Colossus - The First Electronic Computer - Pt2

Demonstration video of the rebuilt Colossus computer at the Bletchley Park Museum in action. This machine was designed during WWII to break the German Lorenz cipher. http://www.codesandciphers.org.uk/lorenz/index.htm
http://www.bletchleypark.org.uk/

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• codes
• bletchley
• park
• cipher
• lorenz
• world
• war
• 2
• wwii
• enigma
• computer
• valve

[lrochfort]

Attention to nuance and correct usage of terminology is particularly important when discussing technology this old. The Colossus was the first partially-programmable, digital, electronic computing device, but not Turing-complete. The Z3 was electro-mechanical,Turing-comp­lete programmable, but not stored program and without conditional-jump. The first Turing-complete, digital, electronic, stored program computer was the Manchester SSEM (Baby).

[kevvywevvywoo]

What a treasure Tony Sale is! I remember seeing him on 'The Secret life of" in the late 80's.

[yakacm]

@MegaBrits Agreed Babbage was ahead of his time, it's just sad that he couldn't get the money to build it. Then as now if anyone comes up with anything novel or new in the UK, no one here has the balls to invest in it. Babbage was actually given money from the Govn't but they stopped the funding when the machine was only half built, sounds familiar. His designs where vindicated in 91 when the machine was built using his plans, whether 19th century material would have been up to it is in doubt.

[websuspect]

I dont understand colossias totaly. it generated decryption algorithms and than that Analysts had to review them for proper sequencing? To see if they had a proper enigma solution? I know they built 7 machines in 1944 and after the war they were all ordered to be destroyed. But I did apply for a job and they hinted they still use this system for one time use pads.

[Starfighterking]

@wrtlpfmpf Colossus was COMPLETE electronic (!), and was fully programmable, also ENIAC, Manchester Small-Scale Experimental Machine, Modified ENIAC, EDSAC, Manchester Mark 1 and finaly CSIRAC, and some had even memory!

[wrtlpfmpf]

@Starfighterking Well but this was just a dedicated device. The Z3 was fully programmable with a program stored on a filmstrip. There have been many dedicated digital devices like tabulating machines out there.

[Starfighterking]

@wrtlpfmpf Colossus was the first ELECTRONIC computer. The Z1 was mechanical and not worked, and the Z3 was electro-mechanical.

[wrtlpfmpf]

So if I see this correctly. It tries all start positions of the first wheel and then counts statistics on it. If the stat goes up unusually high, this wheel start position will be be printed.