Re: Since then...

[Ed Tecot <tecot@cs.stanford.edu>]

On Wed, May 20, 1998 7:18 PM, Thomas Epp <mailto:tom.epp@juno.com> wrote:
>
>On Wed, 20 May 1998 07:24:46 -0400 (EDT) Ron Dozier 
<dozier@udel.edu>
>writes:
>
>... SSI means nothing to me. Versatile Data Systems on 9th and CDS in
>Poly
>Drummound Center does.  CDS made the systems.
...
>
>...............................................................................
>.
>
>You're roght, Ron.  It was a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away.  I
>worked for Versitile Data Systems in Wilmington.  SSI (System Services,
>Inc.) was the place in Elsmere that I mentioned.  I think I got that job
>through some contacts my mom had, but I'm not sure.

Yes, this is correct.  SSI was near the Elsmere bridge and was very close
to McDonalds and Cassanova's (this is important due to the vast quantity of
McDonald's game pieces we acquired).  Most of the work was on IBM 5100's
and S/34's.

>p.s.  The "Delta connection" was, if I remember right, Ed Jones.  I'm not
>sure how Ron or Anne heard about the company or that they were looking to
>hire programmers, but I'm pretty sure I learned of them through
>Ed.	-TWE

I doubt there's any real connection between Delta and SSI other than
coincidence.  I think I started after Tom left, but I vaguely remember
coming across some of his code back then...  Ed Jones apparently was the
master of outplacement - he got me a job at a direct mail company in New
Castle.  The business was in shambles and I don't remember if I ever got
paid, but it was certainly a worthwhile experience.

>p.p.s.  I don't remember the details of the boxes at VDS (they were built
>"in-house", I think), but at the asphalt plant I programmed IBM 5110's. 
>They were an all-in-one box with system board, floppy drive/s (I think
>they were 5 1/4", but they may still have been 8"), keyboard and a puny
>5" monochrome CRT all put neatly in a clunky box weighing about 30-40
>pounds!  And, no, they weren't even battery operated or
>"portable".	-TWE

 The 5100 and 5110 did have an 8" floppy - IBM didn't adopt a 5.25" until
the PC.  The difference between the 5100 and the 5110 was one had RPG
built-in and the other had IBM BASIC (I don't remember which).  The last
time I saw one of these was at the science museum in Baltimore around 1983.


_emt