  From 1967 to 1974, an Electrologica X8 computer was installed at the
Institute for Nuclear Research (IKO) in Amsterdam, primarily for online and
offline evaluation of experimental data, an application quite different from
its `brother's', X8's. During that time, the nuclear detection system `BOL' was
in operation to study nuclear reactions. The BOL detector embodied a new and
bold concept. It consisted of a large number of state-of-the-art detection
units, mounted in a spherical arrangement around a target in a beam of nuclear
particles. Two minicomputers performed data acquisition and control of the
experiment and supported online visual display of acquired data. The X8
computer, networked with the minicomputers, allowed fast high-level data
processing and analysis. Pioneering work in both experimental nuclear physics
as well as in programming, turned out to be a surprisingly good combination.
For the network with the X8 and the minicomputers, advanced software layers
were developed to efficiently and flexibly program extensive data handling.
