17 Aug
2025
17 Aug
'25
1:56 a.m.
It appears that Larry McVoy <lm(a)mcvoy.com> said:
On Sat, Aug 16, 2025 at 08:21:30PM -0400, Aron Insinga
wrote:
> The PDP-6 had a sign on it that said something like "This machine
> is old and flaky so don't touch it unless you know what you are doing."
PDP-6's were flaky even when they were new, due to large circuit cards
with unreliable connectors. I gather a standard diagnostic technique
was to tap all the cards with a rubber mallet to reseat them. The KA-10
used much smaller and more reliable Flip Chip cards.
Wasn't there a PDP-<something> at MIT, I
think, that had a switch labeled
"magic" and "more magic" that had wires that went nowhere but it only
worked when set to "more magic"? I'm sure I have the details wrong but
I have a pretty strong memory of that. Anyone able to confirm?
Probably this one:
https://boingboing.net/2022/08/11/a-story-about-a-weird-magic-switch-at-mit…