Image of label
from Computer Museum in Boston
(now in Computer History Museum, Moffett Field, California)
TX-0-label
Image of label
from Computer Museum in Boston
(now in Computer History Museum, Moffett Field, California)
Text from label is below.
(The TX-0 is not on display.)
TX-0
Lincoln Test-Experimental
Computer Model 0
Considered offsprings of the
Whirlwind computer, the TX-0 (on
display on the mezzanine) and
the TX-2 computers were among
the most advanced machines of
their time. TX-0 was developed at
Lincoln Laboratory by some of the
members of the Whirlwind development
team. It was designed to
verify that a 64 Kword core memory
could be built and to test out
a new type of transistor circuitry,
using the Philco SBT100. Surface
barrier transistors costing $80.
each, greatly simplified transistor
circuit design.
The TX-0 served as a prelude to
the construction of the TX-2, a
large-scale 36-bit computer.
The short word length, high
speed operation and interactive
features of the Whirlwind and
TX-0 computers greatly influenced
early minicomputer design efforts
at Digital. Some of the engineers
and programmers who worked
on these systems joined Digital in
the early 1960s, and brought with
them this rich tradition.
Operational
1957
Word length
18 bits
Speed
83,000 additions per second;
programmed multiply and divide
Primary Memory
64K Magnetic Core Memory
Additional parity bit,
6 microseconds read-rewrite time
Instruction Set
Three addressable instructions,
one programmable
Technology
3,500 Philco L-5122 Surface
Barrier Transistors
Input
250 lines per second Photo Reader;
manual Flexowriter and Toggle Switch
Output
10 characters per second Flexowriter,
CRT display.
Size
Occupied a 200 square foot area
Power (watts)
1,000 watts
Number Produced
1, originally installed at Lincoln Laboratory,
Lexington, Massachusetts.
Use
An experimental digital computer used to test
advance design techniques; including very large
core storage and transistor circuitry.