From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Path: news.gmane.org!not-for-mail From: Robert Thorpe Newsgroups: gmane.emacs.help Subject: Re: editor and word processor history (was: Re: RTF for emacs) Date: Fri, 30 May 2014 02:52:44 +0100 Message-ID: <87mwe0nic3.fsf@robertthorpeconsulting.com> References: <87k394mbwd.fsf@debian.uxu> NNTP-Posting-Host: plane.gmane.org Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain X-Trace: ger.gmane.org 1401414799 29320 80.91.229.3 (30 May 2014 01:53:19 GMT) X-Complaints-To: usenet@ger.gmane.org NNTP-Posting-Date: Fri, 30 May 2014 01:53:19 +0000 (UTC) Cc: help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org To: Emanuel Berg Original-X-From: help-gnu-emacs-bounces+geh-help-gnu-emacs=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Fri May 30 03:53:12 2014 Return-path: Envelope-to: geh-help-gnu-emacs@m.gmane.org Original-Received: from lists.gnu.org ([208.118.235.17]) by plane.gmane.org with esmtp (Exim 4.69) (envelope-from ) id 1WqC0O-0005HR-BN for geh-help-gnu-emacs@m.gmane.org; Fri, 30 May 2014 03:53:12 +0200 Original-Received: from localhost ([::1]:51009 helo=lists.gnu.org) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1WqC0N-000850-JT for geh-help-gnu-emacs@m.gmane.org; Thu, 29 May 2014 21:53:11 -0400 Original-Received: from eggs.gnu.org ([2001:4830:134:3::10]:60656) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1WqC06-00084r-3z for help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org; Thu, 29 May 2014 21:53:00 -0400 Original-Received: from Debian-exim by eggs.gnu.org with spam-scanned (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1WqBzz-0006ED-Fl for help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org; Thu, 29 May 2014 21:52:54 -0400 Original-Received: from outbound-smtp05.blacknight.com ([81.17.249.38]:40021) by eggs.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1WqBzz-0006DF-8M for help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org; Thu, 29 May 2014 21:52:47 -0400 Original-Received: from mail.blacknight.com (pemlinmail03.blacknight.ie [81.17.254.16]) by outbound-smtp05.blacknight.com (Postfix) with ESMTP id E3E35210122 for ; Fri, 30 May 2014 01:50:27 +0000 (UTC) Original-Received: (qmail 15269 invoked from network); 30 May 2014 01:52:45 -0000 Original-Received: from unknown (HELO RTLaptop) (rt@robertthorpeconsulting.com@[109.78.95.99]) by 81.17.254.9 with ESMTPSA (DHE-RSA-AES128-SHA encrypted, authenticated); 30 May 2014 01:52:45 -0000 In-Reply-To: <87k394mbwd.fsf@debian.uxu> (message from Emanuel Berg on Fri, 30 May 2014 00:57:06 +0200) X-detected-operating-system: by eggs.gnu.org: GNU/Linux 2.6.x X-Received-From: 81.17.249.38 X-BeenThere: help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.14 Precedence: list List-Id: Users list for the GNU Emacs text editor List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Errors-To: help-gnu-emacs-bounces+geh-help-gnu-emacs=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Original-Sender: help-gnu-emacs-bounces+geh-help-gnu-emacs=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Xref: news.gmane.org gmane.emacs.help:97959 Archived-At: Emanuel Berg writes: > OK, but then how did the data get on the tape/disk in > the first place? Barry Margolin gave most of the answers. Programs were typed in using keypunches which wrote to punched cards or using devices that wrote to paper tape. The program was then submitted as a stack of cards or a tape to the sysadmins who ran the computer. The computer would then "SPOOL" copying the paper information to magnetic tape where it could be accessed later. Once that happened the user could do various things like edit the code, compile it and so on. This meant there was a delay between the user's information being sent and the program execution. Often in that time errors could be found. In that case the user could run an editor from a teletype and fix the errors. Doing that wouldn't necessarily require the teletype to print out each line of code being changed. That's why in early editors there were commands to print out lines of code, but things could be done without them. This was all high technology compared to the early days when everything submitted on cards was compiled and executed without question. In those early days there were no editors. Everything depended on punched cards and there were special machines to deal with them which were a partial substitute. (Even in the 1970s most small IBM computers were only sold with peripheral for reading and punching cards.) BR, Robert Thorpe