I think the lesson is that a lot can be accomplished without modern languages and practices. So we shouldn't worry too much if we're not using the latest trendy framework and instead focus on the software we are building to make it great.
The Smithsonian had a kick ass exhibit on this computer in the LEM about 20 years ago when I got the chance to go there. The whole thing was braided wire and iron cores for RAM, no hard drives, everything was physical. This page has a picture of the memory core of the thing.
I had a computer architecture professor who had been around since dinosaurs roamed the earth and collected bits of hardware from projects he had worked on that he'd show us. He passed around a cord of Little Old Lady Memory. Building something people trusted their lives to out of that was downright magical. We who never have to care below the level of the instruction set are so spoiled.