7 Nov
2000
7 Nov
'00
7:20 a.m.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Gene Buckle" <geneb(a)deltasoft.com>
To: <classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org>
Sent: Tuesday, November 07, 2000 11:32 AM
Subject: Re: "Basics of Analog Computers" book
The last time I looked tubes were analogue devices. One of their
main uses is as amplifiers, which is definitely an analogue function.
If I remember correctly, one of the main problems with early tube
computers (1940s and 1950s), was actually getting the tubes to behave
like digital devices.
--
Dr. Mark Green mark(a)cs.ualberta.ca
McCalla Professor (780) 492-4584
Department of Computing Science (780) 492-1071 (FAX)
University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, T6G 2H1, Canada
Here's a prime example of an analog computer
that's in current use:
http://deltasoft.fife.wa.us/BehindTheScenes/lockheed.html
If the captions on the pictures (very nice, by the way) are correct, this
simulator isn't an analog computer at all by the definition I'm familiar
with. It uses tubes and relays, which are discrete digital components
(they're either on or off, with no states in between). An analog computer
as I understand it is something like a differential analyser, which uses
rollers and turntables which have (virtually) infinite states, depending on
how finely you can measure. Another example of an analog device would be a
slide rule.