When you have a half tonne computer containing 450 vacuum tubes and a magnetic drum memory spun at 1800 RPM by a big AC induction motor, just turning on the power is an exciting event. The Bendix G-15, introduced in 1956, runs on “regular 115 volt, 60 Hz U.S. power”, but you can’t just plug it into a wall socket: its power consumption is rated at 38 amperes, but the specifications say “A 50 ampere line is recommended”. Since vacuum tubes are known for a high inrush current until their filaments come up to operating temperature, simply applying full voltage to all of them at once would likely blow even the robust fuse on the power line and reduce their lifetime, so the G-15 contains a complicated circuit composed of relays, power resistors, and motor-driven timers that incrementally ramp up the filament voltage to the tubes, reducing the power-on surge and extending their lives. Only when the tubes are warmed up and running with full filament voltage can the operator push a button to apply DC voltage to the circuitry and begin to crunch numbers.
Since the G-15 is designed around the memory drum, which provides register, main storage, and timing signals to the logic circuitry, its correct operation is essential: if the drum doesn’t work, the rest of the computer is a large and expensive boat anchor or, at best, a static museum piece. Fortunately, since the drum is driven by AC power and its spinning induces the signals in the read heads, it can be tested without DC power on the rest of the circuitry. Will it work after more than half a century since it was retired?