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PRE computer age computers (aka mechanical calculators/slide rules/analog computers)

daver2 said:
On the subject of Tic-Tac-Toe, I have always wanted to build this https://www.dos4ever.com/ring/Tick_Tack_Toe.pdf. It uses valves, relays and large number of NE-2 neon lamps as the computing elements.

Unfortunately, I have never found a more complete description, as some parts of the logic is not described; and I can’t reconcile the supposed number of neon lamps with my understanding of the basic logic required.

It remains on my “to do” list, but only once I have simulated it and it appears to work adequately...
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Seems to be a bit of overkill on the memory cells--relays, neons and a thyratron for s single bit? In any event, if you do decide to build the thing, find some new old neon lamps. The Chinese ones made today don't include a bit of radioactive material in the glass to make sure that the lamp fires consistently in the dark. Modern hobbyists wanting to recreate old neon-lamp ring counters, for example, have found that they need to include a light source to get the things to work consistently.

A game based on Strowger switches might be more entertaining to the ears... :)
 
you can find plenty of fish & chips with mushy peas but the quality seems no different then what i can get here in the states. There has always been an indian presense but i am surprised by the sheer number of middle-easterners in every restaraunt. I really wantes Italian food and after we were sat i realized all the staff were middle eastern.

Anyway next time I am there visiting my sister in law i want to try eel pie and blood sausage... never had them.
 
Back on subject, One of the more interesting calculating methods is the nomogram or nomograph. For particular purposes its use is still taught today. An example of this is a thing called the Maneuver Board. It is a graphic way to calculate course and intercepts for ships. Even with a calculator, not specifically designed to solve such problems I doubt many could solve the problems. What would you do on a war ship if the radar was knocked out by an attack? How would you know which way to go and how fast, to your best advantage? You'd bring out the manual maneuver board. Using only pencil, straight edge and parallel you can determine what you need to do.
I showed my slide ruler to a school age kid and they had no idea what it did.
Dwight
 
I'm excited by pynomo as a way to make elegant PDF nomograms with python, although I haven't had time to try it out yet. You do see nomograms with some regularity in light aircraft flight manuals for calculating things like fuel consumption in cruise or takeoff distance; even recently-designed aircraft like the ones made by Diamond use them.

in the meantime, heaven help us poor Londoners and our pastas and parmigianas made by "middle-easterners" --- truly there have never been two geographies more totally divorced than the Middle East and the Italian peninsula, despite little things like the eastern extent of the Roman Empire or the 260-year history of the Emirate of Sicily.

For eels you might try Castle's Pie and Mash in Kentish Town; no idea of the ethnicities of their server staff though.
 
I've related before my experience as an instrumentation tech with electro-pneumatic and -hydraulic process control gear. It's really surprising what cam be done with air--differentiation, integration, square-root extraction, etc.

And we're all familiar with the ball-and-disk integrator used in naval and military (e.g. Norden bomb sight) applications.
 
I think someone posted a datasheet/patent for fluidic computers a few years ago. Lots of talk about use in case of EMP pulse. Babbage's analytical engine has always interested me, but that is on the hard side to build:)

It's not strictly a computer but there is this mechanical child that writes notes. Very old and interesting, and slightly creepy.

@VERAULT Eal is best smoked IMHO, jellied Eal is a classic. Blood sausage or black pudding is kinda meh to me. Never been keen on pies. If you have any fond memories of London I wouldn't go back. Its like the worst parts of the US but only the criminals have guns.

I usually tip unless it is a chain like Burger King. I wont tip if it added to the bill though, tip 0, gift 10%, not taxable. Taxing tips is just awful. I can see the pluses and minuses to it, but it always comes back to the same point. If I'm worrying about the tip, I probably shouldn't be eating out. I do it purely because it makes me feet better about myself. And, also I've worked in catering, and seen what chefs do to people who piss them off.
 
@mR_Slug thanks for the tip on Eel, I may try both classic and smoked if I can find it. And I do like pies.
I feel the same way about New York City as you mention about London. I just dont enjoy cities anymore.. Period. When I was young and drinking it was a different story. Now I avoid them and take more pleasure in visiting small towns with non tourity sites to see. I mean last time we came back from a night out in London we had to wait in a tremendous Que after getting off the Train in
Reading to wait for a Cab with way too many young people barely able to stand... And the though is always " I am getting too old to be in these situations..."

And I DO TIP in the USA of course,, Id be getting in way to many arguments If I didnt. I meant when I am in Prague lets say, its not compulsory.




At everyone else back on topic. Is it me or are the prices for things as simple as mechanical adding machines skyrocketing? I have gotten a few offers for mechanical adding machines or small business registers and they wanted absurd money. I know they are geting pretty old at this point but I didnt know there was a real market. Not something I collect of course.
 
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mR_Slug said:
I think someone posted a datasheet/patent for fluidic computers a few years ago. Lots of talk about use in case of EMP pulse. Babbage's analytical engine has always interested me, but that is on the hard side to build:)
Click to expand...

There have been a few water-powered digital adder projects: Example but not strictly fluidic.

It's not strictly a computer but there is this mechanical child that writes notes. Very old and interesting, and slightly creepy
Click to expand...

There was also (still exists as a museum exhibit) Torres' El Adrejecista
 
VERAULT said:
you can find plenty of fish & chips with mushy peas but the quality seems no different then what i can get here in the states. There has always been an indian presense but i am surprised by the sheer number of middle-easterners in every restaraunt. I really wantes Italian food and after we were sat i realized all the staff were middle eastern.

Anyway next time I am there visiting my sister in law i want to try eel pie and blood sausage... never had them.
Click to expand...
Black pudding is nice but never tried eel.

Caluser2000 said:
I used a ruler today to my motorcycle final drive chain wear. The yard stick was a bit too long for that purpose.
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Wy workshop lecturer would clout us for calling it a ruler, he would firmly say, its a rule or a straight edge and a line standard.

Then the Electrical installations lecturer would have a go for us calling things bulbs. "Lamps !, bulbs grow in the ground !"

Laugh a minute :)
 
Well I have some Sumlock Anita calculators. In my opinion these
were very important in the history of electronic calculator developments.
And they are the closest I can get to a tubes based computer.

Sumlock Anita MK8. The main technology is diodes, and tubes. The MK8 has only one transistor inside.

Sumlock Anita MK12. The MK12 is a real mixture of diodes, tubes and transistors.

I have also a few slide rules, just for historic perspective.

Regards, Roland
 
I hadn't heard about the Anita before, but I was mainly interested in the pure mechanical calculators and slide rules at the time so it's not surprising. That video was interesting and led me to look up some information on the manufacturer which also had an interesting backstory. I also hadn't heard about fluidic computers before so that was new but Ive looked at the links and done some searches and Im still not sure that Ive found any real computers (logic and switching applications yes) but if someone has a link to a real fluidic computer and an example of how it is programmed that would be cool (I read about the Monad, I think 14 made sold to businesses but not how or if they were ever actually working or put to use). Still, also interesting in its own right.
 
Roland Huisman said:
Well I have some Sumlock Anita calculators. In my opinion these
were very important in the history of electronic calculator developments.
And they are the closest I can get to a tubes based computer.

Sumlock Anita MK8. The main technology is diodes, and tubes. The MK8 has only one transistor inside.

Sumlock Anita MK12. The MK12 is a real mixture of diodes, tubes and transistors.

I have also a few slide rules, just for historic perspective.

Regards, Roland
Click to expand...
Those are beautiful machines. I had never heard of them before. When was the MK8 manufactured?
 
The tide machines are an interesting calculator. These used a number of wheels and pulleys that use a rope to sum up the total action of the individual contributions of the different controlling factors. It was kind of like an inverse FFT calculator. These were very important to the D day in WW2 as well as useful to shipping over the years.
Dwight
 
VERAULT said:
Those are beautiful machines. I had never heard of them before. When was the MK8 manufactured?
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These were introduced October 1961 and were up to 1964 the only electronic calculators in the world.

Here is some info about these machines

Anita Mk 8

www.vintagecalculators.com

Here is my article in Dutch about restoring my machine.

Technisch museum

technischmuseum.nl

Regards, Roland
 
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