From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.4.6 (2021-04-09) on ip-172-31-74-118.ec2.internal X-Spam-Level: X-Spam-Status: No, score=-0.9 required=3.0 tests=BAYES_00,XPRIO autolearn=no autolearn_force=no version=3.4.6 Path: eternal-september.org!reader02.eternal-september.org!nntp-feed.chiark.greenend.org.uk!ewrotcd!newsfeed.xs3.de!news.jacob-sparre.dk!franka.jacob-sparre.dk!pnx.dk!.POSTED.rrsoftware.com!not-for-mail From: "Randy Brukardt" Newsgroups: comp.lang.ada Subject: Re: Why "Hello World" as a first exercise? Date: Sat, 31 Jul 2021 20:16:45 -0500 Organization: JSA Research & Innovation Message-ID: References: <6199gg1vsegpsqj6prdrqmmme4qo8avk71@4ax.com> Injection-Date: Sun, 1 Aug 2021 01:16:46 -0000 (UTC) Injection-Info: franka.jacob-sparre.dk; posting-host="rrsoftware.com:24.196.82.226"; logging-data="648"; mail-complaints-to="news@jacob-sparre.dk" X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Newsreader: Microsoft Outlook Express 6.00.2900.5931 X-RFC2646: Format=Flowed; Original X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2900.7246 Xref: reader02.eternal-september.org comp.lang.ada:62469 List-Id: "Dennis Lee Bieber" wrote in message news:6199gg1vsegpsqj6prdrqmmme4qo8avk71@4ax.com... > On Fri, 30 Jul 2021 18:06:21 -0500, "Randy Brukardt" > > declaimed the following: > > >>My first actual programming class spent the first two or three sessions on >>the administrative things: where is the computer center? How do you use a >>keypunch? (I admittedly am showing my age here; but at least we were the >>second last semester to use the keypunches.) How to submit a card deck? >>What >>magic incantations are needed to get the computer to accept a card desk? >>Where to find your results afterwards (this being a batch system)? Etc. >>The >>actual program was very secondary to all of that (I don't remember what it >>was, but we had to key it and submit the results -- in order to prove that >>we understood all of the admistrivia). >> > Sounds like my college... Here are the three 029 keypunches... Here's > how to program a drum card to simplify entering code... Here's the minimum > JCL to run FORTRAN(-IV) (Sigma CP/V had two FORTRAN compilers -- the > traditional compiler outputting a relocatable object [ROM] file, to be > followed by a linker outputting a load module [commonly called a LMN > file]; > the OS didn't use file extensions, so our practice was to name the source > S:xxx, object O:xxx, executable L:xxx. The other compiler was FLAG -- > FORTRAN Load And Go -- compile/link/execute with one invocation). Turn in > the card deck to the operators, here. Come back later to pick up your > printed output. Ah. We had the very advanced self-service card reader for simple jobs. You put your card deck in, pushed a large button, watched a very impressive swooshing of cards about, and then went and stood around a desk-sized printer with lots of other people waiting for a page with your user name in very large letters to head a printout, rip it off (preferably leaving anyone elses that was attached -- didn't always happen), and go read the output to see what you did. The original compile-execute-debug-repeat cycle (more like run-read-punch new cards-repeat cycle). They had a few Decwriters, but only upper classmen got to use them (and they wasted tons of paper). Real terminals showed up the next year -- by the time of the compiler contruction class, most of the classes had moved to PDP/11s (way slower), but the compiler construction was still on the mainframe. But almost everything was done on the terminals (Janus/Ada never was on punched cards, thank goodness). We had to buy one of those huge computer tapes to rescue our source code and use another labs capability to transfer that to floppies in order to move our work to the CP/M computer on which RRS was born. A lot more engineering went into that sort of issue than today (probably a good thing). Randy. Randy.