2 Dec
2013
2 Dec
'13
6:21 p.m.
On Sun, Dec 1, 2013, at 16:18, Aharon Robbins wrote:
> In addition ``reliability code'' was
developed to allow a
> Pluribus IMP to keep functioning as a packet switch in the
> face of various bits of its hardware failing, such as a
> processor or memory [Katsuki78, Walden11 pp. 534-538]. This
> was so successful there was no simple off switch for the
> machine; a program had to be run to shut parts of the machine
> down faster than the machine could ``fix itself'' and keep
> running.
So, I'm not old enough to know anything about this era... I have a
question.
If these things were so reliable, why couldn't they be shut down by
simply cutting power to everything at once?