University of Saskatchewan Computer Museum

University of Saskatchewan Computer Museum We exist to acquire, preserve, display, interpret, and celebrate computing history, on behalf of the University of Saskatchewan.

Throwback Thursday: 40 Years Ago, new VAX computer The August 1986 newsletter front cover photo showed the new VAX 8650 ...
08/06/2026

Throwback Thursday: 40 Years Ago, new VAX computer

The August 1986 newsletter front cover photo showed the new VAX 8650 sitting in the entrance of the Arts Building on its way to be installed in the Arts Computer Centre. This new machine would be called SKYRUS and would be combined with the existing VAX 8600, SKYWAY, to more than double the academic computing capacity. The resulting VAXcluster was called SKYBLU.

How powerful was it? SKYRUS had a whopping 48 megabytes of memory compared to SKYWAY’s 32 megabytes, giving 80 megabytes total for the VAXcluster. An active interactive user would use about 1–2 megabytes. So this VAXcluster would comfortably handle 50–60 simultaneous users, and perhaps up to 80 with noticeable slowdowns at peak times. Most CPU-intensive programs were scheduled to run overnight as batch jobs when the system was less busy to avoid overloading the system.

Four additional disk drives were added. The article didn’t specify, but they were likely RA81s at 456 MB each. The cluster also added one TU78 tape drive capable of using 1600/6250 bpi tapes. This supplemented the existing 800/1600 bpi TU77 tape drives. These higher-capacity drives allowed nightly backups to complete more quickly.

Overall, the new VAXcluster more than doubled the capacity of the previous system, just in time for fall classes.

07/30/2026

Throwback Thursday: 45 Years Ago - The best $50,000 ever spent.

45 years ago on July 27, 1981, a new company called "Microsoft, Inc." — incorporated just a month earlier on June 25, 1981 — paid $50,000 to Seattle Computer Products for a "Quick and Dirty Operating System" called 86-DOS. 16 days later, rebranded as PC-DOS 1.0, it launched as the operating system for IBM's new Model 5150 PC. The machine that launched the modern personal computer industry.

IBM expected to sell 241,000 units over five years. They sold that in about 2 years, and roughly 3.3 million of the original Model 5150 from 1981 to 1987.

86-DOS was written in six weeks from April to June 1980 by Tim Paterson at SCP to test their new 8086 board. They originally wanted to use Digital Research's CP/M-86, but it wasn't ready, so they wrote their own.

IBM started "Project Chess" in July 1980 to build its first PC from off-the-shelf parts. They also approached Digital Research to license CP/M-86, but the deal stalled over an NDA and licensing terms.

IBM was already working with Microsoft on BASIC and other languages. Microsoft offered to provide an operating system too. After IBM agreed, Microsoft licensed 86-DOS from SCP and hired Tim Paterson to adapt it for the IBM PC. Then, just before launch, Microsoft bought 86-DOS outright.

If IBM had known about Seattle Computer Products it probably would have worked with them directly.

If Digital Research had CP/M-86 ready for SCP’s board, or had handled its meetings with IBM better, we could all be running CP/M today.

But instead chance and good timing put Microsoft in the right place to become the dominant software company it is today.

07/16/2026

Throwback Thursday: 40 Years Ago - Computer Security

In the July 1986 DCS Newsletter the “Letter from the Director” was already tackling an issue we still have today: balancing easy access to campus computers with keeping data secure.

As desktop workstations and campus networks grew, the department realized security was everyone’s job. Policies were developed, like no passwords given or changed over the phone. People had to present ID in person or wait for paper mail. Frustrating then, but necessary.

The letter also noted existing policies “were neither extensive nor stringent enough” so new security policies were planned, along with training to build “security consciousness” on campus. That work eventually led to the IT security policies and training still in use today, like the Computer Use Policy and Data Use Policy.

Different technology but the same message. 5 1/4 inch diskettes are long gone, but protecting accounts and data is still the priority.

07/09/2026

Throwback Thursday: 40 Years Ago (July 1986) - Document Transfers

In July 1986, U of S Computing Services ran a "Micro to Mainframe Text Transfer" service. If you’d written your paper in WordStar or Multimate on an IBM PC, you’d walk your 5.25" floppy to the Computer Centre and staff would convert it to WORD-11 on the campus VAX. WordPerfect users weren’t left out either — you just had to "Save As WordStar" first, and then they could convert it from there.

It sounds simple now, but moving files between programs back then was genuinely difficult. WordStar, Multimate, WordPerfect, and WORD-11 all used completely different formatting codes, and there was no universal "Save As." Plus, printer drivers lived inside each program, not in the operating system. So what looked perfect on your PC printer could print as a mess on the VAX laser unless someone manually translated the bold, underline, and tabs.

That’s why Computing Services did it for you, and why they asked for advance notice. "No rush jobs." It was free, but it took time and people.

Today we drag, drop, and email. In 1986, "file transfer" meant a walk across campus with a disk and hoping the formatting survived.

07/02/2026

Throwback Thursday: 35 Years Ago - Computing Changes

The July 1991 DCS newsletter theme was Change: not only changes to computers, but also the changes these computers were causing in society. The issue also covered major changes to computer operating systems.

The article “Macintosh System 7.0 Group Update Kit” explained how networked campus Macs could connect to a “System 7.0 Server” file share. It included documentation, a HyperCard compatibility checker, and a System 7.0 CD-ROM image with the installer. System 7.0 had launched in May 1991. The article was notable not only for System 7.0’s new features — virtual memory, file sharing, and QuickTime — but also for showing how a major OS upgrade could be distributed over a campus network.

The article “MS-DOS 5.0 Announced” described the features in MS-DOS 5.0, released in June 1991. Highlights included the DOS Shell user interface, use of high and upper memory on 80286 and 80386 PCs, a task swapper to jump between programs, a full-screen editor, file-recovery tools like UNDELETE and UNFORMAT, and online help.

The article “OS/2 2.0” looked ahead to OS/2 2.0, which was in beta in July 1991 and shipped in April 1992. It summarized OS/2’s history and limitations to that point, and outlined new features in 2.0: full multitasking for MS-DOS and Windows 3.0 programs with up to 640K of base memory per session, use of extended and expanded memory, and native 32-bit applications for larger, more complex programs.

Together, the three articles show how computing was moving beyond single-tasking floppy-boot systems. Graphical user interfaces, multitasking, and networking were becoming standard, and hard drives and network cards were now expected.

06/25/2026

Throwback Thursday: 30 Years Ago - U of S distributes munitions to campus

The May/June 1996 DCS newsletter cover article was “PGP (Pretty Good Privacy)”. This was a public key encryption system developed by Phil Zimmermann in the USA (although the newsletter incorrectly named “Phil Katzman”, probably conflating him with “Phil Katz” who created PKZIP). The article noted PGP was now available on Duke (Ultrix), Skyfox (VAX/VMS), plus versions for MS-DOS and Macintosh.

PGP used public key cryptography: to send a file, you’d encrypt it with your friend’s public key and only their private key could decrypt it. These keys ranged from 512-bit low commercial grade, to 768-bit high commercial grade, to 1024-bit military grade.

That strength was the problem. In the USA, any encryption over 40-bit was classified as “munitions” under ITAR Category XIII(b) and banned from export. US law treated export to Canada of PGP software as an “illegal munitions export” - the same legal category as gr***de launchers. A federal US crime.

The FBI started investigating Phil Zimmermann in 1993 after he posted PGP source code online in 1991. Their technical problem: he posted it on US servers, so he hadn’t physically “exported” anything. As the case dragged on, Zimmermann wrote and in June 1995 published the book “PGP Source Code and Internals” by Philip R. Zimmermann, MIT Press, ISBN 0-262-74017-6. Its 667 pages contained the full PGP 2.6.2 source code.

Because it was a book, not software, it was protected as free speech and legal to export. It was illegal to mail a floppy disk with the code, but legal to mail a 667-page book with identical code. That killed the case. Charges were dropped Jan 11, 1996. Export rules weren’t relaxed until Jan 12, 2000.

So that is how the University of Saskatchewan ended up distributing and promoting use of American munitions on campus.

Throwback Thursday: 40 Years Ago (June 1986) - Laser PrintingThe front cover photo for the June 1986 Department of Compu...
06/18/2026

Throwback Thursday: 40 Years Ago (June 1986) - Laser Printing

The front cover photo for the June 1986 Department of Computing Services newsletter featured the new Talaris T1200 laser printer. This was a 300 dpi laser printer which could print both HP PCL and PostScript at about 8 pages per minute (ppm). Along with the printer, DCS offered an option to have printouts delivered by campus mail instead of going to the Arts Computer Centre to pick them up.

Demand for the flexibility of laser printers for document processing and graphical output was growing. However, at the time laser printers were very expensive. The HP LaserJet printer cost about $3,500 (equivalent to about $10,650 in 2026). The Apple LaserWriter cost about $6,800 (equivalent to over $20,000 in 2026). It made sense for Computing Services to purchase a central laser printer for campus, rather than having every department buy its own. The T1200 cost about $6,000 (about $18,000 in 2026), but could print both HP and PostScript, so was perfect for a campus-wide printer.

The DCS newsletter in 1986 was developed using the WORD-11 word processor printing to a Diablo printer - a daisy-wheel printer similar to an electric typewriter with a serial port - which limited what could be printed. By January 1987 the newsletter had switched to the Scribe word processor printing on the T1200, which allowed more attractive fonts and easier inclusion of photographs and charts. Eventually as laser printer prices decreased and the campus network improved, departments started purchasing their own printers and the central T1200 was decommissioned.

06/11/2026

Throwback Thursday: 40 Years Ago.

The June 1986 DCS Newsletter article “SKERTH” reported that the VAX 11/785, formerly known as “SKOPE,” had been moved to the computer facility in the newly completed Geology building and renamed “SKERTH.” It was to be used primarily for Earth Sciences research.

Ethernet had not yet been installed in the building, so SKERTH was not initially connected to the campus network. Users accessed it from computer terminals in Geology rooms 117, 119, and 125, which housed the computer room. A terminal cluster was also being installed to support an additional 16 terminals in room 111 by the end of June. Once the Ethernet connection was completed, SKERTH became available to the entire campus.

06/04/2026

Throwback Thursday : 35 Years Ago - Macintosh System 7.0

The June 1991 DCS Newsletter ran the article “System 7.0 Announced for Mac.”

System 7.0, released 13 May 1991, was a major upgrade from System 6.0.x. System 7.0 introduced numerous user‑interface improvements, file sharing, TrueType fonts, optional virtual memory (allowing larger programs to run using disk‑backed swap), 32‑bit addressing, and improved inter‑application communication.

A major change was that multitasking became built into the operating system. In System 6.0.x, cooperative multitasking was provided by the separate MultiFinder add‑on.

System 7.0 required at least 2 MB of RAM (4 MB recommended) and was intended to run from a hard disk for practical use; a floppy‑only setup was impractical. The oldest Macintosh that could run System 7.0 in practice was the Macintosh Plus, provided it had a hard drive and sufficient RAM; the original 128K and 512K models could not run System 7.0 without hardware upgrades that brought them to Plus‑equivalent specifications.

The article also noted that DCS was offering four seminars on System 7.0 in June 1991, run by students hired through the Apple Research Partnership Program (ARPP).

System 7 made multitasking and other modern features standard for Macintosh users, accelerating adoption in education and business by making the Mac more capable for multitasking workflows, desktop publishing, and networked file sharing. System 7’s combination of usability and expandability marks it as a turning point in classic Mac OS history.

05/28/2026

Throwback Thursday: 40 Years Ago - Internet Mail

The following is a “Consulting Corner” question from the May 1986 DCS Newsletter. It shows how people were still trying to wrap their head around how the new NetNorth network worked. Imagine that, mail that gets delivered even if the system is currently down!

Question:

When I send mail to a computer on another campus, and the computer line is unavailable, is the mail stored and re-sent later, or do I have to re-enter it myself?

Answer:

Mail sent to remote computers over NetNorth is stored until the link is re-established and then it is sent. This is contrary to what happens when you send mail to local machines on campus.

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