Groups > alt.folklore.computers > #235717

Re: Harvest time!

From	John Levine <johnl@taugh.com>
Newsgroups	alt.folklore.computers
Subject	Re: Harvest time!
Date	2026-10-02 01:48 +0000
Organization	Taughannock Networks
Message-ID	<119n2i0$1ir2$3@gal.iecc.com> (permalink)
References	<119kf6g$9kh$1@reader1.panix.com>

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According to David Lesher  <wb8foz@panix.com>:
>Stumbled across:
><https://spectrum.ieee.org/cold-war-codebreaker-nsa-ibm>
>
>Perhaps old news here.

Harvest was declassified after it was retired in 1976. It was a custom
coprocessor for the STRETCH supercomputer that also incuded TRACTOR
cartridge tape drives with an automated tape library.

Apparently the NSA would have kept using it but the company
that made spare parts for TRACTOR was out of business.

There's a nice Wikipedia article.  I see the early versions
of that article were written by the same guy who wrote the
Spectrum article.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM_7950_Harvest

-- 
Regards,
John Levine, johnl@taugh.com, Primary Perpetrator of "The Internet for Dummies",
Please consider the environment before reading this e-mail. https://jl.ly

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Thread

Harvest time! David Lesher <wb8foz@panix.com> - 2026-10-01 02:06 +0000
  Re: Harvest time! Anton Antimo <anton@safunu.org> - 2026-10-01 11:26 -0300
    Re: Harvest time! Johann 'Myrkraverk' Oskarsson <johann@myrkraverk.invalid> - 2026-10-01 23:44 +0800
    Re: Harvest time! David LaRue <huey.dll@tampabay.rr.com> - 2026-10-01 21:22 +0000
  Re: Harvest time! Lawrence D’Oliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> - 2026-10-01 22:11 +0000
    Re: Harvest time! Lars Poulsen <lars@beagle-ears.com> - 2026-10-01 20:05 -0700
      Re: Harvest time! Lawrence D’Oliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> - 2026-10-02 04:50 +0000
        Re: Harvest time! Charlie Gibbs <cgibbs@kltpzyxm.invalid> - 2026-10-02 18:17 +0000
          Re: Harvest time! Lawrence D’Oliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> - 2026-10-02 21:44 +0000
            Re: Harvest time! Lynn Wheeler <lynn@garlic.com> - 2026-10-02 13:43 -1000
              Re: Harvest time! James Dow Allen <user4353@newsgrouper.org.invalid> - 2026-10-03 19:31 +0000
                Re: Harvest time! Lawrence D’Oliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> - 2026-10-03 21:43 +0000
                Re: Harvest time! Lynn Wheeler <lynn@garlic.com> - 2026-10-03 16:16 -1000
                Re: Harvest time! James Dow Allen <user4353@newsgrouper.org.invalid> - 2026-10-06 21:23 +0000
                Re: Harvest time! antispam@fricas.org (Waldek Hebisch) - 2026-10-07 17:31 +0000
  Re: Harvest time! John Levine <johnl@taugh.com> - 2026-10-02 01:48 +0000

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