Sat, Oct 13th John Allain wrote:
> I appreciate all the responses.
> So why computor tubes and not computer?
> I guess it's possible that the tubes were replacements
> and weren't spec with what GAP meant to use.
Since I didn't know the answer I asked someone
who was a Philbrick employee from 1949 to 1966.
"Hi, Doug:
The standard rationale was that the purpose of the
spelling was to differentiate between
machines that did computing and people who were
employed to do so. For example, my wife's roommate,
in the early days of her post-college life, had a
math degree and was employed at MIT's Whirlwind lab
as a "computer", doing computing tasks that were too
complex for the digital machines then existing.
However, I think that George really invented the term
(a) because it was attention-getting, (b) to
differentiate his product from the competition,
and (c) because he always liked to do things a little
differently and more creatively than the next guy."
=========================================
Doug Coward
_at_ home in Poulsbo, WA
Analog Computer Online Museum and History Center
http://www.best.com/~dcoward/analog
=========================================
Received on Tue Oct 16 2001 - 13:30:29 BST