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The IBM 1401 mainframe runs "Edith"

CuriousMarc · demo · Watch on YouTube

Demoscene & retrocomputingHistory of computing

What it is

CuriousMarc runs the program 'Edith' on a 1959 IBM 1401 mainframe at the Computer History Museum. The program prints a famous line-printer image on the vintage machine. The video is part retro-computing demo and part joke.

Why Hacker News recommends it

HN points to it as a fun, well-known example of line-printer art on early IBM hardware, and to the channel for vintage computing history.

  • 2 people recommended it
  • 2 different months
  • 0 strong recommendations
  • first 2020, last 2023

What HN commenters said

  1. “Marc's videos on restoring some old IBM hardware, that includes a good bit of the history that went into them”

    Restoration of old IBM hardware with history

    simcop2387, 2020-04 · Recommendation · in “Ask HN: What are some great posts or articles about history of computing?”

  2. “Here's a fun IBM line printing video I've discovered”

    IBM 1401 line printer demonstration

    eMGm4D0zgUAVXc7, 2021-01 · Recommendation · in “IBM paperweight teardown: Reverse-engineering 1970s memory chips”

Excerpts from Hacker News comments, linked to the originals. Summaries and labels were written by a language model from those comments.

Topics: ibm 1401, line printer, mainframe, computer history, retrocomputing

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