A tour round the Christchurch computer centre

Press, 28 November 1977, Page 12

A tour round the Christchurch computer centre

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Computers have come a I long way since Interi national Business s Machines set up the first ! computer production line i in the early 19505. The machines of those ' days — now termed firstgeneration computers — were fairly basic, though advanced for their day. They were essentially card readers and sorters. In the mid-19605, came the second generation of computer, made possible by the development of the transistor. These machines were smaller, faster and had an increased capacity. Treasury had the first of these advanced computers to come to New Zealand. Such has been the speed of advance in the industry, however, that

this machine is now an exhibit at Auckland's Museum of Transport and Technology. The Digital Electronic Corporation DEC 10 computers installed at Christchurch and Auckland are third-generation machines. This group, production of which began in 1969-70, stems from the development of micro-circuitry, a resounding breakthrough in miniaturisation. The components are so small that 50,000 transistors and contacts can be contained in a thimble. There are probably more misconceptions and myths about computers than any other piece of office equipment. Some people find them threatening; others see them as some sort of minor deity.

They are neither. They are machines designed and programmed to do a specific job faster and more accurately than can man. But man conceives the task and man tells the machine what to do, in what might seem to be ridiculous detail. An example, using a colleague as computer: “Steve, open the door please.” Steve leaves his desk and opens the door. To instruct the computer to do something as simple could involve a string of instructions such as: “Stand up. Turn left, Go forward two paces. Turn right. Go forward three paces. Turn right, Go forward six paces. Hand on knob. Turn knob. Pull door.” And there would probably be many intermediate instructions,

A laborious business, but that’s what programming is al) about. And once the door-opening instructions had been fed into the computer it would be a tireless and efficient door-opener — but nothing more. Computers cannot think. All they can do is react in a pre-determined way upon receipt of a predetermined signal. There’s the other side of the story too. Computers do not make mistakes. Programmers and operators might make mistakes but the machine cannot. Don’t blame the computer when your bank balance is shown in red. Blame the bank staff — or your wife.