Author Topic: 'Ye-Olde' COMPTOMETER machines!!  (Read 1860 times)

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Offline GlennSpriggTopic starter

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'Ye-Olde' COMPTOMETER machines!!
« on: August 22, 2021, 09:56:06 am »
Recent Genealogical Research has uncovered that shortly before I was born, my Mother used to be a professional Comptometrist
in the late 1940's, early 1950's. Such nostalgic machines are hard to come by these days, and quite expensive!! (Downloaded full instructions though!!).
BASICALLY, they only did Addition in their simplest use, but via 'smoke & mirrors', (something like a Decimal equiv of "two's-Compliment" and certain
other skullduggery, & sleight-of-hand with skilled fingers),  then you  could perform Subtraction, Multiplication & Division too!!...   8)
(Below, is just 1 YouTube example of performing such complicated maths, but there are other printed works for even more complex functions).

Interestingly, there are NO '0'-s as such on the main keys!  And each vertical column is 10x the same button to it's right, so entering say '500', only
requires pressing the '5' 3rd from the right, once. Experts could enter numbers/data quicker than today using a basic calculator too! The reason being
that entering a number like '2354' etc can be made by pressing all 4 at once!!, instead of 1 at a time.  Quite complex mechanics!!    :phew:


Diagonal of 1x1 square = Root-2. Ok.
Diagonal of 1x1x1 cube = Root-3 !!!  Beautiful !!
 
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Offline GlennSpriggTopic starter

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Re: 'Ye-Olde' COMPTOMETER machines!!
« Reply #1 on: August 23, 2021, 12:13:57 pm »
Just spoke to my brother Interstate, and he tried to tell me that 'Stenographers' (in Court etc), used an '8' button (??) machine
where 2 buttons/letters had to be pressed at once, to create the ACTUAL desired 'letter', which printed out in some sort of 'binary' code???
W.T.F. ??  I thought they were mechanically producing 'Short-Hand', like the funny 'squiggles' when they write that way??   :phew: :scared:
Diagonal of 1x1 square = Root-2. Ok.
Diagonal of 1x1x1 cube = Root-3 !!!  Beautiful !!
 

Offline PaulAm

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Re: 'Ye-Olde' COMPTOMETER machines!!
« Reply #2 on: August 23, 2021, 11:15:26 pm »
My wife's late aunt was a comptometer operator for GM before she retired.  They were fast disappearing in the 70s, if not earlier.
 
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Offline AlbertL

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Re: 'Ye-Olde' COMPTOMETER machines!!
« Reply #3 on: August 24, 2021, 02:05:09 am »
My Dad was a Stenotype ("machine shorthand") reporter for many years.  I never learned it myself, but the machine printed regular upper-case characters in 22 columns across the paper strip, with each column dedicated to a specific character (e.g. column 1 was S, column 2 was T) and the reporter pressed multiple keys simultaneously to print multiple characters on a line.  His career was entirely with the original machines which printed on paper, now obsolete and replaced by computer-based equipment.  At the end of the day, he's give his notes to a "notereader" who typed them up as a plain-text transcript.  There were enough variations in shorthand style among reporters that the notereaders worked with the same reporters as much as possible.
« Last Edit: August 24, 2021, 02:07:26 am by AlbertL »
 
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Offline GlennSpriggTopic starter

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Re: 'Ye-Olde' COMPTOMETER machines!!
« Reply #4 on: September 12, 2021, 11:38:20 am »
My Dad was a Stenotype ("machine shorthand") reporter for many years.  I never learned it myself, but the machine printed regular upper-case characters in 22 columns across the paper strip, with each column dedicated to a specific character (e.g. column 1 was S, column 2 was T) and the reporter pressed multiple keys simultaneously to print multiple characters on a line.  His career was entirely with the original machines which printed on paper, now obsolete and replaced by computer-based equipment.  At the end of the day, he's give his notes to a "notereader" who typed them up as a plain-text transcript.  There were enough variations in shorthand style among reporters that the notereaders worked with the same reporters as much as possible.

Thanks for that, Albert!.  I know this is not the same, but you reminded me of when I was an Electrician in about 1975/1978 ? for the
"Advertiser" Newspaper in Adelaide Australia. All the 'Type-Setting' was done on 'Linotype' machines. It had a Type-Writer style keyboard,
and as they typed each column line, it would actually MOLD a Lead stackable strip from molten Lead, to drop down into a collection tray!!...

In These strips, the writing was back to front, because when the whole 'Page' block was made up, it was pressed with a hundred ton press
into an 1/8th or 3/16th (?) thick sheet of 'Elephant-Hide'.  (Actually a VERY hard type of cardboard like material).  Here are some molded lines...

The final 'cardboard' page sheet was bent into a half-circle, and placed in another machine that molded another approx 3/8th or 1/2 inch thick
molding, becoming half a cylinder.  (Actually from a mix of Lead, Tin & Antimony, for strength and low temperature expansion/shrinkage).
Two of these, were then placed together in  the actual printing machine, to make each circular drum!!

Interestingly... The black ink then was kerosene based, and so NEVER really dries, by the time the paper is on your kitchen table! They say
it is technically as wet then, as it was at the moment of printing!!  (So watch out for those 'Fish-n-Chips' and other foods!! )   8)

Also interestingly...  I remember an old guy there, who started there when he was only 15-yo or something, and actually worked for 50 years
there, which is impossible these days. And he NEVER had ONE day off !!!   He was a GREASER, and his job was going over the literally  thousands
of grease-nipples on the huge line of printing machines that took up space from the basement to the 1st floor for each machine in line!   :phew:
Even after he 'retired', he was back there at 5 or 6 am every day, as he literally had nothing else to do in his life!!   :palm:

We take so much for granted these days, where everything is digital & computerized....   :(
Diagonal of 1x1 square = Root-2. Ok.
Diagonal of 1x1x1 cube = Root-3 !!!  Beautiful !!
 

Offline AlbertL

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Re: 'Ye-Olde' COMPTOMETER machines!!
« Reply #5 on: September 21, 2021, 01:26:58 am »
This educational film from 1959 shows the steps in the newspaper production process.  The organization and teamwork that were developed to accomplish all the tasks needed to get a newspaper out on time, every single day - and without computers - are really impressive.
 
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Offline GlennSpriggTopic starter

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Re: 'Ye-Olde' COMPTOMETER machines!!
« Reply #6 on: September 21, 2021, 12:57:51 pm »
This educational film from 1959 shows the steps in the newspaper production process.  The organization and teamwork that were developed to accomplish all the tasks needed to get a newspaper out on time, every single day - and without computers - are really impressive.


thanks for that!  It brought back memories!!  They missed the "Stop-Press" bit, where a section of the paper was/is left vacant for any
last minute important news!! Then they literally stop the machines, and a small new plate is added...  It was VERY dirty to work on/near
the printing machines! Every elect Conduit/Ducting was FULL of black sticky ink, and made it very hard to wash afterwards!!!  Argh!!   :phew:
Diagonal of 1x1 square = Root-2. Ok.
Diagonal of 1x1x1 cube = Root-3 !!!  Beautiful !!
 

Offline AlbertL

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Re: 'Ye-Olde' COMPTOMETER machines!!
« Reply #7 on: September 21, 2021, 08:56:00 pm »
Here are a couple of good Linotype films.  This one gives a very detailed explanation of the components and their functions:



and this one is a documentary showing the last day of hot-type composing at the New York Times (in 1978):



« Last Edit: September 21, 2021, 09:03:14 pm by AlbertL »
 


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