A 30-year-old computer that has run day and night for decades is what controls the heat and air conditioning at 19 GRPS buildings.
Source: 1980s computer controls GRPS heat and AC | WOODTV.com
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.—A 30-year-old computer that has run continuously for decades is what controls the heat and air conditioning at 19 Grand Rapids Public Schools (GRPS) buildings. The Commodore Amiga was new to the school system in the early 1980s and it has been working ever since. GRPS maintenance supervisor Tim Hopkins said that the computer was purchased with money from an energy bond. It replaced a computer that was “about the size of a refrigerator.” He says the desktop personal computer “controls the start/stop of boilers, the start/stop of fans, pumps, [it] monitors space temperatures, and so on.” It communicates via a 1200 baud modem. A local high school student programmed it when it was installed. Whenever the school system has a problem with the computer, it calls on the original programmer, who still lives in the area.
