April 1, 1972: Write Only Memory 233
Embedded Geek writes "While digging around Jack Ganssle's site, I came across an amusing prank from days gone by. In 1972 Signetics recognized April Fools day by printing a full color datasheet (scanned sheet 1 and sheet 2 here) for a Write-Only Memory (which accepts data but never reads it back), a considerable effort when documents were made via literal "cut and paste". Packed with jokes both obvious (a graph of "number of pins left versus number of insertions") and subtle ("Vdd = 0V +/- 2%") it's worth a chuckle."
Essential For... (Score:4, Funny)
Websurfing done right! StumbleUpon [stumbleupon.com]
Re:Essential For... (Score:1)
No, the interpreter needs to read the code...
Actually, I think most PCs already include this chip. The contents of the RAM get copied to it every time the programs crash. Should I tell the newbies where their unsaved Word docs went?
Re:Essential For... (Score:4, Funny)
@PERL."is"->$the_easiest->$language->$Eva r
# As with all other perl code
# I find documenting this unnecessary
shhhs... (Score:2, Funny)
Re:shhhs... (Score:2, Funny)
Re:shhhs... (Score:2)
Possible Application (Score:1)
Holy cow (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Holy cow (Score:1, Funny)
Re:Holy cow (Score:1)
I want to know... (Score:1)
Re:I want to know... (Score:2)
If I recall correctly, both Signetics and National Semiconductor managed to sneak a few bogus datasheets into their released databooks from time to time. I first saw of this particular one a couple three years ago; I think someone posted a link to it on sci.electronics.design or a similar newsgroup.
This is perfect for my project. (Score:5, Funny)
Re:This is perfect for my project. (Score:4, Interesting)
Many years ago, I used to go to DEC Users Group meetings. In the evenings, we'd have "sessions" where the operating system developers would come around and tell war stories. I remember one time that one of the RSX-11 (one of the PDP-11 operating systems) developers was telling us that writes to the Null device (NUL:) was found to be considerable slower than writes to real hardware. Therefore, they had begun development of a null hardware device to be plugged into the system. It was to be called the NUL-11 board, and they had developed quite a bit of specification material for it, unfortunately lost (this was in the early '80s). Very fun stuff.
Re:This is perfect for my project. (Score:1)
Re:This is perfect for my project. (Score:2, Funny)
a true WOM (data get stored, but can't be read), or is it a "fake" optimized WOM (data never gets stored,
Interesting point. So to be true Write Only Memory the data has to be there, but impossible to read.
My proposal for a true WOM with infinite storage capacity: A poverful laser poining into space, turn the laser on and off to encode 1 and 0. With enough power and careful aim to not hit a black hole or anything the data will be there forever, but nobody will be able to read it back
Potential problem are: If faster than light travel becomes available we could race past the beam and read the data. Aliens could read the data if they fly into the beam. Even in space the beam could hit a few atoms, and the light could be 'reflected' back at earth and read
And in case anyone wonders: Yes I'm a nerd, and thyis stuff matters.
Re:This is perfect for my project. (Score:2)
That's what the FPGA-accelerated /dev/null is for.
It's a cover story for a faster random number generator.
Any mathematician will tell you that if the alien has a sufficiently large string of random numbers, or even enough digits of pi, he does have your random number sequence.
You just have to make sure you can build your strings of random numbers faster than he can.
Random-numbers-arms-race, anyone? :)
Just what the MPAA and RIAA ordered (Score:5, Funny)
There are a few applications for write-only memory (Score:3, Interesting)
One existing application is on debit cards (cards that are charged with a cash amount on the card itself).
Re:There are a few applications for write-only mem (Score:1)
Explain again how you read from this write-only memory then?
Re:There are a few applications for write-only mem (Score:2)
so in fact if you get ANYTHING out of a device it does in fact have a read capability.
Re:There are a few applications for write-only mem (Score:2)
Re:There are a few applications for write-only mem (Score:1)
Re:There are a few applications for write-only mem (Score:1)
the internal password. Letting you know the results of the comparison
contradicts the assumption that the device is write-only (by reading
at least one bit of information). That's what he was saying.
Re:There are a few applications for write-only mem (Score:2)
If you got hold of a card (and had the resources) you could still read and brute force the hash of course, or force a valid response at the appropriate point. However, that leaves the physical problem of reassembly of an IC with onboard EEPROM, and even if the card can still be made to fit into the readers it's probably going to be unreadable. All of which needs to be done before the card is cancelled. Quite an elegant solution for those "ultra-paranoid locations" really. ;)
Re:There are a few applications for write-only mem (Score:2)
In the Jargon Lexicon (Score:5, Informative)
This has been in The Jargon Lexicon [tuxedo.org] for ages. Don't all slashdotters know of it?
Re:In the Jargon Lexicon (Score:1)
Re:In the Jargon Lexicon (Score:5, Funny)
I must have missed the part on this site where it says, "YOU MUST READ THE ENTIRE JARGON LEXICON BEFORE READING SLASHDOT."
Re:In the Jargon Lexicon (Score:2, Funny)
You must read the ENTIRE jargon lexicon before reading Slashdot
Re:In the Jargon Lexicon (Score:2)
Actually, since the published versions of the Jargon file are called the Hacker's Dictionary (the latest being the New Hacker's Dictionary), a dictionary is a compendium of language common to a group, and the Slashdot readership are hackers, for the given definition of hacker in the dictionary, then the Dictionary *is* required reading - or at least reference.
Sort of like how knowing english for www.slashdot.org or knowing japanese for www.slashdot.jp are requirements.
--
Evan (Don't take this post too seriously - I'm justifying for justifications sake)
Re:In the Jargon Lexicon (Score:2)
Yup. That's basic schooling, my friend, at least in the schools I went to. I also had to learn the fundimentals of latin and greek. Reading the encyclopedia (finished the World Book, easy reading, and got 2/3rd of the way through the Britannica) was my idea.
--
Evan
Re:In the Jargon Lexicon (Score:2)
latin
greek
What schools did you go to? =)
IHBT. IHL. HAND.
Re:In the Jargon Lexicon (Score:3, Funny)
Even if us lowly posters haven't (although you should), it would be nice if our nerd-overlord editors who put the story on the front page have given the jargon file a quick skim.
"Breaking news on Slashdot! Some programmers use funny words like 'foo' and 'bar' in their code, instead of *real* variable names!"
zzzzzzz....
Here's a mirror (Score:1)
Pic 1 [oliverobrien.co.uk] Pic 2 [oliverobrien.co.uk]
Re:Here's a mirror (Score:1, Informative)
Write only memory? (Score:5, Funny)
Crap goes in, but doesn't seem to go out until you have to reinstall a month later
Re:Write only memory? (Score:2)
>
> Crap goes in, but doesn't seem to go out until you have to reinstall a month later
Or the abuse department at any Chinese ISP, the difference being that crap comes out.
'Read protection' (Score:4, Informative)
Re:'Read protection' (Score:1)
Nifty idea when memory was so limited!
Re:'Read protection' (Score:2, Interesting)
for i=49152 to 51200: poke i, peek(i):next i
But if you wanted to turn of the ROMs to use the underlying stuff in RAM, this is what you had to do, if you wanted access to some of that ROMs code. Weird, but interesting.
Ah the creativity of limited resources.
Re:'Read protection' (Score:2)
That's great. (Score:2)
I know I love buying new hardware, sticking it in my machine, and never hearing from it again.
Advances in cooling (Score:5, Funny)
How's this for speed? (Score:2, Funny)
Mirror (Score:1, Redundant)
Ahead of their time (Score:1)
So, they had overclockers back in 1972? Nothing new under the sun, I guess...
I have only read only memory (Score:1)
Aren't we about... (Score:1)
Huh? (Score:3, Funny)
DAT tape (Score:2)
DAT is MORM (mangle-on-read memory). or maybe TORM (tangle-on-read memory).
There is write only memory (Score:1)
Re:There is write only memory (Score:1)
Latex slip-ons!!! (Score:3, Funny)
Favorite WOM feature (Score:3, Funny)
Write many, read never... (Score:5, Funny)
Heck, they even coded it such that it has infinite capacity, or a very high capacity in any case.
Could someone dedicate a machine for a few years with a shell script running an infinite loop writing data to
Re:Write many, read never... (Score:2)
Do you think /dev/null is a /dev of holding? Will the data all disappear when it reaches capacity?
Speaking of 'of holding', one of the funniest references I recall was on the Twin Peaks mailing list way back when. Someone pointed out that a Laura said she kept some casette tapes in her bedpost, but that her bedpost was too small. The author suggested that she must have 'a bedpost of holding'.
Re:Write many, read never... (Score:2)
There really is a ton of stuff. Append only to prevent that cronjob from wiping it out when it only has > instead of >>.
Re:Write many, read never... (Score:2)
Re:Write many, read never... (Score:2)
Actually, yes. While running an ISP back in 1996, I had a support tech who managed to overwrite
All I can say is thank God he realized he did it. I can't even begin to guess how long it would have taken me to find it.
We never did figure out how he managed to do that and could not duplicate the problem after we fixed it. I think we gave him a raise.
The incident even inspired us to start a contest for our support techs. We offered a cash prize to the first one who could root our shell server. The only restriction was that they weren't allowed to access console or sniff packets. Sadly, no one collected the prize, although one managed a nearly perfect forgery of an email from root (an actual email from root was their goal.)
Re:Write many, read never... (Score:2)
Boom.
System stayed running for about 5 seconds and then crashed hard. couldn't duplicate the problem.
Re:Write many, read never... (Score:2)
:-) Oh well, it's your party
Re:Write many, read never... (Score:2)
In Dos 5 you couldn't send more than 32megabytes to \dev\null, it would crash.
I can one up that. . (Score:2)
Sadly, nothing happened. I guess that's what I get for putting 1/2 gig of RAM in a machine that's primarily used for surfing the web . . .
Later that day... (Score:3, Funny)
After laughing it up for a bit, their boss walks in. He is visibly angry.
My favorite quote.. in 'Special Features' (Score:2)
Because of the employment of the signetics' proprietary Sanderson-Rabbet Channel the 25120 will provide 50% higher speed than you will obtain.
Err .. mmmkay ??!?!?
The original Bill Gates Quote: (Score:4, Funny)
Baz
many companies have done this... (Score:2)
It isnt new, but that one is obviousally old enough to possibly be the first....
Now I really do feel old ... (Score:3, Funny)
On a similar line, somewhere at home I have a spoof datasheet from Nominal Semidestructors giving information about the new Polish Operational Amplifier.
What I'm missing, however, is my copy of the table of variation of pi with temperature and pressure, which I believe was given to all engineering freshmen at Cambridge at one time. If anyone can help me to locate a new copy I'd be grateful. Please reply here or email me (see homepage).
Footnote 6... (Score:4, Informative)
Yes, it's now a very old joke, but it's been fun watching a new "generation" rediscover it every five years or so.
MPAA is interested... (Score:2)
Sure, there are some pesky customer satisfaction issues, but let's keep our priorities straight. OK?
Funny, this seems familiar (Score:2)
The really funny thing is, that while this created a bit of a message thread on
Making fake releases is a tradition many organizations (and
Another write-only tech (Score:2, Funny)
JEDEC compliant? (Score:2)
So this is essentially the same as... (Score:2)
In case anyone cares (Score:3, Informative)
1Z2Z vacumn tube (Score:2, Funny)
If humor exists prior to the Google...can anyone laugh?
Next week on /. (Score:2)
An oldy but goodie (Score:3, Funny)
I know people who have copies of that data sheet.
Another one that was good for a laugh was the ``Damn Fast Op-Amp'' that appeared in a normal device catalog from one of the major electronics device manufacturers (like Signetics, Fairchild, National, or maybe even AMD -- I'm leaning toward the latter but I can't remember any more. Darned cobwebs.) I used to enjoy asking interns to look up some information for me in the catalog and wait to see if they noticed it. You could tell if they did from the laughter.
Another one from the same time frame (1980-ish) was the announcement -- on official IBM product sheets -- of a Galactic Edition' of the VM/CP (or was it VM/CMS?) operating system. This included advanced features like the one that allowed users to create and destroy their own planetary systems and such.
Oh those were the days. Bet you don't see stuff like this appearing in official company literature any more. Hell, there'd probably be someone suing the company after they'd been traumatized upon seeing such offensive material (like `damn') or claiming fraud when their personal solar system didn't appear.
Re:An oldy but goodie (Score:2)
-tim
Re:An oldy but goodie (Score:2)
Geez, I hate to reply to my own post but here's a link to a page with the text of the fictional IBM operating system -> http://www.bixoft.nl/english/humor.htm [bixoft.nl]. The product was an improvement over the virtual machine concept in which one could now have a virtual universe. You'll have to read it to appreciate it (or not).
Later...
I've seen 'em. (Score:2)
write once, read never (Score:2)
It was just an Easter Egg; I suppose some Unix geek at Atari just decided it needed its own equivalent of
/Brian
press release (Score:3, Informative)
I thought... (Score:2)
I thought write-only memory was Microsoft's solution to the problem of memory protection in Windows.
You know, misbehaving applications accidentally used to scribble on other apps' memory spaces. When Microsoft forced the PC industry to install banks of WOM, suddenly every crash became an application error--those applications were not conforming to the Windows API. Instead of scribbling on another application's memory, the app should have been scribbling to the WOM.
It was brilliant because overnight Microsoft foisted millions of dollars in OS support expenses on to application vendors.
Actually there are good uses for WOM (Score:2)
Of course this means you need a specialized chip, and not a general CPU, which is overkill in many cases..
Kjella
the real write-only memory (well, sorta) (Score:2, Interesting)
Not truly write-only memory (in the sense that you could get a value, albeit a painfully useless one), but it seems to come close to the spirit.
I remember this! (Score:2)
Nice to see this come up again!!!! (Score:2)
ttyl
Farrell
I remember this! (Score:2)
Who says engineers aren't funny (at least to each other)?
works great for backing up, not restoring... (Score:2)
Re:Lost memory (Score:1)
I don't remember.
actually, it should be "I know, but I can't tell you"
Re:Lost memory (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Lost memory (Score:2)
Re:wow (Score:4, Funny)
Re:wow (Score:5, Funny)
However, through the use of simple mathematics I've deducted a formula that explains this habit-
sP + aF / P = Need of being the first poster
You see, the persons small penis (sP) factor is added to his annoyance factor (aF) and divided by any real personality this poster may have (P), creates the probability of having a first post, as well as the need to be the first poster.
Therefore, the average first poster believes that by being the first poster, he will enlarge his penis size. Unfortunately, this is most opposite of what *really* occurs.
fP = P / sP - wFOP = First poster's penis size.
As you can see, the first post has the effect of actually *shrinking* his penis, as the personality factor is divided by his existing small penis, minus an additional amount based on the annoyance factor of the first post itself. So, in reality, these people are causing long-lasting damaging effects to their genitals.
And to answer your question, no, I DON'T have anything better to do than post nonsensical, offtopic garbage on a message board.
Re:wow (Score:2)
Re:wow (Score:2)
Are you saying many first posters are women?
Re:Signetics was not ALWAYS joking! (Score:2, Interesting)
OTOH, I've never encounterd a write-only memory before. The Amiga had a write-once memory (kind-of silly really) but that's not the same.
BTW: Great post C.T., it sure brought back a lot of memories digging through hardware specs. from my embedded days! : )
Re:Funny schematics (Score:2)