A minor Adventure in Vintage Computing

[Vintage Computer Festival]

On Mon, 25 Jul 2005, Brent Hilpert wrote:

>  But there's not a lot of reason other than a computer system for circuit
> boards that large to be hanging around an oil refinery. Sure enough, the
> cabinet had a little "FOXBORO" logo up in one corner. Looking around a little
> more turned up a very large floor-standing video console with "FOX-1" in
> addition to the "FOXBORO" logo on it, a GE termi-net printer/terminal, and a
> sub-room packed with racks of what appear to be the I/O interface/drive
> equipment (where all the wires from the sensor/control points around the
> refinery terminate and are interfaced to the processor).

Wow, totally cool!  This is so Indiana Jones!

>  I don't know a lot about Foxboro, I believe they were a spin-off or
> startup company in the 60s that were early entrants into the (then small
> and state-of-the-art) area of computer-based real-time process-control
> for large industrial plants. They are one of those names you don't run
> across much unless you run in those circles.

Foxboro actually used to OEM DEC equipment.  One of their first products
(if not the first?) was the PCP-88, a re-badged PDP-8.

>  My friend finally dragged me out and we continued on our run into the forest
> with a little dip in the lake on the way home.

So what are you going to do about the Foxboro equipment?  It'd be a shame
if it eventually go demolished with the building.  Then again, it'd be
neat to think it'll still be there 50 years from now ;)

-- 

Sellam Ismail                                        Vintage Computer Festival
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International Man of Intrigue and Danger                http://www.vintage.org

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