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The machine that made the Moon missions possible
We've all been there: you're working on something important, your PC crashes, and you lose all your progress.
Such a failure was not an option during the Apollo missions, the first time ever that a computer was entrusted with handling flight control and life support systems—and therefore the lives of the astronauts on board.
Despite an infamous false alarm during lunar descent that sent Commander Neil Armstrong's heart rate racing, it was a resounding success that laid the groundwork for everything from modern avionics to multitasking operating systems.
Here are some of the ways the Apollo Guidance Computer (AGC), millions of times less powerful than a 2019 smartphone, shaped the world we live in today:
- Microchip revolution
- Multitasking
- Real-time input
- Passing the test
(Score: 2, Troll) by The Mighty Buzzard on Wednesday July 17 2019, @04:21PM (8 children)
It still wasn't as important as the coffee makers that fueled the engineers.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 2) by Freeman on Wednesday July 17 2019, @04:36PM
No coffee makers were injured in the production of this system. Now imagine, if you will, the future!
"Coffee Makers" https://www.amazon.com/keurig-coffee-makers/s?k=keurig+coffee+makers [amazon.com]
Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"
(Score: 5, Funny) by Gaaark on Wednesday July 17 2019, @04:43PM (6 children)
Except they faked the coffee makers too: it was all chicory.
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
(Score: 2) by All Your Lawn Are Belong To Us on Wednesday July 17 2019, @05:26PM (5 children)
As long as it wasn't Sanka. And in space, no OJ... Tang! :)
This sig for rent.
(Score: 2) by JNCF on Wednesday July 17 2019, @05:50PM (3 children)
OJ might have a blast in space, no one can hear you scream.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Wednesday July 17 2019, @06:58PM (1 child)
Wouldn't have worked. The gloves would have fit.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 2) by Gaaark on Wednesday July 17 2019, @07:04PM
And in a Bronco, no one can hear you hiding like a little baby girl.
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
(Score: 3, Funny) by Osamabobama on Wednesday July 17 2019, @10:16PM
They tried that in Capricorn One [imdb.com], but funding was cut so they had to fake the 'space' part.
Appended to the end of comments you post. Max: 120 chars.
(Score: 3, Funny) by datapharmer on Thursday July 18 2019, @12:45AM
Obviously you never saw Capricorn one.
(Score: 4, Informative) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday July 17 2019, @04:40PM
Playlist has 25 videos of the AGC restoration. Haven't watched them all, but they are kinda fascinating. You get a look inside the box, and closeups of the components. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KSahAoOLdU&list=PL-_93BVApb59FWrLZfdlisi_x7-Ut_-w7 [youtube.com]
(Score: 5, Insightful) by DannyB on Wednesday July 17 2019, @05:08PM
Even the ground based equipment, rooms full of computers. Computers that had generally well under a megabyte of memory. And rooms of disk packs that all combined would fit on a modern USB stick on your keychain.
It was amazing how much they did with what we consider to be so little.
And then came Microsoft. Showing how little could be done no matter how much computer resources you give it. Personally, I can say that Windows Server 2016 is astonishing in this respect compared to Windows Server 2012, compared to Windows Server 2008r2.
When trying to solve a problem don't ask who suffers from the problem, ask who profits from the problem.
(Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday July 17 2019, @05:26PM
*nods* Been there.
Then I switched to Linux.
(Score: 3, Touché) by nitehawk214 on Wednesday July 17 2019, @06:35PM (6 children)
Every time a fluff article says your smartphone is more powerful than the Apollo Guidance Computer, I am going to punch a baby.
"Don't you ever miss the days when you used to be nostalgic?" -Loiosh
(Score: 3, Touché) by takyon on Wednesday July 17 2019, @08:50PM (2 children)
Ok, but then you'll be in prison for baby punching, and they'll just switch to "your smartwatch is more powerful than the Apollo Guidance Computer" and "your IoT-enabled electronic bidet is more powerful than the Apollo Guidance Computer".
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2) by Osamabobama on Wednesday July 17 2019, @10:19PM (1 child)
I'm interested in what might be more powerful than the Apollo Guidance Computer that would be available in prison.
Appended to the end of comments you post. Max: 120 chars.
(Score: 3, Funny) by takyon on Wednesday July 17 2019, @10:25PM
The lock on your cell door, IoT-enabled paper shiv...
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday July 18 2019, @02:05AM
(Score: 2) by VLM on Thursday July 18 2019, @01:38PM (1 child)
I'm a little more of a pacifist and like to ask questions like "If your iDoodle has a bazillion times the power of the AGC, when why are you here doing nothing instead of visiting planets like star trek? Its your problem to explain why its so much more powerful yet visually seems pretty feeble"
(Score: 2, Funny) by nitehawk214 on Friday July 19 2019, @12:39AM
Or, at the very least, ask why are you not out punching babies?
"Don't you ever miss the days when you used to be nostalgic?" -Loiosh
(Score: 2) by VLM on Thursday July 18 2019, @01:40PM
Clickbait missed the most interesting aspect which is historical, back before STEAM and online patching, shipped software was hardware. Game cartridges and things. You can't patch a PROM. Shipping unpatchable software was interesting as a tech or strategy.