People who used to do watches. Similar size issues.
On April 25, 2023 3:38:16 PM GMT+02:00, Paul Koning via cctalk <cctalk@classiccmp.org> wrote: > > >> On Apr 25, 2023, at 9:25 AM, KenUnix via cctalk <cctalk@classiccmp.org> >> wrote: >> >> Rod, >> >> Never heard the singing. Switch room's were too noisy. >> >> It always amazed me that those core planes were hand wired. I guess by >> little people. Or, big people with little hands. > >People (often women I think) with steady hands. I think the setup used a work >surface with notches in it corresponding to the positions of each core. They >would pour a cup full of cores onto that and use gentle shaking and vibrating >to get all those notches filled, then pour off the excess. Next, threading >the cores much like you thread a needle -- except that the wire is stiffer >than thread and thus easier to make it go straight through. > >One wonders if this could have been done by machine. Probably yes, but given >the volumes involved I suppose the capital investment wasn't justified. > >The more amazing kind of hand-wired core is core ROM, where the wires weave in >and out of various cores according to the required bit pattern. Getting that >right seems like a far more complicated craft. > > paul > >
