Delay lines - test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

21 Mar 1998

Dear friends,
I love computers indeed, but behind calculators are almost 400 years of
history, so there is a lot of very interesting material to learn and
research.  

Regards,

James Redin
http://www.dotpoint.com/xnumber
The X-Number World of Calculators

----------
...
  From: Doug Yowza &lt;yowza(a)yowza.com&gt;
 To: Discussion re-collecting of classic computers
&lt;classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu&gt;
...
  Subject: Re: Delay lines
 Date: Friday, March 20, 1998 11:21 PM

 On Fri, 20 Mar 1998, Kip Crosby wrote:

    But the calculator collectors have their own lists,
don't they? 
True... I'd just not object to the odd thread on [calculators]
particularly if they were historically significant (the HP9100...), 
technically interesting, or whatever.  
 Hear, hear!  Especially since many so-called calculators were built by
 manufacturers not, for whatever reason, prepared to admit they were
 building computers -- with IBM and HP springing to mind at once.  
 I know people collect calculators, but I just can't imagine how it can
 bring the same kind of satisfaction as computer collecting.  You can't
 really hack a calculator.  They don't lend themselves very well to
 restoration efforts.  They can't do many tricks.  And few of them have any
...
  sort of personality (OK, I'll admit that HP tries
pretty hard in this
 area).

 Has anybody ventured a definition of computer that allows us to weed out
 mere calculators?  How about:

 * must be programmable
 * must be general purpose
 * must have alphanumeric input capabilites
 * must have alphanumeric display capabilites

 Unfortunately, this would mean that an Altair isn't a computer until you
 add a terminal, but it keeps those pesky HP-65's out of the group.

 -- Doug