May 2017 - Members - lists.sigcis.org

Inaugural issue of "Internet Histories" journal now online and in print
by Marc Weber 20 May '17

20 May '17

Dear SIGCISers, I’m very pleased to say the inaugural issue of the new journal INTERNET HISTORIES <http://tandfonline.com/loi/rint20>, published by Taylor and Francis, is now available online and in print. Andy Russell and Janet Abbate have articles in the issue (as do I) I’m on the editorial board and the journal is looking for additional submissions at: http://www.tandfonline.com/action/authorSubmission?show=instructions&journa… <http://www.tandfonline.com/action/authorSubmission?show=instructions&journa…>. You can also submit a proposal for a special issue here: http://www.tandfonline.com/action/authorSubmission?show=instructions&journa… <http://www.tandfonline.com/action/authorSubmission?show=instructions&journa… issues>. Managing Editor Niels Brügger is also interested in publishing interviews with people who have played key roles in internet histories, from all over the world. There are two launch events, one in North America, at the ICA Conference in San Diego later this month, and one in Europe, at the RESAW conference in London in June: — https://convention2.allacademic.com/one/ica/ica17/index.php?cmd=Online+Prog… <https://convention2.allacademic.com/one/ica/ica17/index.php?cmd=Online+Prog…> — https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1c_NdYRW2QugIOgPILAu9qo0Zh9-X8YJRWeC… <https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1c_NdYRW2QugIOgPILAu9qo0Zh9-X8YJRWeC…> Best regards, Marc Marc Weber <http://www.computerhistory.org/staff/Marc,Weber/> | marc(a)webhistory.org <mailto:marc@webhistory.org> | +1 415 282 6868 Curatorial Director, Internet History Program, Computer History Museum 1401 N Shoreline Blvd., Mountain View CA 94043 computerhistory.org/nethistory <http://computerhistory.org/nethistory> Co-founder, Web History Center and Project, webhistory.org <http://webhistory.org/>

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On History, Trump and the Washington Post
by Bernardo Batiz-Lazo 18 May '17

18 May '17

In case you’ve missed it, you might be interested in this article that uses research on organisational communication by JoAnne Yates (MIT) (which crosses business and technological history .. and is well known by computer historians) to frame the current debate around President Trump and ex-FBI Director Comey: James Comey’s memo has shaken a presidency. Here’s why memos have always mattered. by Michael S. Rosenwald, Washington Post, May 17, 2017. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/retropolis/wp/2017/05/17/james-comeys-m… Best wishes Bernardo Bangor University (Wales) PS the article and JoAnne’s work also got the “thumps up” by Nobel Laureate Paul Krugman in Twitter: https://twitter.com/paulkrugman/status/865007659409326080

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Announcement: Paper on history of functional programming
by Mark Priestley 17 May '17

17 May '17

Hello Sigcis - The journal "Minds and Machines" is not the first place you'd normally look for historical writing, so let me draw your attention to my recent paper "AI and the Origins of the Functional Programming Style". More information available here <http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11023-017-9432-7>. Cheers, Mark

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AAC/CFP : "Unix in Europe : between innovation, diffusion and heritage" with right link
by Camille Paloque-Berges 15 May '17

15 May '17

Dear all, Apparently the link wasn't working. Here is one that should do : http://technique-societe.cnam.fr/international-symposium-unix-in-europe-bet… Very best, Camille 2017-05-15 17:48 GMT+02:00 Camille Paloque-Berges <camille.pb(a)gmail.com>: > Dear all, > > Please find enclosed the CFP for the symposium *"Unix in Europe: between > innovation, diffusion and heritage"* that will take place in Cnam (Paris, > France), October, 19th, 2017. > > A one-page abstract (maximum 500 words) with a short biography is expected > for June 30th 2017. > > The Cfp is also available at : > <http://technique-societe.cnam.fr/international-symposium-un > ix-in-europe-between-innovation-diffusion-and-heritage-91300 > 9.kjsp?RH=cdhte>. > > Best regards, > > The organization comitee : Isabelle Astic, Raphaël Fournier-S'niehotta, > Pierre-Eric Mounier-Kuhn, Camille Paloque-Berges, Loïc Petitgirard > > ------------------------------------------------------------ > > > *Call for contributions* > > *International symposium * > > *Unix in Europe: between innovation, diffusion and heritage* > > *Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers, Paris, France – October 19 > 2017* > > > > Communications and discussions will be held in French or English. > > > *Rationale* > > > The Unix system was born in the 1970s at the crossroads between two > interacting worlds: industry (the Bell Labs at AT&T) and academia (the > University of Berkeley computer science network). Its fast adoption > throughout computer research and engineering networks across the world > signaled the future success of the new system, fostering software > experiments within its open, multi-user and multi-tasking system running on > mini-computers – and later compatible with a larger part of computer > hardware. In the European context, how was this American innovation > propagated, adopted and adapted? Why was Unix of so much interest in this > context, then and now? A solid culture of Unix users might also explain > this success, as well as subsequent processes of appropriation and > inheritance, due to the long and complex history of Unix versioning. The > memory of Unix users is vivid indeed, fed by early accounts within the > computer world (Salus, 1994) as well as preservation initiatives (Toomey, > 2010). Moreover, the Unix system is a crucial reference in the history of > computing, in particular in the field of free and open source software > (Kelty, 2008), computer networks (Paloque-Berges, 2017), as well as in > programming language philosophy (Mélès, 2013). > > > In order to explore the variety of these interrogations, this symposium > encourages contributions from historians as well as philosophers, social > science researchers, and heritage professionals interested in the history > of computer open systems and software with a focus on Unix or who have a > wider perspective. It will also welcome protagonists and witnesses of Unix > culture and carriers of its memory. We wish to discuss and shed light on > several aspects of the development of Unix in Europe (including in > comparison or relation with the rest of the world) along three main lines: > historical and sociological, philosophical and epistemological, and > heritage- and preservation-oriented. > > > *1/ Historical and sociological perspectives* > > > Historically, the Unix system is linked to the promotion and development > in research on open systems and computer networks. How does this fit in the > context of industrial, scientific and technological policies defined at the > national and European level? The history of Unix thus reaches at least > three levels of interrogations: 1/ the forms, places and practices of > innovation around Unix in R&D labs and computing centers in companies, > schools and universities; 2/ planning, promoting and negotiating open > systems (norms and standards) from the perspective of science and/or > politics; 3/ international geopolitical relations, whether economical or > geopolitical and even geostrategic (for example between Unix users, with > users of other computer equipment or other hardware and software companies, > the role of embargos in the shipping of mini-computers, of code, and > military uses of Unix). > > > In parallel, how has the world of computer research welcomed, encouraged, > negotiated and propagated uses and innovations related to Unix systems? > This begs the question of how Unix-related research and development was > legitimized - or played a part in the legitimization of computer science > experimentalism in the scientific field and beyond. We would also like to > highlight practices of resistance, the failure to acknowledge, ignorance of > or even the limits of the Unix system, its software tools and hardware > environment (beginning with the famous PDP and Vax machines from Digital > Equipment where the first Unix versions were implemented). With a focus on > occupational computer uses, we call for analysis which aims to explore and > clarify: > > - the role of developers, users, and user associations – from the point of > view of pioneers as well as helpers, maintainers and other witnesses of the > implementation of Unix; > > - the context, process, and people who determined its propagation, > appropriation, and development over time; > > - the meaning of concepts of Unix philosophy and ethics such as “openness” > and “autonomy”, from a social, political or economic point of view. > > > *2. Philosophical and epistemological perspectives* > > > > We will foster research and reflection at the crossroad of the theoretical > foundations of computer systems and engineering pragmatism, between the > philosophy of computer systems and Unixian practices. > > > > Protagonists in the conception and diffusion of Unix often claim to have a > ‘Unix philosophy’ . But beyond statement of principle, what was the real > influence of this idea on the technical choices underlying the system’s > developments? What are the ethical, moral, and philosophical motivations – > alongside the social, political or economic dimensions discussed earlier – > underpinning the adoption of Unix or pretending to extend it (for instance > in relation to the notions of sharing, modularity or freedom)? How is the > idea of ‘openness’ attached to Unix practices and heritage (free software, > open source) conceived? What are the theoretical developments to be drawn > from it (for instance with the idea of open software)? > > > > The logical and mathematical foundations of Unix should be readdressed. Do > the fundamental concepts of Unix have an ontological or metaphysical > significance beyond the sole research aim of technical efficiency? What > role do aesthetics play in the formulation of general principles and > technical choices? How can we analyze programming languages such as C and > its successors, scripts, software, and generally speaking, the > proliferating source codes of Unix? How do we consider the system, the > software environment, as well as the hardware in which Unix is implemented > and executed? > > > > Such philosophical questions also cover the modalities of the transmission > of Unix, extending to the investigation of the respective roles of theory > and practice in the teaching of the system, the teaching of knowledge and > tools underlying the system or supporting the system. > > > > *3. Unix heritage and ‘heritagization’* > > > > France is now the home to multiple initiatives taking place to build and > preserve a material and immaterial heritage of computer science and > technology – such as ‘Software Heritage’ at INRIA, a global software > archive in progress. The Museum of Arts et Métiers gave impetus to the MINF > initiative (‘Pour un Musée de l’informatique et du numérique’) and > coordinates the ‘Patstec Mission’ dealing with contemporary scientific and > technological heritage preservation, including computer science. At an > international scale and with a grassroots perspective carried by the > community of Unix users, the TUHS (The Unix Heritage Society) demonstrates > the current interest in the specific heritage linked to Unix. We encourage > reflections on this heritage and its specific features: > > > > - What is the place of Unix in the construction of computer science > heritage? Is it possible to map Unix systems and their heritage, from the > standpoint of machines, languages and software? What has already been > collected? What corpus, data bases, and/or platforms with a patrimonial > mission are concerned with Unix and to what purpose? > > - How are the questions of training, constitution and diffusion of a Unix > culture incorporated in the effort to collect heritage? How do we evaluate > and put forward the importance of immaterial heritage attached to Unix, > considering the effects of community and memory in its history and for the > writing of its history? > > - What are the practices and modalities advocated by the unixian heritage > itself? What has been its influence on the field of computer engineering > and research as well as diverse fields such as: popularization of science > and technology, ‘hacker’ movements and many ‘maker’ practices today > (Lallement, 2016)? > > > *Schedules* > > Please send a one-page abstract (maximum 500 words) with a short biography > by June 30, 2017 to: camille.paloque-berges(a)cnam.fr > <camille.paloque-berges(a)lecnam.net> and loic.petitgirard(a)cnam.fr. > Accepted contributions and speakers will be notified by July 15, 2017. > > > *Organizing committee* > > Isabelle Astic (Musée des arts et métiers) > > Raphaël Fournier-S’niehotta (Cédric, Cnam) > > Pierre-Eric Mounier-Kuhn (CRM, Paris 1) > > Camille Paloque-Berges (HT2S, Cnam) > > Loïc Petitgirard (HT2S, Cnam) > > > *Scientific committee * > > François Anceau (UMPC-LIP6) > > Pierre Cubaud (Cédric, Cnam) > > Liesbeth de Mol (STL, Lille 3) > > Claudine Fontanon (CAK, EHESS) > > Gérald Kembellec (DICEN, Cnam) > > Baptiste Mélès (Archives Henri Poincaré, CNRS) > > Giuseppe Primiero (Middlesex University) > > Lionel Tabourier (LIP6, Paris 6) > > > *Institutional partners and support: * > > - Project « Hist.Pat.info.Cnam », HT2S, Cnam – Research program supported > by the Excellence laboratory History and Anthropology of Knoweldge, > Technics and Beliefs (HASTEC), and in partnership with the laboratories > CEDRIC (Cnam), DICEN (Cnam), and the Center Alexandre Koyré (EHESS). > > - « Histoire de l’informatique » (« History of computing » seminar) > seminar - (Musée des arts et métiers, CRM, Paris 1, UMPC-LIP6) > > - « Source code » seminar - (CNRS, Cnam, Université Paris 6). > > With support from the DHST/DLMPST for the History and Philosophy of > Computing (HAPOC) > > > *Bibliography * > > Kelty, Christopher M. 2008. *Two Bits: The Cultural Significance of Free > Software*. Durham: Duke University Press Books. > > > > Lallement, Michel. 2016. *L’âge du faire, *Seuil. > > > > Mélès, Baptiste. 2003. « Unix selon l’ordre des raisons : la philosophie > de la pratique informatique ». *Philosophia Scientiæ* 17 (3): 181‑98. > > > > Salus, Peter H. 1994. *A quarter century of UNIX*. Addison-Wesley. > Reading. > > > > Toomey, Warren. 2010. « First Edition Unix: Its Creation and > Restoration ». *IEEE Annals of the History of Computing* 32 (3): 74‑82. > > > > >

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AAC/CFP : "Unix en Europe : entre innovation, diffusion et héritage"
by Camille Paloque-Berges 15 May '17

15 May '17

Dear all, Please find enclosed the CFP for the symposium *"Unix in Europe: between innovation, diffusion and heritage"* that will take place in Cnam (Paris, France), October, 19th, 2017. A one-page abstract (maximum 500 words) with a short biography is expected for June 30th 2017. The Cfp is also available at : <http://technique-societe.cnam.fr/international-symposium-un ix-in-europe-between-innovation-diffusion-and-heritage-913009.kjsp?RH=cdhte >. Best regards, The organization comitee : Isabelle Astic, Raphaël Fournier-S'niehotta, Pierre-Eric Mounier-Kuhn, Camille Paloque-Berges, Loïc Petitgirard ------------------------------------------------------------ *Call for contributions* *International symposium * *Unix in Europe: between innovation, diffusion and heritage* *Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers, Paris, France – October 19 2017* Communications and discussions will be held in French or English. *Rationale* The Unix system was born in the 1970s at the crossroads between two interacting worlds: industry (the Bell Labs at AT&T) and academia (the University of Berkeley computer science network). Its fast adoption throughout computer research and engineering networks across the world signaled the future success of the new system, fostering software experiments within its open, multi-user and multi-tasking system running on mini-computers – and later compatible with a larger part of computer hardware. In the European context, how was this American innovation propagated, adopted and adapted? Why was Unix of so much interest in this context, then and now? A solid culture of Unix users might also explain this success, as well as subsequent processes of appropriation and inheritance, due to the long and complex history of Unix versioning. The memory of Unix users is vivid indeed, fed by early accounts within the computer world (Salus, 1994) as well as preservation initiatives (Toomey, 2010). Moreover, the Unix system is a crucial reference in the history of computing, in particular in the field of free and open source software (Kelty, 2008), computer networks (Paloque-Berges, 2017), as well as in programming language philosophy (Mélès, 2013). In order to explore the variety of these interrogations, this symposium encourages contributions from historians as well as philosophers, social science researchers, and heritage professionals interested in the history of computer open systems and software with a focus on Unix or who have a wider perspective. It will also welcome protagonists and witnesses of Unix culture and carriers of its memory. We wish to discuss and shed light on several aspects of the development of Unix in Europe (including in comparison or relation with the rest of the world) along three main lines: historical and sociological, philosophical and epistemological, and heritage- and preservation-oriented. *1/ Historical and sociological perspectives* Historically, the Unix system is linked to the promotion and development in research on open systems and computer networks. How does this fit in the context of industrial, scientific and technological policies defined at the national and European level? The history of Unix thus reaches at least three levels of interrogations: 1/ the forms, places and practices of innovation around Unix in R&D labs and computing centers in companies, schools and universities; 2/ planning, promoting and negotiating open systems (norms and standards) from the perspective of science and/or politics; 3/ international geopolitical relations, whether economical or geopolitical and even geostrategic (for example between Unix users, with users of other computer equipment or other hardware and software companies, the role of embargos in the shipping of mini-computers, of code, and military uses of Unix). In parallel, how has the world of computer research welcomed, encouraged, negotiated and propagated uses and innovations related to Unix systems? This begs the question of how Unix-related research and development was legitimized - or played a part in the legitimization of computer science experimentalism in the scientific field and beyond. We would also like to highlight practices of resistance, the failure to acknowledge, ignorance of or even the limits of the Unix system, its software tools and hardware environment (beginning with the famous PDP and Vax machines from Digital Equipment where the first Unix versions were implemented). With a focus on occupational computer uses, we call for analysis which aims to explore and clarify: - the role of developers, users, and user associations – from the point of view of pioneers as well as helpers, maintainers and other witnesses of the implementation of Unix; - the context, process, and people who determined its propagation, appropriation, and development over time; - the meaning of concepts of Unix philosophy and ethics such as “openness” and “autonomy”, from a social, political or economic point of view. *2. Philosophical and epistemological perspectives* We will foster research and reflection at the crossroad of the theoretical foundations of computer systems and engineering pragmatism, between the philosophy of computer systems and Unixian practices. Protagonists in the conception and diffusion of Unix often claim to have a ‘Unix philosophy’ . But beyond statement of principle, what was the real influence of this idea on the technical choices underlying the system’s developments? What are the ethical, moral, and philosophical motivations – alongside the social, political or economic dimensions discussed earlier – underpinning the adoption of Unix or pretending to extend it (for instance in relation to the notions of sharing, modularity or freedom)? How is the idea of ‘openness’ attached to Unix practices and heritage (free software, open source) conceived? What are the theoretical developments to be drawn from it (for instance with the idea of open software)? The logical and mathematical foundations of Unix should be readdressed. Do the fundamental concepts of Unix have an ontological or metaphysical significance beyond the sole research aim of technical efficiency? What role do aesthetics play in the formulation of general principles and technical choices? How can we analyze programming languages such as C and its successors, scripts, software, and generally speaking, the proliferating source codes of Unix? How do we consider the system, the software environment, as well as the hardware in which Unix is implemented and executed? Such philosophical questions also cover the modalities of the transmission of Unix, extending to the investigation of the respective roles of theory and practice in the teaching of the system, the teaching of knowledge and tools underlying the system or supporting the system. *3. Unix heritage and ‘heritagization’* France is now the home to multiple initiatives taking place to build and preserve a material and immaterial heritage of computer science and technology – such as ‘Software Heritage’ at INRIA, a global software archive in progress. The Museum of Arts et Métiers gave impetus to the MINF initiative (‘Pour un Musée de l’informatique et du numérique’) and coordinates the ‘Patstec Mission’ dealing with contemporary scientific and technological heritage preservation, including computer science. At an international scale and with a grassroots perspective carried by the community of Unix users, the TUHS (The Unix Heritage Society) demonstrates the current interest in the specific heritage linked to Unix. We encourage reflections on this heritage and its specific features: - What is the place of Unix in the construction of computer science heritage? Is it possible to map Unix systems and their heritage, from the standpoint of machines, languages and software? What has already been collected? What corpus, data bases, and/or platforms with a patrimonial mission are concerned with Unix and to what purpose? - How are the questions of training, constitution and diffusion of a Unix culture incorporated in the effort to collect heritage? How do we evaluate and put forward the importance of immaterial heritage attached to Unix, considering the effects of community and memory in its history and for the writing of its history? - What are the practices and modalities advocated by the unixian heritage itself? What has been its influence on the field of computer engineering and research as well as diverse fields such as: popularization of science and technology, ‘hacker’ movements and many ‘maker’ practices today (Lallement, 2016)? *Schedules* Please send a one-page abstract (maximum 500 words) with a short biography by June 30, 2017 to: camille.paloque-berges(a)cnam.fr <camille.paloque-berges(a)lecnam.net> and loic.petitgirard(a)cnam.fr. Accepted contributions and speakers will be notified by July 15, 2017. *Organizing committee* Isabelle Astic (Musée des arts et métiers) Raphaël Fournier-S’niehotta (Cédric, Cnam) Pierre-Eric Mounier-Kuhn (CRM, Paris 1) Camille Paloque-Berges (HT2S, Cnam) Loïc Petitgirard (HT2S, Cnam) *Scientific committee * François Anceau (UMPC-LIP6) Pierre Cubaud (Cédric, Cnam) Liesbeth de Mol (STL, Lille 3) Claudine Fontanon (CAK, EHESS) Gérald Kembellec (DICEN, Cnam) Baptiste Mélès (Archives Henri Poincaré, CNRS) Giuseppe Primiero (Middlesex University) Lionel Tabourier (LIP6, Paris 6) *Institutional partners and support: * - Project « Hist.Pat.info.Cnam », HT2S, Cnam – Research program supported by the Excellence laboratory History and Anthropology of Knoweldge, Technics and Beliefs (HASTEC), and in partnership with the laboratories CEDRIC (Cnam), DICEN (Cnam), and the Center Alexandre Koyré (EHESS). - « Histoire de l’informatique » (« History of computing » seminar) seminar - (Musée des arts et métiers, CRM, Paris 1, UMPC-LIP6) - « Source code » seminar - (CNRS, Cnam, Université Paris 6). With support from the DHST/DLMPST for the History and Philosophy of Computing (HAPOC) *Bibliography * Kelty, Christopher M. 2008. *Two Bits: The Cultural Significance of Free Software*. Durham: Duke University Press Books. Lallement, Michel. 2016. *L’âge du faire, *Seuil. Mélès, Baptiste. 2003. « Unix selon l’ordre des raisons : la philosophie de la pratique informatique ». *Philosophia Scientiæ* 17 (3): 181‑98. Salus, Peter H. 1994. *A quarter century of UNIX*. Addison-Wesley. Reading. Toomey, Warren. 2010. « First Edition Unix: Its Creation and Restoration ». *IEEE Annals of the History of Computing* 32 (3): 74‑82.

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SCELBI 8B demonstration video
by Mike Willegal 15 May '17

15 May '17

http://www.willegal.net/SCELBI-8B.mov Those of you that are interested in early home/personal/micro-computers might find this video of a reproduction, interesting. As far as I know, fully functional original SCELBI 8B computers are non existent. I am helping the owner of one original SCELBI 8B that may get his system running in the not too distant future. That one does not have the oscilloscope interface. Regards, Mike Willegal

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Russian computing history conference
by Petri Paju 15 May '17

15 May '17

Hello all, Here's a short reminder of what's happening in computing and informatics history in Russia: the 4th "international conference "Development of computer technology and its software in Russia and the former Soviet Union: history and prospects (SORUCOM - 2017)", in early October 2017. Call for papers expired April 1 (but perhaps they are flexible). See more at: http://www.sorucom.org/en/ Best, Petri Petri Paju History of Industrialization & Innovation Group, Aalto University, and Department of Cultural History, University of Turku http://utu.academia.edu/PetriPaju

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UW names street after Bletchley Park code-breaker
by Brian Randell 11 May '17

11 May '17

Hi: A press release I’ve just spotted: > WATERLOO — The University of Waterloo is honouring a pre-eminent mathematician and wartime code-breaker, naming the street that runs between its math buildings after William Tutte. > > The British-born Tutte's work at Bletchley Park, Britain's top-secret code-breaking organization, helped changed the course of the Second World War and has been called "the greatest intellectual feat" of the war. > > But Tutte, a brilliant mathematician who helped establish the reputation of the university's mathematics faculty, was sworn to secrecy about his wartime work, which only came to light in the late 1990s, when he was 80. > > After the war, Tutte became a professor at the University of Toronto, then moved to the fledgling University of Waterloo in 1962. As a star in his field, he was able to attract some of the brightest minds to Waterloo and its faculty of mathematics, where he was a professor in the Combinatorics and Optimization Department for more than 30 years. He was named an officer of the Order of Canada in 2001. > > "It's only being recognized now that his contributions were probably greater than any other code breaker" at Bletchley Park, said Daniel Younger, a professor emeritus in the university's math department who was Tutte's longtime friend. > > Tutte came to Bletchley Park in 1941. Unlike the better-known decoders of the famous Enigma machine, Tutte did not have a machine to work with. Instead, using only samples of coded messages, he managed to deduce the machine that could produce such messages, how such a machine would work and what it would look like. > > He then went on to describe how to crack the codes the machine produced, developing algorithms so complex that Bletchley engineers built Colossus, widely considered to be the first electronic computer, to execute Tutte's algorithms. > > Cracking the Lorenz code helped changed the course of the war because the Lorenz machine was the one Hitler used to send messages to his top generals in the field. Tutte's work helped turn the Battle of Kursk, powered the D-Day landings and likely shortened the Second World War. > > The naming ceremony takes place Friday as part of events to mark the 50th anniversary of the Faculty of Mathematics, and coincides with what would have been Tutte's 100th birthday this Sunday. > > The ceremony begins at 11 a.m. at the David Centre with a talk by Younger about Tutte's many achievements and his contributions to mathematics, followed by the sign ceremony at noon and a screening at 1 p.m. of the 2011 BBC documentary, "Code-Breakers: Bletchley Park's Lost Heroes" about Tutte and his Bletchley colleague Tommy Flowers, who developed the Colossus computer. > > For more information on Tutte and his work, go to uwaterloo.ca/combinatorics-and-optimization/about/professor-william-t-tutte > http://www.therecord.com/news-story/7308387-uw-names-street-after-bletchley… Cheers Brian Randell — School of Computing Science, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU EMAIL = Brian.Randell(a)ncl.ac.uk PHONE = +44 191 208 7923 URL = http://www.ncl.ac.uk/computing/people/profile/brianrandell.html

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TechRepublic: The evolution of the laptop computer
by Joly MacFie 11 May '17

11 May '17

Clickbait, but pretty. http://www.techrepublic.com/pictures/the-evolution-of-the-laptop-computer/ -- --------------------------------------------------------------- Joly MacFie 218 565 9365 Skype:punkcast -------------------------------------------------------------- -

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“Unprogramming” the ENIAC: Lehmer Child’s Play
by Brian Berg 11 May '17

11 May '17

A new story by John Markoff posted as a blog to the Computer History Museum's website. I did not find anything about this in the Thomas Haigh, *et al.* book *ENIAC in Action* book. Brian Berg “Unprogramming” the ENIAC: Lehmer Child’s Play <http://www.computerhistory.org/atchm/unprogramming-the-eniac-lehmer-childs-…> At the dawn of the modern computing era teenager Laura Gould and her brother Donald Lehmer were the youngest “un-programmers.” That is because ENIAC, one of the world’s first general-purpose computers, was programmed with an array of switches and cables. When each program had been run, someone had to return the cables to their proper storage box to be available for the next program. Shortly after the installation of the ENIAC their parents, Derrick Henry Lehmer and Emma Trotskaya Lehmer, who were well-known number theorists at the University of California at Berkeley, were invited to use the machine for mathematical research. Designed to aid the war effort and completed in 1945 at the Moore School of the University of Pennsylvania by John Mauchly and J. Presper Eckert, ENIAC, or Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer, was a pioneering electronic digital computer. However, it was not a stored-program computer in the modern sense of the term. Historian David Alan Grier described it as more like an array of electronic adding machines and arithmetic units that were held together by a web of large electrical cables. The machine itself, which was about one thousand times faster than the electro-mechanical calculators of that time, occupied a large room and was evocative of a telephone switchboard of the era, with a plugboard array that could be rewired with cables of different lengths. That’s where Gould and her brother came in. As youngsters they would accompany their parents on cross-country car trips to gather valuable research time on the machine. The ENIAC would be programmed with plugboard-style cables that were operated in the manner of a mechanical telephone switchboard. While traveling with their parents, a babysitter wasn’t always available, and so the two children who were then in their early teens, would accompany their parents for the long programming sessions that often stretched into the evening. After the programs ran, their job was to aid in resetting the computer by laboriously disconnected all of the cables and placing them in boxes according to length. “It was our job to strike when the program was over and put all of the cables in their appropriate boxes sorted by lengths,” she recalled. Neither brother nor sister remember precisely what programs their parents were developing. It is possible that they were exploring different methods for predicting the next prime number, but it is also conceivable that they were involved in some aspect of classified military research. The ENIAC had been commissioned to help the United States Army calculate artillery trajectories. However, Donald Lehmer noted that his father was a pacifist: “He had no interest in doing anything that would kill people. I suspect he was thinking about prime numbers.” [snip]

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