Power II Distribution Tape

Getting the Tape

The available POWER II distribution, Version 4, was for DOS Release 27, the last non-virtual storage release of DOS. This distribution includes support for 3330 disks, which DOS release 26.2 did not support. DOS Release 27 included support for System/370 hardware and 3330 disks. Despite being shipped with DOS Release 27, this distribution seems to work well with DOS Release 26.2.

I found this tape at George Shedlock's archive, formerly available at ftp://ftp.luminainfo.com.br/pub/shedlock/dosvs

Because finding ancient software often includes broken links and sites that have been taken down, I host the POWER II distribution tape.

You'll need to download the following file to the tape subdirectory created when you extracted the installation job streams from DOS360.ZIP.

ibm.360d052006.dos.power.II.with.rje.opt2.v4m1.aws

About the Tape

The POWER II distribution is a single blocked card image tape containing the source books and relocatable modules required to generate and link POWER II and RJE, followed by the assembler source for POWER II and the assembler source for the POWER II RJE feature.

The first file has 81-byte records blocked 3240 (40 cards per block), followed by a tapemark. The first character is a punch stacker select character that we will strip when POWER II is installed. A DOS End-of-file card ("/*") follows each section of this file; four executions of MAINT are needed to catalog the contents of this file.

The remaining two files have 80-byte records blocked 3200 (also 40 cards per block), but there is no punch stacker select character. These two files are the source code for POWER II and POWER II RJE. The source code is not required to install and operate POWER II without or with RJE. You can use the TC function of DITTO or a DOS/360 Tape to card utility to extract the sources.

I'm not sure people are aware that the distribution materials for POWER II include the sources. There isn't much commentary about the materials, and the sources are not mentioned. But the source is there for your reading. Or assembly and execution if you're intrepid.

The PID Control File shows that the tape used to create this AWS file was created on 29 December 1977.

This installation procedure catalogs the POWER II modules and books into private relocatable and source libraries on the SPOOL1 volume. These libraries must be included in the job streams to compile and link POWER II.

Next: A review of The Distribution System supplied by IBM.