Adding a RAMAC storage device to an IBM 1401 was an option - the 1405.

see IBM 1401 as found in "A Third Survey of Domestic Electronic Digital Computing Systems" Report No. 1115, March 1961 by Martin H. Weik, published by Ballistic Research Laboratories, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland

The RAMAC was the first Random Access Disk Storage Device, developed by an IBM team at 99 Notre Dame Ave, San Jose, CA - It is the direct ancestor of the hard drive in your computer - the improvement numbers in weight, density, reliability, cost, access speed, data rate, storage capacity, ... boggle the mind and won't be repeated here. But this is the founder of the dynasty.

See RAMAC History, Documents and Events.

- September 2006 is the 50th Anniversary of the announcement of the RAMAC as a product :-))

Several RAMACs still exist, here are pictures of the storage device at IBM Almaden Research Center, San Jose, CA

Ed,

	Yes, we do indeed have a RAMAC here at Almaden Research: It greets me every morning in the lobby: It's actually 1/3 of the engineering prototype unit (the power supply and control racks are in storage elsewhere). The entire RAMAC was in Dave Bennett's B50 store room previously, and was hostage to Hitachi lawyers for some time.
	Here's a scan of a vintage photo of the entire engineering prototype:
	And a recent picture of Dave [Bennet] , when it was in B50, posing next to its internal drum buffer:
	And its impressive bank of power supply meters:

- Robert

IBM Almaden Research Center, San Jose, CA
Office:  408-927-1739
Mobile: 408-679-0976
robgarn@us.ibm.com

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