What characteristic defined later computer input cards that differed from Hollerith's initial census cards?
Answer
They often adopted an 80-column standard where each column encoded one character of data
The core concept of the perforated card evolved significantly beyond the initial designs used for census work. As these cards transitioned into serving as the dominant method for data entry and program instruction in early mainframe computing, such as with the IBM 1401, a specific physical configuration became common. This configuration involved cards structured into 80 distinct columns, where each specific column location was designated to represent a single character of data or an instruction element for the computer program.
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