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It's a direct descendant, really almost a twin, of the SAGE air defense system from the 1950s. This was one of, if not the, first large-scale networked computer

• kens 8y ago
  Although SABRE uses ideas (like networking) from SAGE, the two systems are entirely different. SAGE used the AN/FSQ-7, a monstrous vacuum tube system. SABRE used transistorized IBM 7090 mainframes, a descendant of the 709 mainframe. You can see parts of the SAGE system at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View. An interesting feature of the displays is a "light gun", used by the weapons director to select targets. Also of interest is the cigarette lighter and ashtray built right into the console.
  • derefr 8y ago
    > light gun The same technology in light pens and the NES Super Scope, involving a sensor in the gun and a sync-pulse on the display? Or was this an actual example of a CRT being used as a dual-mode transducer, both producing light and observing “unexpected” light above-and-beyond that produced?
    • kens 8y ago
      The light gun had a sensor. When it was pointed at something on the display, it would trigger at the time the item was redrawn, indicating to the system which item was detected. Details: http://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/CasteelSageRecollections.html#LightGun http://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/CasteelSageRecollections.html...
  • scrumper 8y ago
    Thanks for the correction, Kens. Been a while since I read about this and I'd conflated some of the similarities down to a direct lineage. But you're right, it's really just a conceptual lineage.