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First desk-top computer ? — Parallax Forums

First desk-top computer ?

Heater.Heater. Posts: 21,230
edited 2015-08-21 23:17 in General Discussion
I just found this gem, the worlds first desk-top computer :

I have to quote:

Wireless World had a project in the August to December issues in 1967 entitled "WW Digital Computer Design". It described how to build a rudimentary binary calculator operated with press buttons and switches, One issue also described a sequencer which could be added to turn it into a simple computer.

Story sort of here and surrounding pages: http://fano.co.uk/history/WWaug366.html

Is this the first use of the term "desk-top" with regard to a computer ?

It amused me even more for the authors name "Brian Crank". Wonderful. I wonder what happened to Brian?

Comments

  • koehlerkoehler Posts: 598
    Compute-r
    Untitled.png
    794 x 662 - 567K
  • Heater.Heater. Posts: 21,230
    koehler,

    Thanks for the wonderful image. Did they refer to it as a "desk-top compute-r" though? :)

    Also I like to think of computer as something that has some chance of being programmed and running by itself. Human or machine. The abacus is not quite it.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 7,620
    People who performed computations manually used to be called computers.
  • Heater.Heater. Posts: 21,230
    Indeed. Hence my "human or machine".
  • evanhevanh Posts: 15,918
    I presume the "Demonstration Switching" is the status indicators on the upper half of operator panel. And "Order Register" would be what's now known as the instruction/opcode register.

    It would indeed additionally require a minimum of combined sequencer to automatically pull in both instructions and data to be considered a computer in my books.
  • evanhevanh Posts: 15,918
    Hehe, befitting Leon's reference, otherwise it's the human operator that's doing the computing.
  • Heater.Heater. Posts: 21,230
    Yeah, not quite a computer as described, which I could get hold of the complete article and find out how far Mr Crank took development of that.

    This picture shows what looks like an actual program for the machine with subroutines and all. http://fano.co.uk/history/WWdec602.jpg
  • evanhevanh Posts: 15,918
    Good piccy. Even got some typos in it.

    The stand out detail is there is no instruction where it indicates loading values into R. These must be hand loaded in-line, ... therefore the instructions must be hand entered as well due to missing halt or equivalent.

    Conclusion: These programs were only ever single-stepped. Humans were part of the loop there.
  • VonSzarvasVonSzarvas Posts: 3,450
    edited 2015-08-23 09:35
    @koehler

    The multi-stage error checking is also impressive. Operator, helper, observer and Grand Master.
  • evanhevanh Posts: 15,918
    Actually, why call it a divide subroutine? That would suggest it has some stored library like code. Or maybe it's just a predefine method they are taught to use. Certainly a divide is not simple so must have large amount of wiring to execute in so few instructions.
  • Heater.Heater. Posts: 21,230
    Are you telling us you have spotted a bug in a program written in 1967 !
  • Heater.Heater. Posts: 21,230
    edited 2015-08-22 18:57
    I don't think my father started hoarding Wireless World magazine until 1968 so I missed out on that computer. I did however build the Wireless World desk calculator in 1972.
    http://www.vintagecalculators.com/html/advance_wireless_world.html

  • evanhevanh Posts: 15,918
    Heater. wrote: »
    Are you telling us you have spotted a bug in a program written in 1967 !

    Lol, no, given it's pure machine code, I'm not claiming that. Just the comments is all. Eg: Where it says "(Total pence now held in R).", the R should have said A. Another example is tidiness. It uses Clear R and Clear Cntr regularly but in one part it says Reset register and Reset Cntr instead. Transfer A to 1 would be another one of those. The 1 should have been St.1.
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