APL in your pocket: Reprinting Canadian computing history
March 04, 2026
by: Daniela Garrido Fajardo, communications work study student
The Mearns Centre for Learning – McPherson Library holds a treasure trove of computer history, unique to the 探花系列. (HCL) houses computers and artifacts of computing history dating all the way back to the 1970s. With rows of computers of different sizes, functions, and builds, the lab serves a critical function to preserve, maintain, and teach technological history for years to come. , head of digital infrastructure at UVic Libraries, supports the functioning of the lab.
In 2020, the HCL received its largest donation from collector, Rob Ferguson, marking the beginning of a long-standing collaboration. Over the years, Ferguson had acquired a rich collection of historic computing artifacts, software, and documentation, ranging from personal computers like the Osborne 1, the Silicon Graphics Onyx System, video game platforms like the Magnavox Odyssey, and recently, two small woodblocks engraved with peculiar symbols. The latter artifacts, on loan from Ferguson, contain the smallest possible “vade mecum,” or ready reference, for APL, a programming language created by Canadian computer scientist, , widely used on the mainframes, mini-, and micro-computers of the 60s and 70s.
These blocks, originally belonging to Iverson, presented an interesting opportunity to develop an intersection between book arts, computer history, and the libraries—reproducing Iverson’s APL “business cards” on a vintage Vandercook proofing press.
These cards were kind of a novelty item, something Iverson could hand out at conferences. He created these woodblocks that had the entire APL language specification on it. You could, in theory, refer to these unique business cards to understand how APL works.”
In collaboration with Master Printer Jacob Maddison, the HCL is reprinting Iverson’s APL cards to pay homage to Iverson and his contributions to computing history. It's a fascinating, interdisciplinary overlap between the Historic Computing Lab and the Farallon Book Arts Lab. Both labs are a part of the Kula: Library Futures Academy, a world-leading, visionary space at UVic Libraries for researchers, students, faculty and staff to work side-by side to address complex global challenges through diverse technologies, creativity and shared inquiry. “It was not something that I would have ever expected to happen, especially because the technologies in each lab have a pretty significant historic gap—between block printing and desktop publishing. So, the fact that there we can collaborate on a project like this is very fun.”
Beyond their aesthetic and commemorative value, the business cards also serve as preservers of history in an increasingly digital world. Complementing the lab’s mission to safeguard obsolete remnants of computing’s past, the cards allow recipients to learn about the Historic Computing Lab while holding a tangible piece of Canadian computing history, etched with symbols that trace back to Iverson himself. In bringing APL from woodblock to business card, the Historic Computing Lab demonstrates how preservation can be both practical and poetic. The project is a vital reminder that computing history is something worthwhile to archive, and simultaneously, something to hold, share, and reinterpret for new generations, and those to come.