[time-nuts] 60Hz mains clocking in computers

[Uno Staver]

We bought a bunch of PDP-11/23s as part of a communications network 
system. After successful acceptance tests in Boston, MA, the systems 
were commissioned in Sweden with 50Hz AC. To make the RSX-11M O/S 
time-of-day clock run OK, the developers modified some piece of code.


Uno Staver


Bill Hawkins wrote:
> Yes, the whole PDP-11 line used line frequency to update the real-time
> clock.
> DEC had a real-time operating system, very useful for emulation of analog
> process control functions. Of course, an RTOS is more than just the clock.
> 
> We lost that anchor to real time in the interval between the PDP-11 and
> NTP or SNTP when the microprocessors took over. All crystal clocks; time
> of day (social time) set by anybody with a wristwatch.
> 
> Bill Hawkins
>  
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: paul swed
> Sent: Saturday, December 12, 2009 10:09 PM
> 
> Talk about dusting off the old brain cells.
> I seem to remember that the PDP 11/23s did indeed allow the use of the 60 hz
> as an interrupt for precision timing if that can actually be said. The data
> general nova 1200 also. Boy thats exposing ones age.
> 
> On Sat, Dec 12, 2009 at 8:29 PM, Colby Gutierrez-Kraybill <
> colby at astro.berkeley.edu> wrote:
> 
>> I'm trying to get to the bottom of whether or not any computing equipment
>> made around the advent of UNIX systems (or any time-slicing system) used
> the
>> mains cycles of 60Hz as phase lock for the internal system clock.  My
> guess
>> is that perhaps they did not as the computing logic is DC based, but, I
> have
>> memories of using an 68000 based UNIX system that I thought had its
> internal
>> clock based off of the 60Hz mains...  Not sure the vendor anymore.
>>
>> Thanks,  Colby
>>
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> time-nuts mailing list -- time-nuts at febo.com
> To unsubscribe, go to https://www.febo.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/time-nuts
> and follow the instructions there.