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Ferranti Packard Logo from an FP6000 brochure |
Saskatchewan Power Corp. |
Ferranti Logo from FP6000 autocoder Manual |
System Documents
Peripherals
| System |
Component |
#Made |
Brief Details |
| FP6000 |
CPU |
8 |
Ferranti Packard Canada (FPC) in Toronto designed and created this, the first
machine that can be seen as a member of the '1900 series'
family of computers. The computer side of FPC was bought out
by ICT in the UK and was enhanced with a more flexible I/O
system to become the ICT 1904 and 1905 computers. According
to Roger D. Moore (FPC) the #8 machine was shipped to ICT
Putney for software development. This machine was the same
one that a paper tape holding a binary copy of the E4BM
executive, for which we created a 1905 emulator as the
machine had an FPU. - This led to a separate project where
we created an exec source for E4BM that could be
reconfigured for any combinations of the devices valid on
the original exec. |
| FP6010 |
Control Typewriter & Console |
|
The operators' console, - an ASR33 typewriter and keyboard
with a set of illuminated buttons that indicated the
state of the machine and allowed the operator to submit
commands to the system. |
| FP6011 |
Enquiry Station |
|
What was this? |
| FP6110 |
Paper Tape Reader |
|
385 CPS 1" paper tape reader |
| FP6130 |
Paper Tape Punch |
|
110 CPS 1" paper tape punch |
| FP6200 |
Core Store 4K Words |
|
6µS Core Store module, up to 8 of these could be installed. |
| FP6210 |
Core Store 4K Words |
|
2µS Core Store module, up to 8 of these could be installed. |
| FP6310 |
Punched Card Reader |
|
|
| FP6330 |
Punched Card Punch |
|
|
| FP6410 |
Line Printer |
|
300 lines/minute |
| FP6411 |
Line Printer |
|
1000 lines/minute |
| FP6420 |
Audit Printer |
|
What was this? |
| FP6421 |
Pocket Printer |
|
What was this? |
| FP6500 |
Magnetic Tape or Drum Control |
|
For FP6510 MT Units |
| FP6501 |
Magnetic Tape or Drum Control |
|
For FP6512 MT Units |
| FP6510 |
Magnetic Tape Unit |
|
Atlas/Orion compatible |
| FP6512 |
Magnetic Tape Unit |
|
62.5 Kc |
| FP6520 |
Magnetic Tape Exchange |
|
What was this |
| FP6530 |
Magnetic Drum Unit |
|
163,840 words |
| FP6531 |
Magnetic Drum Unit |
|
32,768 words |
| FP6615 |
MICR Document Sorter |
|
|
Software Documents
A mixture of mostly FORTRAN related material below, donated by
Vince who worked on writing the FPC FORTRAN II compiler and on the
early ICT FOTRAN IV compilers.
| Document Id |
Description |
Donor |
Download |
|
| Q.152 |
|
VKT |
FP6000 Fortran.pdf |
|
| |
|
VKT |
Fortran IV Arithmetic Pack WP.pdf |
Description of how arithmetic
expressions are compiled in FP & ICT FORTRAN |
|
|
VKT |
Fortran IV Flow Diagrams.pdf |
Flowcharts relating to the early
ICT FORTRAN IV compilers (up to #XFAE) |
| Fortran Note 1 |
1900 FORTRAN
Arithmetic |
VKT |
Fortran Note 01-V2.pdf |
Description of a number of the
routines in SUBGROUPSRF3. Currently we do not have a copy of
the SRF3 library, it if likely that the SRF4 library is
similar to SRF3, but with the additional code to handle 22AM
and EBM. |
| Fortran Note 2 |
Proposed method of
describing a FORTRAN program to the FORTRAN compiler |
VKT |
Fortran Note 02.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 3 |
Overlay proposal |
VKT |
Fortran Note 03.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 4 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 04.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 5 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 05.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 6 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 06.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 7 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 07.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 8 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 08.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 9 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 09.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 10 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 10.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 10A |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 10A.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 11 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 11.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 12 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 12.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 13 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 13.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 14 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 14.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 15 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 15.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 16 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 16.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 17 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 17.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 18 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 18.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 19 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 19.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 20 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 20.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 21 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 21.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 22 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 22.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 23 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 23.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 24 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 24.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 25 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 25.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 26 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 26.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 26A |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 26A.pdf |
|
| Fortran Note 27 |
|
VKT |
Fortran Note 27.pdf |
|
| Combined Fortran
Notes |
|
VKT |
Combined_FORTRAN_Notes.pdf |
This is simply all of the FORTRAN
notes in one large pdf. |
| |
|
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|
| System
Software |
|
|
|
|
| General Purpose
Loader |
|
RDM |
GPL.pdf |
A description of the paper-tape
General Purpose Loader (GPL). This program was actually the
only part of program files that was actually a program image
when the operators used the LO #TEST command to load the
program from paper tape into store. The paper tape was
followed by a fairly long forgotten sequence of
'consolidated semi-compiled' records which allowed the GPL
to determine where in store various parts of the program
were to be placed. After these records came the original
semi-compiled records as emitted by the compilers used to
create the parts of the program. Provided all of the
required segments of the program were found, then the GPL
would move the image that it had created in upper store down
to its proper locations.
I find it interesting to note that the GPL, in order to move
the program down in store needed to reserve some space in
low memory prior to the start of the program. This fragment
of code resided from location 30 to 44, explaining why 1900
programs always seem to start at location 45.
|
| Consolidator |
|
RDM |
CNSL.pdf |
A description of the actions of the
paper-tape consolidator program.
This program was used to create the 'consolidated
semi-compiled' paper tape using as input the various paper
tape segments (also on paper tape) that were produced either
by a compiler or were available as libraries of software. IT
would punch a copy of the required GPL at the start of the
output tape.
The ICT program #XPCA (paper tape consolidator) that we have
is probably a close relative of #CNSL, the likely
differences being in the I/O control instructions used as
FP6000 exec did not employ the 159 (PERI) extracode
to initiate I/O operations. ICT then created #XPCC their
punched-card consolidator using #XPCA as a template. |
Miscellaneous Documents
These documents may be of interest to those looking for more
FP6000 information:
| Document Id |
Title |
Donor |
Description/link |
| I.M.25 |
I.M.25 |
MK |
This I.C.T. document describes the 1904/5/9 machines
(i.e. the first 1900s on the UK market, they were
essentially the FP6000 with the ICT standard interface
added, along with executive mode instructions to drive it,
the FP6000 device interface was retained), it contains
information about peripherals that in various cases are not
well known. There is a reference and short description of
the 1830 General Purpose VDU, which did exist and was
documented and sold on the 1904/5/9 machines. Another
device, the 1831 was a multi-VDU device with up to 64 small
screens (4" x 2") for some sort of data entry or validation.
This might be a device mentioned as the IDF.
im-25-s.pdf |
| PM10 |
|
RDM |
FP6000 peripheral control outline
PM10.pdf
|
| PM22 |
|
RDM |
System Specification for FP6000 Drum Control
PM22.pdf
|
| PM23 |
|
RDM |
System Specification for FP6000
Magnetic Tape Channel Control (FP6501) and Magnetic Tape
Unit Control (FP6520)
PM23.pdf
|
| PM24 |
|
RDM |
System Specification for FP6000 Card Reader Control
(FP6300 and FP6301)
PM24.pdf
|
| PM28 |
|
RDM |
Peripheral Designations - FP6000 -4, -5, -6, -7 and -8
PM28.pdf
|
| PM29 |
|
RDM |
Notes on the Order Code
PM29.pdf
|
| PM30 |
|
RDM |
Specification if Floating Point Arithmetic Unit (Part of
FP6002 and FP6004).
It is interesting to note that this specification is
perfectly usable as the specification for the later FPUs for
the 1900 range.
1905 - Used this FPU. 130 and 131 not implemented by FPU,
performed by extracode.
1907 - Same spec, but 130 implemented in hardware.
1905E - Used the 1905 FPU
1905F - Used the 1907 FPU
1904A - A new TTL based FPU added the 130 and 131 orders
(FLOAT and FIX) as hardware orders.
1904S - As per 1904A
1906A - ECL to same spec, but also capable of extended
floating point (4-words instead of 2).
1906S - as per 1906A
PM30.pdf |
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Thanks:
Thanks here are due to several contributors:
* Roger D. Moore of Ferranti Packard Canada. Much of
the FP6000 hardware and system software information is due to him.
* Vincent K. Taylor of Ferranti Packard
Canada later ICT, and later FPC again. - He has provided a great
deal of material on the FPC FORTRAN Compiler and on the early
development of ICT FORTRAN IV.
* Mike Kirk
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