From the Moon to the Scrap Heap and Back

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SUMMARY

The forum discussion centers on the historical significance of microcomputer chips and Rope Memory developed by Raytheon in the 1960s, which played a crucial role in the moon landing. Despite their groundbreaking technology, many of these components were auctioned off as scrap metal within a decade. A few recovered pieces have been analyzed, revealing that the data remains intact even after 50 years of degradation. The discussion highlights the robustness of Rope Memory as a storage medium, despite its low density and production challenges.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of microcomputer architecture
  • Familiarity with Rope Memory technology
  • Knowledge of data preservation techniques
  • Awareness of historical computing milestones
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the manufacturing process of Rope Memory
  • Explore the applications of Transformer Read-Only Storage
  • Investigate data recovery methods for vintage computing hardware
  • Study the impact of early microcomputers on modern technology
USEFUL FOR

This discussion is beneficial for historians of technology, computer engineers, and enthusiasts interested in the evolution of storage media and the legacy of early computing innovations.

enorbet
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Greetings all
In the mid 1960s Raytheon developed the first microcomputer chip ICs and Rope Memory that would get us to the moon. Apparently within a mere 10 years these historic small steps that were more than a decade ahead of their time and of considerable historic value were auctioned off as scrap metal. A few have been recovered and analyzed and the data is intact after 50 years of abuse. Sound interesting? Check this out

http://hackerpublicradio.org/eps.php?id=2150
 
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Computer science news on Phys.org
Rope memory is an extremely robust storage medium. As long as you don't break any of the wires or lose any of the cores you are good to go. Unfortunately it is rather low density and very difficult to produce and the data is fixed at manufacture.

Here is a commercialized variation of it:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transformer_Read_Only_Storage

BoB
 
Thanks for that, rbelli1, if you follow the youtube links a few of the included clips from raytheon show the modules manufacturing process. It's quite fascinating to me, and, yes, production was really difficult. Indeed, it was only a first small step and rendered fairly quickly obsolete with good reason. In this case the longevity was certainly enhanced by immense investment of cash into exotic materials and construction designed to withstand extreme temperatures, vibration and radiation. Some of the clips involve hardware inspection, including XRay examination and others the software extraction which is to be made public. Quite the find as well as a worthy project. :)