Revision as of 01:05, 23 January 2023 edit Trigenibinion (talk \| contribs) Extended confirmed users 20,465 edits Filled in 2 bare reference(s) with reFill 2 ← Previous edit		Revision as of 02:21, 7 February 2023 edit undo KhaledHammouda (talk \| contribs) 131 edits m →Origins: Fixed reference page number Tag: Visual edit Next edit →
Line 7: ==Origins== DECtape has its origin in the '''LINCtape''' tape system,<ref name=DECbook/>{{rp\|p\|page=215\|quote=The DECtape was derived from M.~~515~~I.T.'s Lincoln Laboratory LINCtape unit}} which was originally designed by [[Wesley A. Clark\|Wesley Clark]] at the MIT [[Lincoln Laboratory]] as an integral part of the [[LINC]] computer. There are simple LINC instructions for reading and writing tape blocks using a single machine instruction.<ref>Mary Allen Wilkes and Wesley A. Clark, 18: Magnetic Tape Instructions, [https://archive.org/stream/bitsavers_washingtoneferenceManualsLINCVol16Section2Programm_6160276/LINC_Vol_16_Section_2_Programming_the_LINC_Jun65#page/n87/mode/1up Programming the LINC], LINC Volume 16, Section 2, June, 1965; pages 80-104.</ref> The design of the LINC, including LINCtape, was placed in the public domain because its development had been funded by the government. LINCtape drives were manufactured by several companies, including Digital. In turn, LINCtape's origin can be found in the magnetic tape system for the historic Lincoln Laboratory [[TX-2]] computer, designed by Richard L. Best and T. C. Stockebrand. The [[TX-2 Tape System]] is the direct ancestor of LINCtape, including the use of two redundant sets of five tracks and a direct drive tape transport, but it uses a physically incompatible tape format (½-inch tape on 10-inch reels, where LINC tape and DECtape used ¾-inch tape on 4-inch reels).<ref name=BestStockerbrand>R. L. Best and T. C. Stockerbrand, A Computer-Integrated Rapid Access Magnetic Tape System with Fixed Address, [http://dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=1457769.1457783 Proceedings of the Western Joint Computer Conference: Contrasts in Computers], May 6–8, 1958; pages 42-46.</ref><ref>Herbert R. Johnson, [http://www.retrotechnology.com/restore/linc_tapes.html#fit Tape reels and hubs - "fit"] section of [http://www.retrotechnology.com/restore/linc_tapes.html LINC, LINCtape, DECtape], November 26, 2013.</ref>

DECtape: Difference between revisions