Today I (i.e. John Law) moved the contents of the two cabinets on Floor 3 of Claremont Bridge down into Mezzanine M12.

We have had this display on Floor 3 for about 9 months – we moved it last year from Tower Floor 6, where Roger had set it up for CompSci some years previously. When re-displaying it, we improved the documentation (tidying up Roger’s wording and the labels themselves) and adding a few minor extras. It has ended up a very good display, focusing on core store/memory, disk storage, and “antique I/O”, such as paper tape and cards.

The display will now have to go into mothballs until a space can be found for it. It is likely to be some months before permission is given.

The cabinets will have to be dismantled and carefully stored: this will be a major operation, since not only are they very delicate (perspex), but they are extremely heavy. 2 or 3 people will be needed: the operation will have to be planned carefully.

While emptying the cabinets, I met Paul Kobasa (one of the newer members of our CS History Committee). Although new in NUIT, Paul worked for a long time as the Library’s IT support: he has many contacts, and some very interesting ideas about how we might request help from that direction … to be continued, we hope!

Claremont Tower is now empty of people, and the Bridge is following rapidly. NUIT will be moving to Black Horse House at the start of October. Estates and the contractors will close the complex “to the public” presumably in October. We are hoping that access to our spaces below Basement Level will remain open for enough of us to be able to continue Museum work during the year that they say it will be closed.

To remind you of this display, here’s a combination picture of the two cabinets, showing 90% (I had already started the job) of their contents: