This book is entitled ‘Computer Communications’ and has a real history associated with ICL.
Both the book and
the following information comes from the Base Firmware Design Manager
of the ICL NSC PROJECT.
The ICL Series 39
‘DMI’ and ‘Estriel’ (S3L) machines shared a common Node Support
Computer,
the NSC. The NSC
was hugely innovative because amongst its other functions it enabled
remote
diagnostic access to a
customer's machine over the BT landline, and that itself could
be
initiated by
the customer's system sending off a message to the support centre that it
was
experiencing
a need to correct runtime errors and required engineering intervention.
The
facility meant
that a relative handful of skilled former field service engineers
operating
from the
support centre could dispatch lesser but broadly skilled engineers to
replace
designated
parts. Alternatively the solution might be to download software upgrades
that would
resolve such problems.
The change in technology meant
that the NSC team needed to broaden their scope to
understand
a new field for them,
that of communications. This book was purchased to enlighten them.
The
flyleaf bears the inscription "NSC PROJECT
24/2/84"
