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>> Does anybody know approximately when this time was?
>
> 1970's. By about 1980 most of those machines were likely retired.
Right, OK.
>> For that matter, does anybody have
>
> Yes. Google.
Oh goodie.
>> Was there ever a time when programs were entered into memory via
>> switches rather than some other medium?
>
> Yes.
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Front_panel
Wow, OK. Looks like they have a dedicated switch for every individual
memory register. o_O I was expecting a set of switches to punch in an
address, and another set to input a datum. But I guess there are several
designs possible... And hey, if you're spending £2,000,000 on a
computer, what's a few thousand extra rocker switches?
> The first personal computers worked that way.
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Altair_8800
Mmm, interesting.
>> Was there ever a "punched tape" medium similar to punch cards?
>
> Yes. That's why DEL is up at 127. Think about it.
Oh... oh dear god. You *are* kidding me, right??
>> Similarly, you hear people talk about the VAX, the PDP, the varouis
>> IBM mainframes and Cray supercomputers. Does anybody know the timeline
>> for these, the technologies used and the basic design and performance
>> details?
>
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_history
Finally, a usable summary...
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