Elliott Brothers: Difference between revisions
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'''Elliott Brothers''' (also known as '''Elliott-Automation''') was a British computer company. | '''Elliott Brothers''' (also known as '''Elliott-Automation''', after 1957) was a British computer company. | ||
It is perhaps best-known to history for the [[ALGOL]] [[compiler]] for the Elliott 803, largely written by [[Tony Hoare]] (who had been hired by Elliotts as a [[programmer]] in August 1960). His experiences with ALGOL were an inspiration for his famous 1980 [[Turing Award]] lecture, ''The Emperor's Old Clothes'' - see link below). | |||
==History== | |||
The original parent company had been founded in 1804 as an instrument manufacturer; by the end of that century, they had branched out into telegraph and electrical equipment. Naval fire control equipment became a specialty at the start of the next century, bringing them (as Elliott Brothers (London)) expertise in electro-mechanical [[analog computer]]s. | |||
At the end of the Second World War, that firm started a branch, at Borehamwood in Hertfordshire, to work on a new generation of [[electronic]] fire control equipment, including [[radar]], for the Royal Navy. Originally [[analog]], that work soon delved into [[digital]] techniques. In 1950, Elliott Brothers began to look for civil markets where they could use their new digital expertise, and they started to make computers, and investigate the usage of computers in manufacturing automation. | |||
Although initially fairly successful, in 1967 business difficulties forced the commercial data processing element of Elliott Brothers to be merged into [[English Electric Computers]]. (Shortly thereafter, in an attempt to form a strong national computer manufacturer, English Electric itself was merged with [[International Computers and Tabulators]], to form [[International Computers Limited]].) | |||
The remaining [[real-time]] systems part of Elliott-Automation was merged with similar elements of [[General Electric Company]], [[Associated Electrical Industries]], [[Marconi]], and English Electric in 1969, to form Marconi Elliott Computer Systems Limited; later re-named [[GEC Computers]] in 1972. | |||
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* Simon H. Lavington, [https://books.google.com/books?id=Dhk9wHXfQMkC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false ''Moving Targets: Elliott-Automation and the Dawn of the Computer Age in Britain, 1947–67''], Springer, New York, 2011 | * Simon H. Lavington, [https://books.google.com/books?id=Dhk9wHXfQMkC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false ''Moving Targets: Elliott-Automation and the Dawn of the Computer Age in Britain, 1947–67''], Springer, New York, 2011 | ||
==External links== | ==External links== | ||
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* [https://www.billp.org/ccs/A104/ 803 ALGOL] - manual for Elliott 803 [[ALGOL]] | * [https://www.billp.org/ccs/A104/ 803 ALGOL] - manual for Elliott 803 [[ALGOL]] | ||
* [https://dl.acm.org/doi/pdf/10.1145/358549.358561 The Emperor's Old Clothes] | * [https://dl.acm.org/doi/pdf/10.1145/358549.358561 The Emperor's Old Clothes] | ||
* [https://www.ancientgeek.org.uk/ICL/An_ICL_Anthology.pdf An ICL Anthology] - contains Elliott Brothers-related content on pp. 70-72 (of the PDF) | |||
* [https://www.ancientgeek.org.uk/ICL/Another_ICL_Anthology.pdf Another ICL Anthology] - contains Elliott Brothers-related content on pp. 50-51 | |||
[[Category: Manufacturers]] | [[Category: British Manufacturers]] | ||
Latest revision as of 19:54, 26 September 2026
Elliott Brothers (also known as Elliott-Automation, after 1957) was a British computer company.
It is perhaps best-known to history for the ALGOL compiler for the Elliott 803, largely written by Tony Hoare (who had been hired by Elliotts as a programmer in August 1960). His experiences with ALGOL were an inspiration for his famous 1980 Turing Award lecture, The Emperor's Old Clothes - see link below).
History
The original parent company had been founded in 1804 as an instrument manufacturer; by the end of that century, they had branched out into telegraph and electrical equipment. Naval fire control equipment became a specialty at the start of the next century, bringing them (as Elliott Brothers (London)) expertise in electro-mechanical analog computers.
At the end of the Second World War, that firm started a branch, at Borehamwood in Hertfordshire, to work on a new generation of electronic fire control equipment, including radar, for the Royal Navy. Originally analog, that work soon delved into digital techniques. In 1950, Elliott Brothers began to look for civil markets where they could use their new digital expertise, and they started to make computers, and investigate the usage of computers in manufacturing automation.
Although initially fairly successful, in 1967 business difficulties forced the commercial data processing element of Elliott Brothers to be merged into English Electric Computers. (Shortly thereafter, in an attempt to form a strong national computer manufacturer, English Electric itself was merged with International Computers and Tabulators, to form International Computers Limited.)
The remaining real-time systems part of Elliott-Automation was merged with similar elements of General Electric Company, Associated Electrical Industries, Marconi, and English Electric in 1969, to form Marconi Elliott Computer Systems Limited; later re-named GEC Computers in 1972.
Further reading
- Simon H. Lavington, Moving Targets: Elliott-Automation and the Dawn of the Computer Age in Britain, 1947–67, Springer, New York, 2011
External links
- Elliott Brothers (London) Ltd. and Elliott-Automation
- Elliott - manuals, marketing material and captioned images for several Elliott Brothers computers
- 803 ALGOL - manual for Elliott 803 ALGOL
- The Emperor's Old Clothes
- An ICL Anthology - contains Elliott Brothers-related content on pp. 70-72 (of the PDF)
- Another ICL Anthology - contains Elliott Brothers-related content on pp. 50-51
