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Interpret punch cards

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Bill2550

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Aug 31, 2023
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I have one box of standard IBM punch cards that are not interpreted. I don’t need the cards but would like a copy of the contents. The file is a Fortran source file from 1976, so probably Fortran 4 or earlier. Can anyone help me?
 
Kind of?
@antiquekid3 developed an interface for the Documation card readers a number of years back and I've been sluggish to make a copy of his adapter for my own reader. I got the code transcribed and the board BOM'd but I've yet to build the arduino shield that links the two devices together.
 
Welcome to VCFED Bill2550.

Have a look at this: https://hackaday.com/2012/07/30/reading-punch-cards-with-an-arduino-and-digital-camera/

How may cards are in the deck?

If not too many, you could possibly scan the cards onto a PC (one card as a single image file) and then someone could write a Python script to interpret each image and extract the contents. The registration of each card will be the key here.

I would be happy to have a go at the script (if it doesn't already do what you want) - and you could convert the cards at your leisure.

Dave
 
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daver2 said:
Welcome to VCFED Bill2550.

Have a look at this: https://hackaday.com/2012/07/30/reading-punch-cards-with-an-arduino-and-digital-camera/

How may cards are in the deck?

If not too many, you could possibly scan the cards onto a PC (one card as a single image file) and then someone could write a Python script to interpret each image and extract the contents. The registration of each card will be the key here.

I would be happy to have a go at the script (if it doesn't already do what you want) - and you could convert the cards at your leisure.
Click to expand...

Dave, If memory serves, a standard box of 80 column punch cards is 2,000. Using a digicam on that would be a little daunting. :)

I could see making an MCU pull-though card reader from a phototransistor array and a rotary encoder, however. Other than not having sprocket holes to clock from, the problem looks to be similar to a simple paper tape reader.
 
That doesn't mean his program is 2,000 lines long though...

It could be 100 or 10,000 lines :).

Just trying to assess the size of the elephant!

Dave
 
Or multiple programs, each using a few hundred cards which is what the Fortran code I helped move off of punch cards consisted of. I am used to punch cards having the text of the card printed on them. That would make it easier to determine if there are multiple versions of the same program.
 
If you punched those cards using an 024 keypunch, you had to take them to an interpreter like the 557, which had a limited character set and printed in a 60/20 format. 024 keypunch and 557 interpreter. Been there, done that.

Also, if the cards were duplicated or punched on a high-speed punch such as an IBM 1442, the cards would not be interpreted.

In my own experience, it was pretty easy to go through a 2K box of cards. Heck, I had a card filing cabinet like this one in my office, full of cards:

ncsu_card_cabinet.jpg

...and a rack of 7 track tapes on top of my bookcase.
 
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I've got one of those cabinets. Sadly empty.
 

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Bill2550 said:
I have one box of standard IBM punch cards that are not interpreted. I don’t need the cards but would like a copy of the contents. The file is a Fortran source file from 1976, so probably Fortran 4 or earlier. Can anyone help me?
Click to expand...
My Documation card reader was working as of a couple of weeks ago.If you feel like shipping them to Central PA, I can read them.
 
krebizfan said:
Or multiple programs, each using a few hundred cards which is what the Fortran code I helped move off of punch cards consisted of. I am used to punch cards having the text of the card printed on them. That would make it easier to determine if there are multiple versions of the same program.
Click to expand...
You mean that you never learned to read the holes? At CDC SVLOPS, there was a fellow who was blind, brought his guide dog to work and read his program output by having it punched into cards. He was quite productive.
 
It took me a couple of weeks to figure out each card punching system and read what the card actually says. That did prove useful a few times in noticing that the card had an extra hole punched resulting in the wrong value. Much faster than ripping apart the card reader cabling looking for interference.
 
daver2 said:
Welcome to VCFED Bill2550.

Have a look at this: https://hackaday.com/2012/07/30/reading-punch-cards-with-an-arduino-and-digital-camera/

How may cards are in the deck?

If not too many, you could possibly scan the cards onto a PC (one card as a single image file) and then someone could write a Python script to interpret each image and extract the contents. The registration of each card will be the key here.

I would be happy to have a go at the script (if it doesn't already do what you want) - and you could convert the cards at your leisure.

Dave
Click to expand...
Hi Dave - thanks for the response. It's a standard long box of cards that is pretty full, so maybe 2000 cards.
Bill
 
mloewen said:
My Documation card reader was working as of a couple of weeks ago.If you feel like shipping them to Central PA, I can read them.
Click to expand...
Wow, thanks for your reply. This sounds pretty good. It is a full box, so about 2000 cards. It is one Fortran code that was made in 1974-1976.
Bill
 
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