steve Russell) writes:
> 
>>I have been intrigued by the reply's to my "shy ghost" post, especially
>>by the claim that ghosts are around all of the time for those with
>>perceptual abilities sensitive enought to see them.
> 
>>Do these sensitive people, seeing these ghosts, take it as a proof
>>of an afterlife or of a particular religion. 
> 
> The Chinese say people who are more able to sense (mainly see) ghosts have
> "Yin-Yang eyes."  
> 
> Allen Chen       Parapsychology Hobbyist :)
> aec1@cornell.edu

        I'm curious about the concept of "Yin-Yang eyes".  When I was little I
was told by several older individuals who included by grandmother, that I had
"witch eyes" or I've also heard them called "elven sight", Before anyone says
anything its not something grand.  It just means that my eyes are a light
greenish, blueish, brownish mix (the color doesn't matter as long as its fairly
light) and the cornea (?)(colored area) has a distinct dark brown or black ring
around the light color.  

        It's supposed to give me some sort of "sight"...  Does it?  Who knows, 
I admit I see things at times, but I think that its due to the facts that I'm
basically nuts.  

        Has anyone else heard of this old wivestale?????  I would love a
comparison on old tales that could relate to this.  The only benefit I have
noticed is that my friends say I have pretty eyes.

P.S.  I'm writing up a near death experience that I had.  I assume that that
      type of tale isn't too far outside the normal format for this group?

                                                        Diana McMurtrey
                                                        University of 
                                                          Northern IOWA


****BAsic disclaimer, The university of NOrthern Iowa and the accounting 
    Department doesn't know what I'm doing, nor do they care.  Therefore, 
    they are not responsible for whatever gibberish that may take place 
    from my terminal............






Newsgroups: alt.folklore.ghost-stories
From: s13989bc@UMASSD.EDU
Subject: hanz holzner?
Reply-To: s13989bc@UMASSD.EDU
Organization: UMASS DARTMOUTH, NO. DARTMOUTH, MA.
Date: Sun, 15 Nov 1992 17:26:40 GMT

just wondering if anyone outthere has read any of Hanz Holzner's books. They are very interesting and have a lot of insight one the science of ghost existence. I'm new at the group so clue me in on anything I've messed up on. 
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.ghost-stories
From: seaverw@columbia.dsu.edu (W. A. Seaver)
Subject: Re: THE WHITE WITCH OF BLACK DIAMOND
Organization: Dakota State University
Date: Wed, 18 Nov 1992 01:04:46 GMT

In article <1992Nov17.164248.9749@ptdcs2.intel.com> lhales@ptdcs2.intel.com (Loyde Hales ~) writes:

>In article <92318.121533PBONG@SLACVM.SLAC.STANFORD.EDU> PBONG@SLACVM.SLAC.STANFORD.EDU writes:
>>>and "THE GAS ROOM" with its skull and crossbones painted in red.  I've been
>>>inside the gas room with a candle and the candle went out, I couldn't smell
>>>anything, yet the gas is there.


>In article <1992Nov15.172308.8312@edsr.eds.com> hkelly@tantalum.eds.com
>(Kelly Shuldberg) responds:

> [Kelly theorizes that the "gas" was simply lack of oxygen]

>Certainly lack of Oxygen can be a problem in mines, but the major reason for
>carrying birds into the mines was to detect 'natural gas', the same compound
>many of you use to heat your water/house.  This gass is impossible to detect
>by human senses and is common in some mines, espectially coal mines.  For many
>years it caused more deaths than the cave-in.

In which case, perhaps wandering into a chamber containing an unknown gas 
with a lit candle probably wasn't such a good idea, huh?

--Alan
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.ghost-stories
From: Martin A Laster <mlaster@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu>
Subject: Write a short story
Organization: The Ohio State University
Date: Mon, 23 Nov 1992 20:14:35 GMT


This is for all you creative story writers.  Let's see how well you can write.

If you could create a character for you to be for only one night at your
favorite night club, what would you think would happen that night at that
club.  Explain in detail the following;
 
	1) your character (i.e. employee, user)
	2) your night at the club (i.e. things you did, people you met)
  
Please keep it as realistic as possible, but also creative as possible.
This is for a study that I am doing for a night club owner who is planning
to open a new club.

Send all replies to this post to vlusane@magnusug.acs.ohio-state.edu

Have Fun !!!!!!!!!

Thank you


Newsgroups: alt.folklore.ghost-stories
From: casmith@casbah.acns.nwu.edu (CatherineArnott Smith)
Subject: Hans Holzer
Organization: Northwestern University, Evanston Illinois.
Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1992 15:28:38 GMT


It's Hans Holzer, actually.  I was into him when I was growing up ... I find
Colin Wilson more relevant these days, myself.

Catherine Arnott Smith
Reference Librarian
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.ghost-stories
From: 9210946@cuslm.ca (THERIAULT YANICK M.)
Subject: Re: The Death Car and the Real Story
Organization: Centre d'Informatique, Centre universitaire Saint-Louis-Maillet
Date: Wed, 18 Nov 1992 15:04:31 GMT

In article <1992Nov18.004712.26357@news.cs.brandeis.edu> st890270@pip.cc.brandeis.edu (LUCIFER) writes:

>I hate to put a damper on all this lucid dreaming & out-of-body experience
>talk, but I strongly recommend that those of you who have had these 
>experiences to either see a sleep specialist or look up in the medical
>literature the various sleep disorders, especially nacrolepsy(sp?). Some
>of them can be quite dangerous if not treated. Those of you who did indead
>have an out of body experience - it sounds like a lot of fun, enjoy!
	



	>The spelling si Narcolepsy.


				Yanick Theriault
				Edmundsdton, NB
				Canada 
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.ghost-stories
From: anand@bnr.ca (Anand Raju)
Subject: Re: A Hufford experience. 
Keywords: Old Hag
Reply-To: anand@bnr.ca (Anand Raju)
Organization: Bell-Northern Research Ltd.
Date: Sun, 15 Nov 1992 22:13:30 GMT

This happens to me very often (in fact, just happened last morning) when I take
naps in the afternoon and sometimes when I wake up late in the morning.  I have
to use a tremendous amount of effort just to stay awake, and I sense that if I
just stop straining, I can go back to sleep.  However, I have never actually done
this, because breathing takes so much conscious effort that I'm afraid that I'll
stop doing it if I am not awake.  Its not easy to snap out of this...my arms and
legs feel like lead.  These days, I just concentrate very very hard on moving my
big toe, since it seems like the easiest thing to move.  Once I can move my toe,
normal body function seems to return.

I have been wondering about this state for a while, and I have come up with three
possible causes.  I'm not an expert in biology or parapsych, so you tell me if it
could be true.
- Body paralysis during REM 
- I heard some people actually stop breathing during sleep.  Maybe the 
  effort required to move is caused by lactic acid buildup in the muscles
- There have been a couple of times when I've had something akin to a out
  of body experience in this state.  I get up, walk to the door of my bedroom,
  turn the knob and the next thing I know, I'm still lying in bed.  It does
  not feel like a dream...everything seems so vivid and alive.

Actually, when this happened to me yesterday, I didn't feel as panicky as I have
in the past.  I guess knowing that it's not just something wrong with me helps.

cheers,
Anand
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.ghost-stories