A thread of old-fashioned office procedures no longer used

[bhaexpress]

I worked at Amex and the Computer Room was kept at a special temperature and only certain personnel were allowed in there. The computer was HUGE and took up the same space as a 5-a-side football pitch.

There were punch cards and punch tape, similar to telex tape with holes in it. The tape was less sophisticated than the cards which replaced them. The cards were rectangular and data holes were punched in them. The verifier would re-punch the data, and the card would lock if the newly-punched data didn't match. Amex replaced punch card machines with machines which put the info onto magnetic tape. These tapes were then taken to the aforementioned computer room. This was a good decade or more before floppy disks.

I worked foe Amex in Westchester House in their computer room on the 4th floor. I remember the IBM 550 interpreter which converted tapes to punch card. Come the 1st January I will start my 39th year in IT.

 

[Kubes]

Multi part proformas - white for the customer, pink for accounts, yellow for sales and blue for the files! Happy days!

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Were they still around in 1992? I got them when I first went to work for Amex in 1970!

Yes, I used to get a bundle of them every month. I worked on Kingsway just off Holborn at the time and there was only one place called Benjies which used to accept them. This might be a dumb question but what was their purpose? Why not just give cash?

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

I worked foe Amex in Westchester House in their computer room on the 4th floor. I remember the IBM 550 interpreter which converted tapes to punch card. Come the 1st January I will start my 39th year in IT.

..and you learnt everything on the job yawn yawn yawn

 

[Gwylan]

Yes, I used to get a bundle of them every month. I worked on Kingsway just off Holborn at the time and there was only one place called Benjies which used to accept them. This might be a dumb question but what was their purpose? Why not just give cash?

I think that, originally, there were some tax advantages to LVs but eventually these started disappearing. I'm sure an accountant can correct me on this if I got it wrong.

 

[Chicken Run]

one word Microfishe

 

[bhaexpress]

..and you learnt everything on the job yawn yawn yawn

Well I didn't end up telling lies about other people to make myself look less of an idiot. However,as you enjoy being wrong who paid for my MCSE, my CNE and my ITIL qualifications ? Not you that's for certain.

 

[Norman Potting]

I think that, originally, there were some tax advantages to LVs but eventually these started disappearing. I'm sure an accountant can correct me on this if I got it wrong.

I used to get LV's when I changed jobs in 1997, these lasted until the early noughties when they were replaced by money that came with our salary, slightly more to account for the tax. I believe that Lv's were a taxable benefit also but for some convoluted reason there were benefits to the company by paying the money direct.

 

[Fungus]

I used to get Luncheon Vouchers when I first started working properly in '92.

We got LVs that included a small can of Watney's brown or pale ale.

 

[Fungus]

Telephones with dials.

A lady called Doris, who came round to clean the hand-pieces.

 

[Fungus]

Not having fire drills.

 

[Gwylan]

I used to get LV's when I changed jobs in 1997, these lasted until the early noughties when they were replaced by money that came with our salary, slightly more to account for the tax. I believe that Lv's were a taxable benefit also but for some convoluted reason there were benefits to the company by paying the money direct.

Looked it up on Wikipedia, which I know is not always reliable, but it said that when LVs started, 3s (15p) was tax-free, but this didn't actually change with inflation. I'd imagine that getting 15p tax-free is not much a benefit these days.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Well I didn't end up telling lies about other people to make myself look less of an idiot. However,as you enjoy being wrong who paid for my MCSE, my CNE and my ITIL qualifications ? Not you that's for certain.

Hold on, can you explain yourself. Who have I lied about? I'm lost.

 

[Fungus]

Talking of floppies, the media that replaced the punch card, the 8" floppy disk, not many will remember them. When PCs arrived the floppies 5 and and quarter and then three and a half inched. Of course there was also the Zip disk but not many will remember them.

I remember compiling Cobol programs on a Cromemco "micro" with twin 8" floppy drives. No other drives. Verbatim floppies used to become see-though if you used them too much.

 

[Arthritic Toe]

I worked in two different offices. Both places had tea ladies. Both tea ladies were called Gladys.

I had 2 Edna's

 

[Gazwag]

Having a receipt book

many builders/carpenters/plumbers etc etc still use them

1. Writing or typing a letter

I still type letters, on a computer keyboard

filing

rectangular thick wooden desks

Still file letters to clients and have a thick wooden desk

those green string things with metal bits on the ends........

treasury tags, that's them.

use treasury tags most days (although they do have plastic ends now that dont go rusty)

Faxes

almost daily

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Not exactly an office procedure but... getting somebody a Strip-O-Gram, usually a policewoman, for their birthday/promotion/leaving do.

Oh, and Health & Safety. We never had that in my day. Nobody died.

 

[Tubby Mondays]

Stationary monitors who you used to have to ask if you wanted something out of the ordinary, like a bigger envelope. The conversation would go something like this:
'Could I have a brown envelope big enough to post this in please?'
'Ah you mean an EV(L)209'
'Well if you say so, I just call it a brown envelope big enough to post this in'
'What do you want it for?'
'I want to post this out in it'
''That would probably fit in an EV(L) 207, as we are getting short on EV(L)209s'
'Please can I just have an envelope'
'Sign in the 3 places marked with a cross'

Although this was in the civil service at an office overpopulated with dunderheads, so this may be just a personal experience.

 

[ryeseagull]

one word Microfishe

I still use microfiche. It's a massive pain in the arse. A step below microfilm, but some how it was once considered the wave of the future.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Not exactly an office procedure but... getting somebody a Strip-O-Gram, usually a policewoman, for their birthday/promotion/leaving do.

Oh, and Health & Safety. We never had that in my day. Nobody died.

Someone I know who works in recruitment had a strip-o-gram for a leaving do. The company set up a spoof interview and the stripper played the part of a job applicant......