OT:decoding enigma (was Re: One of only 3 "enigma machine" stolen;

From: Sean 'Captain Napalm' Conner <spc_at_armigeron.com>
Date: Wed Apr 5 00:32:43 2000

It was thus said that the Great Geoff Roberts once stated:
>
> The Enigma variant and the code used by the Unterseeboote branch
> (Hydra?) was not penetrated
> until the British were able to capture the Enigma and codebooks from a
> U-boat they had forced to
> surface after prosecuting it with depth charges.

  In Neil Stephenson's _Cyrptomonicon_, half the story takes place during
WWII in which the Allies are breaking the Axis codes and sending one of the
main characters on wild missions that mainly deal with being seen. As one
of the characters says, ``The object of an observation plane isn't to
observe, but to be observed.'' You don't want to alert the other side that
you've broken their code---otherwise they might change it on you.

  -spc (Very good book. But long)
Received on Wed Apr 05 2000 - 00:32:43 BST