HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Re: PDP-11: A Physical Threat :)
From: don@zl2tnm.gen.nz (Don Stokes)
Date: 22 Dec 92 11:10:12 GMT
Distribution: world
Organization: The Wolery

azog@spatula.rent.com (Billy D'Augustine) writes:
> Funny you should mention this. This is exactly what almost happened to
> a friend of mine. I got an 11/34a with two Pertek RK05 type drives, and
> after getting the stuff into my basement, we tried to get the BA11-K
> back into the rack. His slider rail was in, but mine wasnt, so I 
> tugged it out, and missed his foot by a short inch. Left a little
> crater in the cement floor, too. You couldnt belive how happy I was
> that it missed his foot! 

I believe it.  The centre of gravity on a BA11-K is really odd, all because
of this overkill power supply.  It's nearly impossible to put the thing
into a rack single handed (I tried), not because it's too heavy (although
it *is* heavy) but because you have to stand in front of the box and all
the weight is at the back; someone my size (about 5' 8", average build) 
doesn't have the body weight to balance it....

As for the fans.....

--
Don Stokes, ZL2TNM (DS555)                        don@zl2tnm.gen.nz (home)
Network Manager, Computing Services Centre            don@vuw.ac.nz (work)
Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand              +64-4-495-5052
Xref: sparky alt.folklore.computers:18396 sci.math:17473 comp.compression:4259
From: kfl@access.digex.com (Keith F. Lynch)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers,sci.math,comp.compression
Subject: Re: Compressing decimal expansion of pi (was Re: PI)
Date: 29 Dec 1992 03:06:30 GMT
Organization: Express Access Public Access UNIX, Greenbelt, Maryland USA
NNTP-Posting-Host: access.digex.com

In article <1h6k6jINNc17@gap.caltech.edu> madler@cco.caltech.edu (Mark Adler) writes:
> Interesting that this subject should come up.  I was just playing with
> "compressing" pi myself.

The most efficient way to compress the decimal expansion of pi is to
convert it to base 256.  (Or 128, if you're using 7-bit ASCII.)

(It also makes it easier to search for messages in it.)

Keith Lynch, kfl@access.digex.com
Xref: sparky alt.folklore.computers:18368 sci.math:17432 comp.compression:4246
From: magnus@thep.lu.se (Magnus Olsson)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers,sci.math,comp.compression
Subject: Re: Compressing decimal expansion of pi (was Re: PI)
Date: 27 Dec 92 13:36:11 GMT
Organization: Theoretical Physics, Lund University, Sweden

In article <1992Dec23.201005.18142@crd.ge.com> davidsen@crd.ge.com (bill davidsen) writes:
>In article <1992Dec22.221324.14115@pollux.lu.se>, magnus@thep.lu.se (Magnus Olsson) writes:
>
>| But surely _that_ is cheating! :-) This last method presupposes knowledge
>| that the number being compressed actually *is* pi to N decimals, and 
>| with that knowledge the entire 1 Mb+ file can be compressed to the
>| string "pi to N decimals". But what if 69 random digits were changed? 

>  So? What's wrong with cheating? 

Did you notice the little smiley right after the word "cheating"?

>Archivers starting with ARC used to
>try several compression algorithms and use the one best suited to the
>data. And they got better compression than any of the existing programs.
>[...]
>  You could take the analogy to the point of called a compressed file a
>program which executes on a pseudo-machine called an expandor, who's
>output is the unique original file. 

This thread started out in alt.folklore.computers, so I was perhaps
not 100% serious, but - seriously speaking - "compressing" the decimal
expansion of pi by replacing it with an algorithm for generating N
digits of pi is of course a very good method for compressing pi, but
it's a lousy method for compressing a random sequence of digits. 

If one's task is to distribute a million digits of pi to a lot of
users, who can't be expected to write their own pi computation
programs, then it clearly saves a lot of bandwidth to give them each a
copy of a short program to generate those digits. I was looking at it
from a different angle, however: given the first million digits of pi,
how well can we expect a *general-purpose* compression algorithm to
compress it? 

              Magnus Olsson                | \e+      /_
    Department of Theoretical Physics      |  \  Z   / q
        University of Lund, Sweden         |   >----<           
 magnus@thep.lu.se, thepmo@seldc52.bitnet  |  /      \===== g
PGP key available via finger or on request | /e-      \q
From: jcmorris@mwunix.mitre.org (Joe Morris)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Re: "FOO" and Re: 8008 related to PDP-11? (was: What is so greate ...)
Date: 21 Dec 92 15:10:32 GMT
Organization: The MITRE Corporation

lasner@watsun.cc.columbia.edu (Charles Lasner) writes:

>In article <jcmorris.724693885@mwunix> jcmorris@mwunix.mitre.org (Joe Morris) writes:
>>
>>A comma following a symbol defines that symbol as the current location
>>counter; a slash following an expression changes the location counter
>            ^^^^^
>perhaps a star? (asterisk)?

>>to the value of the expression.  The current location counter is 
>>referenced with a period, and a string beginning with a slash is a comment.

Correct as written.  To change the location counter to absolute 123,
the Flexowriter input tape would contain the line:

123/

Most of today's assemblers implement this function with the ORG pseudo-op
so the modern equivalent would be

     ORG   123


Joe Morris / MITRE
From: lusol@Lehigh.EDU (Stephen O. Lidie)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Re: alt.fan.multics, any interest in a Multics (OS) newsgroup?
Date: 23 Dec 92 13:21:46 GMT
Organization: Lehigh University, Bethlehem PA

In article <z-t2_za@rpi.edu> multics@lachesis.acm.rpi.edu (Multics) writes:
>In article <1992Dec20.145029.5468@pollux.lu.se> magnus@thep.lu.se (Magnus
Olsson) writes:
>....
>I like alt.os.multics.  I did consider something in the more formal area
>such as comp.os.multics or rec.os.multics, but I'm not sure if there is
>enough interest for those groups.  If enough people think I should work
>toward one of those, instead of an alt group, I'll hunt up the rules
>and see about getting the procedures done to try for a rec or comp group.
>
>

Many of your are not aware but Multics apparently has a son:  a modern
reincarnation developed by Control Data for their Cyber line of computers
called NOS/VE.  Now, I've do not know Multics but I do know NOS/VE, and this is
what I've been told.  NOS/VE has rings and call gates, etcetera, although the
system command langauge is totally different.  I would be interested in
learning what make Multics.  NOS/VE could never be a main stream OS due to the
small installed base of sites, but it was very modern and powerful with one of
the finest command laguages around ... no kidding!

SOL
From: magnus@thep.lu.se (Magnus Olsson)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Re: IBMs true monsters?
Date: 29 Dec 92 09:46:59 GMT
Organization: Theoretical Physics, Lund University, Sweden

In article <1992Dec29.030842.31639@watson.ibm.com> mjones@fenway.aix.kingston.ibm.com (Mike Jones) writes:
>tspencer@pilot.njin.net (Thomas Spencer IV) writes:
>:    It is VM that creates the Virtual Machines.  You can then run
>: another OS in each of the virtual machines, either another VM, or a
>: CMS session, or even AIX/370 (Non-native Unix for 360 and 370 arch. 
>
>Naaah, AIX/370 is obsolete. We now have AIX/ESA, which is OSF/1 based and
>runs either native or under VM.

I was given a short demo of AIX/ESA by some people from one of the
Swedish supercomputer centres, who were down in Lund to sell their
services. I must say I was impressed by the transparency of it all;
this guy logged in on a local Sun running X windows, telnetted to a
3090 in the other end of the country, and proceeded to start a remote
X session. (Now, why anybody would want to run X on a 3090 is beyond
me, but it worked). Nowhere did the peculiarities of the IBM
architecture show up, but the 3090 behaved just as any other Unix
system, with a normal Unix filesystem and everything.

I'm impressed. Obviously, even IBM can change radically when put under
pressure... 

              Magnus Olsson                | \e+      /_
    Department of Theoretical Physics      |  \  Z   / q
        University of Lund, Sweden         |   >----<           
 magnus@thep.lu.se, thepmo@seldc52.bitnet  |  /      \===== g
PGP key available via finger or on request | /e-      \q
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers,soc.culture.nordic
From: kurt@dna.lth.se (Kurt Swanson)
Subject: Re: National character sets (Re: @ (was: 8-bit news (was Re: Commodore keyboard layout.)))
Organization: Lund Institute of Technology, Sweden
Date: Tue, 22 Dec 1992 08:02:43 GMT

fischer@iesd.auc.dk (Lars Peter Fischer) writes:


>>>>>> "Kurt" == Kurt Swanson (kurt@dna.lth.se)

>Kurt> btw, Scandianvians call these "weinerbrd" - as in Vienna, where they
>Kurt> originate from.  

>What's that silly o-umlaut doing there? The correct form is, of
>course, wienerbrd.

I resent that implication!  I am NOT german!  "" is most certainly
NOT "o-umlaut".  If you have to give a name to the dots, call them
"tv pricker", as 8.5 million Scandinavians do...

By the way, I think "" is much better than "" - the
nullset/circumference symbol.  Get a real letter!   ;-)

Kurt, (putting his punctuation after his quote marks...)
-- 
Kurt Swanson, Dept. of Computer Science,
Lunds universitet.  Kurt.Swanson@dna.lth.se
-- 
Kurt Swanson, Dept. of Computer Science,
Lunds universitet.  Kurt.Swanson@dna.lth.se
Xref: sparky alt.folklore.computers:18533 sci.math:17619
From: hebrais@mirkwood.CAM.ORG (Philippe Hebrais)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers,sci.math
Subject: Re: Pseudorandomness and computable numbers (was Re: Number of numbers (Was Re: PI))
Date: 2 Jan 93 18:10:18 GMT
Organization: Secte des adorateurs des semiconducteurs
X-Newsreader: MeNews 2.8.0

[ magnus@thep.lu.se (Magnus Olsson) writes in article <1993Jan2.094503.1844@pollux.lu.se>: ]
>This is the usual definition, with one modification: Since an algorithm
>by the usual definition of algorithm must terminate, one should really
>define a computable number as
>
># A number x is computable if and only if for each positive integer N
># there exists an algorithm that outputs the N first decimals of x.

Isn't this trivially true?  (for each N, use the print program for
the N first digits).  I think you ment:

# A number x is computable if and only if there is a program that
# on input N, outputs the Nth digit of the decimal expansion of x.

Computable numbers are computable functions f: N->{0..9}

>>My questions to any math guru out there are the following :
>> 1. Is PI a computable number ?

Again, yes.

>> 2. If the answer to (1) is NO, then why isn't it ?
>> 3. Does there exist a strict definition for numbers with "pseudo-random
>>    decimal expansion" ? (I will call them PRDE-numbers)

Since computable numbers really are just computable functions,
you can apply any definition of pseudo-randomness to them that
you might apply to a pseuso-random number generator.

>There are actually several definitions, depending on the context.
>
>One rigorous definition is
>
># A number is a PRDE number if and only if it is not computable

That might be the definition of "random" real numbers, but not
"pseudo-random" (that's the whole point of pseuso-random, it's
computable but looks random).

>As John points out, pi isn't random according to this definition.
>
>An operational definition is
>
># A number is a PRDE number if and only if, given the first N decimals
># of its expansion, one cannot predict the following M decimals with
># <insert your favourite statistical method here>.
>
>It's according to this latter definition (or calss of definitions)
>that pi is "random".

--              ,
      Philippe Hebrais   hebrais@mirkwood.cam.org
   Voix: (514)731-9146   uunet!philmtl!altitude!mirkwood!hebrais
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
From: casivils@lescsse.jsc.nasa.gov (craig sivils)
Subject: Re: Worlds wierdest system crash!
Organization: Lockheed Engineering and Sciences
Date: 29 Dec 92 20:42:40 GMT

I'm coming in at the tail end of this discussion, so I don't know what kicked
it off, but if we are talking wierd....

Once about 5 years ago I was in the middle of a hack/slash game on my 386 when
the cat ran across the keyboard.  I still to this day don't know what keys she
hit, but she brought up the system cmos setting screen and had hit the down 
arrow on the hard disk type.  Not sure what exactly had happened, I hit F10
as the bottom of the screen said to do to exit (and save settings).  The
computer worked fine untill I shut it off and then tried to bring it back up.
(it was not too hard to figure out how to fix, but I never could get to the cmos
settings screen after the computer has booted (guess my cats smarter than I am.)
 
                               Craig


Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
From: vspicer@ccu.umanitoba.ca
Subject: Re: So where can you get a slide rule?
Originator: vspicer@ccu.umanitoba.ca
Organization: University of Manitoba, Winnipeg Manitoba Canada
Date: Fri, 1 Jan 1993 04:45:11 GMT

hello. my site seems to have expired most of this thread already. so
where CAN one get ahold of a slide rule? i remember playing with one
of my dad's eons ago and the recent demise of two of my computers has
me longing for more "reliable" backup technology :-)

thanks in advance...


------
vic spicer, recent PERL convert/ data systems,instrument electronics and
software person with the Time of Flight Mass Spec. Lab
at the University of Manitoba Dept. of Physics
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
From: peter@NeoSoft.com (Peter da Silva)
Subject: Re: Worlds wierdest system crash!
Organization: NeoSoft Communications Services -- (713) 684-5900
Date: Thu, 24 Dec 1992 05:53:17 GMT

In article <Bzp4Mo.I0w@hatch.socal.com> richg@hatch.socal.com (Rich Greenberg) writes:
> The moth Grace Hopper found was caught in a relay.

She didn't find it. She just used to tell the story.
-- 
Peter da Silva.  <peter@sugar.neosoft.com>.
 `-_-'   Oletko halannut suttasi tnn?
  'U`    
Tarjoilija, tm ateria el viel.
From: samuel@front.se
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: <None>
Date: 31 Dec 92 04:57:27 MET
Distribution: world
Organization: Samuel Gustaf Siren

In article <1ht499EINNrgh@uni-erlangen.de>, kabreuer@cip.informatik.uni-
erlangen.de (Klaus Breuer) writes:

> ...and thus I wasn't terribly surprised when
> I found an 'Afrikaans BASIC' for the C64 (on cartridge).
> Language structure etc was the same, just the commands were translated, for
> example 'GOTO' was 'GAAN NA' and so on.

This reminds me of an old story that I heard something like 10-12 years ago :
That there exists a commercial BASIC-interpretator where all numbers have to
be written as old roman numbers (1 = I, 2 = II, 15 = XIV etc; 5.5 = V.V ???). 
Has anybody encountered or used this interpretator ? Or is the story a hoax ?

/SS
-- 
+----------------------+--------------------------------------+
|                      |        / \                           |
| Samuel Gustaf Siren  |      __!_/_                          |
|                      |    / \ |  / \                        |
|                      |   |/  || | \__oW)----------          |
| All opinions and     |   !! / /\ \                          |
| questions are my     |     / /  \ \                         |
| own /SS              |    //    //                          |
|                      |   /|    ((                           |
+----------------------+--------------------------------------+
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
From: tjhendry@queen.mcs.drexel.edu
Subject: Re: Apple IIGS being discontinued Dec 1992
Reply-To: tjhendry@queen.mcs.drexel.edu
Distribution: USA
Date: Mon, 28 Dec 1992 16:27:46 GMT

In article <228@newave.newave.mn.org> john@newave.newave.mn.org (John A. Weeks  
III) writes:

>BTW, the Mac running
> A/UX might be the best machine ever built--it has the all the nice GUI
> things, plus a UNIX command line.
> 
> -john-

Gee. Sounds kind of like the NeXT I have on my desk. Graphical interface,
with a real unix shell in a window. In fact, as many terminal windows as you want.

--
Jonathan Hendry  Anderson Financial Systems
jon@afs.com  (Nextmail Welcome!) or hendryjw@duvm.ocs.drexel.edu
From: dik@cwi.nl (Dik T. Winter)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Re: Help needed identifying old Intel chips (4004?)
Keywords: Intel 4004 4002 4001
Date: 3 Jan 93 12:13:05 GMT
Organization: CWI, Amsterdam

In article <erd.05jd@kumiss.cmhnet.org> erd@kumiss.cmhnet.org (Ethan Dicks) writes:
 > 1)	C4004
...
 > 2)	C4001  0328
...
 > 6) 	P4001 0226
...
 > 7)	P4002-1
...
 > 	o Is this *really* an Intel 4004?
Yup.
 > 	o What is a 4001 and why would so many of them come from
 > 	  the same unit?
ROM.  256 8 bit words on each of the 5 chips, so you have a total of 1280
8 bit words ROM.  The 4002 is RAM, an astonishing total of 320 bits; 64 4-bit
data words and 4 4-bit status words.
-- 
dik t. winter, cwi, kruislaan 413, 1098 sj  amsterdam, nederland
home: bovenover 215, 1025 jn  amsterdam, nederland; e-mail: dik@cwi.nl
From: azog@spatula.rent.com (Billy D'Augustine)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Re: PDP-11: A Physical Threat :)
Date: 21 Dec 92 13:36:48 GMT
Organization: A kitchen utensil somewhere in central New Jersey

In article <7254353@zl2tnm.gen.nz> don@zl2tnm.gen.nz (Don Stokes) writes:
>
><sigh>  That's why the BA11-K box that the 11/34A usually came in was 
>equipped with rails that let you flip the box up vertically.  If you do 
>that, you can see what you're doing, don't have to wreck your back 
>doiing it and aren't at risk from falling parts (short of dropping the
>lead brick^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^Hpower supply on your foot, that is....).
>

Funny you should mention this. This is exactly what almost happened to
a friend of mine. I got an 11/34a with two Pertek RK05 type drives, and
after getting the stuff into my basement, we tried to get the BA11-K
back into the rack. His slider rail was in, but mine wasnt, so I 
tugged it out, and missed his foot by a short inch. Left a little
crater in the cement floor, too. You couldnt belive how happy I was
that it missed his foot! 

-- 
Billy D'Augustine azog@spatula.rent.com

Gentlemen, shall we manufacture salsa, or oven mitts?
From: edp@bsdbld.zk3.dec.com (Eric Postpischil)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Re: Number of numbers (Was Re: PI)
Date: 31 Dec 92 18:51:53 GMT
Reply-To: edp@bsdbld.zk3.dec.com (Eric Postpischil)
Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation

In article <1992Dec30.113327.4683@crash>, uzun@crash.cts.com (Roger
Uzun) writes:

>On a lighter note, my Amiga 4000 can calculate pi to
>3000 digits in 46 seconds.

Gee, that's three seconds slower than my AA-battery-powered pocket-size
HP-95 using Derive 2.5.  Get a real computer.  :-)


                                -- edp (Eric Postpischil)
                                "Always mount a scratch monkey."
                                edp@rusure.enet.dec.com
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
From: Jeremy_Reimer@mindlink.bc.ca (Jeremy Reimer)
Subject: Re: CLI/GUI wars (was Re: Apple IIGS being discontinued...)
Organization: MIND LINK! - British Columbia, Canada
Date: Sat, 2 Jan 1993 10:04:21 GMT

> Doron Meyer writes:
>
> Msg-ID: <1993Jan1.201107.8656@csservices.Princeton.EDU>
> Posted: 1 Jan 93 20:11:07 GMT
>
> Org.  : Princeton University Computer Science Department
>
> In article <19096@mindlink.bc.ca> Jeremy_Reimer@mindlink.bc.ca (Jeremy
> Reimer) writes:
> >Mac:
> >
> >CLI: None (standard System only)
>
> Umm, no.  This is an annoyingly common misconception.  First, there are
> three Unixs that run in tandem with the MacOS (i.e., while Mac applications
> are running, and are able to manipulate MacOS volumes, not as a completely
>

[stuff deleted]

>
> However, starting with System 7.0, Apple has included AppleEvents in the
> MacOS.  AppleEvents are a form of interapp communication that allow apps
> to control other apps.  Frontier is a top-notch, fully featured
> script language that supports AppleEvents.  You can, for instance, have it
> open up a document in Microsoft Word, select a printer, and print.  More
> and more apps are adding more than the standard necessary events (like
> open a document, save, quit) to allow control by apps like Frontier.  For
> instance, one can control Stuffit, a compression utility, completely by
> AppleEvents.  To my knowledge, there is no other OS that supports a CLI
> actively controlling GUI applications.
>
> Doron


This isn't really a CLI, though, more like a macro language (like REXX)
I suppose it is a bit semantic, since you are actually using commands instead
of mouse clicks but I see a CLI as a command line prompt where you type
commands one at a time, with scripts, batch processing and the like just an
extension of this direct control.

Even Windoze's Macro Recorder will do the soft of things you describe.  I'd
rather use REXX though. :)


--
Jeremy_Reimer@ |"It turned out, as N-Man discovered later, that the black
mindlink.bc.ca | boat hadn't been after him at all.  It was full of riotous,
---------------| unemployed former James Bond villains enraged at the fall
aka THE JAGUAR!| of Communism in the Soviet Union."
---------------|
Stealth Sig#69 |  --From "N-Man #3: N-Man on Holiday"
From: jruschme@opus.starlab.csc.com (John Ruschmeyer)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: The most dangerous thing...
Date: 18 Dec 92 22:08:45 GMT
Organization: A LIFO

Over lunch, a couple of friends and I started discussing the old
"The most dangerous thing is..." line.  We remember the basic three:

	1) ... a programmer with a screwdriver.

	2) ... a Field Service Engineer with a software patch.

	3) ... a manager with an idea.

as well as coming up with two others:

	4) ... a user with a new software package.

	5) ... a SysAdmin with kernel source.

We wondered if anybody might have any others.

<<<John>>>
-- 
John Ruschmeyer	            "But the man who can post, when he hasn't
Computer Sciences Corp.	     got a host, is the king of the whole wide net."
Eatontown, NJ 07724
	Opinions expressed herein are mine alone.
From: chip@tct.com (Chip Salzenberg)
Subject: Re: Proper pronounciation of 'Kibo'
Date: Tue, 22 Dec 1992 14:42:04 GMT
Organization: TC Telemanagement, Clearwater, FL

According to harrisot@cps.msu.edu (Timothy R Harrison):
>Isn't kibo declined
>	Kibo
>	Kibas
>	Kibat
>	Kibamus
>	Kibatis
>	Kibant
>?

No, it's obviously Spanish:

	kibo
	kibes
	kibe
	kibimos
	kibeis
	kiben

Pero todavia no hace sentido.
-- 
Chip Salzenberg at Teltronics/TCT  <chip@tct.com>, <73717.366@compuserve.com>
  "you make me want to break the laws of time and space / you make me
   want to eat pork / you make me want to staple bagles to my face /
   and remove them with a pitchfork" -- Weird Al Yankovic, "You Make Me"