Path: csiph.com!newsfeed.hal-mli.net!feeder3.hal-mli.net!newsfeed.hal-mli.net!feeder1.hal-mli.net!newsfeed.xs4all.nl!newsfeed2a.news.xs4all.nl!xs4all!post.news.xs4all.nl!not-for-mail Return-Path: X-Original-To: python-list@python.org Delivered-To: python-list@mail.python.org X-Spam-Status: OK 0.010 X-Spam-Evidence: '*H*': 0.98; '*S*': 0.00; 'subject:Python': 0.06; '(all': 0.07; 'oh,': 0.09; 'received:80.91': 0.09; 'received:80.91.229': 0.09; 'received:gmane.org': 0.09; 'received:list': 0.09; 'wrote': 0.14; 'random': 0.14; 'file;': 0.16; 'keyed': 0.16; 'message-id:@4ax.com': 0.16; 'received:80.91.229.3': 0.16; 'received:plane.gmane.org': 0.16; 'scratch': 0.16; 'sigma:': 0.16; 'subject:programming': 0.16; 'wayne': 0.16; 'looked': 0.18; 'wed,': 0.18; 'later': 0.20; 'feb': 0.22; 'separate': 0.22; 'replace': 0.24; 'url:home': 0.24; "i've": 0.25; 'equivalent': 0.26; 'header:X-Complaints-To:1': 0.27; 'unix': 0.29; 'specified': 0.30; 'division': 0.31; 'larry': 0.31; 'file': 0.32; 'text': 0.33; 'running': 0.33; 'position.': 0.33; 'could': 0.34; 'editor': 0.35; 'requirement': 0.35; 'there': 0.35; 'disk': 0.36; 'maintained': 0.36; 'charset:us-ascii': 0.36; 'requirements': 0.37; 'received:76': 0.38; 'ahead': 0.38; 'to:addr :python-list': 0.38; 'to:addr:python.org': 0.39; 'received:org': 0.40; 'space': 0.40; 'even': 0.60; 'skip:u 10': 0.60; 'read': 0.60; 'hope': 0.61; 'numbers': 0.61; 'back': 0.62; 'places': 0.64; 'more': 0.64; 'records': 0.73; 'college,': 0.84; 'viable': 0.84; 'writing,': 0.84; 'xerox': 0.84; 'concluded': 0.91 X-Injected-Via-Gmane: http://gmane.org/ To: python-list@python.org From: Dennis Lee Bieber Subject: Re: Python programming Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2014 21:13:51 -0500 Organization: IISS Elusive Unicorn References: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Gmane-NNTP-Posting-Host: adsl-76-249-26-199.dsl.klmzmi.sbcglobal.net X-Newsreader: Forte Agent 6.00/32.1186 X-No-Archive: YES X-BeenThere: python-list@python.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.15 Precedence: list List-Id: General discussion list for the Python programming language List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Newsgroups: comp.lang.python Message-ID: Lines: 35 NNTP-Posting-Host: 2001:888:2000:d::a6 X-Trace: 1392257642 news.xs4all.nl 2843 [2001:888:2000:d::a6]:35272 X-Complaints-To: abuse@xs4all.nl Xref: csiph.com comp.lang.python:66138 On Wed, 12 Feb 2014 11:43:09 -0500, Larry Martell declaimed the following: > >I think it was a Xerox Sigma: > WHERE?!!! The only places I know of that had Sigma's were NASA, Missile Systems Division of Lockheed Missiles & Space (Sunnyvale, 1981 -- they were drafting a set of requirements to replace the Sigma. I looked at those requirement and concluded there was only one viable alternative -- a Honeywell DPS-8 running CP/6; the requirements specified the CP/V In/Out/Update/Scratch file modes, and I've never seen any other system that had Update/Scratch*... Also specified the equivalent of consecutive, keyed, and random file organization), McDonnell-Douglas "McAuto", and... Wayne State, Hope College, and Grand Valley (all three in Michigan... GV was mine) * For the bystanders: Update and Scratch maintained separate read/write file positions. An Update file required one to read one or more records before writing, the write position trailed the read position. Scratch was the opposite; one wrote data and then could read it back later -- the write position had to be ahead of the read position. Oh, consecutive was equivalent to a UNIX stream file; no structure. Keyed was ISAM (and even the text editor used this -- the line numbers were ISAM keys). Random... Was a preallocated /contiguous/ block of disk -- the OS did nothing for structure. -- Wulfraed Dennis Lee Bieber AF6VN wlfraed@ix.netcom.com HTTP://wlfraed.home.netcom.com/