Difference between revisions of "IBM 7090"
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| physical address = 15 bits (32K words)  | | physical address = 15 bits (32K words)  | ||
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| − | | logic type = alloy-junction [[transistor]]s  | + | | logic type = [[Standard Modular System|SMS]] cards using alloy-junction [[transistor]]s  | 
<!-- | design type =  -->  | <!-- | design type =  -->  | ||
| clock speed = 4.4 µsec (basic add instruction)  | | clock speed = 4.4 µsec (basic add instruction)  | ||
| memory speed = 2.2 µsec  | | memory speed = 2.2 µsec  | ||
<!-- | memory mgmt = bounds register -->  | <!-- | memory mgmt = bounds register -->  | ||
| − | | operating system = SOS, IBSYS, IBJOB, [[CTSS]]  | + | | operating system = SOS, IBSYS, IBJOB, FMS, [[CTSS]]  | 
| predecessor = [[IBM 709]]  | | predecessor = [[IBM 709]]  | ||
| successor = [[IBM 7094]]  | | successor = [[IBM 7094]]  | ||
Revision as of 14:47, 13 November 2017
| IBM 7090 | |
| Manufacturer: | International Business Machines | 
|---|---|
| Year Announced: | December, 1958 | 
| Year First Shipped: | November, 1959 | 
| Year Discontinued: | July, 1969 | 
| Form Factor: | mainframe | 
| Word Size: | 36 bits | 
| Logic Type: | SMS cards using alloy-junction transistors | 
| Clock Speed: | 4.4 µsec (basic add instruction) | 
| Memory Speed: | 2.2 µsec | 
| Physical Address Size: | 15 bits (32K words) | 
| Operating System: | SOS, IBSYS, IBJOB, FMS, CTSS | 
| Predecessor(s): | IBM 709 | 
| Successor(s): | IBM 7094 | 
| Price: | US$2.9M (and up) | 
The IBM 7090 was IBM's first commercial transistor scientific mainframe (built at a time when computers for scientific and business computing used separate instruction sets).
It was upwardly compatible with its vacuum tube technology predecessor, the IBM 709. It had a performance of six times that of a 709, but only cost one third more.
It was designed hurriedly to meet the requirements of Sylvania, the data processing subcontractor for the BMEWS missile warning radar network, which was under a mandate to use transistor computers.
For this reason, it relied heavily on engineering from the STRETCH project; units such as power supplies, back panels and the memory unit were transplanted from STRETCH.
In addition to its use for the ground-breaking CTSS operating system, a pair of 7090's were used in the equally influential American Airlines SABRE real-time airline reservation system.
Further reading
- Charles J. Bashe, Lyle R. Johnson, John H. Palmer, Emerson W. Pugh, IBM's Early Computers, MIT Press, Cambridge, 1986
 
External links
- 7090 Data Processing System - IBM Archive page
 - From the IBM 704 to the IBM 7094