Podcast Episodes

XENIX

Episode 135

In 1984 SCO released PC XENIX, a port of UNIX that ran on an IBM PC. To understand why that's such a technical feat, and how we even got here, we have to go back to the late 1970s. In this episode we…

Published on 1 year, 5 months ago

Beyond the Punch

Episode 134

This episode I'm opening up my research vault to present some interesting pre-digital technology. Back before computers us humans used to write everything down on paper. Over time that lead to some o…

Published on 1 year, 6 months ago

LIVE from Intelligent Speech 2023

Episode 133

I'm currently out traveling. Due to my poor planning I managed to score back to back trips, for both business and leisure. While I'm not able to get an episode out on time, I do have a replacement!

I…

Published on 1 year, 6 months ago

The PDP-1

Episode 132

In 1959 the world bore witness to a new type of computer: the PDP-1. It was the first interactive computer to really make a dent in the market. Some say it was the first minicomputer: a totally new c…

Published on 1 year, 7 months ago

Episode 131 - Computer... Books?

Episode 131

I've been feeling like rambling, so it's time for a classic ramble. This time we are looking at the origins of books about computers. More specifically, computer books targeted at a general audience.…

Published on 1 year, 7 months ago

ALGOL, Part II

Episode 130

This is a hefty one. I usually try to keep things as accessible as possible, but this time we have to get a little more technical than usual. We are picking up in 1964, with the first proposals for a…

Published on 1 year, 8 months ago

ALGOL, Part I

Episode 129

ALGOL is one of those topics that's haunted the show for a while. It comes up any time we talk about programming languages, and with good reason. Many of the features and ideas found in modern langua…

Published on 1 year, 8 months ago

Cryotrons LIVE!

Episode 128

Originally presented at VCF SoCal in February of 2024.

The cryotron, a superconductive switch, almost revolutionized computing. It's one of those fascinating near misses. In this episode we are talki…

Published on 1 year, 9 months ago

Nim

Episode 127

This is going to be a wild rambling ride. In 1939 a computer called Nimatron was made. It was one of the earliest digital electronic computers in the world. It did one thing: play a game called Nim.…

Published on 1 year, 9 months ago

IBM Compatible (No, Not Those)

Episode 126

This episode wraps up the System/360 trilogy by taking things back to where they started for me. We will be looking at System/360 clones, how they could exist, why they existed, and why IBM didn't c…

Published on 1 year, 10 months ago