Independent 102 F

The Independent 102 F (I 102 F) is the second model of the Independent family of third-and-a-half-generation minicomputers, launched in 1979, designed by the computer institute ITC and made in series by ICE Felix; its memory came from the Fabrica de Memorii Timișoara and its main peripherals (mass-storage disk drives, heavy-duty printers) from Rom Control Data [1]. The family (Independent 100, Independent 102 F, Independent 106) was used for scientific, technical and management computing, data processing and industrial process supervision; production ended in 1989 [1]. Unlike the hard-wired Felix, it was microprogrammed, with long microinstructions (32 or even 64 bits) so that many micro-commands ran in one clock cycle, at 20 MHz [1]. It could have one or two RCD disk drives or two 40 MB cartridge disk drives, one or two magnetic tape units, two floppy disk drives (5.2-inch, as the book writes, or 8-inch), a punched card reader, a console, a modem and teletransmission terminals; it drew 2–3 kW and, being less sensitive to temperature, did not need special computer rooms [1]. It proved the most successful model, appreciated in the CMEA countries and in China, partly thanks to the RCD peripherals, far better than similar CMEA products; about 200 were exported there [1].