Using strings to record things? Now use rope to program spacecraft to the moon and back.
Using strings to record things? Now use rope to program spacecraft to the moon and back.
Most of the software on the AGC (Apollo Guidance Computer) is stored in a special read-only memory known as core rope memory, fashioned by weaving wires through and around magnetic cores, though a small amount of read/write core memory is available.
Bonus Nerd Link: the Virtual AGC Project
Really cool that it could store more memory than a magnetic hard disk drive at the time
Especially when you consider computers at the time were roughly the size of shipping containers, and the hard drive was a whole other box.
http://factmyth.com/factoids/the-first-hard-drive-was-announced-in-1956/
Assembled with covers, the 305 RAMAC was 60 inches long, 68 inches high and 29 inches deep.[2]
Hey there. If you find this fascinating, theres a youtube channel that is trying to restore said computer and goes over how it works in detail: https://youtu.be/hckwxq8rnr0?feature=shared
That video was how I learned about it!
I highly encourage anyone even slightly interested in how a rope core computer works to watch that video. The whole series is fantastic too.Thank you for finding that, Todotoro. I meant to but completely forgot to do it.