10 Aug
2012
10 Aug
'12
12:07 p.m.
>>> So
how can the current generation learn about their computer heritage?
>>> Replicas? Reproductions?
I replied:
Simulators are good.
Note no museum use was mentioned.
Simulators work well for this, and can be run from the comfort of
anyone's home. No museum required.
So please reconsider your post and how things were actually said.
And please make it clear what you are talking about.
Please do not stoop to Tony's level, twisting my
words at any occasion
- you will end up soiling your reputation (back to the "don't be a
dick" idea).
You are a terminal idiot. Period.
Anyway, here is a fun thought experiment. Consider two
absolutely
identical big machines from the 1960s. Take one, and restore it to
operation. Take the other, and put it into a museum archive and
preserved. Wait 30 years. Now, in 2042, compare the two machines. The
running one will be quite a bit more "used" than the preserved one,
just from normal wear and tear on the components. Now here is the
twist - in 30 years ago, simulators will be magnitudes beyond what we
have today. Simulating not only the architecture, but the sounds,
smells, colors, textures, and so forth. Yes, virtual reality. Now,
what would you want your near perfect simulation to be based off of -
the machine that was used far longer than its normal working history,
or the one that was preserved as it was just taken out of service?
Well, given that thwe one that's bneen in storage for 30 years probalby
won't still work, while the one that's keen kept running probably will
(albeit with some components replaced over the years), I think the answer
is obvious :-).
-tony