IN OUR SPRING 2015 ISSUE, we asked you to tell us more about this 1974 photo of BU’s computer and systems lab. When we shared the photo on Facebook, it sparked a cascade of memories. From the comments and letters (below) we learned the possible names of two of those in the photo: Gerardo “Gerry” De La Vega (CAS’78), in the white cap, and David E. Hollowell (ENG’69,’72, Questrom’74), in the dark jacket. (If you disagree, please let us know.)
As an economics major, Class of ’77, this picture brings back a lot of memories. I was a former pre-dental student who decided to major in economics. One of the core requirements back then was to take a basic programming course, PL1. That is when I was introduced to the teletype room. Fortunately, I had many friends who were engineering majors and well versed in computer programming. The College of Business Administration and College of Liberal Arts students ran all of their programs on the IBM mainframe.
After getting a seat at one of the machines and inputting your program, the system would produce a JCL deck, basically a bunch of punched cards (machine readable) that were input into an IBM card reader that was run by a systems administrator. The system would then produce a lot of paper that either accepted or rejected the code you had written. If not, you had to wait in line and get another seat at a workstation and start all over again. Very frustrating, to say the least. I hated programming; thank God for the Dugout!
That intro-level course and the whole programming course provided me with enough knowledge to conceptually under- stand the computer thing back in the day. After some entry-level jobs, I was accepted into the digital equipment field sales development program and my professional career was forever changed. That picture brought back some great memories. Who would have thought that the agonizing and frustrating time spent in that building on Cummington Street was the beginning of a professional life that was meant to be? John Barbaro (CAS’77)
I read with interest “From the Archives” (Spring 2015). My daughter, Rayne, a post-production supervisor for a reality TV show in Los Angeles, is a 2005 graduate of CAS. Your magazine is mailed to her at my home and I enjoy reading it.
I am a 1971 graduate of Boston University. After a year of graduate school in Connecticut, I returned to BU where I worked in various administrative positions, from 1972 to 1982 and again from 1987 to 2012.
In the fall of 1968, I was a federal Work-Study student at the Academic Computing Center, where I was a computer operator changing tapes on tape drives and feeding IBM punch cards as input to an IBM 360 Model 40 (I believe) mainframe. It was during that time that I first came across David Hollowell, the tall person with the suit and mustache standing in the photo.
Dave earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in engineering, as well as an MBA, at BU. He also was a vice president of administration at BU, but left in 1988 to join the University of Delaware as a senior vice president for administration. He stepped down as executive vice president and treasurer of the University of Delaware in 2007. Dave is a member of Boston University’s Board of Overseers. Bill Gasper (Questrom’71)
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We welcome your letters, which will be edited for clarity and length for this publication. We also welcome your story ideas. Please email the Editor at thurston@bu.edu or write to the Editor, arts&sciences, Boston University, 985 Commonwealth Avenue, Room 105E, Boston, MA 02215. Please include your name, address, and BU school(s) and class year(s).