Pretty sure it's a prototyping card and I know I have seen that shape. Not sure which yet.

It is about the size and shape of the "core" memory cards in an old Varian computer I used many moons ago. About 64K per card,actually used cores (on the other side in this photos?).

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Odd, I replied to the first 2. I know I did. But the reply has disappeared...

Try again...

Not a Micro-computer card, even Altos.

Nothing to do with firewire, it predates that.

Sorry you're busy Annie. :-)

Not a program card, there's no jumpers on it.

The shape is distinctive, but it's not for prototyping.

It's not a core memory card, the other side is more empty than this side.

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Happy Crunching,

Graham

High end stuff - its made of GRP not FR4 or compressed paper...
The handle on the right of the piccy suggests it is a rack card of some sort.
The notch on the left suggest it is intended only to go into certain slots in the rack.
The shorting links between adjacent groups of connectors suggest it is a dummy card....

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Bob Smith
Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society)
Somewhere in the (un)known Universe?

Rob, gettting warmer.

It will go into any slot, and does have a real function.

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Happy Crunching,

Graham

Does it ground the computer?

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The mind is a weird and mysterious place

The shorting links between adjacent groups of connectors suggest it is a dummy card....

Or a loop-back or continuity tester?

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Donald
Infernal Optimist / Submariner, retired

It doesn't ground the computer, and it's not a card for testing, it forms part of a notmal functioning system.

I think we have established that it is part of a computer, but not a whole computer.

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Happy Crunching,

Graham

Is it a bypass card.

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Admiral, It depends on what you mean by that. Bypass card is not the official card name or the nickname used be engineers.

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Happy Crunching,

Graham

For lack of a better term. I used "bypass". Is the card used to simulate a component being there but isn't.

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OK Chaps, we have a Winner!

Congrats Admiral.

The card is called a Grant Continuity card, or a Bus Grant Card (BG card for short) & it does indeed "bypass" an empty slot.

PM sent


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Boring bit unless you're interested in old computers


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It is used in DEC Computers that use the Unibus backplane structure such as the PDP 11/45. The BG card ensures that two of the control signals (bus grant) are passed down the bus even for empty slots, as this signals are routed up into each card, and stopped if the card needs to use the bus, or passed on if not, thus the cards at the start of the bus (Clock, CPU, Memory) have the priority they need.

Using these BG cards allows cards to removed & added as required withiut completely stripping the system down & replacing every card for each minor change.

If anyone wants more info please ask ... :-D

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Happy Crunching,

Graham

Congrats Admiral!
I knew I had seen that card before. The first computer I worked on was a PDP 11.

This is a wearable mystery tool.

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It's some sort of sexy exoskeleton designed to get her noticed at Comic Con.

Does it take readings on anything, or is it just for decoration?

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The mind is a weird and mysterious place

I am in the mood, to think there is more
than one garment on that lady...



edit:
Wow, think if they put a small calibre
hand gun on the thing.... the mind could
boggle.....

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Are we talking about the entire outfit, or just the dark globes attached to it?

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Donald
Infernal Optimist / Submariner, retired

It is the white filigree and the black globes attached to it.
It does take readings.
And NO this is not at Comic Con.

I found a better picture of the wearable mystery tool.

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I just love tech from CES!

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