[rescue] Cold War hardware movements - was Re: WTB: Functioning VAX machine

[Jochen Kunz]

On Mon, 20 Feb 2012 02:01:13 -0500
Toby Thain <toby at telegraphics.com.au> wrote:

> Plus, given the importance of PDP-11 clones, the Soviet bloc must have 
> had hardware at some point; if the embargo had been perfect they'd have 
> invented their own architecture, I speculate. They certainly were 
> capable of it. It's not clear what real benefit compatibility is, under 
> the circumstances.
Well. Software. If you have compatible hardware you can reuse all the
software. Software is much easier to replicate then hardware. But they
replicated the hardware too. There where several clones of western CPUs
in the east. If you can make your way through German I can recommend:
http://www.robotrontechnik.de/
That is a really good collection of information about computing in East
Germany through the 40 years it existed.
-- 


\end{Jochen}

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