Science Fair Project Encyclopedia
Norsk Data
Norsk Data was a (mini-)computer manufacturer located in Oslo, Norway. Existing from 1967 to 1992, it had its most active period in the decade from the early 1970s to the mid-80s.
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Historical overview
The origins of Norsk Data go back to the development of digital computers at the Norwegian Defense Research Establishment at Kjeller, Norway, where several early computers had been designed, such as the SAM and the SAM 2 aka FLINK.
The success of this program resulted in the founding of A/S Nordata - Norsk Data Elektronikk on August 8, 1967 by Lars Monrad Krohn, Per Bjørge and Rolf Skår. The company became a significant supplier of minicomputers to many research projects, in particular to CERN in Geneva, Switzerland, where they were chosen to produce the computers for their Nuclear Accelerator Project. The other market segments Norsk Data succeeded in were Norwegian municipal administration data centers, as well as parts of the educational and university sector.
After a long period of great success, the Norsk Data "empire" collapsed in the early 1990s, mostly due to not realizing the impact of the PC revolution (as well as the growing competition from UNIX-based workstations). Norsk Data technology was continued by Dolphin.
Hardware
Significant Norsk Data computer models include:
- Nord-1, 16-bit minicomputer launched in 1968, ran TSS (see below) from 1971
- Nord-5, 32-bit supermini launched in 1972
- Nord-9
- Nord-10, 16-bit mini lauched in 1973
- Nord-10S
- Nord-50, second generation 32-bit supermini in 1975
- Nord-100, 16-bit, from 1978
- Nord-100/CE
- ND-100 Compact, last delivery 2001
- ND-120CX
- ND-Satellite
- ND-500, third generation 32-bit supermini in 1981
- ND-505, 28-bit computer allowed through the Eastern bloc embargo
- ND-510/CX
- ND-520
- ND-540
- ND-570/CX, world fastest 32-bit supermini in 1983, 7.1 Whetstone MIPS
- ND-5000, fourth generation 32-bit supermini in 1987
- ND-5700
- ND-5850, fifth generation 32-bit supermini in 1987
- ND-5904
Software
In addition to hardware, Norsk Data also produced a wide range of system and application software:
- TSS – Nord Time Sharing System from 1971
- SINTRAN – Operating system for Nord 10 and later models, version III from 1973, III/VS in 1974
- SIBAS database in 1975
- FORTRAN compiler
- BASIC compiler
- COBOL compiler
- Pascal compiler developed in Kiel, Germany
- PED – Page oriented text editor
- NOTIS – Integrated word processing and database application suite
A point of note: the World Wide Web originated when Tim Berners-Lee wrote the Enquire program on a SINTRAN III mini at CERN.
External links
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