[Simh] The minutiae of hardware/software interactions affecting SIMH

[Armistead, Jason BIS]

On the topic of Configuring DMC11 Devices, while discussing wait delays Mark Pizzolato recently wrote:

> Sounds reasonable.  I've got to see if I can find the reason the delay was initially added and make sure a change like this is compatible.

What is the "SIMH strategy" for documenting such requirements ? i.e. where does this behavior get called out in the source code (or elsewhere) in a way that will allow future generations of SIMH users and maintainers to understand "why things are the way they are" or "why things need to be the way they are" ?

There is one reference to the DDCMP protocol manual in the source of pdp11_dmc.c, but that's about it.  Should references to other documents be added ?

Reconstructing and understanding history is easy when people familiar with the subject matter (especially those who lived it, in this case, at DEC) are still around to ask, but gets progressively harder as years go by without leaving a good trail of "breadcrumbs" for others to follow.

PS: I am constantly amazed at the sheer volume of knowledge and resourcefulness that contributors to this list have, which is one of the reasons I'd love to see as much of it preserved directly in the SIMH code base !!!


Jason

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