Talk:Computer (occupation)

ENIAC vs. Colossus
There is much evidence that the Colossus computer built in England during WW2 predated ENIAC. It's history has been lesser known because it was a rigid state secret, as it was used in code breaking, and Churchill actually ordered it destroyed at the end of the war.71.193.205.212 (talk) 00:10, 15 December 2011 (UTC)


 * And your point is as far as improving the article? Dmcq (talk) 00:20, 15 December 2011 (UTC)

Mathematical Tables Project
There should be a section on the Mathematical Tables Project as chronicled in Grier's book. Jfgrcar (talk) 23:58, 30 March 2012 (UTC)

External links modified
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Moving unsourced material
I'm moving this here until I can verify. Megalibrarygirl (talk) 23:46, 12 November 2018 (UTC)

The Indian mathematician Radhanath Sikdar was employed as a "computer" for the Great Trigonometrical Survey of India in 1840. It was he who first identified and calculated the height of the world's highest mountain, later called Mount Everest. [citation needed]

Requested move 18 July 2021

 * The following is a closed discussion of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. Editors desiring to contest the closing decision should consider a move review after discussing it on the closer's talk page. No further edits should be made to this discussion. 

The result of the move request was: moved. (closed by non-admin page mover)  SkyWarrior  03:09, 25 July 2021 (UTC)

Computer (job description) → Computer (occupation) – Strictly speaking the article is about the job itself and not the "job description". Proposed title is in line with other articles, e.g. Mailer (occupation) and Canner (occupation). Rublov (talk) 01:04, 18 July 2021 (UTC)
 * Support per nominator. It's obvious that the article is about the job itself, not its description. J I P  &#124; Talk 01:42, 18 July 2021 (UTC)
 * Support, much better description. Wayne Jayes (talk) 05:50, 18 July 2021 (UTC)
 * Support, it's a sensible move. Schazjmd   (talk)  13:54, 18 July 2021 (UTC)
 * Support - clearly the correct solution. --Netoholic @ 15:50, 18 July 2021 (UTC)

The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.
 * Support per nom. -- Necrothesp (talk) 13:28, 21 July 2021 (UTC)

Computer (bureau)
The story I was given long ago in university undergraduate course, by actual professional mathematicians, scientists, or computer scientists, was that the meaning of the term computer had developed, prior to being a mechanical device, to include or to be, not merely a single person performing computation, but an entire team, or the entire office or building in which this was done, ie for computing logarithms etc at pace, such that books of tables could be produced, teams would cooperate, and that buildings with internal mezzanine etc were dedicated to this task, so that (sub-)results could more easily be communicated between teams. Unfortunately, a brief search via internet has not given me means to establish this, in fact it now seems questionable.

Yet it seems entirely likely, even without the illustration of the operation which I have in my mind, that I suppose was shown on overhead projector screen, since it is not in my text books. This was some decades ago, so I am not able to easily find the source.

If anyone can verify, enhance, or disqualify this, please do so either in the article text, or here, as appropriate.

(Please do not under any circumstance publish my IP.) — Preceding unsigned comment added by 150.101.157.18 (talk) 14:52, 21 January 2022 (UTC)
 * I have given the request in the last sentence of the above message the utter contempt it deserves. Graham87 (talk) 07:23, 16 January 2024 (UTC)