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IBM's Mainframe Dinosaur Turns 40

Posted by simoniker on from the not-so-purple dept.

theodp writes "According to an SFGate.com article, PCs were supposed to kill off the mainframe, but Big Blue's big boxes are still crunching numbers, posting sales of $4.2 billion in 2003. First unveiled on April 7, 1964, the IBM mainframe computer celebrates its 40th birthday this week with a sold-out party at the Computer History Museum." The SFGate article also reveals: "Doug Balog, an IBM vice president, noted that 70 percent of the world's data are still housed in mainframe computers."

23 of 384 comments (clear)

  1. Never in a million years... by xeon4life · · Score: 5, Funny

    Skynet wont be able to take over with just a bunch o' desktops...

    --
    Real programmers can write assembly code in any language. -- Larry Wall
  2. IBM management said that did they? by Colourspace · · Score: 5, Funny

    Thank god IBM's management are less susceptible to the '70% of statistics are made up on the spot' rule that other managers aren't....

  3. Re:Big iron I/O rocks... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    Many years ago I worked in a Univeristy data center.
    We had an IBM machine big enough that I could walk inside it. Ah, the good ol' days.

  4. Re:If it aint broke..... by adler187 · · Score: 5, Funny

    Or, "If it ain't broke... You aren't trying hard enough!" (according to Red Green that is)

  5. The other 30 percent by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny
    "Doug Balog, an IBM vice president, noted that 70 percent of the world's data are still housed in mainframe computers."
    ..and Google stores the other 30 percent.
  6. 70% of world's data housed on mainframes by craXORjack · · Score: 3, Funny
    "Doug Balog, an IBM vice president, noted that 70 percent of the world's data are still housed in mainframe computers."

    The other 30% is porn and cookies.

    --
    Liberals call everyone Nazis yet they are the closest thing to it.
  7. Obso1337 by isomeme · · Score: 5, Funny

    mainframe n. An obsolete device still used by thousands of obsolete companies serving billions of obsolete customers and making huge obsolete profits for their obsolete shareholders. And this year's run twice as fast as last year's.

    - The Devil's IT Dictionary

    --
    When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a skull.
  8. 70%? by Nutt · · Score: 5, Funny

    "..noted that 70 percent of the world's data are still housed in mainframe computers."

    They obviously haven't seen my pron collection!

    1. Re:70%? by Malfourmed · · Score: 4, Funny

      You obviously haven't seen theirs.

      --
      a world in progress...
  9. Depressing sales figures. by HitScan · · Score: 3, Funny

    4.2 billion dollars? Did they only sell 6 last year? ;)

    --
    HitScan
  10. Ah, Engineers by segfault7375 · · Score: 4, Funny


    The IBM mainframe computer celebrates its 40th birthday this week with a sold-out party at the Computer History Museum

    Yeah, I'll bet that's going to be a real barn burner :)

  11. Me fail Latin? by Colourspace · · Score: 2, Funny

    ... Thats umpossible!

  12. Re:haappy Biirthday Tooo you! by moosesocks · · Score: 2, Funny

    Just don't light a cigar. You might trigger the halon.

    --
    -- If you try to fail and succeed, which have you done? - Uli's moose
  13. Re:A different kind of mainframe by Kozar_The_Malignant · · Score: 5, Funny

    >the actual guts of these computers have actually improved with the times

    God, yes. You hardly ever see iron-core memory anymore, and punch cards are being phased out right and left.
    --
    Some mornings it's hardly worth chewing through the restraints to get out of bed.
  14. Re:Support is easier on a mainframe. by PCM2 · · Score: 5, Funny

    It's easy to have a 6-year uptime when the only applications it's running are tic tac toe, chess, and Global Thermonuclear War.

    --
    Breakfast served all day!
  15. Re:Support is easier on a mainframe. by Alien+Being · · Score: 2, Funny

    Yeah, but then again, they can be accidentally hacked by a kid with an Imsai and a demon-dialer.

  16. Re:Consequently... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    COBOL.NET? There is just...something so wrong about that idea....[shudder].

  17. Re:If it aint broke..... by Altizar · · Score: 2, Funny

    its "if it ain't broke, it don't have enough features."

  18. Re:Big iron I/O rocks... by mog007 · · Score: 2, Funny

    That'd be a neat idea for a movie... people actully INSIDE computers. They could interact with all the programs and stuff... OH! and the person could get arrested by the police, we'll call em ICP's, and they could race a really neat motorcycle to get out. They'd be called a maniac program because they claimed to BE a user, and thus not needing one. Perfect!

    --
    Learn something new.
  19. I don't understand by Mr.+Piddle · · Score: 4, Funny

    posting sales of $4.2 billion

    So, IBM sold three mainframes. What's the big deal, here?

    --
    Vote in November. You won't regret it.
  20. Re:Big iron I/O rocks... by lacrymology.com · · Score: 5, Funny

    "I could walk inside it."

    Ahhhh! So YOU were the bug. ;)

    -m

    --

    #
    # Modus Ponens
    #
  21. Eek! A need for old technology repairmen! by mingust · · Score: 2, Funny

    I guess I better pull out my book of FORTRAN for Dummies.

    Wait. Any FORTRAN book is FORTRAN for dummies

    --
    ~mingust
  22. Correction by M.C.+Hampster · · Score: 5, Funny

    "Doug Balog, an IBM vice president, noted that 70 percent of the world's data are still housed in mainframe computers."

    should read:

    "Doug Balog, an IBM vice president, noted that 70 percent of the world's data are still inaccessible and locked up in mainframe computers."
    --
    Forget the whales - save the babies.