7 ms·

Virtual Punch Card Creator

84 points by eniac111 2y ago

ChrisArchitect 2y ago
Fun. Related: Tristan Davey's Punch Card Archive https://punchcards.tristandavey.com/ https://punchcards.tristandavey.com/
masswerk 2y ago
There's also a more advanced version that lets you experience the joys of punch-card programming with modern languages (JS, Perl, Python (mostly Python2)): https://www.masswerk.at/card-readpunch/ https://www.masswerk.at/card-readpunch/ (Demo-stacks are available for download on the landing page.)
timonoko 2y ago
Nothing fun about cards. I had my Fortran exercise in a backpack when I bicycled to to Finnish government computer centre. It was raining, so the cards turned little bit mushy and jammed the machine. Sabotage and high treason, basically.
nils-m-holm 2y ago
Here is a postscript file that generates punch card images: http://t3x.org/lfn/punchcard.eps http://t3x.org/lfn/punchcard.eps Context: http://t3x.org/lfn/index.html http://t3x.org/lfn/index.html
masswerk 2y ago
BTW: This is from 2012. There's also a corresponding card reader to interpret these cards: https://www.masswerk.at/cardreader/ https://www.masswerk.at/cardreader/ This was a spin-off of a now long defunct custom Google search interface. Compare (while Google closed their public search API in 2016, there are a few cached search results available; users of a certain age may also try "list games"): https://www.masswerk.at/google60/ https://www.masswerk.at/google60/
thih9 2y ago
It’s possible to draw a heart: /KCDEOXOEDCK/ Wider: /KLCDDENOXONEDDCLK/
- teddyh 2y ago
  Verified: $ echo /KCDEOXOEDCK/ | bcd ________________________________________________ //KCDEOXOEDCK/ | | ]]] ]]] | | ] ] ] ] | |] ] ] | |]11111111111]11111111111111111111111111111111111| |2]222222222]222222222222222222222222222222222222| |33]3333333]3333333333333333333333333333333333333| |444]44444]44444444444444444444444444444444444444| |5555]555]555555555555555555555555555555555555555| |66666]6]6666666666666666666666666666666666666666| |777777]77777777777777777777777777777777777777777| |888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888| |999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999| |________________________________________________| $ echo /KLCDDENOXONEDDCLK/ | bcd ________________________________________________ //KLCDDENOXONEDDCLK/ | | ]]]] ]]]] | | ]] ]] ]] ]] | |] ] ] | |]11111111111111111]11111111111111111111111111111| |2]222222222222222]222222222222222222222222222222| |33]]33333333333]]3333333333333333333333333333333| |4444]]4444444]]444444444444444444444444444444444| |555555]]555]]55555555555555555555555555555555555| |66666666]6]6666666666666666666666666666666666666| |777777777]77777777777777777777777777777777777777| |888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888| |999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999| |________________________________________________|
GnarfGnarf 2y ago
It is possible to store three decimal digits as three groups of four bits, in every 12-row column. You can insert and delete when duplicating cards, by pressing with your fingers on the source or target card while typing on the keyboard.
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]
amenghra 2y ago
If you are into punchcards, I wrote a multipart blog post about recovering and running some 40-years old code which was originally on punch tape. See https://www.quaxio.com/kaleidoscope_part1/ https://www.quaxio.com/kaleidoscope_part1/
- teddyh 2y ago
  It seems that you have not yet gotten to the part of actually reading from the tape.
  - amenghra 2y ago
    In part 1, I build an emulator to run the code. In part 2 I verify that the punchcard data matches the source code I found online (https://www.quaxio.com/kaleidoscope_part2/ https://www.quaxio.com/kaleidoscope_part2/). I performed this "reading from the tape" operation using inkscape since I only have a picture of the tape, I don't actually have a copy of the tape. In part 3 I show the structure of the code (https://www.quaxio.com/kaleidoscope_part3/ https://www.quaxio.com/kaleidoscope_part3/).
    - teddyh 2y ago
      Then you did your reading of the tape without writing anything about the process of reading it, in which case your blog posts seems less than relevant to this story.
MisterTea 2y ago
Next up is a virtual punch card dropper where you play the equivalent of 52 card pickup but with more cards and they must be shuffled in-order. Fun for all ages.
teddyh 2y ago
bcd(6) <https://manpages.debian.org/bookworm/bsdgames/bcd.6.en.html https://manpages.debian.org/bookworm/bsdgames/bcd.6.en.html>
teddyh 2y ago
It’s missing a card reader to jam by feeding your lace card into it.
mncharity 2y ago
What I remember most is the sound[1][2]. chunk chunk chunk chunk [1] typing after a restoration https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWLptl0cKSc&list=PL-_93BVApb59yIG2RELONEYOzJ3lMXsqV&index=12&t=1382s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWLptl0cKSc&list=PL-_93BVApb... [2] normal fast typing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnnGbcM-H8c&t=28s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnnGbcM-H8c&t=28s
acrophiliac 2y ago
Oh my gosh, the flashbacks this triggered. It was the audio that did it. Amazing.

84 points by eniac111 2y ago

Fun. Related: Tristan Davey's Punch Card Archive https://punchcards.tristandavey.com/ https://punchcards.tristandavey.com/

masswerk 2y ago

There's also a more advanced version that lets you experience the joys of punch-card programming with modern languages (JS, Perl, Python (mostly Python2)): https://www.masswerk.at/card-readpunch/ https://www.masswerk.at/card-readpunch/ (Demo-stacks are available for download on the landing page.)

timonoko 2y ago

Nothing fun about cards. I had my Fortran exercise in a backpack when I bicycled to to Finnish government computer centre. It was raining, so the cards turned little bit mushy and jammed the machine. Sabotage and high treason, basically.

nils-m-holm 2y ago

Here is a postscript file that generates punch card images: http://t3x.org/lfn/punchcard.eps http://t3x.org/lfn/punchcard.eps Context: http://t3x.org/lfn/index.html http://t3x.org/lfn/index.html

masswerk 2y ago

BTW: This is from 2012. There's also a corresponding card reader to interpret these cards: https://www.masswerk.at/cardreader/ https://www.masswerk.at/cardreader/ This was a spin-off of a now long defunct custom Google search interface. Compare (while Google closed their public search API in 2016, there are a few cached search results available; users of a certain age may also try "list games"): https://www.masswerk.at/google60/ https://www.masswerk.at/google60/

thih9 2y ago

It’s possible to draw a heart: /KCDEOXOEDCK/ Wider: /KLCDDENOXONEDDCLK/

teddyh 2y ago
Verified: $ echo /KCDEOXOEDCK/ | bcd ________________________________________________ //KCDEOXOEDCK/ | | ]]] ]]] | | ] ] ] ] | |] ] ] | |]11111111111]11111111111111111111111111111111111| |2]222222222]222222222222222222222222222222222222| |33]3333333]3333333333333333333333333333333333333| |444]44444]44444444444444444444444444444444444444| |5555]555]555555555555555555555555555555555555555| |66666]6]6666666666666666666666666666666666666666| |777777]77777777777777777777777777777777777777777| |888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888| |999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999| |________________________________________________| $ echo /KLCDDENOXONEDDCLK/ | bcd ________________________________________________ //KLCDDENOXONEDDCLK/ | | ]]]] ]]]] | | ]] ]] ]] ]] | |] ] ] | |]11111111111111111]11111111111111111111111111111| |2]222222222222222]222222222222222222222222222222| |33]]33333333333]]3333333333333333333333333333333| |4444]]4444444]]444444444444444444444444444444444| |555555]]555]]55555555555555555555555555555555555| |66666666]6]6666666666666666666666666666666666666| |777777777]77777777777777777777777777777777777777| |888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888| |999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999| |________________________________________________|

GnarfGnarf 2y ago

It is possible to store three decimal digits as three groups of four bits, in every 12-row column. You can insert and delete when duplicating cards, by pressing with your fingers on the source or target card while typing on the keyboard.

deleted 2y ago

[deleted]

amenghra 2y ago

If you are into punchcards, I wrote a multipart blog post about recovering and running some 40-years old code which was originally on punch tape. See https://www.quaxio.com/kaleidoscope_part1/ https://www.quaxio.com/kaleidoscope_part1/

teddyh 2y ago
It seems that you have not yet gotten to the part of actually reading from the tape.
- amenghra 2y ago
  In part 1, I build an emulator to run the code. In part 2 I verify that the punchcard data matches the source code I found online (https://www.quaxio.com/kaleidoscope_part2/ https://www.quaxio.com/kaleidoscope_part2/). I performed this "reading from the tape" operation using inkscape since I only have a picture of the tape, I don't actually have a copy of the tape. In part 3 I show the structure of the code (https://www.quaxio.com/kaleidoscope_part3/ https://www.quaxio.com/kaleidoscope_part3/).
  - teddyh 2y ago
    Then you did your reading of the tape without writing anything about the process of reading it, in which case your blog posts seems less than relevant to this story.

MisterTea 2y ago

Next up is a virtual punch card dropper where you play the equivalent of 52 card pickup but with more cards and they must be shuffled in-order. Fun for all ages.

teddyh 2y ago

bcd(6) <https://manpages.debian.org/bookworm/bsdgames/bcd.6.en.html https://manpages.debian.org/bookworm/bsdgames/bcd.6.en.html>

teddyh 2y ago

It’s missing a card reader to jam by feeding your lace card into it.

mncharity 2y ago

What I remember most is the sound[1][2]. chunk chunk chunk chunk [1] typing after a restoration https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWLptl0cKSc&list=PL-_93BVApb59yIG2RELONEYOzJ3lMXsqV&index=12&t=1382s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWLptl0cKSc&list=PL-_93BVApb... [2] normal fast typing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnnGbcM-H8c&t=28s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnnGbcM-H8c&t=28s

acrophiliac 2y ago

Oh my gosh, the flashbacks this triggered. It was the audio that did it. Amazing.