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Big, Beautiful Boxes From Computer History

Slatterz writes "We might sometimes complain about the limitations of today's technology, but there's nothing like seeing photos of a 27Kg hard drive with a capacity of 5MB to put things into perspective. PC Authority has toured the Computer History Museum in California, and has posted these fascinating photos, including monster 27Kg and 60Kg drives, and a SAGE air-defense system. Each SAGE housed an A/N FSQ-7 computer, which had around 60,000 vacuum tubes. IBM constructed the hardware, and each computer occupied a huge amount of space. From its completion in 1954 it analyzed radar data in real-time, to provide a complete picture of US Airspace during the cold war. Other interesting photos and trivia include some giant early IBM disc platters, and pics of a curvaceous Cray-1 supercomputer, built in 1972. It was the fastest machine in the world until 1977 and an icon for decades. It cost a mere $6 million, and could perform at 160MFLOPS — which your phone can now comfortably manage."

2 of 238 comments (clear)

  1. This stuff is so cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Redundant

    This stuff is so cool!!

  2. Panties STINK! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Redundant

    Panties Stink!
    They really, really stink!
    Sometimes they're red, sometimes they're green,
    Sometimes they're white or black or pink
    Sometimes they're satin, sometimes they're lace
    Sometimes they're cotton and soak up stains
    But at the end of the day, it really makes you think
    Wooooooo-wheeeee! Panties stink!

    Sometimes they're on the bathroom floor
    Your girlfriend- what a whore!
    Sometimes they're warm and wet and raw
    From beneath the skirt of your mother-in-law
    Brownish stains from daily wear
    A gusset full of pubic hair
    Just make sure your nose is ready
    For the tang of a sweat-soaked wedgie
    In your hand a pair of drawers
    With a funky feminine discharge
    Give your nose a rest, fix yourself a drink
    cause wooooooo-wheeeeeee! panties stink!