🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <1990Jul28.185054.2595@sco.COM> seanf@sco.COM (Sean Fagan) writes:
>In article <1990Jul27.010930.12560@lth.se> bengtl@maths.lth.se (Bengt Larsson) writes:
>>Yes, of course some architectures made (make??) it somewhat difficult 
>>to have recursive procedures (the ones that stored the return adress in
>>the first word of the subroutine comes to mind).
>
>"somewhat more difficult."  That's *all*.
>
>The CDC Cyber 170 machines (of which most people know I am a big fan 8-))
>have no stack, and, on a subroutine call, write an instruction into the
>first word of the subroutine ("jump <retaddr>," basicly).
>
>Yet:  Pascal was developed on this machine (literally!  Wirth used a Cyber
>for the first implementation of Pascal).  Algol and Simula run quite well on
>it.  So does PL/I (although the compiler eats up all of memory 8-)).  There
>are even a couple of C compilers out there, I've been told.

Hmmm.  The Cyber 170's were *soooo* cool.  Personal bias:  I learned tons 'o
stuff hacking on a 170/730D running NOS2.1 whilst in school.  The systems guys
who looked after the machine really taught me a lot.  

Anyways, I've seen the Pascal compiler (ETH Zurich) in source for this machine.
It's an interesting read.  My big question though:  who does C compilers for
this machine?  Are they produced by CDC, or through a 3rd party.  Putting a 
C compiler on one of those suckers had to have been a *really* nasty job, 
especially since NOS (at least back then) tended to regard users who wanted
to use real upper/lower case ASCII as 2nd class citizens.

I disagree with you about PL/I for these machines.  PL/I was an intolerable
pain, terribly slow, and not even a good subset G implementation.  Pascal
was done very well though.

Semi-serious question:  Does anybody know where you can buy these old
machines?  My alma mater sold theres for scrap for around $5,000.  We
were all bummed out, because we nearly bid for it, but figured that it
would go for 10-20K.  Anyways, if I found one selling at junk 
prices.....  Of course, the 440 Volt 3 phase power requirements (not
to mention the water cooling) would make it difficult to operate. :-)

Oops, sorry.  I'm off the subject.  Maybe we should direct followups
to comp.dinosaurs :-).  Talk of Cybers makes my little techo-heart go
pitter-pat (or is that "blip-blip" :-) ).

>Sean Eric Fagan  | "let's face it, finding yourself dead is one 

/Chris

---
Christopher Gillett               gillett@ceomax.dec.com
Digital Equipment Corporation     {decwrl,decpa}!ceomax.dec.com!gillett
Hudson, Taxachusetts              (508) 568-7172