MURJE: a multiple user remote job entry system

ABSTRACT

MURJE is a DEC 2780 RJE package modified at Northwest Missouri State University allowing anyone who has a timesharing account on the University's PDP 11/70 timesharing computer to submit and receive batch jobs processed on a AMDAHL 470/V7 processor running under JES2 (OS,VS2). Jobs can be sent and received at any of the 58 terminals within 10 academic labs on campus. Even portable dial up terminals can use the system.The AMDAHL in Columbia, Missouri, is the host computer, while the PDP 11/70 interactive network in Maryville, Missouri, is considered the remote station. The advantages the remote users receive in such an environment includes both the large capacity and multitude of batch languages provided by the host. This is especially important where the remote has a limited but real demand for these services. The amount of use of the services would not however, financially justify their local support (see figure 1).Using a text editor, files containing the job control language, program, and possibly the data are created and stored on the remote's disk. These files are then queued by the user to the host. Remote host communication is via a 4800 baud private telephone line. Basically the AMDAHL is operational 24 hours a day, 6 1/2 days a week and MURJE makes it possible for anyone at these times to send a job to the host computer and receive the output in their private account.By having the software direct the RJE input and output from multiple user accounts, it frees up operators from running, printing, and handling output for RJE jobs. At the same time it frees the sender from extended waits for an operator to submit jobs and distribute output listings at some type of user dispatch window. The user does not go to the computing center to pick up the listing of his or her program, and is not limited to a single copy of the output.Another savings is the amount of paper that is required for output, since the output is stored on disk, available only to the sender, the sender has the capability of displaying the output on any video terminal as in figure 2, and checking its correctness before listing it on a hardcopy terminal or printer as in figure 3.

References

1. Rickman, Jon Todd, The Horsepower Problem, Chapter of Administrative Computing in Higher Education, Series in New Directions, Spring 1979, Jossey-Bass
2. Sunkel, Mary Jane, Rickman, Jon Todd, Hobbs, James M., Computer Support of Courses in Data Entry and Word Processing, Proceedings of The National Educational Computing Conference, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, June 25, 1979
3. University of Iowa Computer Center, Conversational Remote Job Entry (CRJE) of Remote Job Entry Support System (RJESS), University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa October 1976
4. AE-H475A-TC, RSTS/E 3271 Protocol Emulator, SPD 10.83.0, Digital Equipment Corporation, January 1979
5. DEC-11-ORJEA-B-D, RSTS/E 2780 User's Guide, Digital Equipment Corporation, June 1977
6. DEC-11-CCDNA-A-D, 2780 Remote Computer System Installation Notes, Digital, Equipment Corporation, March 1974
7. GB30-1138-1, Waterloo Interactive Direct Job Terminal System, International Business Machines, November 16, 1978
8. GB30-1272-0, Multileaving Remote Job Entry (MRJE), International Business Machines, November 16, 1978
9. WIDJET Newsletter, Educational Systems for the DEC PDP-11, University of Waterloo, October 1977
10. MINI-MICROSYSTEMS, Communications Software, page 112, June 1979