Harris Computer Systems: Difference between revisions

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{{Use American English|date=August 2022}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2022}}

{{About|the American computer company|the Canadian software company|Harris Computer Systems (Canadian Company)}}

{{Infobox company

| name = Harris Computer Systems

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<!--base/dist-->The origins of Harris Computer Systems began in 1967 in [[Fort Lauderdale, Florida]], when [[Datacraft Corporation]] was founded.<ref name="sent-hawkish"/> It would specialize in minicomputers for the scientific engineering market and for educational use.<ref name="sent-hawkish"/>

The best known of these were the DC-6024 line, which were based on a [[24-bit computing]] architecture and debuted in 1969.<ref name="sigarch"/> Successive models were denoted with names such as DC-6024/1 and DC-6024/4, which became known as "Slash 1", "Slash 4", and so forth.<ref name="sigarch">{{cite journal | url=https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/48675.48680 | date= June 1988 | title= Evolution of the Harris H-series computers and speculations on their future | author-first= Chuck | author-last=Crawford | journal = ACM SIGARCH Computer Architecture News |volume=16 | issue =3 | pages= 33&ndash;39 | doi=10.1145/48675.48680 | s2cid= 32635502 | doi-access= free }}</ref> The Slash 1 made cost-effective use of hardware for floating-point operations and quickly became popular as alternatives to computers from [[Systems Engineering Laboratories]].<ref name="sigarch"/>

== Harris Computer Systems Division ==

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The operating system for the H-Series was called Vulcan, which around 1982 started being replaced by one called VOS.<ref name="cw-1982">{{cite news | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5qavlrkWpjQC&pg=PA8 | title=Harris Upgrades H80, H100 Minis | author-first=Tim | author-last=Scannell | newspaper=Computerworld | date=March 22, 1982 | pages=1, 8}}</ref>

The H-series systems typically had support for a number of different programming languages, including [[Fortran]], [[CobolCOBOL]], [[Pascal (programming language)|Pascal]], [[Basic (programming language)|BasicBASIC]], [[APL (programming language)|APL]], [[SnobolSNOBOL]], [[IBM RPG (programming language)|RPG]], and [[assembly language]].<ref name="cw-1982"/>

In addition, as a company involved in defense-related contracts, Harris Computer Systems Division came out with a line of [[Ada programming language]] compiler products.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lYnGAAAAIAAJ&q=harris+computer+systems+ada | title=Aerospace Engineering | year=1988 }}</ref><ref name="ajn-sep93">{{cite news | title=JOVIAL (J73) and MIL-STD-1750A ISA Software Support Tools | work=Ada–JOVIAL Newsletter | publisher=High Order Language Control Facility, Wright-Patterson AFB, U.S. Air Force | date=September 1993 | page=38}}</ref>

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In this fashion, Harris Computer offered three operating systems: CX/RT, built around real-time processing features and constraints; CX/SX, for customers needing government-specified levels of security, and CX/UX, for a system offering a Unix basis.<ref name="ci-88000"/> The three CX variants shared the same object and file formats and could reside on the same disk drive as each other.<ref name="ci-88000"/>

The secure version of Unix was popular among some government contracts where security was a primary consideration.<ref name="iw-1992"/><!-- https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.27.8581&rep=rep1&type=pdf cert warning, don't try -->

In particular, CX/SX reached B1 Orange Book and B1 Red Book status in the U.S. government's [[Trusted Computer System Evaluation Criteria]].<ref>{{cite book | title=Network+ Study Guide | author=David Groth | author2= Toby Skandier | publisher=John Wiley & Sons | year=2006 | pages=348ndash348&ndash;349 | isbn=9780782150780 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B_PmNWSqCFgC&pg=PA349 | edition=Fourth }}</ref>

By the late 1980s/early 1990s, the major product of Harris Computer Systems Division was the Night Hawk series of real-time systems.<ref name="iw-1992"/><ref name="njbiz"/>

In 1989, the first Night Hawk systems based on the [[Motorola 88000]] processor line came out. The systems were mainly targeted for the real-time ___domain, including for [[aerospace simulation]], [[signal processing]], and [[Command and control|C³I]] uses.<ref name="ci-88000">{{cite news | url=https://techmonitor.ai/technology/harris_launches_its_first_88000_based_night_hawks | title=Harris Launches Its First 88000-Based Night Hawks | work=[[Computergram International]] | date=December 18, 1989 }}</ref> Night Hawk models included the NH-1200, NH-3400, NH-4400, NH-4800, and NH-5800.<ref name="ajn-sep93"/>

Then in 1992, Harris announced it was switching to the [[PowerPC]] architecture.<ref name="iw-1992"/>

The Harris Computer Systems Division also made a [[network firewall]] product, that they sold to their governmental agency customers.<ref name="signals-1994"/>

E. Courtney "Corky" Siegel was general manager of the division.<ref name="iw-1992">{{cite news | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KlEEAAAAMBAJ&q=%22Harris+Computer+Systems%22+1994&pg=PA46 | title=Harris to use PowerPC in Night Hawks | author-first=Tom | author-last=Quinlan | magazine=InfoWorld | date=November 9, 1992 | page=46}}</ref>

<!-- == Spin-off == I'M DOING TOO MUCH ON THIS. STOP. -->

== Harris Computer Systems Corporation ==

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At the same time, Harris Computer Systems introduced a product for network security called CyberGuard, whose purpose was to protect systems against unauthorized incursion over the Internet.<ref name="signals-1994"/>

Harris Computer Systems continued to be involved in the Ada language world. In addition to compilers, the company put out [[APSE]]-related runtime environments with symbolic debugging and tracing capabilities.<ref>{{cite journal | title=Ada design language/CASE developers matrix | author-first= Judy | author-last=Kerner | journal=ACM SIGAda Ada Letters | volume=XIV | issue =6 | date=November–December 1994 | pages= 19&ndash;40 | urldoi=https://doi.org/10.1145/190697.190698 | dois2cid=10.1145/190697.190698 52865001 | s2ciddoi-access= 52865001free }} At p. 26.</ref> During the mid-1990s, Harris Computer Systems was also involved in the process for revising the [[Ada Semantic Interface Specification]].<ref>{{cite journal | title=Ada Semantic Interface Specification (ASIS): Frequently asked questions | author-first=Currie | author-last=Colket | journal=ACM SIGAda Ada Letters | volume=XV | issue=4 | date=July–August 1995 | pages=50&ndash;63 | urldoi=https://doi.org/10.1145/206263.206274 | dois2cid=10.1145/206263.20627436761521 | s2ciddoi-access=36761521free }}</ref>

== Acquisition ==

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Harris Computer Systems Corporation}}

[[Category:ComputerDefunct computer companies of the United States]]

[[Category:Defunct computer hardware companies]]

[[Category:Minicomputers]]

[[Category:1994 establishments in Florida]]

[[Category:1996 disestablishments in Florida]]

[[Category:1996 mergers and acquisitions]]

[[Category:Companies based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida]]

[[Category:ManufacturingElectronics companies established in 1994]]

[[Category:ManufacturingElectronics companies disestablished in 1996]]

[[Category:Computer companies established in 1994]]

[[Category:Computer companies disestablished in 1996]]