The lighter side of computer history!

I began using computers in the 1970’s, working on mainframe and minicomputers until the advent of the IBM PC in 1981 (yes, I remember it!). I was therefore delighted to receive an e-mail from reader Tim C., who provided a link to a site collecting historical information about NCR computers from past decades.

I indulged in a little nostalgic recollection as I browsed through the site. One page in particular made me chuckle. It’s a collection of aphorisms, idioms and other funny sayings (most with more than a little truth in them!) from the ‘Golden Age’ of computing. Here are a few examples.

There are 10 types of people. Those that understand binary and those that do not.
— Ray Roton

Walking on water and developing software from a specification are easy if both are frozen.
— Edward V. Berard, “Life-Cycle Approaches”

I haven’t lost my mind, I have it backed up on tape somewhere.
— Unknown

Programming today is a race between software engineers striving to build bigger and better idiot-proof programs, and the Universe trying to produce bigger and better idiots. So far, the Universe is winning.
— Rich Cook

If computers get too powerful, we can organize them into a committee–that will do them in.
— Bradley’s Bromide

If the automobile had followed the same development cycle as the computer, a Rolls-Royce would today cost $100, get a million miles per gallon, and explode once a year, killing everyone inside.
— Robert X. Cringely

Programming is like sex, one mistake and you have to support it for the rest of your life.
— Michael Sinz

If builders built buildings the way programmers wrote programs, then the first woodpecker that came along would destroy civilization.
— Harry Weinberger

Computers are like Old Testament gods; lots of rules and no mercy.
— Joseph Campbell

A computer lets you make more mistakes faster than any invention in human history – with the possible exceptions of hand guns and tequila.
— Mitch Ratliffe

There are many more at the link. Go read, and laugh! Thanks again, Tim, for the link.

Peter