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Did you read the article? Universality is explicitly rejected as a criterion. The point is there is a fundamental difference between a computing device which p
by constantcrying 3y ago
Did you read the article? Universality is explicitly rejected as a criterion.
The point is there is a fundamental difference between a computing device which performs a single algorithm and a computer which can perform programmed algorithms.
- YeGoblynQueenne 3y agoHow about a device that can perform more than one computation then? e.g. the Antikythera mechanism could calculate the motion of the planets, and, separately, eclipses. Universality is the only characteristic that makes a difference, but I think the author avoids this because they don't want to be caught up in debates about whether modern computers are truly universal. The article is trying to make the distinction between what is, and isn't a "computer" sound crisp and exact, when it's arbitrary and ad-hoc.
- benterix 3y agoYes, more or less. To quote another commenter in another thread, " an open definition of what a computer is, is too inclusive and uninteresting if you want to talk about the history of actual computers".