Equipment in the pool was loaned to investigators following authorisation from the Panel.
The pool served four functions:
Providing communication between the research groups. Most groups had local
mini systems but could not afford a magnetic tape deck. The pool of magnetic tape decks
gave groups the ability to swap software. Later, the Post Office PSS and SERCnet arrived and it was
possible to communicate via the networks.
Providing communication within research groups. Distributed computing is not possible
without local communication.
The DCS pool standardised on the Cambridge Ring as the LAN infrastructure
and caused it to happen.
Providing commercial UNIX licences and other commonly used software. Bulk purchase
gave better value for money.
Providing a pool of LSI-11s, Teraks and PERQ computers.
The processors were shared between several projects with a project acquiring the kit it needed
when it was ready for large-scale demonstrations. Groups, for example, might have 3 LSI-11s
while developing a system but borrowed 10 systems from the pool for a large system check.
