Dear Matt: I've forwarded your question to Doron Swade, who headed the construction of both that engine and the one we have at the Computer History Museum (CHM), and Tim Robinson, who is responsible for the one at CHM; will let you know any answers. Best, Marc Marc Weber | marc@webhistory.org | +1 415 282 6868 Internet History Program Founder and Curator, Computer History Museum 1401 N Shoreline Blvd., Mountain View CA 94043 computerhistory.org/nethistory Co-founder, Web History Center and Project, webhistory.org On Aug 5, 2014, at 6:27 AM, Matthew Kirschenbaum wrote:

Well, almost.

On a recent trip the National Science Museum in London, UK I spotted mention of the fact that CB considered writing novels as a way to finance work on the Analytical Engine; but he never did.

Exhibit cards being exhibit cards, there was no sourcing for this tidbit. I've checked some of the Babbage bios, like Hyman, but while they also make the same claim there's still no specific sourcing. Does anyone know where it actually comes from?

Thanks, Matt

-- Matthew Kirschenbaum Associate Professor of English Associate Director, Maryland Institute for Technology in the Humanities (MITH) University of Maryland 301-405-8505 or 301-314-7111 (fax) http://mkirschenbaum.net and @mkirschenbaum on Twitter

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Marc Weber | marc@webhistory.org | +1 415 282 6868 Internet History Program Founder and Curator, Computer History Museum 1401 N Shoreline Blvd., Mountain View CA 94043 computerhistory.org/nethistory Co-founder, Web History Center and Project, webhistory.org