Orange Coast College was the first two year college to provide instruction on the operation of computers and associated equipment.

This web page will deal with the first proposal from IBM to Orange Coast College for "Unit Record" or card handeling equipment to be used by the college for their data processing. The proposal predates the educational program at Orange Coast College by three years, but instruction on this gear was dominant in the first few years of the educational program.

=========================== 1955 Quotation ===========================

The following is a detailed cost breakdown between equipment expenses ( monthly rental of IBM machines and installation expenses ( non-recurring set-up expense, supplies, freight, etc. ). Cost of cards will be about the same as your present costs.

The card punch operator may be one of your record clerks trained by IBM in the meantime. The machine operator may also be one of your clerks, if interested and qualified and supplemented by a part-time experienced IBM operator during the first semester. An experienced IBM operator would draw $300.00 to $375.00 per month and would do much to assure full benefit of all facets of mechanization at the outset.

OPERATIONAL COSTS IBM Equipment Rental ($/month)

Type 402 Electric Accounting Machine,	290.00
Type 519 End Printing Reproducer with Mark Sensing Feature	90.00
Type 082 Electronic Card Sorter	60.00
Type 077 Electronic Card Collator	80.00
Type 552 Alphabetic Card Interpreter	75.00
Type 024 Card Punch	35.00
TOTAL	630.00

Less: 20% IBM Educational Contribution 126.00

TOTAL MONTHLY RENTAL EXPENSE $ 504.00

ANNUAL RENTAL EXPENSE ............................$ 6,048. 00

Orange Coast College is exempt from the Federal Manufacturers Excise Tax of 10% on this type of equipment.

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An IBM 602 Calculating Punch  Was added by 1960 to the Educational Program

This Unit Record equipment and/or upgrades remained in use at Orange Coast College up into the 1980's, and was a subject of instruction until 1967 when the educational program went strictly to S/360 instruction with stress on programming languages.

{Orange Coast College was not the only school to provide instruction on IBM unit record equipment. In 1963 this writer received graduate credit at Harvard University for a course where instruction was given on how to wire pannel plug boards for the IBM accounting machine.}

Today students at Orange Coast College receive instruction in working with micro-computers, modern programming languages, desk-top publishing, GUIs and the Internet. However a look at the past will not hurt.

The main problem with the past is there are still a lot of managers in high positions who received their training on unit record equipment, and while they have move up into higher positions their view of data processing is still tied to the 80 column IBM card. Hence if any student gets into a "Dilbert" type office The accompaning pictures may give insite in to what is in the managers mind.

J.R. Clark's Web Page