{"id":7207,"date":"2022-01-27T10:50:13","date_gmt":"2022-01-27T10:50:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2022\/01\/27\/hardware-boffin-working-on-ibm-s-360-model-50-simulation-the-register\/"},"modified":"2022-01-27T10:50:13","modified_gmt":"2022-01-27T10:50:13","slug":"hardware-boffin-working-on-ibm-s-360-model-50-simulation-the-register","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2022\/01\/27\/hardware-boffin-working-on-ibm-s-360-model-50-simulation-the-register\/","title":{"rendered":"Hardware boffin working on IBM S\/360 Model 50 simulation \u2022 The Register"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Hardware guru Ken Shirriff is working on a simulator<\/a> for the IBM S\/360 Model 50 mainframe, launched in April 1964. His program runs the original machine’s microcode so it can control and be controlled by an original front panel.<\/p>\n

Circuitry-wizard Ken has featured on The Reg<\/em> quite a few times, from reverse-engineering a Sinclair calculator<\/a> to rendering Mandelbrots on an IBM mainframe<\/a>. His latest exploit is a microcode-level simulator for a mid-range System\/360, one of IBM’s most significant machines ever<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This reporter wrote about the importance of the S\/360<\/a> a decade ago. It’s the computer that introduced the idea of software compatibility, as well as the computer on which virtualisation was invented. It not only predates microprocessors, but also the minicomputers that influenced the first microcomputer OSes such as CP\/M. 1960s big iron is seriously weird and different \u2013 all modern computers, from a Raspberry Pi to a rack full of x86-64 servers, are identical twins compared to these things. Still, even today their descendants manage your bank account and your airline bookings.<\/p>\n

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