perm filename PRO[ESS,JMC] blob
sn#056864 filedate 1973-08-03 generic text, type C, neo UTF8
COMMENT ā VALID 00003 PAGES
C REC PAGE DESCRIPTION
C00001 00001
C00002 00002
C00007 00003 Configuration Goals
C00014 ENDMK
Cā;
Hardware Configuration:
DEC KI-10 Central Processor,
software, manuals, and training $ 250,000
(perhaps a discount can be obtained)
DEC MF-10 Core Memory,
64K words (36 + 1 bits/word)
1.0 usec cycle time, 4 ports,
interleaved addressing. $ 84,000
each. 4 recommended. 336,000
(if the memory is bought from an independent supplier,
the cost would be about half.)
Swapping Drum.
A variety of suitable drums are
available. Vendors include
Digital Development Corporation
and General Instruments.
Estimated cost for 1.5 M words 120,000
IBM 3330 disk drives
3830-2 control unit and 3333 controller
and 3 3330 drive units. 8 pack capacity. 160,000
(Two year lease price of double-density
3330 file storage facility is less than
5 cents/track/month. Each track holds
more than 11,000 characters.
(This would be shared with the 370 computer)
IBM-compatible Selector Channel.
Systems Concepts SA-10, $ 37,000
each. Each SA-10 is actually two
independent channels. Required
to communicate with IBM peripherals
(3330 disks, Magnetic tape units,
line printers, etc.)
Two SA-10's a recommended 74,000
(It may be better to get by with one)
DEC disk system,
Includes a single density 2314-style
drive, controller and channel. We do
want this. It has been suggested that
DEC will not maintain the KI-10 without
it; we hope that this is subject to
negotiation. 60,000
BBN Terminal Interface Message Processor (TIP)
Communicates with 64 terminals, 3 host
computers and the ARPA-net. 120,000
Terminal System 200,000
Includes 64 terminals, any 32 of which
may be active simultaneously. This
system will have access to each of the
CPU's in the configuration.
DEC Tape system.
Provides a controller and two DEC Tape
drives. 20,000
Industry Magnetic Tape
We anticipate being able to share this
resource with the other CPU's in this
facility.
Miscellaneous Peripherals
Line printer, plotter, special interfaces 100,000
Total Hardware Cost: 1,440,000
Operating Cost:
Systems Programmers (3)
Operators (3)
User Services (3)
Management (1)
Yearly total personnel, indirect costs:
200,000 - 250,000
(These operational costs are in accordance with present Stanford
Computation Center practices. Other PDP-10 installations use no
operators at all. A more Spartan system would have two system
programmers (one doubling as manager) and two other people sharing
the administrative, user services, and operational responsibilities.)
Maintenance and supplies 50,000
One Time Costs: ?
Configuration Goals
We wish to bring to the Stanford community a class of
interactive computing that is not presently available and which is
not included in existing plans. The Campus facility offers
excellent batch/remote entry service. This proposal would extend
the service of the Campus facility to include an interactive service
on a new computer system.
We have selected the Digital Equipment Corporation KI-10
Central processor as the nucleus of the system proposed here. There
are several reasons for selecting the KI-10, which are explained
below. Despite our feeling that the KI-10 is the most suitable
computer, the goal here is to provide a new, needed and valuable
service to Stanford. Details of this proposal may be changed, but
the overriding consideration is to further the educational and
research goals of the University.
There are several reasons for selecting a KI-10 computer.
Stanford has two PDP-10's (KA-10's) already and they have proven
themselves in service since 1968. The KI-10 is the successor to
these machines. Better and larger interactive systems have been
built on PDP-10's than on any other computer; a complete selection
of software (assemblers, compilers, loaders, debuggers, editors) is
available with full product support from the manufacturer. PDP-10's
are in widespread use throughout universities and industry. Many
applications programs are available through the DEC Users Society.
The proposed configuration provides for interactive use by
64 terminals, with the ability to expand to 256. Interactive users
will have access to the facilities of the 370/158 and to an
extensive file system.
In this system we shall keep to a minimum software
modifications that make compatibility with future developments in
either machine difficult.
In addition to providing interactive facilities for program
and document preparation, the KI-10 system will provide users a
large, inexpensive, file storage facility.
Mini-computer users will be able to access the facilities of
the KI-10 to perform data analysis.
The Stanford community will have access to the resources of
the ARPA-net through the TIP which acts as a terminal concentrator
in addition to providing the network link.
Each of the CPU's in this configuration will be able to
communicate with the others by means of the TIP. Shared file
storage also allows inter-processor communication. This
organization is quite flexible; it allows problem preparation using
the editing facilities of the KI-10, online, interactive debugging
on the KI-10, and submission of production runs to the 370.
Undergraduate student's jobs, which are typically very small
computational loads, can be done entirely on the KI-10. Other
users, who require the compute power of the 370/158 will be able to
use the KI-10 to prepare their programs and data, and submit 370
jobs from the KI-10. Languages that are standardized, FORTRAN and
COBOL, for example, are available on all machines in the
configuration. Syntax errors can be detected on the KI-10 and
removed before submitting the job to the 370. The languages used by
the Computer Science Department in their courses, ALGOLW, MIX, and
LISP are all available on the KI-10.
In summary, the proposed configuration offers these
advantages:
1. Interactive Computation
Online program, data, and text preparation.
Interactive execution of programs.
Rapid turn-around.
Online debugging.
2. Inexpensive and flexible file storage.
IBM 3330 double-density disk drives offer
file storage for 5 cents/track/month.
(16,000 characters for a dollar a year.)
3. Access to the ARPA net
4. Flexibility.
PDP-10 operating systems are easily adaptable.
User needs which are not foreseen at present
can be satisfied without disrupting the
computational environment and without excessive
costs of systems programming. Modifications to
the operating system can be made with ease. An
entire new operating system can be assembled
in a matter of minutes.