Information Technology Pioneers

What

Lowell Benson has developed a Computer History Review of the first 25 years of computing with 2011 observations and opinions relative to stored-program computers.  

A review of the four IT Legacy Display venue setups used this fall to get the word out - by Lowell Benson.  

"Focus on the Future" - a set of viewgraphs used by John Westergren on 11/18/2011 while briefing the Unihogs/Uniturkeys attendees about the Legacy Committee status and processees.

"The Digital Age," a reproduction of an Inventing Tomorrow article used with U of MN, CSE permission.

Hardware Artifacts List:  This list of 468 items was compiled by Larry Bolton, the Legacy Committee needs to find a home for them by 2013. 

Video Library list: The Legacy Committee would like to have volunteers listen to and transribe these recordings - contact John W. or Lowell B. if you are willing to try any one of them. 

ENIAC - Beginning Summerized by Curt Christensen 

MATCALS descriptive document scanned by Ron Irwin with formatting by Lowell.  

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MATCALS - Controlling the Skies written in 1993, author unknown and "Deployment to Somalia" by CWQ4 John P. Rego, March 1996.   Both articles submitted by Ron Irwin.

 Pre-ATHENA musings by Warren Burrell

An addendum to the April '08 Plated Wire Manufacturing document by Larry Bolton and Clint Crosby.  

Posted on 12 December, 2010 - A reprint of ERA document XA19742 dated 12 December, 1950.  An interface document for the first stored-program computer delivered to and installed at a customers site.

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 A doublet this month, the 30-year Anniversary booklet (1.2Mb) as written by Quint Heckert w/some edits by Lowell and the Hidden History of Computing (9.6Mb) viewgraphs by Dr. Misa which was presented at our October 13^th anniversary celebration program.

R. P. Blixt authored a high level technical description of the CP-754/A hardware and system design in 1963.  

How was the CP-754/A associated with the Navy's Anti-Submarine Warfare Project ANEW in 1963? Read an Aviation Week article to find out.  Scanned by Lowell Benson

CP-823/U communications reveals discovery of an intact 1963 computer.  Document compiled by Lowell A. Benson  

 History of NSA General Purpose Electronic Digital Computers by Samuel S. Snyder, 1964.  This document chronicles all of the National Security Agency’s computers through 1963 including the ERA ATLAS I, ATLAS II, BOGART, the UNIVAC 1224A (CRSPI), and UNIVAC 490. 

Legacy Display at the University of Minnesota - 2010 summer session by Lowell A. Benson  

 200 Nanosecond Memory edited by Lowell Benson with text inputs from Curt Hogenson, Dick Erdrich, Don Mager, Ken Pearson, et al.

ERA 1102 Computer, edited by Lowell Benson with technical text extracted from an unpublished Blue Bell book and experiences written by Warren Burrell - Project Engineer.

 Drum Prototype Design, a re-print of a re-print of a 1947 article written by ERA’s J.M. Coombs with prologue and content comments by Lowell A. Benson.   

"Legacy' at the University of Minnesota" by Lowell Benson. An artifact and document exhibit in Walter Library. 

"The almost Silicon Valley" by Tom Webb.  Used with permission, originally published in the Sunday 1-2-2010 St. Paul Pioneer Press.

 'Our Winnipeg Story' by Glen Johnson with an addendum by Dave Saxerud. 

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Vern Sandusky has provided us with two 1972 Field Service reports describing the repair actions taken on Johnston Atoll after hurricane Celeste caused some devastation.  The first is an initial analysis of damage, the second about the repairs to bring the systems back on line. 

 'A History of Automated Design, Computer Aided Design, Design Automation, etc.' 

Written by Earl Vraa with inputs from a plethora of others who were part of the story. 

Reprint of  A PROGRESS REPORT ON COMPUTER APPLICATIONS IN COMPUTER DESIGN

Computer Aided Design - What is Worthwhile by Earl M. Vraa et al.  from 1972 

A System Through Hardware Design Methodology by Larry D. Anderson and Earl M. Vraa - circa 1986

The Minuteman Program Parts Control History by Larry d. Bolton 

A Letter to the Editor from Norm Palzer about the DRUM prototype donation to the Minnesota Historical Society. 

When Burroughs bought Sperry, Mr. Blumenthal wrote to the Secretary of Defense.  Letter image donated by Vern Sandusky.

About our 1950 period drums by Larry Bolton

The 40 Years of Excellence booklet from the U of MN's  Computer Science and Engineering Department relates a beginning with the ERA Atlas/1103 computer.  Posted with permission from the CSE department head, Dr. Vipin Kumar.

It's A Wrap - A project report about our Sesquicentennial Team activities by Lowell A. Benson 

The BEA reservation system by Michael Knight. 

Two Serial Input Output papers from Marc Shoquist, a technology doublet. 

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The UNIVAC 7901000-series of Integrated Circuits by Larry Bolton plus Ralph Kerler's 1965 IC Development symposium paper. 

A History of UNIVAC Magnetic Tape Plating Facility

by Douglas C. Wendall Jr.  

SNERT by Ken Graber, Larry Bolton, and Jeff Parker

Environmental Test Laboratory by Paul Welshinger and Bob Keenan 

Another Computer Was Born by Curt Christensen. 

Jack Sater's ATC overview slides from LMCO Brown Bag presentation on May 7^th. 

Canadian Patrol Frigate by Dennis Abbott 

Plated Wire Memory Usage on the UNIVAC Minuteman Weapon System Computer by Larry D. Bolton, Clinton D. Crosby, and James A. Howe  

A Gaggle of Geeks by James P. Lenfestey, prologue by Lowell Benson 

Carbon Heat Trapping:  Merely a Bit Player in Global Warming by Dick Petschauer  

Glen Hambleton's World Wide Career  

Dick Lundgren's European Business articles from the 2007 VIP Club newsletters

Harvey Taipale explains Legacy 

Larry Bolton's Vendor Surveilance Notebook 

The Fred Hargesheimer Story by Ed Nelson, et al.  

Networking by John Nemanich  

David Andersen's 'Invention of Voice Mail' 

CPF, UYK-43, & UYK-44 contract wins, Company newspaper articles by Gene McCarthy and Mike Bukovich  

Sperry Military Computers by George Gray 

Apollo Computers from Don Mager 

High Speed Computing Devices

Engineering Research Associates, Inc.

 McGraw-Hill

1983 Reprint Series for the History of Computing by Tomash Publishers 

Case Study of the Development of the Naval Tactical Data Systems

 R. W. Graf, Research Associate

United Research Inc., Cambridge, MA

From Dits to Bits

Herman Lukoff

Engineering Research Associates, The wellspring of Minnesota's computer industry 

Communications Department, St. Paul Minnesota 

In commemoration of ERA's 40th anniversary

 A Few Good Men from UNIVAC 

David E. Lundstrom 

MIT Press; Cambridge, MA 

1997 re-print by  Replica Books; Bridgewater, NJ

When Computers Went to Sea - The Digitization of the United States Navy

Capt. David L. Boslaugh

IEEE Press Order #BP00024

Computer: A History of the Information Machine 

A History of the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering 1888-2008

Edited by James R. Leger

 Unisys Computers: An Introductory History

You may order this book at http://www.lulu.com/content/2735927 .

 The companies that are encompassed within Unisys were among the pioneers in the field. They rank just behind IBM in the impact they had in the early years of the computer industry. Unisys was formed in 1986 by the merger of Burroughs and Sperry, two companies that had themselves grown through acquisitions and mergers. The first two U.S. companies to build a computer, Eckert-Mauchly Computer Corporation and Engineering Research Associates, were both acquired by Remington Rand Corporation (in 1950 and 1951) which, in turn, merged with Sperry in 1956 to become Sperry Rand Corporation.  

"The Cello Maker" and other stories of the working man.

 David P. Anderson

The sixteenth short story in this book is "The Invention of Voice Mail", Our July 2007 Article for the Month.