The world of vintage computing has received an exciting development with the creation of a modern compiler for the legendary Cray X-MP supercomputer, breathing new life into these iconic machines of the 1980s. This breakthrough comes at a crucial time, as much of the original Cray software has been lost to history.
A Bridge Between Past and Present
The Amsterdam Compiler Kit (ACK) fork specifically targeting the Cray X-MP and its COS operating system represents a significant achievement in preserving computing history. The project allows modern developers to write programs for these historic supercomputers, with one community member sharing their experience:
30+ years ago I did a week's 'work experience' at the UK offices of Cray Research... my benchmarking program was to calculate all the factorials up to 100!, and then repeat the process a lot.
Historical Impact and Modern Applications
The development is particularly significant because it addresses a critical gap in vintage computing preservation. Chris Fenton, who recovered the only known copy of the COS operating system, expressed excitement about finally having a way to utilize the recovered system. This compiler provides the missing link between modern development environments and the historic hardware, enabling enthusiasts and researchers to create new programs for these machines.
Technical Implementation and Accessibility
The compiler suite has been carefully crafted to work with both MacOS and Linux, making it accessible to modern developers. What makes this achievement particularly remarkable is that the backend was developed primarily through specification documentation, without access to actual hardware, as functioning Cray systems are extremely rare today.
Modern Implementation Features:
- Target Platform: Cray X-MP with COS operating system
- Build Environment Support: MacOS and Linux
- Cross-compilation capability
- Binary output compatible with COS 1.17
Community Reception and Practical Applications
The response from the vintage computing community has been overwhelmingly positive, with users successfully building and running programs on emulated Cray systems. The compiler's capabilities are being tested with various applications, from simple Fibonacci sequences to more complex computational tasks, demonstrating both its functionality and historical significance.
Historical ACK Pricing (Late 1980s - Early 1990s):
- Full Source License: USD 9,995
- Educational Source License: USD 995
- Supported Languages: C, Pascal, BASIC, Modula-2, Occam, Fortran
Commercial Context
Interestingly, this development recalls the commercial history of such tools, with historical compiler suites like UniPress's Enhanced ACK commanding prices of USD 9,995 for full source licenses and USD 995 for educational licenses during the late 1980s and early 1990s. Today's open-source implementation represents a democratization of what was once highly expensive proprietary technology.
Reference: ACK for Cray X-MP and COS