The recent thread concerning Wang Laboratories and Tee Shirts reminded me of the first single-user computer system my school purchased in the mid 1970's. The computer in question was a Wang 2200A Minicomputer. We acquired it (used, I believe) in 1976 or 1977. It replaced a set of Teletypes used to access a local college timesharing system (a Univac 90/60).

Despite the jokes, I remember the Wang as a tremendous improvement over the Univac. Response times were unbelievably fast - and the system rarely crashed or "locked up" due to communication problems.

The computer was built like a tank. A heavy steel console and monitor rested on a compact desk. The power supply and CPU sat on a shelf beneath the desktop and were accessed from the rear. The system sounded "like a nuclear reactor" or "jet helicopter" when started. Closing the toggle switch under the desktop operated a heavy-duty relay that "clacked!" as it energized a number of noisy cooling fans in the power supply and CPU. Even when brand new, the fans and transformers in the power supply made a distinctive whine.

After a few moments, the Motorola CRT display warmed up and the

message appeared. BASIC was in ROM so there was no discernible bootstrap delay; as soon as the CRT warmed up, you were ready to begin computing.

The keyboard we had was truly awful. Wang apparently didn't want their computers to compete with their word processors. The layout resembled certain programmable calculators of the period: four zones grouped by function

Zone One was an eight by four array of square key switches labeled with BASIC keywords. The keywords were typed on cardboard and inserted beneath clear key caps. The Roman Alphabet and certain punctuation marks were also generated by pressing zone one keys in conjunction with a shift key. The keys were in alphabetical order running left to right then top down.

Zone Two was a numeric keypad arranged in typical calculator fashion with the Execute Key on the lower right.

Zone Three included arithmetic operators, trigonometric functions, and more punctuation marks.:

Zone Four was a vertical four key arrangement of editing and error correction keys.

Four individual control keys were arranged around the four basic keyboard zones: Shift Lock, Reset, and two Shift Keys.

Above the main keyboard there were sixteen programmable function keys that the user could define within a program.

The CRT display was a simple monochrome NTSC Composite Video monitor mounted in an armored case with a cassette tape storage unit located on the lower right side. It could display 16 lines of 64 characters each and pretty much worked like a "glass Teletype" with no special formatting commands or graphics that I can recall. Our particular unit was very touchy in terms of the contrast and brightness control - you learned to be a very careful knob twiddler or you couldn't read the screen!

The BASIC language spoken by the Wang was heavy on math and pretty weak in terms of text manipulation. I seem to remember that the default string length was 16 characters, but that you could allocate up to 64 characters for a "long string." I can't remember if Wang basic had any intrinsic Matrix Functions.

For some reason, I kept a few pages of notes on the Wang's general specifications; I'll include some of them here, even though this is getting to be a v e r y l o n g p o s t:

Sorry for the long-winded post and thanks for your attention.

---
Micheal H. McCabe
p98mccabe@aol.com
Sunday, September 27, 1998
alt.folklore.computers

"The Wang PCSII is a compact, quick access, low-cost minidiskette desk-top microcomputer. Residing within the PCSII is a central processor standard 8K-byte random access memory (RAM) expandable to 32K. This unit utilizes the CRT or optional plug-in hard-copy printer for output."

---Page 353

"An example of a mini-minicomputer system is the Wang PCS-II system with an on-line matrix printer. See figure 14-1. The PCS-II is a portable computer possessing 16K bytes of memory and incorporating a CRT having a capacity to display 1,920 characters on its screen. Situated atop the PCS-II are two minidiskette drives which provide an on-line storage potential of approximately 250,000 characters per diskette and interact directly with the system. The on-line printer enables a printing speed of 120 characters per second and permits the system to output data displayed on the CRT and print any required reports.

The PCS-II system has been effectively applied to inventory, accounts payable, and cash flow as well as to numerous other basic accounting situations. One of the more interesting PCS-II applications is a patient billing system. This billing system permits doctors and dentists to prepare medical insurance claims while also preparing individual statements for services rendered to patients. Patient data need only be entered once for the necessary paperwork to be prepared."

---Page 453 to 454
Fuori, William F; Introduction to Computer Operations (Second Edition), Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 1981, ISBN 0-13-480392-2, LOC QA76.F84

"To generally summarize the operational factors related to working with a minicomputer system, we shall briefly examine the configuration of the Wang WCS/30 (figure 14-5). This system will enable us to highlight major devices with which the operator may be involved.

The Wang WCS/30 is a minicomputer system possessing a CPU of approximately 16K (expandable to approximately 32K) of RAM and 42.5K of ROM in which the BASIC instruction set is stored. This system supports the use of a matrix printer, floppy disks, an on-line disk drive, and a CRT. The placement of the WCS/30's CPU on the table in which the is situated adds to the system's compactness.

The CRT and its keyboard serve a dual purpose. The terminal may be used for the entry and display of data used in processing. All data entered into the system will appear on the screen of the CRT, which has a capacity for 1,024 characters. The CRT also serves as the system's console and, as such, has 16 special function keys which can be used to control its activities.

The 16 function keys are operationally similar to many of the keys found on other consoles. When depressed, they permit the operator to initiate predefined processing activities which have been hard-wired into the system. These keys may be used to perform a system reset prior to the start of processing, establish the conditions necessary to insert a file diskette, or set the initial conditions for a specialized instruction set to be made available for processing. Alth

Data keyed via the terminal may be stored in either the on-line disk or diskette. The flexible diskette has a capacity of over 262,000 bytes of storage. These diskettes may be inserted or removed by the operator as dictated by processing. One of the operator's prime concerns is to insure that the correct diskette has been properly mounted within the disk drive unit.

Three on-line disk storage facilities may be incorporated into the WCS/30. Storage capacities of 2.5, 5, and 10 million bytes of storage are available to support the system's processing needs.

The wire-matrix printer is available with the WCS/30 to provide a hard-copy capability. A maximum line length of 132 characters, with printing speeds of between 45 and 250 lines per minute, is possible. Through special control options, the printer can be instructed to list entire programs, record data entered via the keyboard, or print the data displayed on the CRT.

Prior to processing, the operator must ready the line printer by mounting the correct paper stock. Once processing has commenced, the operator should be prepared to handle any error conditions that might arise.

Essentially, the WCS/30 is compact enough for one person to operationally handle. Operational procedures should be clearly defined and carefully documented, so that the operational requirements of a given WCS/30 system will not be dependent on any one individual. In all probability, any operator assigned to operate a WCS/30 would possess both operating and programming skills."

---Page 463 to 465
Fuori, William F; Introduction to Computer Operations (Second Edition), Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 1981, ISBN 0-13-480392-2, LOC QA76.F84