https://www.resistors.org/api.php?action=feedcontributions&user=NatKuhn&feedformat=atomThe R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. - User contributions [en]2024-03-28T13:46:40ZUser contributionsMediaWiki 1.41.0https://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Claude_Kagan&diff=1582Claude Kagan2013-07-29T16:27:41Z<p>NatKuhn: added info about Herb Johnson's memorial page</p>
<hr />
<div>[[file:Claude-with-Pipe-1-retouch.jpg|frame|Claude Kagan]]<br />
Claude Kagan (born 10/7/1924), also known Claude Ancelme Roichel Kagan, Claude A. R. Kagan, or C. A. R. Kagan, was truly the guiding spirit behind the RESISTORS. He believed deeply in giving young people opportunities to learn in an active, "hands-on" way, and he practiced this both with the RESISTORS and through involvement with underprivileged youth in Trenton, NJ.<br />
<br />
Claude died on April 26, 2012. A '''[[Memorial Service for Claude Kagan|memorial service]]''' was held on August&nbsp;11,&nbsp;2012 at the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum at Historic Camp Evans] in Wall, NJ. <br />
<br />
Herb Johnson has produced a lovely "[http://www.retrotechnology.com/restore/kagan.html Claude Kagan memorial page]," which collects a lot of information on Claude and links to other resources. Thanks, Herb!<br />
<br />
== Obituary ==<br />
<br />
Claude Kagan of Hopewell Township was born in France and educated in France, England and the US. He graduated from Cornell with a bachelors in Mechanical Engineering (1948), bachelors in Electrical Engineering (1950), and MS in Electrical Engineering (1950). Served in the US Army Corps of Engineers during WW II and the Signal Corps during the Korean War.<br />
<br />
Claude worked for AT&T/Western Electric from 1953 to 1988, mostly at the Engineering Research Center outside Princeton, and later as a consultant for SAM76 Inc. His work included communications, manufacturing systems, and visionary work on computers in the home and the future of personal computing.<br />
<br />
In addition to thinking about the future, Claude began collecting historical technology in the 1960’s and filled his barn with artifacts, including a Burroughs 205 vacuum tube computer. Fortunately the PDP-8 and other highlights of his collection were moved to the InfoAge Museum in Wall, NJ, before the barn burned in 2009.<br />
<br />
He was a radio amateur, KE2XY and W2UUI, and professional engineer. Claude was active in the IEEE and related organizations for many years and received the IEEE Computer Society medal for extraordinary contributions in 1984.<br />
<br />
Claude was an active mentor who guided many young people into computing and engineering through the RESISTORS, the Cornell alumni network, and informally. <br />
<br />
Burial will be private but a memorial event is being organized and a scholarship fund will is being created in his honor. See www.RESISTORS.org for details.<br />
<br />
== Summary of events, written by Claude ==<br />
<br />
<br />
October 7, 1924 - April 26, 2012<br />
<br />
Born in France, attended early school there, then later in England and<br />
finally finished HS in US. Started College at Cornell in 1942, Mechanical<br />
Engineering, drafted and<br />
served in AUS 1944 to 1946, retuned to Cornell, got BME, then BEE and<br />
finally MSc in Civil Engineering.<br />
<br />
Started work at EBASCO in NY and Southern Illinois, was<br />
called back to military active duty in 1950 during Korean<br />
conflict, and served in France as liaison officer with French<br />
PTT, and other special assignments.<br />
<br />
Released in 1953 and went to work for Western Electric Co<br />
in Lawrence and N. Andover mass. Involved in final setup<br />
and testing of Missile Range communications system and<br />
became interested in early Computer system.<br />
<br />
Published in 1957 IEEE section prize winning paper on computer controlled manufacturing system with specially<br />
designed bidirectionally accessible data base.<br />
<br />
Designed large scale computer controlled system with telecommunications for<br />
the Merrimack Valley Works of WE company.<br />
<br />
Was transferred to NY and soon after to the newly formed<br />
WE engineering research center in May 1958, in Hopewell<br />
Township.<br />
<br />
Responsibility was primarily to look in the future for computer and other controlling techniques to be used in manufacturing.<br />
<br />
Published a number of papers along those lines.<br />
<br />
Some of the proposals were implemented in factories.<br />
<br />
At same time was active in the IEEE being chairman of the coputing devices committee and also after several years of the<br />
data communications committee. Was charter founder of<br />
AFIPS, the American Federation of Information Societies.<br />
<br />
Was awarded by the IEEE computer society the 1984 medal for extraordinary<br />
contributions &c &c. Was also one of half a<br />
dozen people who was give a second 1984 award, that by<br />
the Princeton Section of the IEEE.<br />
<br />
Became involved on the side with the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. in 1965, and that is a different story.<br />
<br />
Retired from AT&T Bell Laboratories at the end of 1988.<br />
<br />
Have been since then consultant in private practice with my<br />
own small company, and a couple of friends and associates.<br />
<br />
Among significant activities was the installation of computer<br />
aided election reporting and ballot preparation for the Mercer<br />
County Clerk's office. Also consulted for the County Clerk<br />
with reference to a proposed Electronic Voting Machine system for which prelimnary action had been taken by<br />
Mercer County Freeholders. After studying the proposal and<br />
submitting a report the Freeholders decided that discretion<br />
was the better part of valor and not to approve the acquisition<br />
of untested and unproven system consisting of 600 IBM PC<br />
machines with no demonstatable software.<br />
<br />
May 25, 1998<br />
<br />
Links:<br />
<br />
* [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Claude_A._R._Kagan Wikipedia user page]</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=The_RESISTORS_and_Trac&diff=1579The RESISTORS and Trac2013-07-28T20:57:10Z<p>NatKuhn: added info on John & Peter's Trac processor</p>
<hr />
<div>I'm not sure any of us exactly knew what [[Claude Kagan|Claude]]'s job at Western Electric involved, but a significant chunk of it involved the "Trac processor" (interpreter for the Trac programming language) that he developed for the PDP-8.<br />
<br />
Trac was a lightweight (in every sense) programming language developed by Calvin Mooers in the early 1960s, which was well-suited to the world of "minicomputers" that emerged as the 1960s progressed. Brevity was of value because minicomputers had extremely limited memory and very slow input-output. Trac was built on simple but powerful principles. It grew out of the idea of "macro expansion" and was reportedly similar to Strachey and McIlroy's GPM ("General Purpose Macrogenerator"). In modern terms it would be described as an (impure) functional programming language, with some similarities to LISP.<br />
<br />
In 2013, Nat Kuhn implemented a Trac processor in Python, which is [https://github.com/natkuhn/Trac-in-Python available for download]; he's also [http://nats-tech.blogspot.com/2013/07/the-land-of-trac.html posted some reminiscences].<br />
<br />
With Claude's encouragement and guidance, Barry Klein, Dave Theriault, Nat Kuhn, and John Levine worked on a Trac "primer," which included illustrations by Joe Tulloch.<br />
<br />
John Levine and Peter Eichenberger implemented a Trac processor for the PDP-10, which the developed on the Applied Logic time-sharing system. When the PDP-11 came out, many of us were fascinated by its radical minicomputer architecture (at least after we got over the capitulation to IBM on the byte thing, and the octal-vs-hex thing). John and Peter ported their Trac processor the PDP-11, and managed to get DEC to lend them one for a computer show... where the PDP-11 ran a multi-user version of Trac under a time-sharing system that the two of them developed.<br />
<br />
Claude was initially very supportive of crediting Mooers' for Trac; in fact, he put some of us up to deviling folks who did not give Mooers credit. Sometime after the RESISTORS left the barn, he and Mooers had a falling-out, which reportedly included a lawsuit by Mooers against Western Electric. Claude developed an alternative programming language in the mid-1970s, which he called [[The SAM76 programming language|SAM76]]. Presumably as a result of the legal difficulties, Claude was quite cagey about its relationship to Trac in a typically Claude-like way, saying that SAM could stand for "Strachey And McIlroy" or "Same As Mooers."<br />
<br />
Claude distributed SAM76 in various version, and wrote a "SAM76 Language Handbook" including Joe's drawings and perhaps based in part on the RESISTORS original "primer," which he published under the pseudonym "Ancelme Roichel" (his middle names). In the book he claims that SAM76 is based on GPM and a language called M6 which google is not aware of and was perhaps a figment of Claude's imagination; he also credits "A very special man (whose name ewe dare not mention) who helped us understand the subtleties of another very interesting computer language and brought us ice cream that melted during a discussion," clearly a reference to Mooers.</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Main_Page&diff=1578Main Page2013-07-28T17:57:29Z<p>NatKuhn: </p>
<hr />
<div>'''If you were a RESISTOR, email resistors@resistors.org to get a username and password to edit this wiki. Then add your reminiscences! We also need a logo for the upper left corner of the wiki pages.''' - Margy Levine Young and John Levine<br />
<br />
= What was the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.? =<br />
<br />
The RESISTORS was one of the first computer clubs for young people. It was founded in 1967 in central New Jersey, and for most of its existence it was under the support and guidance of [[Claude Kagan]], an engineer at the Western Electric Research Center (part of "Ma Bell"), whose barn ("[[The Barn]]") in Pennington, NJ was filled with technological treasures and trash that he collected over many years.<br />
<br />
The name came from the electrical component, with a nod to the spirit of protest that was in the air at the time, and it was an example of what [[Ted Nelson]] calls a "back-ac," an acronym who abbreviation is chosen first, with acronymized phrase chosen later. In our case, the name "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, and Other Research Studies" got the nod (although there was in fact an earlier version, "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, Or Research Studies.")<br />
<br />
For more, see the [[History of the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]] page.<br />
<br />
= Who were the RESISTORS? =<br />
<br />
The group was founded by students at the Hopewell Valley High School who were interested in science and technology but didn't fine school engaging. They met briefly at a house on Poor Farm Road until they and Claude discovered each other, at which point the group moved to Claude's barn and house. We met there every Saturday from roughly 11 am to 11 pm for a number of years. In the early 1970s there was a rift that no one can entirely remember the cause of, and the group moved to Princeton, where it met in space provided by Princeton University in the "E-Quad," Princeton's Engineering Quadrangle.<br />
<br />
* [[List of R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]<br />
<br />
= What did the RESISTORS do? =<br />
<br />
We met every Saturday at the Barn and in Claude's house, often from 11 am to 10 pm or so. The group was as much social as it was technically-oriented, there was a lot of folk music (Dave Theriault and later Lauren Sarno did a lot of folk music on guitar and vocals). We didn't, uh, exactly 'fit in' at school and for many of us this was the center of our social. A number of RESISTORS became close, life-long friends.<br />
<br />
The two principles of the group, undoubtedly formulated by Claude, were "hands on" (as opposed to most museums' "hands off" policies) and "[http://www.resistors.org/images/RESISTORS_using_TRAC.html each one teach one]" (once you learned something, you should be willing to pass it on, and teaching was generally one-on-one rather than in classes).<br />
<br />
In the early days, computer use centered around the massive ASR-35 Teletype dial-up terminal in Claude's house. The teletype was upper case only and ran at 10 characters per second, so early programming had a premium on brevity! We dialed in to Claude's PDP-8 at Western Electric to program in the [[The RESISTORS and Trac|Trac language]], and also into a PDP-6 (and later PDP-10) time-sharing system run by Applied Logic, Inc., a local company which donated time. After Digital Equipment Corp. donated a PDP-8, a lot of the computer use happened in the Barn, using Trac and other languages. The only way to load a program into the '8 was via the paper tape reader on its ASR-33 Teletype, also at 10 bytes per second. It took about 20 minutes to load the Trac processor, before you could start programming.<br />
<br />
Princeton University also donated computer time on their IBM mainframes. We hated IBM, which dominated the computer industry at the time, but that didn't stop us from making up our decks of punched cards!<br />
<br />
We exhibited at several computer shows. Claude engineered a major coup at the 1968 Spring Joint Computer Conference in Atlantic City [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC%20SHOW%20FLOOR.jpg (picture)]; the conference coincided with a telephone company strike, so none of the exhibitors could get phone lines installed, which meant that a high proportion of exhibits were completely dead. We set up a terminal by a phone book [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCCPhoneBooth.jpg (picture)] and dialed into Claude's PDP-8 at Western Electric.<br />
<br />
[[Ted Nelson]] showed up around 1970 and enlisted a number of us to help out with the upcoming "[[The RESISTORS and the Software Show at the Jewish Museum|Software]]" show at the Jewish Museum in New York City. He became one of key "adult" figures in the group.<br />
<br />
The ''Trenton Times'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/trentontimes.html article] about the club in 1967. The ''Newark Sunday News'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/newarknews.html article] in May 1967.<br />
<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083275990/ RESISTORS in Barn] photo gallery<br />
* [[History of the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]<br />
* [[Dave Fox's RESISTORS page]]<br />
<br />
= The R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. Reunion 1998 =<br />
<br />
We had a RESISTORS reunion over Memorial Day weekend, 1998, at the Barn in Pennington. 45 former R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. and friends attended, along with 15 kids, two horses, and a large number of kittens. Here are [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ some of Geoff Peck's pictures] (added more 2012-08)!<br />
<br><br />
[[file:Reunion1998group.jpg|frame|center|300px|Reunion Attendees]]<br><br />
<br />
= Stories? =<br />
<br />
Contribute your own stories here. (good taste is necessary, historical accuracy is less important)<br />
<br />
* Where did the funding come from?<br />
<br />
The dogs mostly. A breeding pair of malamutes. Every spring they produced a litter of 7 to 9 puppies. Each sold for $125. They did have to be bailed out occasionally after a night spent roaming. Because the fines were less than the puppy price, they kept us in the black. One of the malamutes destroyed a model 33 ASR Teletype as it flew through a doorway. No lives were lost, but the model 33 was never the same.<br />
<br />
We also sold light bulbs and were not even above begging [http://www.resistors.org/images/PleaseHelpUs.html (picture)].<br />
<br />
* On a Saturday night, when the temperature dropped, the cold grease in the Friden Flexowriters caused them to jam up with every character printed. The best thing to do was go inside and discuss the future of computing. Many lively discussions revolved around the concept of a Home Reckoner [http://www.resistors.org/images/homereckoner1.html (notes)]. This multi-tentacled creation served as a home controller, entertainment for the owners, and a tool for everything from baby sitting to stock market analysis. Did today's Personal Computer evolve from the Home Reckoner? Judge for yourself. <br />
<br />
Many of us argued that the future lay with an in-home computer which would permit the user to write programs, play solitary games, and control the household. Others maintained that all an individual needed in the home was a simple dumb terminal with the capability of connecting to a large central computer which provided a powerful processing resource, large quantities of memory and the ability to interact with other users. Until the internet took off, it looked as if the proponents of the home computer had been right. Then both were proven right.<br />
<br />
* Although computer time was offered free at the [1968] SJCC, you did have to take a number [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC_take_a_number.html (picture)]. When you got your turn, and your program didn't run immediately, then you had to think [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC,%20thinking.jpg (picture)].<br />
<br />
* At a show where we exhibited the PDP-8, a well dressed man walked up and watched the RESISTORS program for a while. Then he asked what the "PDP" stood for in PDP-8. Bob explained that it stood for Programmed Data Processor. The man paused for a minute and then asked, "What does the Programmed Data Processor do in relation to the computer?" Bob said "That is the computer". Without a word the man walked off.<br />
<br />
* We took a bus ride up to New York for the IEEE show one year. Although we did not mount a formal exhibit such as the hallway terminal shown at the SJCC, we nevertheless made our presence known. On the long bus ride up, JB had brought a can of peanut brittle. She offered some to fellow RESISTORS and then walked up the aisle of the bus holding out the can to the other passengers. One kindly looking gentleman saw the outstretched can, reached in his pocket and then dropped in a coin. I don't recall if the coin went into the RESISTORS treasury!</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Main_Page&diff=1577Main Page2013-07-28T17:54:11Z<p>NatKuhn: /* Who were the RESISTORS? */ got rid of italics</p>
<hr />
<div>'''If you were a RESISTOR, email resistors@resistors.org to get a username and password to edit this wiki. Then add your reminiscences! We also need a logo for the upper left corner of the wiki pages.''' - Margy Levine Young and John Levine<br />
<br />
= What was the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.? =<br />
<br />
The RESISTORS was one of the first computer clubs for young people. It was founded in 1967 in central New Jersey, and for most of its existence it was under the support and guidance of [[Claude Kagan]], an engineer at the Western Electric Research Center (part of "Ma Bell"), whose barn ("[[The Barn]]") in Pennington, NJ was filled with technological treasures and trash that he collected over many years.<br />
<br />
The name came from the electrical component, with a nod to the spirit of protest that was in the air at the time, and it was an example of what [[Ted Nelson]] calls a "back-ac," an acronym who abbreviation is chosen first, with acronymized phrase chosen later. In our case, the name "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, and Other Research Studies" got the nod (although there was in fact an earlier version, "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, Or Research Studies.")<br />
<br />
For more, see the [[History of the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]] page.<br />
<br />
= Who were the RESISTORS? =<br />
<br />
The group was founded by students at the Hopewell Valley High School who were interested in science and technology but didn't fine school engaging. They met briefly at a house on Poor Farm Road until they and Claude discovered each other, at which point the group moved to Claude's barn and house. We met there every Saturday from roughly 11 am to 11 pm for a number of years. In the early 1970s there was a rift that no one can entirely remember the cause of, and the group moved to Princeton, where it met in space provided by Princeton University in the "E-Quad," Princeton's Engineering Quadrangle.<br />
<br />
* [[List of R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]<br />
<br />
= What did the RESISTORS do? =<br />
<br />
We met every Saturday at the Barn and in Claude's house, often from 11 am to 10 pm or so. The group was as much social as it was technically-oriented, there was a lot of folk music (Dave Theriault and later Lauren Sarno did a lot of folk music on guitar and vocals). We didn't, uh, exactly 'fit in' at school and for many of us this was the center of our social. A number of RESISTORS became close, life-long friends.<br />
<br />
The two principles of the group, undoubtedly formulated by Claude, were "hands on" (as opposed to most museums' "hands off" policies) and "[http://www.resistors.org/images/RESISTORS_using_TRAC.html each one teach one]" (once you learned something, you should be willing to pass it on, and teaching was generally one-on-one rather than in classes).<br />
<br />
In the early days, computer use centered around the massive ASR-35 Teletype dial-up terminal in Claude's house. The teletype was upper case only and ran at 10 characters per second, so early programming had a premium on brevity! We dialed in to Claude's PDP-8 at Western Electric to program in the [[The RESISTORS and Trac|Trac language]], and also into a PDP-6 (and later PDP-10) time-sharing system run by Applied Logic, Inc., a local company which donated time. After Digital Equipment Corp. donated a PDP-8, a lot of the computer use happened in the Barn, using Trac and other languages. The only way to load a program into the '8 was via the paper tape reader on its ASR-33 Teletype, also at 10 bytes per second. It took about 20 minutes to load the Trac processor, before you could start programming.<br />
<br />
Princeton University also donated computer time on their IBM mainframes. We hated IBM, which dominated the computer industry at the time, but that didn't stop us from making up our decks of punched cards!<br />
<br />
We exhibited at several computer shows. Claude engineered a major coup at the 1968 Spring Joint Computer Conference in Atlantic City [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC%20SHOW%20FLOOR.jpg (picture)]; the conference coincided with a telephone company strike, so none of the exhibitors could get phone lines installed, which meant that a high proportion of exhibits were completely dead. We set up a terminal by a phone book [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCCPhoneBooth.jpg (picture)] and dialed into Claude's PDP-8 at Western Electric.<br />
<br />
[[Ted Nelson]] showed up around 1970 and enlisted a number of us to help out with the upcoming "[[The RESISTORS and the Software Show at the Jewish Museum|Software]]" show at the Jewish Museum in New York City. He became one of key "adult" figures in the group.<br />
<br />
The ''Trenton Times'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/trentontimes.html article] about the club in 1967. The ''Newark Sunday News'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/newarknews.html article] in May 1967.<br />
<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083275990/ RESISTORS in Barn] photo gallery<br />
* [[History of the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]<br />
* [[Dave Fox's RESISTORS page]]<br />
<br />
= The R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. Reunion 1998 =<br />
<br />
We had a RESISTORS reunion over Memorial Day weekend, 1998, at the Barn in Pennington. 45 former R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. and friends attended, along with 15 kids, two horses, and a large number of kittens. Here are [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ some of Geoff Peck's pictures] (added more 2012-08)!<br />
<br><br />
[[file:Reunion1998group.jpg|frame|center|300px|Reunion Attendees]]<br><br />
<br />
= Where did the funding come from? =<br />
<br />
The dogs mostly. A breeding pair of malamutes. Every spring they produced a litter of 7 to 9 puppies. Each sold for $125. They did have to be bailed out occasionally after a night spent roaming. Because the fines were less than the puppy price, they kept us in the black. One of the malamutes destroyed a model 33 ASR Teletype as it flew through a doorway. No lives were lost, but the model 33 was never the same.<br />
<br />
We also sold light bulbs and were not even above begging [http://www.resistors.org/images/PleaseHelpUs.html (picture)].<br />
<br />
= Stories? =<br />
<br />
Contribute your own stories here. (good taste is necessary, historical accuracy is less important)<br />
<br />
On a Saturday night, when the temperature dropped, the cold grease in the Friden Flexowriters caused them to jam up with every character printed. The best thing to do was go inside and discuss the future of computing. Many lively discussions revolved around the concept of a Home Reckoner [http://www.resistors.org/images/homereckoner1.html (notes)]. This multi-tentacled creation served as a home controller, entertainment for the owners, and a tool for everything from baby sitting to stock market analysis. Did today's Personal Computer evolve from the Home Reckoner? Judge for yourself. <br />
<br />
Many of us argued that the future lay with an in-home computer which would permit the user to write programs, play solitary games, and control the household. Others maintained that all an individual needed in the home was a simple dumb terminal with the capability of connecting to a large central computer which provided a powerful processing resource, large quantities of memory and the ability to interact with other users. Until the internet took off, it looked as if the proponents of the home computer had been right. Then both were proven right.<br />
<br />
Although computer time was offered free at the [1968] SJCC, you did have to take a number [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC_take_a_number.html (picture)]. When you got your turn, and your program didn't run immediately, then you had to think [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC,%20thinking.jpg (picture)].<br />
<br />
At a show where we exhibited the PDP-8, a well dressed man walked up and watched the RESISTORS program for a while. Then he asked what the "PDP" stood for in PDP-8. Bob explained that it stood for Programmed Data Processor. The man paused for a minute and then asked, "What does the Programmed Data Processor do in relation to the computer?" Bob said "That is the computer". Without a word the man walked off.<br />
<br />
We took a bus ride up to New York for the IEEE show one year. Although we did not mount a formal exhibit such as the hallway terminal shown at the SJCC, we nevertheless made our presence known. On the long bus ride up, JB had brought a can of peanut brittle. She offered some to fellow RESISTORS and then walked up the aisle of the bus holding out the can to the other passengers. One kindly looking gentleman saw the outstretched can, reached in his pocket and then dropped in a coin. I don't recall if the coin went into the RESISTORS treasury!</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=The_RESISTORS_and_the_Software_Show_at_the_Jewish_Museum&diff=1576The RESISTORS and the Software Show at the Jewish Museum2013-07-28T17:53:02Z<p>NatKuhn: </p>
<hr />
<div>Around 1970, [[Ted Nelson]] appeared and got a number of RESISTORS involved in preparing for a very forward-thinking show at the [http://www.thejewishmuseum.org/ACenturysHistory Jewish Museum] in New York City called "Software," and subtitled "Information Technology: Its New Meaning for Art," which examined at the artistic possibilities related to information technology. The show was was [http://dada.compart-bremen.de/node/3691 controversial], and after it closed, the museum board reportedly voted that future exhibits have some direct relationship to Judaism.<br />
<br />
Ted had arranged for Information Displays Inc. of Mount Kisco NY to lend one of their IDIIOM systems for the show. It consisted of a Varian 620/I minicomputer and IDI's line-drawing CRT-based display; this was at a time when graphic displays were rare and costly. We developed the software to implement a piece by conceptual artist Carl Fernbach-Flarsheim's called "The Conceptual Typewriter." John Levine, Peter Eichenberger, and Nat Kuhn did the programming, and Margy Levine and Lauren Sarno rendered the graphics for animations. The commuted up to Mt Kisco (about two hours on public transit) with our boxes of punch cards to get it running.<br />
<br />
* [http://monoskop.org/images/3/31/Software_Information_Technology_Its_New_Meaning_for_Art_catalogue.pdf Scanned version of the "Software" catalog]<br />
<br />
= Reminiscences =<br />
Nat Kuhn recalls: In addition to the piece by Carl Fernbach-Flarsheim, an artist named Agnes Denes had designed a piece to show conceptual relationships by stacking tetrahedra into a crystalline structure. What she didn't realize is that tetrahedra don't stack into a regular array. I remember a group of folks, including John and Margy's mother Ginny, puzzling this out in the Levines' kitchen one day. I felt very left out because, as a 7th grader, I hadn't had geometry yet and I couldn't understand what they were talking about.<br />
<br />
The exhibit took place during the summer and the space was not adequately air conditioned. The Varian wouldn't work, until someone (Skip King?) went out and got a block of dry ice which we put under the Varian CPU... and the show went on!<br />
<br />
One highlight was Nicholas Negroponte's Architecture Machine Group from MIT (this was before the founding of the Media Lab), brought a large plexiglass enclosure and a mechanical arm that would stack blocks, while gerbils running around in the enclosure would knock them over.</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=The_RESISTORS_and_the_Software_Show_at_the_Jewish_Museum&diff=1575The RESISTORS and the Software Show at the Jewish Museum2013-07-28T17:52:33Z<p>NatKuhn: More links to the show</p>
<hr />
<div>Around 1970, [[Ted Nelson]] appeared and got a number of RESISTORS involved in preparing for a very forward-thinking show at the [[http://www.thejewishmuseum.org/ACenturysHistory Jewish Museum] in New York City called "Software," and subtitled "Information Technology: Its New Meaning for Art," which examined at the artistic possibilities related to information technology. The show was was [http://dada.compart-bremen.de/node/3691 controversial], and after it closed, the museum board reportedly voted that future exhibits have some direct relationship to Judaism.<br />
<br />
Ted had arranged for Information Displays Inc. of Mount Kisco NY to lend one of their IDIIOM systems for the show. It consisted of a Varian 620/I minicomputer and IDI's line-drawing CRT-based display; this was at a time when graphic displays were rare and costly. We developed the software to implement a piece by conceptual artist Carl Fernbach-Flarsheim's called "The Conceptual Typewriter." John Levine, Peter Eichenberger, and Nat Kuhn did the programming, and Margy Levine and Lauren Sarno rendered the graphics for animations. The commuted up to Mt Kisco (about two hours on public transit) with our boxes of punch cards to get it running.<br />
<br />
* [http://monoskop.org/images/3/31/Software_Information_Technology_Its_New_Meaning_for_Art_catalogue.pdf Scanned version of the "Software" catalog]<br />
<br />
= Reminiscences =<br />
Nat Kuhn recalls: In addition to the piece by Carl Fernbach-Flarsheim, an artist named Agnes Denes had designed a piece to show conceptual relationships by stacking tetrahedra into a crystalline structure. What she didn't realize is that tetrahedra don't stack into a regular array. I remember a group of folks, including John and Margy's mother Ginny, puzzling this out in the Levines' kitchen one day. I felt very left out because, as a 7th grader, I hadn't had geometry yet and I couldn't understand what they were talking about.<br />
<br />
The exhibit took place during the summer and the space was not adequately air conditioned. The Varian wouldn't work, until someone (Skip King?) went out and got a block of dry ice which we put under the Varian CPU... and the show went on!<br />
<br />
One highlight was Nicholas Negroponte's Architecture Machine Group from MIT (this was before the founding of the Media Lab), brought a large plexiglass enclosure and a mechanical arm that would stack blocks, while gerbils running around in the enclosure would knock them over.</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Ted_Nelson&diff=1574Ted Nelson2013-07-28T17:06:10Z<p>NatKuhn: Added some text at the top</p>
<hr />
<div>Ted Nelson is a computing and information visionary who found Claude and the RESISTORS around 1970 when he was involved in organizing one of the first museum exhibits related to computers and the arts, called [[The RESISTORS and the Software Show at the Jewish Museum|"Software"]]. He enlisted a number of the RESISTORS' help in working on the show, and became a lifelong friend, inspiration, and source of perplexity and wonder for many of us.<br />
<br />
== Computers for Cynics ==<br />
<br />
'''Are you a Dummy, naive and gullible?'''<br />
If so, there are thousands of books for<br />
the likes of you. Go elsewhere, and<br />
drink in the lies called "computer basics".<br />
<br />
But if you are a clever and sophisticated<br />
person who wants to know the real story<br />
of how the computer world works, you<br />
may enjoy some of the insights I present<br />
in this brief series.<br />
<br />
* Computers for Cynics 0 - [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KdnGPQaICjk The Myth of Technology]<br />
<br />
* Computers for Cynics 1 - [http://youtu.be/Qfai5reVrck The Nightmare of Files and Directories]<br />
<br />
* Computers for Cynics 2 - [http://youtu.be/F-OUTjml12w It All Went Wrong at Xerox PARC]<br />
<br />
* Computers for Cynics 3 - [http://youtu.be/E6mNoUiWOYo The Database Mess]<br />
<br />
* Computers for Cynics 4 - [http://youtu.be/nrDDFl-D2Tc The Dance of Apple and Microsoft]<br />
<br />
* Computers for Cynics 5 - [http://youtu.be/7jmlnKBuJPE Hyperhistory]<br />
<br />
* Computers for Cynics 6 - [http://youtu.be/KOclv0NrSsQ The Real Story of the World Wide Web]<br />
<br />
* Computers for Cynics N - [http://youtu.be/CFKestdf2ow CLOSURE: Pay Attention to the Man Behind the Curtain]<br />
<br />
== Books ==<br />
<br />
* Computer Lib (two editions)<br />
* Geeks Bearing Gifts<br />
* Possiplex<br />
<br />
== Ray Borrill writes ==<br />
<br />
I would have been a little too old too, since I am older than Ted. I was 75 last Saturday. I met Ted at the first World Altair convention in 1976 and we became friends, I had opened my computer store in Feb. 1976 and it was going great guns. Ted was in the process of opening "the itty bitty machine company" in Evanston Ill. ( Mine was "The Data Domain" in Bloomington, IN) Ted suggested that we get togeter and merge the two bsinesses because I was verey good at making deals with the manufacturers and selling and his company had very good financial backing but wasn't experienced in my areas of expertise. This was to take place in early 1977. I would end up as president of the new company. In the meantime I would make decisios on what to sell and set up dealerships for both companies. It never came about because the industry and the market had changed so much that I was too busy and they were in the process of going belly up.<br />
But Ted and I have remained friends until this day. My ssigned copy of CLDM was signed on the cover in Magic Marker and it disappeeared after 20 or so years. It is gone now but I wish I still had it so I could read it again.<br />
I<br />
At the time of that NCC I was working with The Computer Systems Group at Brookhaven National Labs on Long Island. Part of my jb was to learn all there was to know about the scientific computers on the market and if they were suitable for the work tha we did. I also checked on who the principals in new companies, their expereience and backgound and, if appropriate, what company they spun off from. So, I was sent to every computer confeence and/or engineering show held every year I was employed there and about five years after I left.<br />
<br />
June 15, 2005</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Main_Page&diff=1573Main Page2013-07-28T17:00:55Z<p>NatKuhn: /* What did the RESISTORS do? */ added info re: Ted and the Software show</p>
<hr />
<div>'''If you were a RESISTOR, email resistors@resistors.org to get a username and password to edit this wiki. Then add your reminiscences! We also need a logo for the upper left corner of the wiki pages.''' - Margy Levine Young and John Levine<br />
<br />
= What was the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.? =<br />
<br />
The RESISTORS was one of the first computer clubs for young people. It was founded in 1967 in central New Jersey, and for most of its existence it was under the support and guidance of [[Claude Kagan]], an engineer at the Western Electric Research Center (part of "Ma Bell"), whose barn ("[[The Barn]]") in Pennington, NJ was filled with technological treasures and trash that he collected over many years.<br />
<br />
The name came from the electrical component, with a nod to the spirit of protest that was in the air at the time, and it was an example of what [[Ted Nelson]] calls a "back-ac," an acronym who abbreviation is chosen first, with acronymized phrase chosen later. In our case, the name "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, and Other Research Studies" got the nod (although there was in fact an earlier version, "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, Or Research Studies.")<br />
<br />
For more, see the [[History of the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]] page.<br />
<br />
= Who were the RESISTORS? =<br />
<br />
The group was founded by students at the Hopewell Valley High School who were interested in science and technology but didn't fine school engaging. They met briefly at a house on Poor Farm Road until they and Claude discovered each other, at which point the group moved to Claude's barn and house. We met there every Saturday from roughly 11 am to 11 pm for a number of years. In the early 1970s there was a rift that no one can entirely remember the cause of, and the group moved to Princeton, where it met in space provided by Princeton University in the "E-Quad," Princeton's Engineering Quadrangle.<br />
<br />
* ''[[List of R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]''<br />
<br />
= What did the RESISTORS do? =<br />
<br />
We met every Saturday at the Barn and in Claude's house, often from 11 am to 10 pm or so. The group was as much social as it was technically-oriented, there was a lot of folk music (Dave Theriault and later Lauren Sarno did a lot of folk music on guitar and vocals). We didn't, uh, exactly 'fit in' at school and for many of us this was the center of our social. A number of RESISTORS became close, life-long friends.<br />
<br />
The two principles of the group, undoubtedly formulated by Claude, were "hands on" (as opposed to most museums' "hands off" policies) and "[http://www.resistors.org/images/RESISTORS_using_TRAC.html each one teach one]" (once you learned something, you should be willing to pass it on, and teaching was generally one-on-one rather than in classes).<br />
<br />
In the early days, computer use centered around the massive ASR-35 Teletype dial-up terminal in Claude's house. The teletype was upper case only and ran at 10 characters per second, so early programming had a premium on brevity! We dialed in to Claude's PDP-8 at Western Electric to program in the [[The RESISTORS and Trac|Trac language]], and also into a PDP-6 (and later PDP-10) time-sharing system run by Applied Logic, Inc., a local company which donated time. After Digital Equipment Corp. donated a PDP-8, a lot of the computer use happened in the Barn, using Trac and other languages. The only way to load a program into the '8 was via the paper tape reader on its ASR-33 Teletype, also at 10 bytes per second. It took about 20 minutes to load the Trac processor, before you could start programming.<br />
<br />
Princeton University also donated computer time on their IBM mainframes. We hated IBM, which dominated the computer industry at the time, but that didn't stop us from making up our decks of punched cards!<br />
<br />
We exhibited at several computer shows. Claude engineered a major coup at the 1968 Spring Joint Computer Conference in Atlantic City [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC%20SHOW%20FLOOR.jpg (picture)]; the conference coincided with a telephone company strike, so none of the exhibitors could get phone lines installed, which meant that a high proportion of exhibits were completely dead. We set up a terminal by a phone book [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCCPhoneBooth.jpg (picture)] and dialed into Claude's PDP-8 at Western Electric.<br />
<br />
[[Ted Nelson]] showed up around 1970 and enlisted a number of us to help out with the upcoming "[[The RESISTORS and the Software Show at the Jewish Museum|Software]]" show at the Jewish Museum in New York City. He became one of key "adult" figures in the group.<br />
<br />
The ''Trenton Times'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/trentontimes.html article] about the club in 1967. The ''Newark Sunday News'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/newarknews.html article] in May 1967.<br />
<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083275990/ RESISTORS in Barn] photo gallery<br />
* [[History of the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]<br />
* [[Dave Fox's RESISTORS page]]<br />
<br />
= The R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. Reunion 1998 =<br />
<br />
We had a RESISTORS reunion over Memorial Day weekend, 1998, at the Barn in Pennington. 45 former R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. and friends attended, along with 15 kids, two horses, and a large number of kittens. Here are [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ some of Geoff Peck's pictures] (added more 2012-08)!<br />
<br><br />
[[file:Reunion1998group.jpg|frame|center|300px|Reunion Attendees]]<br><br />
<br />
= Where did the funding come from? =<br />
<br />
The dogs mostly. A breeding pair of malamutes. Every spring they produced a litter of 7 to 9 puppies. Each sold for $125. They did have to be bailed out occasionally after a night spent roaming. Because the fines were less than the puppy price, they kept us in the black. One of the malamutes destroyed a model 33 ASR Teletype as it flew through a doorway. No lives were lost, but the model 33 was never the same.<br />
<br />
We also sold light bulbs and were not even above begging [http://www.resistors.org/images/PleaseHelpUs.html (picture)].<br />
<br />
= Stories? =<br />
<br />
Contribute your own stories here. (good taste is necessary, historical accuracy is less important)<br />
<br />
On a Saturday night, when the temperature dropped, the cold grease in the Friden Flexowriters caused them to jam up with every character printed. The best thing to do was go inside and discuss the future of computing. Many lively discussions revolved around the concept of a Home Reckoner [http://www.resistors.org/images/homereckoner1.html (notes)]. This multi-tentacled creation served as a home controller, entertainment for the owners, and a tool for everything from baby sitting to stock market analysis. Did today's Personal Computer evolve from the Home Reckoner? Judge for yourself. <br />
<br />
Many of us argued that the future lay with an in-home computer which would permit the user to write programs, play solitary games, and control the household. Others maintained that all an individual needed in the home was a simple dumb terminal with the capability of connecting to a large central computer which provided a powerful processing resource, large quantities of memory and the ability to interact with other users. Until the internet took off, it looked as if the proponents of the home computer had been right. Then both were proven right.<br />
<br />
Although computer time was offered free at the [1968] SJCC, you did have to take a number [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC_take_a_number.html (picture)]. When you got your turn, and your program didn't run immediately, then you had to think [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC,%20thinking.jpg (picture)].<br />
<br />
At a show where we exhibited the PDP-8, a well dressed man walked up and watched the RESISTORS program for a while. Then he asked what the "PDP" stood for in PDP-8. Bob explained that it stood for Programmed Data Processor. The man paused for a minute and then asked, "What does the Programmed Data Processor do in relation to the computer?" Bob said "That is the computer". Without a word the man walked off.<br />
<br />
We took a bus ride up to New York for the IEEE show one year. Although we did not mount a formal exhibit such as the hallway terminal shown at the SJCC, we nevertheless made our presence known. On the long bus ride up, JB had brought a can of peanut brittle. She offered some to fellow RESISTORS and then walked up the aisle of the bus holding out the can to the other passengers. One kindly looking gentleman saw the outstretched can, reached in his pocket and then dropped in a coin. I don't recall if the coin went into the RESISTORS treasury!</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=The_SAM76_programming_language&diff=1572The SAM76 programming language2013-07-28T16:55:09Z<p>NatKuhn: editing in light of the actual history and the RESISTORS and Trac page</p>
<hr />
<div>[[Claude Kagan|Claude]] developed the SAM76 language just as personal computers became available; the original code ran under CP/M on the Intel 8080 (or perhaps even the 8008). For more history, see [[The RESISTORS and Trac]].<br />
<br />
Claude wrote in an email to someone:<br />
<br />
"Do you have a copy of the RESISTORS book, called the sam76 Language? The foreword was written by Nat, and the 'backword' details a lot of names, and some of the history. That was the major long lasting product of the RESISTORS and the book is still valid, and the sofware is available for a number of platforms including the source code. That is also in AOL (keyword sam76). If you want the book let me have your address and I will be delighted to mail you a copy. The artwork in it was done by Joe Tulloch. and the book has been available since 1976, and is banned from the Hopewell Township School system due to the saracastic comments about said system."<br />
<br />
Here is a (broken) link to the [http://www.foxthompson.net/dsf/resistors/s76.exe sam76 self-extracting zip file] for DOS and Windows, hosted at Dave Fox's R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. web site. The resulting .exe file should be 1714153 bytes long. Lucky attendees of the May 1998 R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. reunion received copies of the sam76 manual.</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=The_RESISTORS_and_Trac&diff=1571The RESISTORS and Trac2013-07-28T16:49:57Z<p>NatKuhn: Setting the historical record straight</p>
<hr />
<div>I'm not sure any of us exactly knew what [[Claude Kagan|Claude]]'s job at Western Electric involved, but a significant chunk of it involved the "Trac processor" (interpreter for the Trac programming language) that he developed for the PDP-8.<br />
<br />
Trac was a lightweight (in every sense) programming language developed by Calvin Mooers in the early 1960s, which was well-suited to the world of "minicomputers" that emerged as the 1960s progressed. Brevity was of value because minicomputers had extremely limited memory and very slow input-output. Trac was built on simple but powerful principles. It grew out of the idea of "macro expansion" and was reportedly similar to Strachey and McIlroy's GPM ("General Purpose Macrogenerator"). In modern terms it would be described as an (impure) functional programming language, with some similarities to LISP.<br />
<br />
Nat Kuhn has implemented a Trac processor in Python, which is [https://github.com/natkuhn/Trac-in-Python available for download]; he's also [http://nats-tech.blogspot.com/2013/07/the-land-of-trac.html posted some reminiscences].<br />
<br />
With Claude's encouragement and guidance, Barry Klein, Dave Theriault, Nat Kuhn, and John Levine worked on a Trac "primer," which included illustrations by Joe Tulloch.<br />
<br />
Claude was initially very supportive of crediting Mooers' for Trac; in fact, he put some of us up to deviling folks who did not give Mooers credit. Sometime after the RESISTORS left the barn, he and Mooers had a falling-out, which reportedly included a lawsuit by Mooers against Western Electric. Claude developed an alternative programming language in the mid-1970s, which he called [[The SAM76 programming language|SAM76]]. Presumably as a result of the legal difficulties, Claude was quite cagey about its relationship to Trac in a typically Claude-like way, saying that SAM could stand for "Strachey And McIlroy" or "Same As Mooers."<br />
<br />
Claude distributed SAM76 in various version, and wrote a "SAM76 Language Handbook" including Joe's drawings and perhaps based in part on the RESISTORS original "primer," which he published under the pseudonym "Ancelme Roichel" (his middle names). In the book he claims that SAM76 is based on GPM and a language called M6 which google is not aware of and was perhaps a figment of Claude's imagination; he also credits "A very special man (whose name ewe dare not mention) who helped us understand the subtleties of another very interesting computer language and brought us ice cream that melted during a discussion," clearly a reference to Mooers.</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Main_Page&diff=1570Main Page2013-07-28T16:15:40Z<p>NatKuhn: created a link to a page on The RESISTORS and Trac, and removed the SAM76 blip</p>
<hr />
<div>'''If you were a RESISTOR, email resistors@resistors.org to get a username and password to edit this wiki. Then add your reminiscences! We also need a logo for the upper left corner of the wiki pages.''' - Margy Levine Young and John Levine<br />
<br />
= What was the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.? =<br />
<br />
The RESISTORS was one of the first computer clubs for young people. It was founded in 1967 in central New Jersey, and for most of its existence it was under the support and guidance of [[Claude Kagan]], an engineer at the Western Electric Research Center (part of "Ma Bell"), whose barn ("[[The Barn]]") in Pennington, NJ was filled with technological treasures and trash that he collected over many years.<br />
<br />
The name came from the electrical component, with a nod to the spirit of protest that was in the air at the time, and it was an example of what [[Ted Nelson]] calls a "back-ac," an acronym who abbreviation is chosen first, with acronymized phrase chosen later. In our case, the name "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, and Other Research Studies" got the nod (although there was in fact an earlier version, "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, Or Research Studies.")<br />
<br />
For more, see the [[History of the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]] page.<br />
<br />
= Who were the RESISTORS? =<br />
<br />
The group was founded by students at the Hopewell Valley High School who were interested in science and technology but didn't fine school engaging. They met briefly at a house on Poor Farm Road until they and Claude discovered each other, at which point the group moved to Claude's barn and house. We met there every Saturday from roughly 11 am to 11 pm for a number of years. In the early 1970s there was a rift that no one can entirely remember the cause of, and the group moved to Princeton, where it met in space provided by Princeton University in the "E-Quad," Princeton's Engineering Quadrangle.<br />
<br />
* ''[[List of R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]''<br />
<br />
= What did the RESISTORS do? =<br />
<br />
We met every Saturday at the Barn and in Claude's house, often from 11 am to 10 pm or so. The group was as much social as it was technically-oriented, there was a lot of folk music (Dave Theriault and later Lauren Sarno did a lot of folk music on guitar and vocals). We didn't, uh, exactly 'fit in' at school and for many of us this was the center of our social. A number of RESISTORS became close, life-long friends.<br />
<br />
The two principles of the group, undoubtedly formulated by Claude, were "hands on" (as opposed to most museums' "hands off" policies) and "[http://www.resistors.org/images/RESISTORS_using_TRAC.html each one teach one]" (once you learned something, you should be willing to pass it on, and teaching was generally one-on-one rather than in classes).<br />
<br />
In the early days, computer use centered around the massive ASR-35 Teletype dial-up terminal in Claude's house. The teletype was upper case only and ran at 10 characters per second, so early programming had a premium on brevity! We dialed in to Claude's PDP-8 at Western Electric to program in the [[The RESISTORS and Trac|Trac language]], and also into a PDP-6 (and later PDP-10) time-sharing system run by Applied Logic, Inc., a local company which donated time. After Digital Equipment Corp. donated a PDP-8, a lot of the computer use happened in the Barn, using Trac and other languages. The only way to load a program into the '8 was via the paper tape reader on its ASR-33 Teletype, also at 10 bytes per second. It took about 20 minutes to load the Trac processor, before you could start programming.<br />
<br />
Princeton University also donated computer time on their IBM mainframes. We hated IBM, which dominated the computer industry at the time, but that didn't stop us from making up our decks of punched cards!<br />
<br />
We exhibited at several computer shows. Claude engineered a major coup at the 1968 Spring Joint Computer Conference in Atlantic City [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC%20SHOW%20FLOOR.jpg (picture)]; the conference coincided with a telephone company strike, so none of the exhibitors could get phone lines installed, which meant that a high proportion of exhibits were completely dead. We set up a terminal by a phone book [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCCPhoneBooth.jpg (picture)] and dialed into Claude's PDP-8 at Western Electric.<br />
<br />
The ''Trenton Times'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/trentontimes.html article] about the club in 1967. The ''Newark Sunday News'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/newarknews.html article] in May 1967.<br />
<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083275990/ RESISTORS in Barn] photo gallery<br />
* [[History of the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]<br />
* [[Dave Fox's RESISTORS page]]<br />
<br />
= The R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. Reunion 1998 =<br />
<br />
We had a RESISTORS reunion over Memorial Day weekend, 1998, at the Barn in Pennington. 45 former R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. and friends attended, along with 15 kids, two horses, and a large number of kittens. Here are [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ some of Geoff Peck's pictures] (added more 2012-08)!<br />
<br><br />
[[file:Reunion1998group.jpg|frame|center|300px|Reunion Attendees]]<br><br />
<br />
= Where did the funding come from? =<br />
<br />
The dogs mostly. A breeding pair of malamutes. Every spring they produced a litter of 7 to 9 puppies. Each sold for $125. They did have to be bailed out occasionally after a night spent roaming. Because the fines were less than the puppy price, they kept us in the black. One of the malamutes destroyed a model 33 ASR Teletype as it flew through a doorway. No lives were lost, but the model 33 was never the same.<br />
<br />
We also sold light bulbs and were not even above begging [http://www.resistors.org/images/PleaseHelpUs.html (picture)].<br />
<br />
= Stories? =<br />
<br />
Contribute your own stories here. (good taste is necessary, historical accuracy is less important)<br />
<br />
On a Saturday night, when the temperature dropped, the cold grease in the Friden Flexowriters caused them to jam up with every character printed. The best thing to do was go inside and discuss the future of computing. Many lively discussions revolved around the concept of a Home Reckoner [http://www.resistors.org/images/homereckoner1.html (notes)]. This multi-tentacled creation served as a home controller, entertainment for the owners, and a tool for everything from baby sitting to stock market analysis. Did today's Personal Computer evolve from the Home Reckoner? Judge for yourself. <br />
<br />
Many of us argued that the future lay with an in-home computer which would permit the user to write programs, play solitary games, and control the household. Others maintained that all an individual needed in the home was a simple dumb terminal with the capability of connecting to a large central computer which provided a powerful processing resource, large quantities of memory and the ability to interact with other users. Until the internet took off, it looked as if the proponents of the home computer had been right. Then both were proven right.<br />
<br />
Although computer time was offered free at the [1968] SJCC, you did have to take a number [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC_take_a_number.html (picture)]. When you got your turn, and your program didn't run immediately, then you had to think [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC,%20thinking.jpg (picture)].<br />
<br />
At a show where we exhibited the PDP-8, a well dressed man walked up and watched the RESISTORS program for a while. Then he asked what the "PDP" stood for in PDP-8. Bob explained that it stood for Programmed Data Processor. The man paused for a minute and then asked, "What does the Programmed Data Processor do in relation to the computer?" Bob said "That is the computer". Without a word the man walked off.<br />
<br />
We took a bus ride up to New York for the IEEE show one year. Although we did not mount a formal exhibit such as the hallway terminal shown at the SJCC, we nevertheless made our presence known. On the long bus ride up, JB had brought a can of peanut brittle. She offered some to fellow RESISTORS and then walked up the aisle of the bus holding out the can to the other passengers. One kindly looking gentleman saw the outstretched can, reached in his pocket and then dropped in a coin. I don't recall if the coin went into the RESISTORS treasury!</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Main_Page&diff=1569Main Page2013-07-28T16:11:22Z<p>NatKuhn: /* What was the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.? */ : added link to the History Page</p>
<hr />
<div>'''If you were a RESISTOR, email resistors@resistors.org to get a username and password to edit this wiki. Then add your reminiscences! We also need a logo for the upper left corner of the wiki pages.''' - Margy Levine Young and John Levine<br />
<br />
= What was the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.? =<br />
<br />
The RESISTORS was one of the first computer clubs for young people. It was founded in 1967 in central New Jersey, and for most of its existence it was under the support and guidance of [[Claude Kagan]], an engineer at the Western Electric Research Center (part of "Ma Bell"), whose barn ("[[The Barn]]") in Pennington, NJ was filled with technological treasures and trash that he collected over many years.<br />
<br />
The name came from the electrical component, with a nod to the spirit of protest that was in the air at the time, and it was an example of what [[Ted Nelson]] calls a "back-ac," an acronym who abbreviation is chosen first, with acronymized phrase chosen later. In our case, the name "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, and Other Research Studies" got the nod (although there was in fact an earlier version, "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, Or Research Studies.")<br />
<br />
For more, see the [[History of the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]] page.<br />
<br />
= Who were the RESISTORS? =<br />
<br />
The group was founded by students at the Hopewell Valley High School who were interested in science and technology but didn't fine school engaging. They met briefly at a house on Poor Farm Road until they and Claude discovered each other, at which point the group moved to Claude's barn and house. We met there every Saturday from roughly 11 am to 11 pm for a number of years. In the early 1970s there was a rift that no one can entirely remember the cause of, and the group moved to Princeton, where it met in space provided by Princeton University in the "E-Quad," Princeton's Engineering Quadrangle.<br />
<br />
* ''[[List of R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]''<br />
<br />
= What did the RESISTORS do? =<br />
<br />
We met every Saturday at the Barn and in Claude's house, often from 11 am to 10 pm or so. The group was as much social as it was technically-oriented, there was a lot of folk music (Dave Theriault and later Lauren Sarno did a lot of folk music on guitar and vocals). We didn't, uh, exactly 'fit in' at school and for many of us this was the center of our social. A number of RESISTORS became close, life-long friends.<br />
<br />
The two principles of the group, undoubtedly formulated by Claude, were "hands on" (as opposed to most museums' "hands off" policies) and "[http://www.resistors.org/images/RESISTORS_using_TRAC.html each one teach one]" (once you learned something, you should be willing to pass it on, and teaching was generally one-on-one rather than in classes).<br />
<br />
In the early days, computer use centered around the massive ASR-35 Teletype dial-up terminal in Claude's house. The teletype was upper case only and ran at 10 characters per second, so early programming had a premium on brevity! We dialed in to Claude's PDP-8 at Western Electric to program in the Trac language, and also into a PDP-6 (and later PDP-10) time-sharing system run by Applied Logic, Inc., a local company which donated time. After Digital Equipment Corp. donated a PDP-8, a lot of the computer use happened in the Barn, using Trac and other languages. The only way to load a program into the '8 was via the paper tape reader on its ASR-33 Teletype, also at 10 bytes per second. It took about 20 minutes to load the Trac processor, before you could start programming.<br />
<br />
Princeton University also donated computer time on their IBM mainframes. We hated IBM, which dominated the computer industry at the time, but that didn't stop us from making up our decks of punched cards!<br />
<br />
We exhibited at several computer shows. Claude engineered a major coup at the 1968 Spring Joint Computer Conference in Atlantic City [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC%20SHOW%20FLOOR.jpg (picture)]; the conference coincided with a telephone company strike, so none of the exhibitors could get phone lines installed, which meant that a high proportion of exhibits were completely dead. We set up a terminal by a phone book [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCCPhoneBooth.jpg (picture)] and dialed into Claude's PDP-8 at Western Electric.<br />
<br />
The ''Trenton Times'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/trentontimes.html article] about the club in 1967. The ''Newark Sunday News'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/newarknews.html article] in May 1967.<br />
<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083275990/ RESISTORS in Barn] photo gallery<br />
* [[History of the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]<br />
* [[Dave Fox's RESISTORS page]]<br />
<br />
= The R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. Reunion 1998 =<br />
<br />
We had a RESISTORS reunion over Memorial Day weekend, 1998, at the Barn in Pennington. 45 former R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. and friends attended, along with 15 kids, two horses, and a large number of kittens. Here are [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ some of Geoff Peck's pictures] (added more 2012-08)!<br />
<br><br />
[[file:Reunion1998group.jpg|frame|center|300px|Reunion Attendees]]<br><br />
<br />
= Where did the funding come from? =<br />
<br />
The dogs mostly. A breeding pair of malamutes. Every spring they produced a litter of 7 to 9 puppies. Each sold for $125. They did have to be bailed out occasionally after a night spent roaming. Because the fines were less than the puppy price, they kept us in the black. One of the malamutes destroyed a model 33 ASR Teletype as it flew through a doorway. No lives were lost, but the model 33 was never the same.<br />
<br />
We also sold light bulbs and were not even above begging [http://www.resistors.org/images/PleaseHelpUs.html (picture)].<br />
<br />
= Stories? =<br />
<br />
Contribute your own stories here. (good taste is necessary, historical accuracy is less important)<br />
<br />
On a Saturday night, when the temperature dropped, the cold grease in the Friden Flexowriters caused them to jam up with every character printed. The best thing to do was go inside and discuss the future of computing. Many lively discussions revolved around the concept of a Home Reckoner [http://www.resistors.org/images/homereckoner1.html (notes)]. This multi-tentacled creation served as a home controller, entertainment for the owners, and a tool for everything from baby sitting to stock market analysis. Did today's Personal Computer evolve from the Home Reckoner? Judge for yourself. <br />
<br />
Many of us argued that the future lay with an in-home computer which would permit the user to write programs, play solitary games, and control the household. Others maintained that all an individual needed in the home was a simple dumb terminal with the capability of connecting to a large central computer which provided a powerful processing resource, large quantities of memory and the ability to interact with other users. Until the internet took off, it looked as if the proponents of the home computer had been right. Then both were proven right.<br />
<br />
Although computer time was offered free at the [1968] SJCC, you did have to take a number [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC_take_a_number.html (picture)]. When you got your turn, and your program didn't run immediately, then you had to think [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC,%20thinking.jpg (picture)].<br />
<br />
At a show where we exhibited the PDP-8, a well dressed man walked up and watched the RESISTORS program for a while. Then he asked what the "PDP" stood for in PDP-8. Bob explained that it stood for Programmed Data Processor. The man paused for a minute and then asked, "What does the Programmed Data Processor do in relation to the computer?" Bob said "That is the computer". Without a word the man walked off.<br />
<br />
We took a bus ride up to New York for the IEEE show one year. Although we did not mount a formal exhibit such as the hallway terminal shown at the SJCC, we nevertheless made our presence known. On the long bus ride up, JB had brought a can of peanut brittle. She offered some to fellow RESISTORS and then walked up the aisle of the bus holding out the can to the other passengers. One kindly looking gentleman saw the outstretched can, reached in his pocket and then dropped in a coin. I don't recall if the coin went into the RESISTORS treasury!<br />
<br />
= What is SAM76? =<br />
<br />
Early R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. wrote programs in [[The SAM76 programming language|SAM76]], and even wrote a primer about the language.</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Ted_Nelson_and_Xanadu&diff=1568Ted Nelson and Xanadu2013-07-28T16:05:31Z<p>NatKuhn: NatKuhn moved page Ted Nelson and Xanadu to Ted Nelson</p>
<hr />
<div>#REDIRECT [[Ted Nelson]]</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Ted_Nelson&diff=1567Ted Nelson2013-07-28T16:05:31Z<p>NatKuhn: NatKuhn moved page Ted Nelson and Xanadu to Ted Nelson</p>
<hr />
<div>== Computers for Cynics ==<br />
<br />
'''Are you a Dummy, naive and gullible?'''<br />
If so, there are thousands of books for<br />
the likes of you. Go elsewhere, and<br />
drink in the lies called "computer basics".<br />
<br />
But if you are a clever and sophisticated<br />
person who wants to know the real story<br />
of how the computer world works, you<br />
may enjoy some of the insights I present<br />
in this brief series.<br />
<br />
* Computers for Cynics 0 - [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KdnGPQaICjk The Myth of Technology]<br />
<br />
* Computers for Cynics 1 - [http://youtu.be/Qfai5reVrck The Nightmare of Files and Directories]<br />
<br />
* Computers for Cynics 2 - [http://youtu.be/F-OUTjml12w It All Went Wrong at Xerox PARC]<br />
<br />
* Computers for Cynics 3 - [http://youtu.be/E6mNoUiWOYo The Database Mess]<br />
<br />
* Computers for Cynics 4 - [http://youtu.be/nrDDFl-D2Tc The Dance of Apple and Microsoft]<br />
<br />
* Computers for Cynics 5 - [http://youtu.be/7jmlnKBuJPE Hyperhistory]<br />
<br />
* Computers for Cynics 6 - [http://youtu.be/KOclv0NrSsQ The Real Story of the World Wide Web]<br />
<br />
* Computers for Cynics N - [http://youtu.be/CFKestdf2ow CLOSURE: Pay Attention to the Man Behind the Curtain]<br />
<br />
== Books ==<br />
<br />
* Computer Lib (two editions)<br />
* Geeks Bearing Gifts<br />
* Possiplex<br />
<br />
== Ray Borrill writes ==<br />
<br />
I would have been a little too old too, since I am older than Ted. I was 75 last Saturday. I met Ted at the first World Altair convention in 1976 and we became friends, I had opened my computer store in Feb. 1976 and it was going great guns. Ted was in the process of opening "the itty bitty machine company" in Evanston Ill. ( Mine was "The Data Domain" in Bloomington, IN) Ted suggested that we get togeter and merge the two bsinesses because I was verey good at making deals with the manufacturers and selling and his company had very good financial backing but wasn't experienced in my areas of expertise. This was to take place in early 1977. I would end up as president of the new company. In the meantime I would make decisios on what to sell and set up dealerships for both companies. It never came about because the industry and the market had changed so much that I was too busy and they were in the process of going belly up.<br />
But Ted and I have remained friends until this day. My ssigned copy of CLDM was signed on the cover in Magic Marker and it disappeeared after 20 or so years. It is gone now but I wish I still had it so I could read it again.<br />
I<br />
At the time of that NCC I was working with The Computer Systems Group at Brookhaven National Labs on Long Island. Part of my jb was to learn all there was to know about the scientific computers on the market and if they were suitable for the work tha we did. I also checked on who the principals in new companies, their expereience and backgound and, if appropriate, what company they spun off from. So, I was sent to every computer confeence and/or engineering show held every year I was employed there and about five years after I left.<br />
<br />
June 15, 2005</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Main_Page&diff=1566Main Page2013-07-28T16:04:43Z<p>NatKuhn: expanded "what did the R's do"</p>
<hr />
<div>'''If you were a RESISTOR, email resistors@resistors.org to get a username and password to edit this wiki. Then add your reminiscences! We also need a logo for the upper left corner of the wiki pages.''' - Margy Levine Young and John Levine<br />
<br />
= What was the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.? =<br />
<br />
The RESISTORS was one of the first computer clubs for young people. It was founded in 1967 in central New Jersey, and for most of its existence it was under the support and guidance of [[Claude Kagan]], an engineer at the Western Electric Research Center (part of "Ma Bell"), whose barn ("[[The Barn]]") in Pennington, NJ was filled with technological treasures and trash that he collected over many years.<br />
<br />
The name came from the electrical component, with a nod to the spirit of protest that was in the air at the time, and it was an example of what [[Ted Nelson]] calls a "back-ac," an acronym who abbreviation is chosen first, with acronymized phrase chosen later. In our case, the name "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, and Other Research Studies" got the nod (although there was in fact an earlier version, "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, Or Research Studies.")<br />
<br />
= Who were the RESISTORS? =<br />
<br />
The group was founded by students at the Hopewell Valley High School who were interested in science and technology but didn't fine school engaging. They met briefly at a house on Poor Farm Road until they and Claude discovered each other, at which point the group moved to Claude's barn and house. We met there every Saturday from roughly 11 am to 11 pm for a number of years. In the early 1970s there was a rift that no one can entirely remember the cause of, and the group moved to Princeton, where it met in space provided by Princeton University in the "E-Quad," Princeton's Engineering Quadrangle.<br />
<br />
* ''[[List of R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]''<br />
<br />
= What did the RESISTORS do? =<br />
<br />
We met every Saturday at the Barn and in Claude's house, often from 11 am to 10 pm or so. The group was as much social as it was technically-oriented, there was a lot of folk music (Dave Theriault and later Lauren Sarno did a lot of folk music on guitar and vocals). We didn't, uh, exactly 'fit in' at school and for many of us this was the center of our social. A number of RESISTORS became close, life-long friends.<br />
<br />
The two principles of the group, undoubtedly formulated by Claude, were "hands on" (as opposed to most museums' "hands off" policies) and "[http://www.resistors.org/images/RESISTORS_using_TRAC.html each one teach one]" (once you learned something, you should be willing to pass it on, and teaching was generally one-on-one rather than in classes).<br />
<br />
In the early days, computer use centered around the massive ASR-35 Teletype dial-up terminal in Claude's house. The teletype was upper case only and ran at 10 characters per second, so early programming had a premium on brevity! We dialed in to Claude's PDP-8 at Western Electric to program in the Trac language, and also into a PDP-6 (and later PDP-10) time-sharing system run by Applied Logic, Inc., a local company which donated time. After Digital Equipment Corp. donated a PDP-8, a lot of the computer use happened in the Barn, using Trac and other languages. The only way to load a program into the '8 was via the paper tape reader on its ASR-33 Teletype, also at 10 bytes per second. It took about 20 minutes to load the Trac processor, before you could start programming.<br />
<br />
Princeton University also donated computer time on their IBM mainframes. We hated IBM, which dominated the computer industry at the time, but that didn't stop us from making up our decks of punched cards!<br />
<br />
We exhibited at several computer shows. Claude engineered a major coup at the 1968 Spring Joint Computer Conference in Atlantic City [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC%20SHOW%20FLOOR.jpg (picture)]; the conference coincided with a telephone company strike, so none of the exhibitors could get phone lines installed, which meant that a high proportion of exhibits were completely dead. We set up a terminal by a phone book [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCCPhoneBooth.jpg (picture)] and dialed into Claude's PDP-8 at Western Electric.<br />
<br />
The ''Trenton Times'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/trentontimes.html article] about the club in 1967. The ''Newark Sunday News'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/newarknews.html article] in May 1967.<br />
<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083275990/ RESISTORS in Barn] photo gallery<br />
* [[History of the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]<br />
* [[Dave Fox's RESISTORS page]]<br />
<br />
= The R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. Reunion 1998 =<br />
<br />
We had a RESISTORS reunion over Memorial Day weekend, 1998, at the Barn in Pennington. 45 former R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. and friends attended, along with 15 kids, two horses, and a large number of kittens. Here are [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ some of Geoff Peck's pictures] (added more 2012-08)!<br />
<br><br />
[[file:Reunion1998group.jpg|frame|center|300px|Reunion Attendees]]<br><br />
<br />
= Where did the funding come from? =<br />
<br />
The dogs mostly. A breeding pair of malamutes. Every spring they produced a litter of 7 to 9 puppies. Each sold for $125. They did have to be bailed out occasionally after a night spent roaming. Because the fines were less than the puppy price, they kept us in the black. One of the malamutes destroyed a model 33 ASR Teletype as it flew through a doorway. No lives were lost, but the model 33 was never the same.<br />
<br />
We also sold light bulbs and were not even above begging [http://www.resistors.org/images/PleaseHelpUs.html (picture)].<br />
<br />
= Stories? =<br />
<br />
Contribute your own stories here. (good taste is necessary, historical accuracy is less important)<br />
<br />
On a Saturday night, when the temperature dropped, the cold grease in the Friden Flexowriters caused them to jam up with every character printed. The best thing to do was go inside and discuss the future of computing. Many lively discussions revolved around the concept of a Home Reckoner [http://www.resistors.org/images/homereckoner1.html (notes)]. This multi-tentacled creation served as a home controller, entertainment for the owners, and a tool for everything from baby sitting to stock market analysis. Did today's Personal Computer evolve from the Home Reckoner? Judge for yourself. <br />
<br />
Many of us argued that the future lay with an in-home computer which would permit the user to write programs, play solitary games, and control the household. Others maintained that all an individual needed in the home was a simple dumb terminal with the capability of connecting to a large central computer which provided a powerful processing resource, large quantities of memory and the ability to interact with other users. Until the internet took off, it looked as if the proponents of the home computer had been right. Then both were proven right.<br />
<br />
Although computer time was offered free at the [1968] SJCC, you did have to take a number [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC_take_a_number.html (picture)]. When you got your turn, and your program didn't run immediately, then you had to think [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC,%20thinking.jpg (picture)].<br />
<br />
At a show where we exhibited the PDP-8, a well dressed man walked up and watched the RESISTORS program for a while. Then he asked what the "PDP" stood for in PDP-8. Bob explained that it stood for Programmed Data Processor. The man paused for a minute and then asked, "What does the Programmed Data Processor do in relation to the computer?" Bob said "That is the computer". Without a word the man walked off.<br />
<br />
We took a bus ride up to New York for the IEEE show one year. Although we did not mount a formal exhibit such as the hallway terminal shown at the SJCC, we nevertheless made our presence known. On the long bus ride up, JB had brought a can of peanut brittle. She offered some to fellow RESISTORS and then walked up the aisle of the bus holding out the can to the other passengers. One kindly looking gentleman saw the outstretched can, reached in his pocket and then dropped in a coin. I don't recall if the coin went into the RESISTORS treasury!<br />
<br />
= What is SAM76? =<br />
<br />
Early R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. wrote programs in [[The SAM76 programming language|SAM76]], and even wrote a primer about the language.</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=The_Barn&diff=1565The Barn2013-07-28T15:29:32Z<p>NatKuhn: </p>
<hr />
<div>[[Claude Kagan|Claude]] lived on a fairly large property in Pennington, which had a house built in the 1800s, a barn, a few donkeys, and a troupe of Malemutes.<br />
<br />
[[file:OLDbarn1.jpg|center|600px|The Barn]]<br />
<br />
By the time the RESISTORS arrived there, Claude had already amassed a trove of cast-off technology from various sources. The most impressive was a Burroughs Datatron 205, a gigantic vacuum-tube computer from the 1950s. Rumor has it that Claude convinced someone in Detroit to give it to him, which they did on the condition that he would transport it. He rented an 18-wheeler and drove it from Detroit to New Jersey, but had to rely on sympathetic truckers to help him out every time he needed to back it up, since he didn't really know how to drive it. Most of us never saw it in operation, and there were many stories: that it cost $40 for the electricity to run it for half an hour, quite a sum back then; that when you did run it, the transformer on the pole outside would start to glow cherry-red; and that it took two full-time people simply to replace the tubes as they burned out. It's main memory was a magnetic drum.<br />
<br />
There was also a Packard Bell 250 which was perhaps the size of a Sub-Zero refrigerator and used "acoustic delay lines" as its main memory. Amazingly, Peter Eichenberger was actually able to resuscitate it.<br />
<br />
While the group was there, DEC (Digital Equipment Corp.) donated a PDP-8 computer, which was the mainstay of the "in-house" (actually "in-barn") computing. Calcomp, Inc. also donated a "plotter," which could be used to make drawing in the days before dot-matrix printers.<br />
<br />
On December 3, 2009, the Barn was destroyed in a fire. Fortunately, Claude had already donated much of his collection of vintage technology to the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum] and his papers to the [http://discover.lib.umn.edu/cgi/f/findaid/findaid-idx?c=umfa;cc=umfa;rgn=main;view=text;didno=cbi00016 Univ. Of Minnesota].'''<br />
<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ Geoff Peck's pictures of the 1998 reunion include the Barn and the remnants of the Burroughs 205]<br />
* [http://www.trentonian.com/article/20091204/NEWS/312049998/hopewell-computer-barn-crashes-as-historic-stage-burns&pager=full_story Trentonian 2009-12-04]<br />
* [http://www.lawrenceroadfire.org/news%20stories%20html/2009.12_December.html Lawrence Road Fire 2009-12]</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=The_Barn&diff=1564The Barn2013-07-28T15:19:32Z<p>NatKuhn: Added info about the PDP-8 and the Calcomp plotter</p>
<hr />
<div>[[Claude Kagan|Claude]] lived on a fairly large property in Pennington, which had a house built in the 1800s, a barn, a few donkeys, and a troupe of Malemutes.<br />
<br />
[[file:OLDbarn1.jpg|750px|The Barn]]<br />
<br />
By the time the RESISTORS arrived there, Claude had already amassed a trove of cast-off technology from various sources. The most impressive was a Burroughs Datatron 205, a gigantic vacuum-tube computer from the 1950s. Rumor has it that Claude convinced someone in Detroit to give it to him, which they did on the condition that he would transport it. He rented an 18-wheeler and drove it from Detroit to New Jersey, but had to rely on sympathetic truckers to help him out every time he needed to back it up, since he didn't really know how to drive it. Most of us never saw it in operation, and there were many stories: that it cost $40 for the electricity to run it for half an hour, quite a sum back then; that when you did run it, the transformer on the pole outside would start to glow cherry-red; and that it took two full-time people simply to replace the tubes as they burned out. It's main memory was a magnetic drum.<br />
<br />
There was also a Packard Bell 250 which was perhaps the size of a Sub-Zero refrigerator and used "acoustic delay lines" as its main memory. Amazingly, Peter Eichenberger was actually able to resuscitate it.<br />
<br />
While the group was there, DEC (Digital Equipment Corp.) donated a PDP-8 computer, which was the mainstay of the "in-house" (actually "in-barn") computing. Calcomp, Inc. also donated a "plotter," which could be used to make drawing in the days before dot-matrix printers.<br />
<br />
On December 3, 2009, the Barn was destroyed in a fire. Fortunately, Claude had already donated much of his collection of vintage technology to the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum] and his papers to the [http://discover.lib.umn.edu/cgi/f/findaid/findaid-idx?c=umfa;cc=umfa;rgn=main;view=text;didno=cbi00016 Univ. Of Minnesota].'''<br />
<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ Geoff Peck's pictures of the 1998 reunion include the Barn and the remnants of the Burroughs 205]<br />
* [http://www.trentonian.com/article/20091204/NEWS/312049998/hopewell-computer-barn-crashes-as-historic-stage-burns&pager=full_story Trentonian 2009-12-04]<br />
* [http://www.lawrenceroadfire.org/news%20stories%20html/2009.12_December.html Lawrence Road Fire 2009-12]</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=The_Barn&diff=1563The Barn2013-07-28T15:15:40Z<p>NatKuhn: managed to insert the barn photo in-line</p>
<hr />
<div>[[Claude Kagan|Claude]] lived on a fairly large property in Pennington, which had a house built in the 1800s, a barn, a few donkeys, and a troupe of Malemutes.<br />
<br />
[[file:OLDbarn1.jpg|750px|The Barn]]<br />
<br />
By the time the RESISTORS arrived there, Claude had already amassed a trove of cast-off technology from various sources. The most impressive was a Burroughs Datatron 205, a gigantic vacuum-tube computer from the 1950s. Rumor has it that Claude convinced someone in Detroit to give it to him, which they did on the condition that he would transport it. He rented an 18-wheeler and drove it from Detroit to New Jersey, but had to rely on sympathetic truckers to help him out every time he needed to back it up, since he didn't really know how to drive it. Most of us never saw it in operation, and there were many stories: that it cost $40 for the electricity to run it for half an hour, quite a sum back then; that when you did run it, the transformer on the pole outside would start to glow cherry-red; and that it took two full-time people simply to replace the tubes as they burned out. It's main memory was a magnetic drum.<br />
<br />
There was also a Packard Bell 250 which was perhaps the size of a Sub-Zero refrigerator and used "acoustic delay lines" as its main memory. Amazingly, Peter Eichenberger was actually able to resuscitate it.<br />
<br />
On December 3, 2009, the Barn was destroyed in a fire. Fortunately, Claude had already donated much of his collection of vintage technology to the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum] and his papers to the [http://discover.lib.umn.edu/cgi/f/findaid/findaid-idx?c=umfa;cc=umfa;rgn=main;view=text;didno=cbi00016 Univ. Of Minnesota].'''<br />
<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ Geoff Peck's pictures of the 1998 reunion include the Barn and the remnants of the Burroughs 205]<br />
* [http://www.trentonian.com/article/20091204/NEWS/312049998/hopewell-computer-barn-crashes-as-historic-stage-burns&pager=full_story Trentonian 2009-12-04]<br />
* [http://www.lawrenceroadfire.org/news%20stories%20html/2009.12_December.html Lawrence Road Fire 2009-12]</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=The_Barn&diff=1562The Barn2013-07-28T15:12:23Z<p>NatKuhn: Undo revision 1561 by NatKuhn (talk)</p>
<hr />
<div>[[file:OLDbarn1.jpg|200px|frame|The Barn]]<br />
[[Claude Kagan|Claude]] lived on a fairly large property in Pennington, which had a house built in the 1800s, a barn, a few donkeys, and a troupe of Malemutes.<br />
<br />
By the time the RESISTORS arrived there, Claude had already amassed a trove of cast-off technology from various sources. The most impressive was a Burroughs Datatron 205, a gigantic vacuum-tube computer from the 1950s. Rumor has it that Claude convinced someone in Detroit to give it to him, which they did on the condition that he would transport it. He rented an 18-wheeler and drove it from Detroit to New Jersey, but had to rely on sympathetic truckers to help him out every time he needed to back it up, since he didn't really know how to drive it. Most of us never saw it in operation, and there were many stories: that it cost $40 for the electricity to run it for half an hour, quite a sum back then; that when you did run it, the transformer on the pole outside would start to glow cherry-red; and that it took two full-time people simply to replace the tubes as they burned out. It's main memory was a magnetic drum.<br />
<br />
There was also a Packard Bell 250 which was perhaps the size of a Sub-Zero refrigerator and used "acoustic delay lines" as its main memory. Amazingly, Peter Eichenberger was actually able to resuscitate it.<br />
<br />
On December 3, 2009, the Barn was destroyed in a fire. Fortunately, Claude had already donated much of his collection of vintage technology to the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum] and his papers to the [http://discover.lib.umn.edu/cgi/f/findaid/findaid-idx?c=umfa;cc=umfa;rgn=main;view=text;didno=cbi00016 Univ. Of Minnesota].'''<br />
<br />
* [http://www.resistors.org/images/OLDbarn1.jpg Photo of the Barn]<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ Geoff Peck's pictures of the 1998 reunion include the Barn and the remnants of the Burroughs 205]<br />
* [http://www.trentonian.com/article/20091204/NEWS/312049998/hopewell-computer-barn-crashes-as-historic-stage-burns&pager=full_story Trentonian 2009-12-04]<br />
* [http://www.lawrenceroadfire.org/news%20stories%20html/2009.12_December.html Lawrence Road Fire 2009-12]</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=The_Barn&diff=1561The Barn2013-07-28T15:11:46Z<p>NatKuhn: </p>
<hr />
<div>[[file:OLDbarn1.jpg|frame|200px|The Barn]]<br />
[[Claude Kagan|Claude]] lived on a fairly large property in Pennington, which had a house built in the 1800s, a barn, a few donkeys, and a troupe of Malemutes.<br />
<br />
By the time the RESISTORS arrived there, Claude had already amassed a trove of cast-off technology from various sources. The most impressive was a Burroughs Datatron 205, a gigantic vacuum-tube computer from the 1950s. Rumor has it that Claude convinced someone in Detroit to give it to him, which they did on the condition that he would transport it. He rented an 18-wheeler and drove it from Detroit to New Jersey, but had to rely on sympathetic truckers to help him out every time he needed to back it up, since he didn't really know how to drive it. Most of us never saw it in operation, and there were many stories: that it cost $40 for the electricity to run it for half an hour, quite a sum back then; that when you did run it, the transformer on the pole outside would start to glow cherry-red; and that it took two full-time people simply to replace the tubes as they burned out. It's main memory was a magnetic drum.<br />
<br />
There was also a Packard Bell 250 which was perhaps the size of a Sub-Zero refrigerator and used "acoustic delay lines" as its main memory. Amazingly, Peter Eichenberger was actually able to resuscitate it.<br />
<br />
On December 3, 2009, the Barn was destroyed in a fire. Fortunately, Claude had already donated much of his collection of vintage technology to the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum] and his papers to the [http://discover.lib.umn.edu/cgi/f/findaid/findaid-idx?c=umfa;cc=umfa;rgn=main;view=text;didno=cbi00016 Univ. Of Minnesota].'''<br />
<br />
* [http://www.resistors.org/images/OLDbarn1.jpg Photo of the Barn]<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ Geoff Peck's pictures of the 1998 reunion include the Barn and the remnants of the Burroughs 205]<br />
* [http://www.trentonian.com/article/20091204/NEWS/312049998/hopewell-computer-barn-crashes-as-historic-stage-burns&pager=full_story Trentonian 2009-12-04]<br />
* [http://www.lawrenceroadfire.org/news%20stories%20html/2009.12_December.html Lawrence Road Fire 2009-12]</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=File:OLDbarn1.jpg&diff=1560File:OLDbarn1.jpg2013-07-28T15:09:25Z<p>NatKuhn: Photo of Claude Kagan's barn, Pennington, NJ, taken from the "road side" of the barn, looking toward an entrance into the "Comp Room" (computer room) that housed the Burroughs 205, the Packard Bell 250, and the DEC PDP-8. Unknown source.</p>
<hr />
<div>Photo of Claude Kagan's barn, Pennington, NJ, taken from the "road side" of the barn, looking toward an entrance into the "Comp Room" (computer room) that housed the Burroughs 205, the Packard Bell 250, and the DEC PDP-8. Unknown source.</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=The_Barn&diff=1559The Barn2013-07-28T15:04:18Z<p>NatKuhn: attempting to in-line a Barn photo</p>
<hr />
<div>[[file:OLDbarn1.jpg|frame|The Barn]]<br />
[[Claude Kagan|Claude]] lived on a fairly large property in Pennington, which had a house built in the 1800s, a barn, a few donkeys, and a troupe of Malemutes.<br />
<br />
By the time the RESISTORS arrived there, Claude had already amassed a trove of cast-off technology from various sources. The most impressive was a Burroughs Datatron 205, a gigantic vacuum-tube computer from the 1950s. Rumor has it that Claude convinced someone in Detroit to give it to him, which they did on the condition that he would transport it. He rented an 18-wheeler and drove it from Detroit to New Jersey, but had to rely on sympathetic truckers to help him out every time he needed to back it up, since he didn't really know how to drive it. Most of us never saw it in operation, and there were many stories: that it cost $40 for the electricity to run it for half an hour, quite a sum back then; that when you did run it, the transformer on the pole outside would start to glow cherry-red; and that it took two full-time people simply to replace the tubes as they burned out. It's main memory was a magnetic drum.<br />
<br />
There was also a Packard Bell 250 which was perhaps the size of a Sub-Zero refrigerator and used "acoustic delay lines" as its main memory. Amazingly, Peter Eichenberger was actually able to resuscitate it.<br />
<br />
On December 3, 2009, the Barn was destroyed in a fire. Fortunately, Claude had already donated much of his collection of vintage technology to the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum] and his papers to the [http://discover.lib.umn.edu/cgi/f/findaid/findaid-idx?c=umfa;cc=umfa;rgn=main;view=text;didno=cbi00016 Univ. Of Minnesota].'''<br />
<br />
* [http://www.resistors.org/images/OLDbarn1.jpg Photo of the Barn]<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ Geoff Peck's pictures of the 1998 reunion include the Barn and the remnants of the Burroughs 205]<br />
* [http://www.trentonian.com/article/20091204/NEWS/312049998/hopewell-computer-barn-crashes-as-historic-stage-burns&pager=full_story Trentonian 2009-12-04]<br />
* [http://www.lawrenceroadfire.org/news%20stories%20html/2009.12_December.html Lawrence Road Fire 2009-12]</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Claude_Kagan&diff=1558Claude Kagan2013-07-28T14:57:00Z<p>NatKuhn: moved info from the main page to the top, added the photo from the memorial service page</p>
<hr />
<div>[[file:Claude-with-Pipe-1-retouch.jpg|frame|Claude Kagan]]<br />
Claude Kagan (born 10/7/1924), also known Claude Ancelme Roichel Kagan, Claude A. R. Kagan, or C. A. R. Kagan, was truly the guiding spirit behind the RESISTORS. He believed deeply in giving young people opportunities to learn in an active, "hands-on" way, and he practiced this both with the RESISTORS and through involvement with underprivileged youth in Trenton, NJ.<br />
<br />
Claude died on April 26, 2012. A '''[[Memorial Service for Claude Kagan|memorial service]]''' was held on August&nbsp;11,&nbsp;2012 at the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum at Historic Camp Evans] in Wall, NJ. <br />
<br />
== Obituary ==<br />
<br />
Claude Kagan of Hopewell Township was born in France and educated in France, England and the US. He graduated from Cornell with a bachelors in Mechanical Engineering (1948), bachelors in Electrical Engineering (1950), and MS in Electrical Engineering (1950). Served in the US Army Corps of Engineers during WW II and the Signal Corps during the Korean War.<br />
<br />
Claude worked for AT&T/Western Electric from 1953 to 1988, mostly at the Engineering Research Center outside Princeton, and later as a consultant for SAM76 Inc. His work included communications, manufacturing systems, and visionary work on computers in the home and the future of personal computing.<br />
<br />
In addition to thinking about the future, Claude began collecting historical technology in the 1960’s and filled his barn with artifacts, including a Burroughs 205 vacuum tube computer. Fortunately the PDP-8 and other highlights of his collection were moved to the InfoAge Museum in Wall, NJ, before the barn burned in 2009.<br />
<br />
He was a radio amateur, KE2XY and W2UUI, and professional engineer. Claude was active in the IEEE and related organizations for many years and received the IEEE Computer Society medal for extraordinary contributions in 1984.<br />
<br />
Claude was an active mentor who guided many young people into computing and engineering through the RESISTORS, the Cornell alumni network, and informally. <br />
<br />
Burial will be private but a memorial event is being organized and a scholarship fund will is being created in his honor. See www.RESISTORS.org for details.<br />
<br />
== Summary of events, written by Claude ==<br />
<br />
<br />
October 7, 1924 - April 26, 2012<br />
<br />
Born in France, attended early school there, then later in England and<br />
finally finished HS in US. Started College at Cornell in 1942, Mechanical<br />
Engineering, drafted and<br />
served in AUS 1944 to 1946, retuned to Cornell, got BME, then BEE and<br />
finally MSc in Civil Engineering.<br />
<br />
Started work at EBASCO in NY and Southern Illinois, was<br />
called back to military active duty in 1950 during Korean<br />
conflict, and served in France as liaison officer with French<br />
PTT, and other special assignments.<br />
<br />
Released in 1953 and went to work for Western Electric Co<br />
in Lawrence and N. Andover mass. Involved in final setup<br />
and testing of Missile Range communications system and<br />
became interested in early Computer system.<br />
<br />
Published in 1957 IEEE section prize winning paper on computer controlled manufacturing system with specially<br />
designed bidirectionally accessible data base.<br />
<br />
Designed large scale computer controlled system with telecommunications for<br />
the Merrimack Valley Works of WE company.<br />
<br />
Was transferred to NY and soon after to the newly formed<br />
WE engineering research center in May 1958, in Hopewell<br />
Township.<br />
<br />
Responsibility was primarily to look in the future for computer and other controlling techniques to be used in manufacturing.<br />
<br />
Published a number of papers along those lines.<br />
<br />
Some of the proposals were implemented in factories.<br />
<br />
At same time was active in the IEEE being chairman of the coputing devices committee and also after several years of the<br />
data communications committee. Was charter founder of<br />
AFIPS, the American Federation of Information Societies.<br />
<br />
Was awarded by the IEEE computer society the 1984 medal for extraordinary<br />
contributions &c &c. Was also one of half a<br />
dozen people who was give a second 1984 award, that by<br />
the Princeton Section of the IEEE.<br />
<br />
Became involved on the side with the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. in 1965, and that is a different story.<br />
<br />
Retired from AT&T Bell Laboratories at the end of 1988.<br />
<br />
Have been since then consultant in private practice with my<br />
own small company, and a couple of friends and associates.<br />
<br />
Among significant activities was the installation of computer<br />
aided election reporting and ballot preparation for the Mercer<br />
County Clerk's office. Also consulted for the County Clerk<br />
with reference to a proposed Electronic Voting Machine system for which prelimnary action had been taken by<br />
Mercer County Freeholders. After studying the proposal and<br />
submitting a report the Freeholders decided that discretion<br />
was the better part of valor and not to approve the acquisition<br />
of untested and unproven system consisting of 600 IBM PC<br />
machines with no demonstatable software.<br />
<br />
May 25, 1998<br />
<br />
Links:<br />
<br />
* [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Claude_A._R._Kagan Wikipedia user page]</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Main_Page&diff=1557Main Page2013-07-28T14:53:07Z<p>NatKuhn: moved info re: Claude's death to the Claude Kagan page</p>
<hr />
<div>'''If you were a RESISTOR, email resistors@resistors.org to get a username and password to edit this wiki. Then add your reminiscences! We also need a logo for the upper left corner of the wiki pages.''' - Margy Levine Young and John Levine<br />
<br />
= What was the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.? =<br />
<br />
The RESISTORS was one of the first computer clubs for young people. It was founded in 1967 in central New Jersey, and for most of its existence it was under the support and guidance of [[Claude Kagan]], an engineer at the Western Electric Research Center (part of "Ma Bell"), whose barn ("[[The Barn]]") in Pennington, NJ was filled with technological treasures and trash that he collected over many years.<br />
<br />
The name came from the electrical component, with a nod to the spirit of protest that was in the air at the time, and it was an example of what [[Ted Nelson]] calls a "back-ac," an acronym who abbreviation is chosen first, with acronymized phrase chosen later. In our case, the name "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, and Other Research Studies" got the nod (although there was in fact an earlier version, "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, Or Research Studies.")<br />
<br />
= Who were the RESISTORS? =<br />
<br />
The group was founded by students at the Hopewell Valley High School who were interested in science and technology but didn't fine school engaging. They met briefly at a house on Poor Farm Road until they and Claude discovered each other, at which point the group moved to Claude's barn and house. We met there every Saturday from roughly 11 am to 11 pm for a number of years. In the early 1970s there was a rift that no one can entirely remember the cause of, and the group moved to Princeton, where it met in space provided by Princeton University in the "E-Quad," Princeton's Engineering Quadrangle.<br />
<br />
* ''[[List of R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]''<br />
<br />
= What did the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S do? =<br />
<br />
We exhibited at computer shows, we taught each other to program [http://www.resistors.org/images/RESISTORS_using_TRAC.html (picture)], and we fooled around. The stuff we did with computers would be perfectly normal for kids to do now, but we did it before personal computers existed. Some of our programming used paper tape and punch cards!<br />
<br />
On a Saturday night, when the temperature dropped, the cold grease in the Friden Flexowriters caused them to jam up with every character printed. The best thing to do was go inside and discuss the future of computing. Many lively discussions revolved around the concept of a Home Reckoner [http://www.resistors.org/images/homereckoner1.html (notes)]. This multi-tentacled creation served as a home controller, entertainment for the owners, and a tool for everything from baby sitting to stock market analysis. Did today's Personal Computer evolve from the Home Reckoner? Judge for yourself. <br />
<br />
Many of us argued that the future lay with an in-home computer which would permit the user to write programs, play solitary games, and control the household. Others maintained that all an individual needed in the home was a simple dumb terminal with the capability of connecting to a large central computer which provided a powerful processing resource, large quantities of memory and the ability to interact with other users. Until the internet took off, it looked as if the proponents of the home computer had been right. Then both were proven right.<br />
<br />
The ''Trenton Times'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/trentontimes.html article] about the club in 1967. The ''Newark Sunday News'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/newarknews.html article] in May 1967.<br />
<br />
We went to the Spring Joint Computer Conference in Atlantic City [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC%20SHOW%20FLOOR.jpg (picture)] and provided a remote terminal over a phone connection in a phone booth to a PDP-8 [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCCPhoneBooth.jpg (picture)]. Our remote connection was the only one at the show that worked, because a phone strike prevented the exhibitors' phones from being installed. Although computer time was offered free at the SJCC, you did have to take a number [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC_take_a_number.html (picture)]. When you got your turn, and your program didn't run immediately, then you had to think [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC,%20thinking.jpg (picture)].<br />
<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083275990/ RESISTORS in Barn] photo gallery<br />
* [[History of the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]<br />
* [[Dave Fox's RESISTORS page]]<br />
<br />
= The R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. Reunion 1998 =<br />
<br />
We had a RESISTORS reunion over Memorial Day weekend, 1998, at the Barn in Pennington. 45 former R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. and friends attended, along with 15 kids, two horses, and a large number of kittens. Here are [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ some of Geoff Peck's pictures] (added more 2012-08)!<br />
<br><br />
[[file:Reunion1998group.jpg|frame|center|300px|Reunion Attendees]]<br><br />
<br />
= Where did the funding come from? =<br />
<br />
The dogs mostly. A breeding pair of malamutes. Every spring they produced a litter of 7 to 9 puppies. Each sold for $125. They did have to be bailed out occasionally after a night spent roaming. Because the fines were less than the puppy price, they kept us in the black. One of the malamutes destroyed a model 33 ASR Teletype as it flew through a doorway. No lives were lost, but the model 33 was never the same.<br />
<br />
We also sold light bulbs and were not even above begging [http://www.resistors.org/images/PleaseHelpUs.html (picture)].<br />
<br />
= Stories? =<br />
<br />
Contribute your own stories here. (good taste is necessary, historical accuracy is less important)<br />
<br />
At a show where we exhibited the PDP-8, a well dressed man walked up and watched the RESISTORS program for a while. Then he asked what the "PDP" stood for in PDP-8. Bob explained that it stood for Programmed Data Processor. The man paused for a minute and then asked, "What does the Programmed Data Processor do in relation to the computer?" Bob said "That is the computer". Without a word the man walked off.<br />
<br />
We took a bus ride up to New York for the IEEE show one year. Although we did not mount a formal exhibit such as the hallway terminal shown at the SJCC, we nevertheless made our presence known. On the long bus ride up, JB had brought a can of peanut brittle. She offered some to fellow RESISTORS and then walked up the aisle of the bus holding out the can to the other passengers. One kindly looking gentleman saw the outstretched can, reached in his pocket and then dropped in a coin. I don't recall if the coin went into the RESISTORS treasury!<br />
<br />
= What is SAM76? =<br />
<br />
Early R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. wrote programs in [[The SAM76 programming language|SAM76]], and even wrote a primer about the language.</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Talk:Claude_Kagan&diff=1556Talk:Claude Kagan2013-07-28T14:50:56Z<p>NatKuhn: Created page with "It would be great to have a photo of Claude in here. Nat 7/28/13"</p>
<hr />
<div>It would be great to have a photo of Claude in here. Nat 7/28/13</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Claude_Kagan&diff=1555Claude Kagan2013-07-28T14:48:29Z<p>NatKuhn: added material at top, deleted dead SAM76 link</p>
<hr />
<div>Claude Kagan, also known Claude Ancelme Roichel Kagan, Claude A. R. Kagan, or C. A. R. Kagan, was truly the guiding spirit behind the group. He believed deeply in giving young people opportunities to learn in an active, "hands-on" way, and he practiced this both with the RESISTORS and through involvement with underprivileged youth in Trenton, NJ.<br />
<br />
== Obituary ==<br />
<br />
Claude Kagan of Hopewell Township was born in France and educated in France, England and the US. He graduated from Cornell with a bachelors in Mechanical Engineering (1948), bachelors in Electrical Engineering (1950), and MS in Electrical Engineering (1950). Served in the US Army Corps of Engineers during WW II and the Signal Corps during the Korean War.<br />
<br />
Claude worked for AT&T/Western Electric from 1953 to 1988, mostly at the Engineering Research Center outside Princeton, and later as a consultant for SAM76 Inc. His work included communications, manufacturing systems, and visionary work on computers in the home and the future of personal computing.<br />
<br />
In addition to thinking about the future, Claude began collecting historical technology in the 1960’s and filled his barn with artifacts, including a Burroughs 205 vacuum tube computer. Fortunately the PDP-8 and other highlights of his collection were moved to the InfoAge Museum in Wall, NJ, before the barn burned in 2009.<br />
<br />
He was a radio amateur, KE2XY and W2UUI, and professional engineer. Claude was active in the IEEE and related organizations for many years and received the IEEE Computer Society medal for extraordinary contributions in 1984.<br />
<br />
Claude was an active mentor who guided many young people into computing and engineering through the RESISTORS, the Cornell alumni network, and informally. <br />
<br />
Burial will be private but a memorial event is being organized and a scholarship fund will is being created in his honor. See www.RESISTORS.org for details.<br />
<br />
== Summary of events, written by Claude ==<br />
<br />
<br />
October 7, 1924 - April 26, 2012<br />
<br />
Born in France, attended early school there, then later in England and<br />
finally finished HS in US. Started College at Cornell in 1942, Mechanical<br />
Engineering, drafted and<br />
served in AUS 1944 to 1946, retuned to Cornell, got BME, then BEE and<br />
finally MSc in Civil Engineering.<br />
<br />
Started work at EBASCO in NY and Southern Illinois, was<br />
called back to military active duty in 1950 during Korean<br />
conflict, and served in France as liaison officer with French<br />
PTT, and other special assignments.<br />
<br />
Released in 1953 and went to work for Western Electric Co<br />
in Lawrence and N. Andover mass. Involved in final setup<br />
and testing of Missile Range communications system and<br />
became interested in early Computer system.<br />
<br />
Published in 1957 IEEE section prize winning paper on computer controlled manufacturing system with specially<br />
designed bidirectionally accessible data base.<br />
<br />
Designed large scale computer controlled system with telecommunications for<br />
the Merrimack Valley Works of WE company.<br />
<br />
Was transferred to NY and soon after to the newly formed<br />
WE engineering research center in May 1958, in Hopewell<br />
Township.<br />
<br />
Responsibility was primarily to look in the future for computer and other controlling techniques to be used in manufacturing.<br />
<br />
Published a number of papers along those lines.<br />
<br />
Some of the proposals were implemented in factories.<br />
<br />
At same time was active in the IEEE being chairman of the coputing devices committee and also after several years of the<br />
data communications committee. Was charter founder of<br />
AFIPS, the American Federation of Information Societies.<br />
<br />
Was awarded by the IEEE computer society the 1984 medal for extraordinary<br />
contributions &c &c. Was also one of half a<br />
dozen people who was give a second 1984 award, that by<br />
the Princeton Section of the IEEE.<br />
<br />
Became involved on the side with the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. in 1965, and that is a different story.<br />
<br />
Retired from AT&T Bell Laboratories at the end of 1988.<br />
<br />
Have been since then consultant in private practice with my<br />
own small company, and a couple of friends and associates.<br />
<br />
Among significant activities was the installation of computer<br />
aided election reporting and ballot preparation for the Mercer<br />
County Clerk's office. Also consulted for the County Clerk<br />
with reference to a proposed Electronic Voting Machine system for which prelimnary action had been taken by<br />
Mercer County Freeholders. After studying the proposal and<br />
submitting a report the Freeholders decided that discretion<br />
was the better part of valor and not to approve the acquisition<br />
of untested and unproven system consisting of 600 IBM PC<br />
machines with no demonstatable software.<br />
<br />
May 25, 1998<br />
<br />
Links:<br />
<br />
* [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Claude_A._R._Kagan Wikipedia user page]</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=The_Barn&diff=1554The Barn2013-07-28T14:42:15Z<p>NatKuhn: </p>
<hr />
<div>[[Claude Kagan|Claude]] lived on a fairly large property in Pennington, which had a house built in the 1800s, a barn, a few donkeys, and a troupe of Malemutes.<br />
<br />
By the time the RESISTORS arrived there, Claude had already amassed a trove of cast-off technology from various sources. The most impressive was a Burroughs Datatron 205, a gigantic vacuum-tube computer from the 1950s. Rumor has it that Claude convinced someone in Detroit to give it to him, which they did on the condition that he would transport it. He rented an 18-wheeler and drove it from Detroit to New Jersey, but had to rely on sympathetic truckers to help him out every time he needed to back it up, since he didn't really know how to drive it. Most of us never saw it in operation, and there were many stories: that it cost $40 for the electricity to run it for half an hour, quite a sum back then; that when you did run it, the transformer on the pole outside would start to glow cherry-red; and that it took two full-time people simply to replace the tubes as they burned out. It's main memory was a magnetic drum.<br />
<br />
There was also a Packard Bell 250 which was perhaps the size of a Sub-Zero refrigerator and used "acoustic delay lines" as its main memory. Amazingly, Peter Eichenberger was actually able to resuscitate it.<br />
<br />
On December 3, 2009, the Barn was destroyed in a fire. Fortunately, Claude had already donated much of his collection of vintage technology to the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum] and his papers to the [http://discover.lib.umn.edu/cgi/f/findaid/findaid-idx?c=umfa;cc=umfa;rgn=main;view=text;didno=cbi00016 Univ. Of Minnesota].'''<br />
<br />
* [http://www.resistors.org/images/OLDbarn1.jpg Photo of the Barn]<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ Geoff Peck's pictures of the 1998 reunion include the Barn and the remnants of the Burroughs 205]<br />
* [http://www.trentonian.com/article/20091204/NEWS/312049998/hopewell-computer-barn-crashes-as-historic-stage-burns&pager=full_story Trentonian 2009-12-04]<br />
* [http://www.lawrenceroadfire.org/news%20stories%20html/2009.12_December.html Lawrence Road Fire 2009-12]</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=The_Barn&diff=1553The Barn2013-07-28T14:41:40Z<p>NatKuhn: </p>
<hr />
<div>[[Claude Kagan|Claude]] lived on a fairly large property in Pennington, which had a house built in the 1800s, a barn, a few donkeys, and a troupe of Malemutes.<br />
<br />
By the time the RESISTORS arrived there, Claude had already amassed a trove of cast-off technology from various sources. The most impressive was a Burroughs Datatron 205, a gigantic vacuum-tube computer from the 1950s. Rumor has it that Claude convinced someone in Detroit to give it to him, which they did on the condition that he would transport it. He rented an 18-wheeler and drove it from Detroit to New Jersey, but had to rely on sympathetic truckers to help him out every time he needed to back it up, since he didn't really know how to drive it. Most of us never saw it in operation, and there were many stories: that it cost $40 for the electricity to run it for half an hour, quite a sum back then; that when you did run it, the transformer on the pole outside would start to glow cherry-red; and that it took two full-time people simply to replace the tubes as they burned out. It's main memory was a magnetic drum.<br />
<br />
There was also a Packard Bell 250 which was perhaps the size of a Sub-Zero refrigerator and used "acoustic delay lines" as its main memory. Amazingly, Peter Eichenberger was actually able to resuscitate it.<br />
<br />
On December 3, 2009, the Barn was destroyed in a fire. Fortunately, Claude had already donated much of his collection of vintage technology to the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum] and his papers to the [http://discover.lib.umn.edu/cgi/f/findaid/findaid-idx?c=umfa;cc=umfa;rgn=main;view=text;didno=cbi00016 Univ. Of Minnesota].'''<br />
<br />
* [http://www.resistors.org/images/OLDbarn1.jpg Photo of The Barn]<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ Geoff Peck's pictures of the 1998 reunion include the Barn and the remnants of the Burroughs 205]<br />
* [http://www.trentonian.com/article/20091204/NEWS/312049998/hopewell-computer-barn-crashes-as-historic-stage-burns&pager=full_story Trentonian 2009-12-04]<br />
* [http://www.lawrenceroadfire.org/news%20stories%20html/2009.12_December.html Lawrence Road Fire 2009-12]</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=The_Barn&diff=1552The Barn2013-07-28T14:38:03Z<p>NatKuhn: </p>
<hr />
<div>[[Claude Kagan|Claude]] lived on a fairly large property in Pennington, which had a house built in the 1800s, a barn, a few donkeys, and a troupe of Malemutes.<br />
<br />
By the time the RESISTORS arrived there, Claude had already amassed a trove of cast-off technology from various sources. The most impressive was a Burroughs Datatron 205, a gigantic vacuum-tube computer from the 1950s. Rumor has it that Claude convinced someone in Detroit to give it to him, which they did on the condition that he would transport it. He rented an 18-wheeler and drove it from Detroit to New Jersey, but had to rely on sympathetic truckers to help him out every time he needed to back it up, since he didn't really know how to drive it. Most of us never saw it in operation, and there were many stories: that it cost $40 for the electricity to run it for half an hour, quite a sum back then; that when you did run it, the transformer on the pole outside would start to glow cherry-red; and that it took two full-time people simply to replace the tubes as they burned out. It's main memory was a magnetic drum.<br />
<br />
There was also a Packard Bell 250 which was perhaps the size of a Sub-Zero refrigerator and used "acoustic delay lines" as its main memory. Amazingly, Peter Eichenberger was actually able to resuscitate it.<br />
<br />
[http://www.resistors.org/images/OLDbarn1.jpg Photo of The Barn]<br />
<br />
On December 3, 2009, the Barn was destroyed in a fire. Fortunately, Claude had already donated much of his collection of vintage technology to the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum] and his papers to the [http://discover.lib.umn.edu/cgi/f/findaid/findaid-idx?c=umfa;cc=umfa;rgn=main;view=text;didno=cbi00016 Univ. Of Minnesota].'''<br />
<br />
* [http://www.trentonian.com/article/20091204/NEWS/312049998/hopewell-computer-barn-crashes-as-historic-stage-burns&pager=full_story Trentonian 2009-12-04]<br />
* [http://www.lawrenceroadfire.org/news%20stories%20html/2009.12_December.html Lawrence Road Fire 2009-12]</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=The_Barn&diff=1551The Barn2013-07-28T14:37:13Z<p>NatKuhn: </p>
<hr />
<div>[[Claude|Claude Kagan]] lived on a fairly large property in Pennington, which had a house built in the 1800s, a barn, a few donkeys, and a troupe of Malemutes.<br />
<br />
By the time the RESISTORS arrived there, Claude had already amassed a trove of cast-off technology from various sources. The most impressive was a Burroughs Datatron 205, a gigantic vacuum-tube computer from the 1950s. Rumor has it that Claude convinced someone in Detroit to give it to him, which they did on the condition that he would transport it. He rented an 18-wheeler and drove it from Detroit to New Jersey, but had to rely on sympathetic truckers to help him out every time he needed to back it up, since he didn't really know how to drive it. Most of us never saw it in operation, and there were many stories: that it cost $40 for the electricity to run it for half an hour, quite a sum back then; that when you did run it, the transformer on the pole outside would start to glow cherry-red; and that it took two full-time people simply to replace the tubes as they burned out. It's main memory was a magnetic drum.<br />
<br />
There was also a Packard Bell 250 which was perhaps the size of a Sub-Zero refrigerator and used "acoustic delay lines" as its main memory. Amazingly, Peter Eichenberger was actually able to resuscitate it.<br />
<br />
[http://www.resistors.org/images/OLDbarn1.jpg Photo of The Barn]<br />
<br />
On December 3, 2009, the Barn was destroyed in a fire. Fortunately, Claude had already donated much of his collection of vintage technology to the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum] and his papers to the [http://discover.lib.umn.edu/cgi/f/findaid/findaid-idx?c=umfa;cc=umfa;rgn=main;view=text;didno=cbi00016 Univ. Of Minnesota].'''<br />
<br />
* [http://www.trentonian.com/article/20091204/NEWS/312049998/hopewell-computer-barn-crashes-as-historic-stage-burns&pager=full_story Trentonian 2009-12-04]<br />
* [http://www.lawrenceroadfire.org/news%20stories%20html/2009.12_December.html Lawrence Road Fire 2009-12]</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Main_Page&diff=1550Main Page2013-07-28T14:34:59Z<p>NatKuhn: moved info about the fire to The Barn</p>
<hr />
<div><table border="3"><br />
<tr><td align="center"><br />
'''IN MEMORIAM<br />[[Claude Kagan]] - October 7, 1924 - April 26, 2012<br />[[Memorial Service for Claude Kagan]]'''<br />
<br />
Long-time R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. advisor and supporter Claude Kagan died on April 26, 2012. <br />
A '''[[Memorial Service for Claude Kagan|memorial service]]''' was held on August&nbsp;11,&nbsp;2012 at the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum at Historic Camp Evans] in Wall, NJ. <br />
<br />
<br>A scholarship fund is being established in Claude's name. Please e-mail resistors@resistors.org to receive information on contributing to the scholarship fund, when the fund is operational. Thank you.<br />
<br><br />
</td></tr><br />
</table><br />
<br><br><br />
'''If you were a R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R., email resistors@resistors.org to get a username and password to edit this wiki. Then add your reminiscences! We also need a logo for the upper left corner of the wiki pages.''' - Margy Levine Young and John Levine<br />
<br />
= What was the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.? =<br />
<br />
The RESISTORS was one of the first computer clubs for young people. It was founded in 1967 in central New Jersey, and for most of its existence it was under the support and guidance of [[Claude Kagan]], an engineer at the Western Electric Research Center (part of "Ma Bell"), whose barn ("[[The Barn]]") in Pennington, NJ was filled with technological treasures and trash that he collected over many years.<br />
<br />
The name came from the electrical component, with a nod to the spirit of protest that was in the air at the time, and it was an example of what [[Ted Nelson]] calls a "back-ac," an acronym who abbreviation is chosen first, with acronymized phrase chosen later. In our case, the name "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, and Other Research Studies" got the nod (although there was in fact an earlier version, "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, Or Research Studies.")<br />
<br />
= Who were the RESISTORS? =<br />
<br />
The group was founded by students at the Hopewell Valley High School who were interested in science and technology but didn't fine school engaging. They met briefly at a house on Poor Farm Road until they and Claude discovered each other, at which point the group moved to Claude's barn and house. We met there every Saturday from roughly 11 am to 11 pm for a number of years. In the early 1970s there was a rift that no one can entirely remember the cause of, and the group moved to Princeton, where it met in space provided by Princeton University in the "E-Quad," Princeton's Engineering Quadrangle.<br />
<br />
* ''[[List of R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]''<br />
<br />
= What did the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S do? =<br />
<br />
We exhibited at computer shows, we taught each other to program [http://www.resistors.org/images/RESISTORS_using_TRAC.html (picture)], and we fooled around. The stuff we did with computers would be perfectly normal for kids to do now, but we did it before personal computers existed. Some of our programming used paper tape and punch cards!<br />
<br />
On a Saturday night, when the temperature dropped, the cold grease in the Friden Flexowriters caused them to jam up with every character printed. The best thing to do was go inside and discuss the future of computing. Many lively discussions revolved around the concept of a Home Reckoner [http://www.resistors.org/images/homereckoner1.html (notes)]. This multi-tentacled creation served as a home controller, entertainment for the owners, and a tool for everything from baby sitting to stock market analysis. Did today's Personal Computer evolve from the Home Reckoner? Judge for yourself. <br />
<br />
Many of us argued that the future lay with an in-home computer which would permit the user to write programs, play solitary games, and control the household. Others maintained that all an individual needed in the home was a simple dumb terminal with the capability of connecting to a large central computer which provided a powerful processing resource, large quantities of memory and the ability to interact with other users. Until the internet took off, it looked as if the proponents of the home computer had been right. Then both were proven right.<br />
<br />
The ''Trenton Times'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/trentontimes.html article] about the club in 1967. The ''Newark Sunday News'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/newarknews.html article] in May 1967.<br />
<br />
We went to the Spring Joint Computer Conference in Atlantic City [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC%20SHOW%20FLOOR.jpg (picture)] and provided a remote terminal over a phone connection in a phone booth to a PDP-8 [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCCPhoneBooth.jpg (picture)]. Our remote connection was the only one at the show that worked, because a phone strike prevented the exhibitors' phones from being installed. Although computer time was offered free at the SJCC, you did have to take a number [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC_take_a_number.html (picture)]. When you got your turn, and your program didn't run immediately, then you had to think [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC,%20thinking.jpg (picture)].<br />
<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083275990/ RESISTORS in Barn] photo gallery<br />
* [[History of the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]<br />
* [[Dave Fox's RESISTORS page]]<br />
<br />
= The R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. Reunion 1998 =<br />
<br />
We had a RESISTORS reunion over Memorial Day weekend, 1998, at the Barn in Pennington. 45 former R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. and friends attended, along with 15 kids, two horses, and a large number of kittens. Here are [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ some of Geoff Peck's pictures] (added more 2012-08)!<br />
<br><br />
[[file:Reunion1998group.jpg|frame|center|300px|Reunion Attendees]]<br><br />
<br />
= Where did the funding come from? =<br />
<br />
The dogs mostly. A breeding pair of malamutes. Every spring they produced a litter of 7 to 9 puppies. Each sold for $125. They did have to be bailed out occasionally after a night spent roaming. Because the fines were less than the puppy price, they kept us in the black. One of the malamutes destroyed a model 33 ASR Teletype as it flew through a doorway. No lives were lost, but the model 33 was never the same.<br />
<br />
We also sold light bulbs and were not even above begging [http://www.resistors.org/images/PleaseHelpUs.html (picture)].<br />
<br />
= Stories? =<br />
<br />
Contribute your own stories here. (good taste is necessary, historical accuracy is less important)<br />
<br />
At a show where we exhibited the PDP-8, a well dressed man walked up and watched the RESISTORS program for a while. Then he asked what the "PDP" stood for in PDP-8. Bob explained that it stood for Programmed Data Processor. The man paused for a minute and then asked, "What does the Programmed Data Processor do in relation to the computer?" Bob said "That is the computer". Without a word the man walked off.<br />
<br />
We took a bus ride up to New York for the IEEE show one year. Although we did not mount a formal exhibit such as the hallway terminal shown at the SJCC, we nevertheless made our presence known. On the long bus ride up, JB had brought a can of peanut brittle. She offered some to fellow RESISTORS and then walked up the aisle of the bus holding out the can to the other passengers. One kindly looking gentleman saw the outstretched can, reached in his pocket and then dropped in a coin. I don't recall if the coin went into the RESISTORS treasury!<br />
<br />
= What is SAM76? =<br />
<br />
Early R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. wrote programs in [[The SAM76 programming language|SAM76]], and even wrote a primer about the language.</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Main_Page&diff=1549Main Page2013-07-28T14:32:10Z<p>NatKuhn: Various edits and reorganziation</p>
<hr />
<div><table border="3"><br />
<tr><td align="center"><br />
'''IN MEMORIAM<br />[[Claude Kagan]] - October 7, 1924 - April 26, 2012<br />[[Memorial Service for Claude Kagan]]'''<br />
<br />
Long-time R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. advisor and supporter Claude Kagan died on April 26, 2012. <br />
A '''[[Memorial Service for Claude Kagan|memorial service]]''' was held on August&nbsp;11,&nbsp;2012 at the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum at Historic Camp Evans] in Wall, NJ. <br />
<br />
<br>A scholarship fund is being established in Claude's name. Please e-mail resistors@resistors.org to receive information on contributing to the scholarship fund, when the fund is operational. Thank you.<br />
<br><br />
</td></tr><br />
</table><br />
<br><br><br />
'''If you were a R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R., email resistors@resistors.org to get a username and password to edit this wiki. Then add your reminiscences! We also need a logo for the upper left corner of the wiki pages.''' - Margy Levine Young and John Levine<br />
<br />
<table border="1"><br />
<tr><td><br />
'''On December 3, 2009, a fire destroyed Claude Kagan's barn in Hopewell, NJ.<br />
Luckily, he had already given his amazing collection of vintage technology to the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum] and his papers to the [http://discover.lib.umn.edu/cgi/f/findaid/findaid-idx?c=umfa;cc=umfa;rgn=main;view=text;didno=cbi00016 Univ. Of Minnesota].'''<br><br />
* [http://www.trentonian.com/article/20091204/NEWS/312049998/hopewell-computer-barn-crashes-as-historic-stage-burns&pager=full_story Trentonian 2009-12-04]<br />
* [http://www.lawrenceroadfire.org/news%20stories%20html/2009.12_December.html Lawrence Road Fire 2009-12]<br />
</td></tr><br />
</table><br />
<br />
= What was the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.? =<br />
<br />
The RESISTORS was one of the first computer clubs for young people. It was founded in 1967 in central New Jersey, and for most of its existence it was under the support and guidance of [[Claude Kagan]], an engineer at the Western Electric Research Center (part of "Ma Bell"), whose barn ("[[The Barn]]") in Pennington, NJ was filled with technological treasures and trash that he collected over many years.<br />
<br />
The name came from the electrical component, with a nod to the spirit of protest that was in the air at the time, and it was an example of what [[Ted Nelson]] calls a "back-ac," an acronym who abbreviation is chosen first, with acronymized phrase chosen later. In our case, the name "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, and Other Research Studies" got the nod (although there was in fact an earlier version, "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, Or Research Studies.")<br />
<br />
= Who were the RESISTORS? =<br />
<br />
The group was founded by students at the Hopewell Valley High School who were interested in science and technology but didn't fine school engaging. They met briefly at a house on Poor Farm Road until they and Claude discovered each other, at which point the group moved to Claude's barn and house. We met there every Saturday from roughly 11 am to 11 pm for a number of years. In the early 1970s there was a rift that no one can entirely remember the cause of, and the group moved to Princeton, where it met in space provided by Princeton University in the "E-Quad," Princeton's Engineering Quadrangle.<br />
<br />
* ''[[List of R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]''<br />
<br />
= What did the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S do? =<br />
<br />
We exhibited at computer shows, we taught each other to program [http://www.resistors.org/images/RESISTORS_using_TRAC.html (picture)], and we fooled around. The stuff we did with computers would be perfectly normal for kids to do now, but we did it before personal computers existed. Some of our programming used paper tape and punch cards!<br />
<br />
On a Saturday night, when the temperature dropped, the cold grease in the Friden Flexowriters caused them to jam up with every character printed. The best thing to do was go inside and discuss the future of computing. Many lively discussions revolved around the concept of a Home Reckoner [http://www.resistors.org/images/homereckoner1.html (notes)]. This multi-tentacled creation served as a home controller, entertainment for the owners, and a tool for everything from baby sitting to stock market analysis. Did today's Personal Computer evolve from the Home Reckoner? Judge for yourself. <br />
<br />
Many of us argued that the future lay with an in-home computer which would permit the user to write programs, play solitary games, and control the household. Others maintained that all an individual needed in the home was a simple dumb terminal with the capability of connecting to a large central computer which provided a powerful processing resource, large quantities of memory and the ability to interact with other users. Until the internet took off, it looked as if the proponents of the home computer had been right. Then both were proven right.<br />
<br />
The ''Trenton Times'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/trentontimes.html article] about the club in 1967. The ''Newark Sunday News'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/newarknews.html article] in May 1967.<br />
<br />
We went to the Spring Joint Computer Conference in Atlantic City [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC%20SHOW%20FLOOR.jpg (picture)] and provided a remote terminal over a phone connection in a phone booth to a PDP-8 [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCCPhoneBooth.jpg (picture)]. Our remote connection was the only one at the show that worked, because a phone strike prevented the exhibitors' phones from being installed. Although computer time was offered free at the SJCC, you did have to take a number [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC_take_a_number.html (picture)]. When you got your turn, and your program didn't run immediately, then you had to think [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC,%20thinking.jpg (picture)].<br />
<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083275990/ RESISTORS in Barn] photo gallery<br />
* [[History of the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]<br />
* [[Dave Fox's RESISTORS page]]<br />
<br />
= The R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. Reunion 1998 =<br />
<br />
We had a RESISTORS reunion over Memorial Day weekend, 1998, at the Barn in Pennington. 45 former R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. and friends attended, along with 15 kids, two horses, and a large number of kittens. Here are [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ some of Geoff Peck's pictures] (added more 2012-08)!<br />
<br><br />
[[file:Reunion1998group.jpg|frame|center|300px|Reunion Attendees]]<br><br />
<br />
= Where did the funding come from? =<br />
<br />
The dogs mostly. A breeding pair of malamutes. Every spring they produced a litter of 7 to 9 puppies. Each sold for $125. They did have to be bailed out occasionally after a night spent roaming. Because the fines were less than the puppy price, they kept us in the black. One of the malamutes destroyed a model 33 ASR Teletype as it flew through a doorway. No lives were lost, but the model 33 was never the same.<br />
<br />
We also sold light bulbs and were not even above begging [http://www.resistors.org/images/PleaseHelpUs.html (picture)].<br />
<br />
= Stories? =<br />
<br />
Contribute your own stories here. (good taste is necessary, historical accuracy is less important)<br />
<br />
At a show where we exhibited the PDP-8, a well dressed man walked up and watched the RESISTORS program for a while. Then he asked what the "PDP" stood for in PDP-8. Bob explained that it stood for Programmed Data Processor. The man paused for a minute and then asked, "What does the Programmed Data Processor do in relation to the computer?" Bob said "That is the computer". Without a word the man walked off.<br />
<br />
We took a bus ride up to New York for the IEEE show one year. Although we did not mount a formal exhibit such as the hallway terminal shown at the SJCC, we nevertheless made our presence known. On the long bus ride up, JB had brought a can of peanut brittle. She offered some to fellow RESISTORS and then walked up the aisle of the bus holding out the can to the other passengers. One kindly looking gentleman saw the outstretched can, reached in his pocket and then dropped in a coin. I don't recall if the coin went into the RESISTORS treasury!<br />
<br />
= What is SAM76? =<br />
<br />
Early R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. wrote programs in [[The SAM76 programming language|SAM76]], and even wrote a primer about the language.</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=The_Barn&diff=1548The Barn2013-07-28T14:29:15Z<p>NatKuhn: </p>
<hr />
<div>[[Claude|Claude Kagan]] lived on a fairly large property in Pennington, which had a house built in the 1800s, a barn, a few donkeys, and a troupe of Malemutes.<br />
<br />
By the time the RESISTORS arrived there, Claude had already amassed a trove of cast-off technology from various sources. The most impressive was a Burroughs Datatron 205, a gigantic vacuum-tube computer from the 1950s. Rumor has it that Claude convinced someone in Detroit to give it to him, which they did on the condition that he would transport it. He rented an 18-wheeler and drove it from Detroit to New Jersey, but had to rely on sympathetic truckers to help him out every time he needed to back it up, since he didn't really know how to drive it. Most of us never saw it in operation, and there were many stories: that it cost $40 for the electricity to run it for half an hour, quite a sum back then; that when you did run it, the transformer on the pole outside would start to glow cherry-red; and that it took two full-time people simply to replace the tubes as they burned out. It's main memory was a magnetic drum.<br />
<br />
There was also a Packard Bell 250 which was perhaps the size of a Sub-Zero refrigerator and used "acoustic delay lines" as its main memory. Amazingly, Peter Eichenberger was actually able to resuscitate it.<br />
<br />
[http://www.resistors.org/images/OLDbarn1.jpg Photo of The Barn]</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=The_Barn&diff=1547The Barn2013-07-28T14:28:21Z<p>NatKuhn: Created the page</p>
<hr />
<div>[[Claude|Claude Kagan]] lived on a fairly large property in Pennington, which had a house built in the 1800s, a barn, a few donkeys, and a troupe of Malemutes.<br />
<br />
By the time the RESISTORS arrived there, Claude had already amassed a trove of cast-off technology from various sources. The most impressive was a Burroughs Datatron 205, a gigantic vacuum-tube computer from the 1950s. Rumor has it that Claude convinced someone in Detroit to give it to him, which they did on the condition that he would transport it. He rented an 18-wheeler and drove it from Detroit to New Jersey, but had to rely on sympathetic truckers to help him out every time he needed to back it up, since he didn't really know how to drive it. Most of us never saw it in operation, and there were many stories: that it cost $40 for the electricity to run it for half an hour, quite a sum back then; that when you did run it, the transformer on the pole outside would start to glow cherry-red; and that it took two full-time people simply to replace the tubes as they burned out. It's main memory was a magnetic drum.<br />
<br />
There was also a Packard Bell 250 which was perhaps the size of a Sub-Zero refrigerator and used "acoustic delay lines" as its main memory. Amazingly, Peter Eichenberger was actually able to resuscitate it.<br />
<br />
[http://www.resistors.org/images/OLDbarn1.jpg barn]</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Main_Page&diff=1546Main Page2013-07-28T14:17:48Z<p>NatKuhn: </p>
<hr />
<div><table border="3"><br />
<tr><td align="center"><br />
'''IN MEMORIAM<br />[[Claude Kagan]] - October 7, 1924 - April 26, 2012<br />[[Memorial Service for Claude Kagan]]'''<br />
<br />
Long-time R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. advisor and supporter Claude Kagan died on April 26, 2012. <br />
A '''[[Memorial Service for Claude Kagan|memorial service]]''' was held on August&nbsp;11,&nbsp;2012 at the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum at Historic Camp Evans] in Wall, NJ. <br />
<br />
<br>A scholarship fund is being established in Claude's name. Please e-mail resistors@resistors.org to receive information on contributing to the scholarship fund, when the fund is operational. Thank you.<br />
<br><br />
</td></tr><br />
</table><br />
<br><br><br />
'''If you were a R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R., email resistors@resistors.org to get a username and password to edit this wiki. Then add your reminiscences! We also need a logo for the upper left corner of the wiki pages.''' - Margy Levine Young and John Levine<br />
<br />
<table border="1"><br />
<tr><td><br />
'''On December 3, 2009, a fire destroyed Claude Kagan's barn in Hopewell, NJ.<br />
Luckily, he had already given his amazing collection of vintage technology to the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum] and his papers to the [http://discover.lib.umn.edu/cgi/f/findaid/findaid-idx?c=umfa;cc=umfa;rgn=main;view=text;didno=cbi00016 Univ. Of Minnesota].'''<br><br />
* [http://www.trentonian.com/article/20091204/NEWS/312049998/hopewell-computer-barn-crashes-as-historic-stage-burns&pager=full_story Trentonian 2009-12-04]<br />
* [http://www.lawrenceroadfire.org/news%20stories%20html/2009.12_December.html Lawrence Road Fire 2009-12]<br />
</td></tr><br />
</table><br />
<br />
= What was the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.? =<br />
<br />
The RESISTORS was one of the first computer clubs for young people. It was founded in 1967 in central New Jersey, and for most of its existence it was under the support and guidance of [[Claude Kagan]], an engineer at the Western Electric Research Center (part of "Ma Bell"), whose barn ("[[The Barn]]") in Pennington, NJ was filled with technological treasures and trash that he collected over many years.<br />
<br />
The name came from the electrical component, with a nod to the spirit of protest that was in the air at the time, and it was an example of what [[Ted Nelson]] calls a "back-ac," an acronym who abbreviation is chosen first, with acronymized phrase chosen later. In our case, the name "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, and Other Research Studies" got the nod (although there was in fact an earlier version, "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, Or Research Studies.")<br />
<br />
= Who were the RESISTORS? =<br />
<br />
The group was founded by students at the Hopewell Valley High School who were interested in science and technology but didn't fine school engaging. They met briefly at a house on Poor Farm Road until they and Claude discovered each other, at which point the group moved to Claude's barn and house. We met there every Saturday from roughly 11 am to 11 pm for a number of years. In the early 1970s there was a rift that no one can entirely remember the cause of, and the group moved to Princeton, where it met in space provided by Princeton University in the "E-Quad," Princeton's Engineering Quadrangle.<br />
<br />
* ''[[List of R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]''<br />
<br />
= The R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. Reunion 1998 =<br />
<br />
We had a RESISTORS reunion over Memorial Day weekend, 1998, at the Barn in Pennington. 45 former R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. and friends attended, along with 15 kids, two horses, and a large number of kittens. Here are [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ some of Geoff Peck's pictures] (added more 2012-08)!<br />
<br><br />
[[file:Reunion1998group.jpg|frame|center|300px|Reunion Attendees]]<br><br />
<br />
= What did the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S do? =<br />
<br />
We exhibited at computer shows, we taught each other to program [http://www.resistors.org/images/RESISTORS_using_TRAC.html (picture)], and we fooled around. The stuff we did with computers would be perfectly normal for kids to do now, but we did it before personal computers existed. Some of our programming used paper tape and punch cards!<br />
<br />
On a Saturday night, when the temperature dropped, the cold grease in the Friden Flexowriters caused them to jam up with every character printed. The best thing to do was go inside and discuss the future of computing. Many lively discussions revolved around the concept of a Home Reckoner [http://www.resistors.org/images/homereckoner1.html (notes)]. This multi-tentacled creation served as a home controller, entertainment for the owners, and a tool for everything from baby sitting to stock market analysis. Did today's Personal Computer evolve from the Home Reckoner? Judge for yourself. <br />
<br />
Many of us argued that the future lay with an in-home computer which would permit the user to write programs, play solitary games, and control the household. Others maintained that all an individual needed in the home was a simple dumb terminal with the capability of connecting to a large central computer which provided a powerful processing resource, large quantities of memory and the ability to interact with other users. Until the internet took off, it looked as if the proponents of the home computer had been right. Then both were proven right.<br />
<br />
The ''Trenton Times'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/trentontimes.html article] about the club in 1967. The ''Newark Sunday News'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/newarknews.html article] in May 1967.<br />
<br />
We went to the Spring Joint Computer Conference in Atlantic City [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC%20SHOW%20FLOOR.jpg (picture)] and provided a remote terminal over a phone connection in a phone booth to a PDP-8 [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCCPhoneBooth.jpg (picture)]. Our remote connection was the only one at the show that worked, because a phone strike prevented the exhibitors' phones from being installed. Although computer time was offered free at the SJCC, you did have to take a number [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC_take_a_number.html (picture)]. When you got your turn, and your program didn't run immediately, then you had to think [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC,%20thinking.jpg (picture)].<br />
<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083275990/ RESISTORS in Barn] photo gallery<br />
* [[History of the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]<br />
* [[Dave Fox's RESISTORS page]]<br />
<br />
= Where did the funding come from? =<br />
<br />
The dogs mostly. A breeding pair of malamutes. Every spring they produced a litter of 7 to 9 puppies. Each sold for $125. They did have to be bailed out occasionally after a night spent roaming. Because the fines were less than the puppy price, they kept us in the black. One of the malamutes destroyed a model 33 ASR Teletype as it flew through a doorway. No lives were lost, but the model 33 was never the same.<br />
<br />
We also sold light bulbs and were not even above begging [http://www.resistors.org/images/PleaseHelpUs.html (picture)].<br />
<br />
= Stories? =<br />
<br />
Contribute your own stories here. (good taste is necessary, historical accuracy is less important)<br />
<br />
At a show where we exhibited the PDP-8, a well dressed man walked up and watched the RESISTORS program for a while. Then he asked what the "PDP" stood for in PDP-8. Bob explained that it stood for Programmed Data Processor. The man paused for a minute and then asked, "What does the Programmed Data Processor do in relation to the computer?" Bob said "That is the computer". Without a word the man walked off.<br />
<br />
We took a bus ride up to New York for the IEEE show one year. Although we did not mount a formal exhibit such as the hallway terminal shown at the SJCC, we nevertheless made our presence known. On the long bus ride up, JB had brought a can of peanut brittle. She offered some to fellow RESISTORS and then walked up the aisle of the bus holding out the can to the other passengers. One kindly looking gentleman saw the outstretched can, reached in his pocket and then dropped in a coin. I don't recall if the coin went into the RESISTORS treasury!<br />
<br />
= What is SAM76? =<br />
<br />
Early R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. wrote programs in [[The SAM76 programming language|SAM76]], and even wrote a primer about the language.</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Main_Page&diff=1545Main Page2013-07-28T14:14:29Z<p>NatKuhn: </p>
<hr />
<div><table border="3"><br />
<tr><td align="center"><br />
'''IN MEMORIAM<br />[[Claude Kagan]] - October 7, 1924 - April 26, 2012<br />[[Memorial Service for Claude Kagan]]'''<br />
<br />
Long-time R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. advisor and supporter Claude Kagan died on April 26, 2012. <br />
A '''[[Memorial Service for Claude Kagan|memorial service]]''' was held on August&nbsp;11,&nbsp;2012 at the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum at Historic Camp Evans] in Wall, NJ. <br />
<br />
<br>A scholarship fund is being established in Claude's name. Please e-mail resistors@resistors.org to receive information on contributing to the scholarship fund, when the fund is operational. Thank you.<br />
<br><br />
</td></tr><br />
</table><br />
<br><br><br />
'''If you were a R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R., email resistors@resistors.org to get a username and password to edit this wiki. Then add your reminiscences! We also need a logo for the upper left corner of the wiki pages.''' - Margy Levine Young and John Levine<br />
<br />
<table border="1"><br />
<tr><td><br />
'''On December 3, 2009, a fire destroyed Claude Kagan's barn in Hopewell, NJ.<br />
Luckily, he had already given his amazing collection of vintage technology to the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum] and his papers to the [http://discover.lib.umn.edu/cgi/f/findaid/findaid-idx?c=umfa;cc=umfa;rgn=main;view=text;didno=cbi00016 Univ. Of Minnesota].'''<br><br />
* [http://www.trentonian.com/article/20091204/NEWS/312049998/hopewell-computer-barn-crashes-as-historic-stage-burns&pager=full_story Trentonian 2009-12-04]<br />
* [http://www.lawrenceroadfire.org/news%20stories%20html/2009.12_December.html Lawrence Road Fire 2009-12]<br />
</td></tr><br />
</table><br />
<br />
= What was the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.? =<br />
<br />
The RESISTORS was one of the first computer clubs for young people. It was founded in 1967 in central New Jersey, and for most of its existence it was under the support and guidance of [[Claude Kagan]], an engineer at the Western Electric Research Center (part of "Ma Bell"), whose barn ("The Barn") in Pennington, NJ was filled with technological treasures and trash that he collected over many years.<br />
<br />
The name came from the electrical component, with a nod to the spirit of protest that was in the air at the time, and it was an example of what [[Ted Nelson]] calls a "back-ac," an acronym who abbreviation is chosen first, with acronymized phrase chosen later. In our case, the name "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, and Other Research Studies" got the nod (although there was in fact an earlier version, "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, Or Research Studies.")<br />
<br />
= Who were the RESISTORS? =<br />
<br />
The group was founded by students at the Hopewell Valley High School who were interested in science and technology but didn't fine school engaging. They met briefly at a house on Poor Farm Road until they and Claude discovered each other, at which point the group moved to Claude's barn and house. We met there every Saturday from roughly 11 am to 11 pm for a number of years. In the early 1970s there was a rift that no one can entirely remember the cause of, and the group moved to Princeton, where it met in space provided by Princeton University in the "E-Quad," Princeton's Engineering Quadrangle.<br />
<br />
* ''[[List of R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]''<br />
<br />
= The R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. Reunion 1998 =<br />
<br />
We had a RESISTORS reunion over Memorial Day weekend, 1998, at the Barn in Pennington. 45 former R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. and friends attended, along with 15 kids, two horses, and a large number of kittens. Here are [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ some of Geoff Peck's pictures] (added more 2012-08)!<br />
<br><br />
[[file:Reunion1998group.jpg|frame|center|300px|Reunion Attendees]]<br><br />
<br />
= What did the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S do? =<br />
<br />
We exhibited at computer shows, we taught each other to program [http://www.resistors.org/images/RESISTORS_using_TRAC.html (picture)], and we fooled around. The stuff we did with computers would be perfectly normal for kids to do now, but we did it before personal computers existed. Some of our programming used paper tape and punch cards!<br />
<br />
On a Saturday night, when the temperature dropped, the cold grease in the Friden Flexowriters caused them to jam up with every character printed. The best thing to do was go inside and discuss the future of computing. Many lively discussions revolved around the concept of a Home Reckoner [http://www.resistors.org/images/homereckoner1.html (notes)]. This multi-tentacled creation served as a home controller, entertainment for the owners, and a tool for everything from baby sitting to stock market analysis. Did today's Personal Computer evolve from the Home Reckoner? Judge for yourself. <br />
<br />
Many of us argued that the future lay with an in-home computer which would permit the user to write programs, play solitary games, and control the household. Others maintained that all an individual needed in the home was a simple dumb terminal with the capability of connecting to a large central computer which provided a powerful processing resource, large quantities of memory and the ability to interact with other users. Until the internet took off, it looked as if the proponents of the home computer had been right. Then both were proven right.<br />
<br />
The ''Trenton Times'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/trentontimes.html article] about the club in 1967. The ''Newark Sunday News'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/newarknews.html article] in May 1967.<br />
<br />
We went to the Spring Joint Computer Conference in Atlantic City [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC%20SHOW%20FLOOR.jpg (picture)] and provided a remote terminal over a phone connection in a phone booth to a PDP-8 [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCCPhoneBooth.jpg (picture)]. Our remote connection was the only one at the show that worked, because a phone strike prevented the exhibitors' phones from being installed. Although computer time was offered free at the SJCC, you did have to take a number [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC_take_a_number.html (picture)]. When you got your turn, and your program didn't run immediately, then you had to think [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC,%20thinking.jpg (picture)].<br />
<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083275990/ RESISTORS in Barn] photo gallery<br />
* [[History of the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]<br />
* [[Dave Fox's RESISTORS page]]<br />
<br />
= Where did the funding come from? =<br />
<br />
The dogs mostly. A breeding pair of malamutes. Every spring they produced a litter of 7 to 9 puppies. Each sold for $125. They did have to be bailed out occasionally after a night spent roaming. Because the fines were less than the puppy price, they kept us in the black. One of the malamutes destroyed a model 33 ASR Teletype as it flew through a doorway. No lives were lost, but the model 33 was never the same.<br />
<br />
We also sold light bulbs and were not even above begging [http://www.resistors.org/images/PleaseHelpUs.html (picture)].<br />
<br />
= Stories? =<br />
<br />
Contribute your own stories here. (good taste is necessary, historical accuracy is less important)<br />
<br />
At a show where we exhibited the PDP-8, a well dressed man walked up and watched the RESISTORS program for a while. Then he asked what the "PDP" stood for in PDP-8. Bob explained that it stood for Programmed Data Processor. The man paused for a minute and then asked, "What does the Programmed Data Processor do in relation to the computer?" Bob said "That is the computer". Without a word the man walked off.<br />
<br />
We took a bus ride up to New York for the IEEE show one year. Although we did not mount a formal exhibit such as the hallway terminal shown at the SJCC, we nevertheless made our presence known. On the long bus ride up, JB had brought a can of peanut brittle. She offered some to fellow RESISTORS and then walked up the aisle of the bus holding out the can to the other passengers. One kindly looking gentleman saw the outstretched can, reached in his pocket and then dropped in a coin. I don't recall if the coin went into the RESISTORS treasury!<br />
<br />
= What is SAM76? =<br />
<br />
Early R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. wrote programs in [[The SAM76 programming language|SAM76]], and even wrote a primer about the language.</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Main_Page&diff=1544Main Page2013-07-28T14:10:00Z<p>NatKuhn: </p>
<hr />
<div><table border="3"><br />
<tr><td align="center"><br />
'''IN MEMORIAM<br />[[Claude Kagan]] - October 7, 1924 - April 26, 2012<br />[[Memorial Service for Claude Kagan]]'''<br />
<br />
Long-time R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. advisor and supporter Claude Kagan died on April 26, 2012. <br />
A '''[[Memorial Service for Claude Kagan|memorial service]]''' was held on August&nbsp;11,&nbsp;2012 at the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum at Historic Camp Evans] in Wall, NJ. <br />
<br />
<br>A scholarship fund is being established in Claude's name. Please e-mail resistors@resistors.org to receive information on contributing to the scholarship fund, when the fund is operational. Thank you.<br />
<br><br />
</td></tr><br />
</table><br />
<br><br><br />
'''If you were a R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R., email resistors@resistors.org to get a username and password to edit this wiki. Then add your reminiscences! We also need a logo for the upper left corner of the wiki pages.''' - Margy Levine Young and John Levine<br />
<br />
<table border="1"><br />
<tr><td><br />
'''On December 3, 2009, a fire destroyed Claude Kagan's barn in Hopewell, NJ.<br />
Luckily, he had already given his amazing collection of vintage technology to the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum] and his papers to the [http://discover.lib.umn.edu/cgi/f/findaid/findaid-idx?c=umfa;cc=umfa;rgn=main;view=text;didno=cbi00016 Univ. Of Minnesota].'''<br><br />
* [http://www.trentonian.com/article/20091204/NEWS/312049998/hopewell-computer-barn-crashes-as-historic-stage-burns&pager=full_story Trentonian 2009-12-04]<br />
* [http://www.lawrenceroadfire.org/news%20stories%20html/2009.12_December.html Lawrence Road Fire 2009-12]<br />
</td></tr><br />
</table><br />
<br />
= What was the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.? =<br />
<br />
The RESISTORS was one of the first computer clubs for young people. It was founded in 1967 in central New Jersey, and for most of its existence it was under the support and guidance of Claude A. R. Kagan, an engineer at the Western Electric Research Center (part of "Ma Bell"), whose barn ("The Barn") in Pennington, NJ was filled with technological treasures and trash that he collected over many years.<br />
<br />
The name came from the electrical component, with a nod to the spirit of protest that was in the air at the time, and it was an example of what [[Ted Nelson]] calls a "back-ac," an acronym who abbreviation is chosen first, with acronymized phrase chosen later. In our case, the name "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, and Other Research Studies" got the nod (although there was in fact an earlier version, "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, Or Research Studies.")<br />
<br />
= Who were the RESISTORS? =<br />
<br />
The group was founded by students at the Hopewell Valley High School who were interested in science and technology but didn't fine school engaging. They met briefly at a house on Poor Farm Road until they and Claude discovered each other, at which point the group moved to Claude's barn and house. We met there every Saturday from roughly 11 am to 11 pm for a number of years. In the early 1970s there was a rift that no one can entirely remember the cause of, and the group moved to Princeton, where it met in space provided by Princeton University in the "E-Quad," Princeton's Engineering Quadrangle.<br />
<br />
* ''[[List of R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]''<br />
<br />
= The R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. Reunion 1998 =<br />
<br />
We had a RESISTORS reunion over Memorial Day weekend, 1998, at the Barn in Pennington. 45 former R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. and friends attended, along with 15 kids, two horses, and a large number of kittens. Here are [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ some of Geoff Peck's pictures] (added more 2012-08)!<br />
<br><br />
[[file:Reunion1998group.jpg|frame|center|300px|Reunion Attendees]]<br><br />
<br />
= What did the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S do? =<br />
<br />
We exhibited at computer shows, we taught each other to program [http://www.resistors.org/images/RESISTORS_using_TRAC.html (picture)], and we fooled around. The stuff we did with computers would be perfectly normal for kids to do now, but we did it before personal computers existed. Some of our programming used paper tape and punch cards!<br />
<br />
On a Saturday night, when the temperature dropped, the cold grease in the Friden Flexowriters caused them to jam up with every character printed. The best thing to do was go inside and discuss the future of computing. Many lively discussions revolved around the concept of a Home Reckoner [http://www.resistors.org/images/homereckoner1.html (notes)]. This multi-tentacled creation served as a home controller, entertainment for the owners, and a tool for everything from baby sitting to stock market analysis. Did today's Personal Computer evolve from the Home Reckoner? Judge for yourself. <br />
<br />
Many of us argued that the future lay with an in-home computer which would permit the user to write programs, play solitary games, and control the household. Others maintained that all an individual needed in the home was a simple dumb terminal with the capability of connecting to a large central computer which provided a powerful processing resource, large quantities of memory and the ability to interact with other users. Until the internet took off, it looked as if the proponents of the home computer had been right. Then both were proven right.<br />
<br />
The ''Trenton Times'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/trentontimes.html article] about the club in 1967. The ''Newark Sunday News'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/newarknews.html article] in May 1967.<br />
<br />
We went to the Spring Joint Computer Conference in Atlantic City [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC%20SHOW%20FLOOR.jpg (picture)] and provided a remote terminal over a phone connection in a phone booth to a PDP-8 [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCCPhoneBooth.jpg (picture)]. Our remote connection was the only one at the show that worked, because a phone strike prevented the exhibitors' phones from being installed. Although computer time was offered free at the SJCC, you did have to take a number [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC_take_a_number.html (picture)]. When you got your turn, and your program didn't run immediately, then you had to think [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC,%20thinking.jpg (picture)].<br />
<br />
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083275990/ RESISTORS in Barn] photo gallery<br />
* [[History of the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]<br />
* [[Dave Fox's RESISTORS page]]<br />
<br />
= Where did the funding come from? =<br />
<br />
The dogs mostly. A breeding pair of malamutes. Every spring they produced a litter of 7 to 9 puppies. Each sold for $125. They did have to be bailed out occasionally after a night spent roaming. Because the fines were less than the puppy price, they kept us in the black. One of the malamutes destroyed a model 33 ASR Teletype as it flew through a doorway. No lives were lost, but the model 33 was never the same.<br />
<br />
We also sold light bulbs and were not even above begging [http://www.resistors.org/images/PleaseHelpUs.html (picture)].<br />
<br />
= Stories? =<br />
<br />
Contribute your own stories here. (good taste is necessary, historical accuracy is less important)<br />
<br />
At a show where we exhibited the PDP-8, a well dressed man walked up and watched the RESISTORS program for a while. Then he asked what the "PDP" stood for in PDP-8. Bob explained that it stood for Programmed Data Processor. The man paused for a minute and then asked, "What does the Programmed Data Processor do in relation to the computer?" Bob said "That is the computer". Without a word the man walked off.<br />
<br />
We took a bus ride up to New York for the IEEE show one year. Although we did not mount a formal exhibit such as the hallway terminal shown at the SJCC, we nevertheless made our presence known. On the long bus ride up, JB had brought a can of peanut brittle. She offered some to fellow RESISTORS and then walked up the aisle of the bus holding out the can to the other passengers. One kindly looking gentleman saw the outstretched can, reached in his pocket and then dropped in a coin. I don't recall if the coin went into the RESISTORS treasury!<br />
<br />
= What is SAM76? =<br />
<br />
Early R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. wrote programs in [[The SAM76 programming language|SAM76]], and even wrote a primer about the language.</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=Main_Page&diff=1543Main Page2013-07-28T13:55:21Z<p>NatKuhn: </p>
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'''IN MEMORIAM<br />[[Claude Kagan]] - October 7, 1924 - April 26, 2012<br />[[Memorial Service for Claude Kagan]]'''<br />
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Long-time R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. advisor and supporter Claude Kagan died on April 26, 2012. <br />
A '''[[Memorial Service for Claude Kagan|memorial service]]''' was held on August&nbsp;11,&nbsp;2012 at the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum at Historic Camp Evans] in Wall, NJ. <br />
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<br>A scholarship fund is being established in Claude's name. Please e-mail resistors@resistors.org to receive information on contributing to the scholarship fund, when the fund is operational. Thank you.<br />
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'''If you were a R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R., email resistors@resistors.org to get a username and password to edit this wiki. Then add your reminiscences! We also need a logo for the upper left corner of the wiki pages.''' - Margy Levine Young and John Levine<br />
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'''On December 3, 2009, a fire destroyed Claude Kagan's barn in Hopewell, NJ.<br />
Luckily, he had already given his amazing collection of vintage technology to the [http://infoage.org/exhibits/vintage-computers InfoAge Museum] and his papers to the [http://discover.lib.umn.edu/cgi/f/findaid/findaid-idx?c=umfa;cc=umfa;rgn=main;view=text;didno=cbi00016 Univ. Of Minnesota].'''<br><br />
* [http://www.trentonian.com/article/20091204/NEWS/312049998/hopewell-computer-barn-crashes-as-historic-stage-burns&pager=full_story Trentonian 2009-12-04]<br />
* [http://www.lawrenceroadfire.org/news%20stories%20html/2009.12_December.html Lawrence Road Fire 2009-12]<br />
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= What was the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.? =<br />
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The RESISTORS was one of the first computer clubs for young people. It was founded in 1967 in Hopewell, NJ, and for most of its existence it was under the support and guidance of Claude A. R. Kagan, an engineer at the Western Electric Research Center (part of "Ma Bell"), whose barn ("The Barn") was filled with technological treasures and trash that he collected over many years.<br />
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[http://www.resistors.org/images/OLDbarn1.jpg barn]<br />
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The name came from the electrical component, with a nod to the spirit of protest that was in the air at the time, and it was an example of what [[Ted Nelson]] calls a "back-ac," an acronym who abbreviation is chosen first, with acronymized phrase chosen later. In our case, the name "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, and Other Research Studies" got the nod (although there was in fact an earlier version, "Radically Emphatic Students Interested in Science, Technology, Or Research Studies.")<br />
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* ''[[List of R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]''<br />
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= The R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. Reunion 1998 =<br />
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We had the first (and last?) R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. reunion over Memorial Day weekend, 1998, at the Barn in Hopewell, New Jersey. 45 former R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. and friends attended, along with 15 kids, two horses, and a large number of kittens. Here are [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083242680/ some of Geoff Peck's pictures] (added more 2012-08)!<br />
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[[file:Reunion1998group.jpg|frame|center|300px|Reunion Attendees]]<br><br />
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= What did the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S do? =<br />
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We exhibited at computer shows, we taught each other to program [http://www.resistors.org/images/RESISTORS_using_TRAC.html (picture)], and we fooled around. The stuff we did with computers would be perfectly normal for kids to do now, but we did it before personal computers existed. Some of our programming used paper tape and punch cards!<br />
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On a Saturday night, when the temperature dropped, the cold grease in the Friden Flexowriters caused them to jam up with every character printed. The best thing to do was go inside and discuss the future of computing. Many lively discussions revolved around the concept of a Home Reckoner [http://www.resistors.org/images/homereckoner1.html (notes)]. This multi-tentacled creation served as a home controller, entertainment for the owners, and a tool for everything from baby sitting to stock market analysis. Did today's Personal Computer evolve from the Home Reckoner? Judge for yourself. <br />
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Many of us argued that the future lay with an in-home computer which would permit the user to write programs, play solitary games, and control the household. Others maintained that all an individual needed in the home was a simple dumb terminal with the capability of connecting to a large central computer which provided a powerful processing resource, large quantities of memory and the ability to interact with other users. Until the internet took off, it looked as if the proponents of the home computer had been right. Then both were proven right.<br />
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The ''Trenton Times'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/trentontimes.html article] about the club in 1967. The ''Newark Sunday News'' wrote an [http://www.resistors.org/old/newarknews.html article] in May 1967.<br />
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We went to the Spring Joint Computer Conference in Atlantic City [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC%20SHOW%20FLOOR.jpg (picture)] and provided a remote terminal over a phone connection in a phone booth to a PDP-8 [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCCPhoneBooth.jpg (picture)]. Our remote connection was the only one at the show that worked, because a phone strike prevented the exhibitors' phones from being installed. Although computer time was offered free at the SJCC, you did have to take a number [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC_take_a_number.html (picture)]. When you got your turn, and your program didn't run immediately, then you had to think [http://www.resistors.org/images/SJCC,%20thinking.jpg (picture)].<br />
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* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/resistorsnj/sets/72157631083275990/ RESISTORS in Barn] photo gallery<br />
* [[History of the R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.]]<br />
* [[Dave Fox's RESISTORS page]]<br />
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= Where did the funding come from? =<br />
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The dogs mostly. A breeding pair of malamutes. Every spring they produced a litter of 7 to 9 puppies. Each sold for $125. They did have to be bailed out occasionally after a night spent roaming. Because the fines were less than the puppy price, they kept us in the black. One of the malamutes destroyed a model 33 ASR Teletype as it flew through a doorway. No lives were lost, but the model 33 was never the same.<br />
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We also sold light bulbs and were not even above begging [http://www.resistors.org/images/PleaseHelpUs.html (picture)].<br />
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= Stories? =<br />
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Contribute your own stories here. (good taste is necessary, historical accuracy is less important)<br />
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At a show where we exhibited the PDP-8, a well dressed man walked up and watched the RESISTORS program for a while. Then he asked what the "PDP" stood for in PDP-8. Bob explained that it stood for Programmed Data Processor. The man paused for a minute and then asked, "What does the Programmed Data Processor do in relation to the computer?" Bob said "That is the computer". Without a word the man walked off.<br />
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We took a bus ride up to New York for the IEEE show one year. Although we did not mount a formal exhibit such as the hallway terminal shown at the SJCC, we nevertheless made our presence known. On the long bus ride up, JB had brought a can of peanut brittle. She offered some to fellow RESISTORS and then walked up the aisle of the bus holding out the can to the other passengers. One kindly looking gentleman saw the outstretched can, reached in his pocket and then dropped in a coin. I don't recall if the coin went into the RESISTORS treasury!<br />
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= What is SAM76? =<br />
<br />
Early R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S. wrote programs in [[The SAM76 programming language|SAM76]], and even wrote a primer about the language.</div>NatKuhnhttps://www.resistors.org/index.php?title=List_of_R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.&diff=1438List of R.E.S.I.S.T.O.R.S.2006-11-21T19:24:54Z<p>NatKuhn: /* Late Barn Period */</p>
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<div>Here's the list that Nat Kuhn has gathered so far, based mainly on his memory, Dave Fox's web page, and lots of e-mail. Contact resistors@resistors.org if you are among the missing. Some people on the list were members, some weren't but were around a good deal. Our apologies to the many people we've left off. Additions and corrections are greatly appreciated, as are any clues as to the whereabouts of people, especially those without e-mail addresses. The list is divided up into rough historical periods that also don't necessarily make much sense.<br />
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= Founders =<br />
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* Andy Walker[http://www.world.std.com/~Eawalker]<br />
* Bill Lang<br />
* Bill Weasner<br />
* Bob Skillman<br />
* Charlie Ehrlich<br />
* Chris Brigham [http://resistors.org/chrisbrigham.gif]<br />
* Cindy Cole<br />
* Doug Timbie<br />
* George Powell<br />
* Jim Yost<br />
* Larry Owen<br />
* Laurie Lamar<br />
* Mark Grossman<br />
* Steve Payne<br />
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= Early Barn Period =<br />
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* Barry Klein<br />
* Bob Evans<br />
* Daryl "Beetle" Bailey<br />
* Dave Theriault<br />
* Gail Warner<br />
* Don Irwin [mailto:donirwin@aaahawk.com]<br />
* Gifford "Giff "Marzoni<br />
* JB Robinson<br />
* Joe Tulloch<br />
* Skip King<br />
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= Late Barn Period =<br />
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* Andy Redfield<br />
* Dave Barach<br />
* Don Schattschneider<br />
* Geoff Peck (deceased) [http://www.geoffpeck.com/]<br />
* Jean Hunter<br />
* John Gorman<br />
* John Levine [http://www.johnlevine.com/]<br />
* Jonathan Eckstein<br />
* Jordan Young [http://www.gurus.com/jordan]<br />
* Lauren Sarno<br />
* Len Bosack<br />
* Lewis Johnson<br />
* Linda Toole<br />
* Margy Levine (Young) [http://www.gurus.com/margy]<br />
* Mark Stratton<br />
* Martin Pensak<br />
* Mike Wolf<br />
* Nat Kuhn [http://www.natkuhn.com/]<br />
* Peter Eichenberger<br />
* Robert "Igor" Lechner<br />
* Shelly Heilweil (friend)<br />
* Steve Emmerich<br />
* Steve Kirsch ("started West Coast branch") [http://www.skirsch.com/]<br />
* Steve Ludlum<br />
* Ted Heilweil<br />
* Mike Wolf<br />
* Tom Wolf<br />
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= Princeton Period =<br />
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* Anne Hunter<br />
* Cynthia Dwork<br />
* John Keane<br />
* David Fox<br />
* Mike Laznovsky<br />
* Morgan Hite<br />
* Neil Schwartz<br />
* Paul Rubin<br />
* Tonia Saxon<br />
* Tsutomu Shimomura<br />
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= Advisors =<br />
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* [[Claude Kagan]]<br />
* [[Ted Nelson and Xanadu|Ted Nelson]]<br />
* Bob Levine<br />
* Larry Laitenen (sp?)<br />
* Tony Weber<br />
* Hans Bream<br />
* Mark Bayern</div>NatKuhn