DECUS
Encyclopedia
The Digital Equipment Computer Users' Society (DECUS) was an independent computer user group related to Digital Equipment Corporation
.
The Connect User Group Community, formed from the consolidation in May, 2008 of DECUS, Encompass
, HP-Interex
, and ITUG is Hewlett-Packard
’s largest user community representing more than 50,000 participants.
for Digital Equipment Corporation
computers. Members included companies and organizations who purchased DEC equipment; many members were application programmers who wrote code for DEC machines or system programmers
who managed DEC systems. DECUS was founded in 1961.
DECUS was legally a part of Digital Equipment Corporation
and subsidized by it,
but it was run by volunteers. DEC staff were not eligible to join DECUS, but were allowed (and encouraged) to participate in DECUS activities. DEC in turn relied on DECUS as an important channel of communication with its customers.
The DECUS U.S. Chapter conducted technical conferences at various locations, and ran other operations like Local User Groups (LUGs) and Special Interest Groups. Chapters in other nations did likewise. DECUS also promoted the open exchange of user-developed software, largely via magnetic tape
.
DECUS played a critical role in the development of computer games
in North America in the 1970s. The pioneering titles Adventure
by Will Crowther; Baseball
, Dungeon
and Star Trek
by Don Daglow
and Hunt the Wumpus
by Gregory Yob
provided a foundation for the games industry. One of the first real-time interactive multi-user games, MTrek (MultiTrek), was also distributed on DECUS tapes. Major commercial game titles including Zork
were first popularized by DECUS.
In the 1990s, DECUS played a significant role in integration of isolated post-soviet scientific, technology and business communities into worldwide community.
In 1998, Compaq
acquired Digital, and DECUS became a Compaq user group.
In 2000, the DECUS U.S. Chapter incorporated as the independent user group Encompass
.
In 2002, Hewlett-Packard
acquired Compaq, and DECUS became an HP User Society.
In 2008, the HP user communities Encompass
, ITUG and HP Interex EMEA consolidated to form Connect Worldwide.
Association activities: The HP User Society DECUS promoted the exchange of information and know-how between its members, manufacturers and partners. The association supported its members in the representation of their interests against HP and partners, helped in problem solving and facilitates formation of opinion and advanced training by organizing events.
Digital Equipment Corporation
Digital Equipment Corporation was a major American company in the computer industry and a leading vendor of computer systems, software and peripherals from the 1960s to the 1990s...
.
The Connect User Group Community, formed from the consolidation in May, 2008 of DECUS, Encompass
Encompass
Connect, Your Independent HP Business Technology Community, Connect User Group CommunityFormed from the consolidation of DECUS, Encompass, HP-Interex, and ITUG in May, 2008, Connect is Hewlett-Packard’s largest user community representing more than 50,000 participants...
, HP-Interex
HP-Interex
HP-Interex was the EMEA HP Users Organisation, representing the user community of Hewlett-Packard computers.The Connect User Group Community, formed from the consolidation in May, 2008 of HP-Interex, DECUS, Encompass, and ITUG, is Hewlett-Packard’s largest user community representing more than...
, and ITUG is Hewlett-Packard
Hewlett-Packard
Hewlett-Packard Company or HP is an American multinational information technology corporation headquartered in Palo Alto, California, USA that provides products, technologies, softwares, solutions and services to consumers, small- and medium-sized businesses and large enterprises, including...
’s largest user community representing more than 50,000 participants.
History
DECUS was the Digital Equipment Computer Users' Society, a users' groupUsers' group
A users' group is a type of club focused on the use of a particular technology, usually computer-related....
for Digital Equipment Corporation
Digital Equipment Corporation
Digital Equipment Corporation was a major American company in the computer industry and a leading vendor of computer systems, software and peripherals from the 1960s to the 1990s...
computers. Members included companies and organizations who purchased DEC equipment; many members were application programmers who wrote code for DEC machines or system programmers
System programming
System programming is the activity of programming system software. The primary distinguishing characteristic of systems programming when compared to application programming is that application programming aims to produce software which provides services to the user System programming (or systems...
who managed DEC systems. DECUS was founded in 1961.
DECUS was legally a part of Digital Equipment Corporation
Digital Equipment Corporation
Digital Equipment Corporation was a major American company in the computer industry and a leading vendor of computer systems, software and peripherals from the 1960s to the 1990s...
and subsidized by it,
but it was run by volunteers. DEC staff were not eligible to join DECUS, but were allowed (and encouraged) to participate in DECUS activities. DEC in turn relied on DECUS as an important channel of communication with its customers.
The DECUS U.S. Chapter conducted technical conferences at various locations, and ran other operations like Local User Groups (LUGs) and Special Interest Groups. Chapters in other nations did likewise. DECUS also promoted the open exchange of user-developed software, largely via magnetic tape
Magnetic tape
Magnetic tape is a medium for magnetic recording, made of a thin magnetizable coating on a long, narrow strip of plastic. It was developed in Germany, based on magnetic wire recording. Devices that record and play back audio and video using magnetic tape are tape recorders and video tape recorders...
.
DECUS played a critical role in the development of computer games
Computer Games
"Computer Games" is a single by New Zealand group, Mi-Sex released in 1979 in Australia and New Zealand and in 1981 throughout Europe. It was the single that launched the band, and was hugely popular, particularly in Australia and New Zealand...
in North America in the 1970s. The pioneering titles Adventure
Colossal Cave Adventure
Colossal Cave Adventure gave its name to the computer adventure game genre . It was originally designed by Will Crowther, a programmer and caving enthusiast who based the layout on part of the Mammoth Cave system in Kentucky...
by Will Crowther; Baseball
Baseball (computer game)
Baseball was one of the first-ever baseball computer games, and was created on a PDP-10 mainframe computer at Pomona College in 1971 by student Don Daglow. The game continued to be enhanced periodically through 1976...
, Dungeon
Dungeon (computer game)
Dungeon was one of the earliest computer role-playing games, running on PDP-10 mainframe computers manufactured by Digital Equipment Corporation.-History:...
and Star Trek
Star Trek (script game)
Star Trek was a text-based mainframe computer game written by Don Daglow on a PDP-10 timesharing computer at Pomona College in 1972, and upgraded periodically through 1974, including contributions by Jonathan Osser...
by Don Daglow
Don Daglow
Don Daglow is an American computer game and video game designer, programmer and producer. He is best known for designing a series of pioneering simulation games and role-playing games, as well as the first computer baseball game and the first graphical MMORPG, all between 1971 and 1995...
and Hunt the Wumpus
Hunt the Wumpus
Hunt the Wumpus is an early computer game, based on a simple hide and seek format featuring a mysterious monster that lurks deep inside a network of rooms. It was originally a text-based game written in BASIC...
by Gregory Yob
Gregory Yob
Gregory Yob was an American computer game designer.Gregory was born in Eugene, Oregon. An article about his experiment on simulating gravitational fields with droplets of water on a soap bubble was published in Scientific American in December 1964, under The Amateur Scientist.His one published...
provided a foundation for the games industry. One of the first real-time interactive multi-user games, MTrek (MultiTrek), was also distributed on DECUS tapes. Major commercial game titles including Zork
Zork
Zork was one of the first interactive fiction computer games and an early descendant of Colossal Cave Adventure. The first version of Zork was written in 1977–1979 on a DEC PDP-10 computer by Tim Anderson, Marc Blank, Bruce Daniels, and Dave Lebling, and implemented in the MDL programming language...
were first popularized by DECUS.
In the 1990s, DECUS played a significant role in integration of isolated post-soviet scientific, technology and business communities into worldwide community.
In 1998, Compaq
Compaq
Compaq Computer Corporation is a personal computer company founded in 1982. Once the largest supplier of personal computing systems in the world, Compaq existed as an independent corporation until 2002, when it was acquired for US$25 billion by Hewlett-Packard....
acquired Digital, and DECUS became a Compaq user group.
In 2000, the DECUS U.S. Chapter incorporated as the independent user group Encompass
Encompass
Connect, Your Independent HP Business Technology Community, Connect User Group CommunityFormed from the consolidation of DECUS, Encompass, HP-Interex, and ITUG in May, 2008, Connect is Hewlett-Packard’s largest user community representing more than 50,000 participants...
.
In 2002, Hewlett-Packard
Hewlett-Packard
Hewlett-Packard Company or HP is an American multinational information technology corporation headquartered in Palo Alto, California, USA that provides products, technologies, softwares, solutions and services to consumers, small- and medium-sized businesses and large enterprises, including...
acquired Compaq, and DECUS became an HP User Society.
In 2008, the HP user communities Encompass
Encompass
Connect, Your Independent HP Business Technology Community, Connect User Group CommunityFormed from the consolidation of DECUS, Encompass, HP-Interex, and ITUG in May, 2008, Connect is Hewlett-Packard’s largest user community representing more than 50,000 participants...
, ITUG and HP Interex EMEA consolidated to form Connect Worldwide.
Local Chapters
Membership was organized by country. Each chapter acted as part of the worldwide Association of Hewlett-Packard User Groups. DECUS had some 7,500 members, mostly system, network, and applications specialists as well as IT Managers.Association activities: The HP User Society DECUS promoted the exchange of information and know-how between its members, manufacturers and partners. The association supported its members in the representation of their interests against HP and partners, helped in problem solving and facilitates formation of opinion and advanced training by organizing events.
External links
- Connect
- HP User Society DECUS München e.V.
- Digital Equipment Computer Users Society Proceedings and Publications, 1962-1992. Charles Babbage InstituteCharles Babbage InstituteThe Charles Babbage Institute is a research center at the University of Minnesota specializing in the history of information technology, particularly the history since 1935 of digital computing, programming/software, and computer networking....
, University of Minnesota.