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Computing Classic: The 1954 SAGE Protected the US From Invasions That Never Came

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Brian Lam
06/24/09

In reply to Computing Classic: The 1954 SAGE Protected the US From Invasions That Never Came
Thanks for the comments in this thread, everyone. I could not hope to know more about this than all of you. Except that clown guy. (Kidding, clown guy. Clowns scare me, I am just terrified of you.)
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not_a_virus.exe.vbs
06/21/09

In reply to Computing Classic: The 1954 SAGE Protected the US From Invasions That Never Came
Cool computer interface: In the main first pic, on the console , to the left of that thing that looks like a laser gun, keep going to the left and you see a hole with a silver lip, that is actually a cigarette lighter.
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heroineworshipper
06/20/09

In reply to Computing Classic: The 1954 SAGE Protected the US From Invasions That Never Came
It's nothing compared to what Japan has to do to protect itself from N. Korea. Thank God US doesn't have to do that crap anymore.
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Nick
06/20/09

@heroineworshipper: actually, we have several bases located in s. korea and japan which are considered american soil. if ever you get a chance -- one of funniest sites i remember as a child were buildings with trees on top of them. not the most high tech solution against attack, but if it works what the hay
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dinsey
06/20/09

In reply to Computing Classic: The 1954 SAGE Protected the US From Invasions That Never Came
I think you'd get a difference in opinion as to the effectiveness of SAGE in the pre-ICBM era. We had a comprehensive supersonic interceptor network, and continuous improvements in SAMs. I wouldn't be so quick to snarkily write it off as obsolete from the beginning.

Sure it's ironic that we had to go to the USSR to get replacement tubes, but that only indicates how much longer the USSR had to live with its own obsolete equipment.

Overall, good article with lots of info. But if you're going to bump it up a notch, please be advised that it's spelled "God", not "god". It's a proper name whether you believe that he exists or not. You don't see people writing "santa claus", do you?
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nutbastard
06/24/09

@dinsey:

"please be advised that it's spelled "God", not "god". It's a proper name whether you believe that he exists or not."

you mean whether He (big H) exists or not.
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Jrsy Devil's Advocate®
06/20/09

In reply to Computing Classic: The 1954 SAGE Protected the US From Invasions That Never Came
Wow, all this talk about SAGE and not one reference to Montauk Project.

I thought there were at least one or two conspiracy wingnuts around here...
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Jrsy Devil's Advocate®
06/20/09

@Jrsy Devil's Food Cake®: * reference to the*
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AriellaDrury
06/19/09

In reply to Computing Classic: The 1954 SAGE Protected the US From Invasions That Never Came
You can visit another site in the SAGE chain in the SF Bay Area. Nike Site SF-88 is located in the park area just north of the Golden Gate Bridge. It's open one Sunday each month, and some of the docents are retired soldiers and airmen that used to work there. Details include a large analog fire control computer, and an elevator that lifts 40-foot missiles up out of the ground, which you can ride!
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Brian Lam
06/19/09

@AriellaDrury: WHAT THE HELL! Email me more please!
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Brian Lam
06/19/09

In reply to Computing Classic: The 1954 SAGE Protected the US From Invasions That Never Came
Great info in these comments. Keep em coming. Man, our readers are smart!
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dingus
06/19/09

In reply to Computing Classic: The 1954 SAGE Protected the US From Invasions That Never Came
One crazy fact about this machine is that for every one of those terminals there were two magnetic drums for each console. These drums were the wax cylinder phonograph equivalent to a modern hard disk, storing data on the magnetic surface of a rotating drum with tens of fixed heads going down its side. Each drum buffered data from the computer for the displays. The computer would write data to the drum only when it changed, and the console would constantly refresh from the drums.

In effect, this was electromechanical video memory.
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dingus
06/19/09

@dingus: Also, IIRC, both displays used a character mask for text on the screens instead of a character generator ROM like more recent computers. This was done by defocusing an electron beam a bit and passing it through a metal stencil with all of the possible characters. Steering electrodes before and after the stencil would select the character and put it back on path to hit the phosphor wherever the computer wanted to print it.

The radar display mixed text and graphics by having one gun and electrode set for vector graphics and a gun / electrode / mask set for character generation. Operating these together gave true GUIs with graphics and sharp text mixed on one screen.
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Brian Lam
06/19/09

@dingus: how do you know so much about this thing? email me!
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Terry
06/19/09

In reply to Computing Classic: The 1954 SAGE Protected the US From Invasions That Never Came
Brian -

This is - by far - the best piece I've ever read here at Giz. While this site is always entertaining, it's usually not terribly informative.

Thanks.
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FightingChance
06/19/09

@Terry: Yeah, I thought I was at Boing Boing for a moment.
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Brian Lam
06/19/09

@FightingChance: well that's a nice thing to say. I love Boingboing.
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four12
06/20/09

@Terry: While this is a nice article and brings to light information about the SAGE and the CHM, a majority of the text of the article is copy/paste from the CHM website.
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Brian Lam
06/24/09

@four12: I beg your pardon? Actually, I copied and pasted none of it. I paraphrased it, with the links below, and the leading quote was from Dag spicer, the lead curator at the CHM.
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Brian Lam
06/24/09

@four12: PS, I hate clowns.
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