IBM System/360 Model 30 Console

Figure 1: IBM Syetem/360 Model 30 Console

Figure 3: IBM Syetem/360 Model 30 Console

Figure 2: IBM Syetem/360 Model 30 Console

The IBM System/360 family was a very significant milestone in computer history. The Model 30 was the smallest member of the family that was fully instruction-set compatible with the other models. The hardware had an eight-bit datapath and the System/360 instruction set was completely microprogrammed along with an emulator for the popular IBM 1401.

The museum has a control panel from a Model 30. Ours is interesting because it has controls not normally found on a Model 30 console. For example, in this picture, note the blank area to the immediate left of the emergency pull" power disconnect (the upper right red button). On our console, this area has controls for what sounds like "expanded storage".

On a personal note, in 1967 and 1968 at IBM, I often used a Model 30 directly and was very familiar with the console.

For more System/360, see our IBM Air Traffic Control Console.