Re: what is unclear about 01 02 03 (or, "the grey-beards amongus")

[PaulMmn <PaulMmn@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

>OK, geezers (and I include myself in that elite group), how many of you
>remember
>when "skip to" on output specs referred to a hole physically punched in the
>printer's paper tape control loop?
>
>Remember when standard records were 80 bytes ?  Remember why?
>
>Remember the sense of freedom when transaction records were expanded to 96
>bytes?  How could it get any better?
>
>--
>Jeff Gunter
>IBM Certified Specialist - AS/400 RPG Programmer


As a Geezer, I remember the special punch you used to -put- those holes in
the printers control tape loop.

And the glory when, on the S/3/15 with a 1403 printer, IBM automated the
process and you just had to use a special tape with lots of holes; the
software 'knew' where it was and you never had to make another tape!

Records were 80 bytes because that was the number of columns on an
80-column (Hollerith) card.  96 was IBM's revised 'mini' card on the
System/3.  It was replaced by the 8" floppy diskette (with a 128 byte
record length).

--Paul E Musselman
PaulMmn@ix.netcom.com


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