Titan (1963 computer)
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Titan was the prototype of the Atlas 2 computer developed by Ferranti and the University of Cambridge Mathematical Laboratory in Cambridge, England. It was designed starting in 1963, and in operation from 1964 to 1973.[1]
In 1961, the University of Cambridge found itself unable to fund a suitably powerful computer for its needs at the time, so the university purchased from Ferranti the main Atlas processing units and then jointly designed the memory and peripheral equipment.[2] The joint effort led to a cheaper and simpler version of the Atlas that Ferranti could market, leaving Cambridge with the prototype version, named Titan.[2]
The Atlas hardware arrived in Cambridge in 1963, although software design was already underway.[2] David Wheeler was in charge of the joint effort between the university and Ferranti.[2]
In 1965 the Cambridge side of the team decided to add a time-sharing facility for Titan, necessitating the acquisition of additional hardware.[2] When Titan came into full service in 1966, time sharing was available for all staff.[2] Titan was finally switched off in October 1973.[2]
Ferranti, by then a division of International Computers and Tabulators (ICT), marketed the Titan as the Atlas 2.[3] Although intended to be more affordable than the Atlas, its price was still over £1 million.[4] A second Atlas 2 was built in Manchester, and was installed at the Computer-Aided Design Centre (CADCentre) on Madingley Road together with the Cambridge Titan supervisor. This machine, the last Atlas, was finally switched off on 21 December 1976.[5]
A third Atlas 2 was ordered by the UK's Atomic Weapons Research Establishment (AWRE) at Aldermaston. It replaced the faster and much more expensive IBM 7030 Stretch which had been leased from IBM.[6]
