Babbage Index

"Some of my critics have amused their readers with the wildness of the schemes I have occasionally thrown out; and I myself have sometimes smiled along with them. Perhaps it were wiser for present reputation to offer nothing but profoundly meditated plans, but I do not think knowledge will be most advanced by that course; such sparks may kindle the energies of other minds more favorably circumstanced for pursuing the enquiries."

Charles Babbage, 1832, in "On the Economy of Machinery and Manufactures"

Charles Babbage was born December 26, 1791 and famously invented and designed the "Difference Engine", a vast mechanical computation device which, if completed, would have undoubtedly led to the earlier evolution of general-purpose computers. However, the 3 ton, 8ft x 7ft x 3ft device required some 25,000 precision-machined parts to complete, and ultimately neither the money, machining capability nor time were available, so unfortunately the part-completed machine was melted down and sold for scrap before ever being completed.

This section of vbAccelerator follows Babbage's lead and provides code which is currently being worked on but not yet finished, was started with high hopes but now will probably never get finished and stuff that's just old and finished with. Download at your own risk; it may be fun, it might even work....

Incidentally, in 1991 the Science Museum in London constructed a complete working version of the device from Babbage's original drawings. They found only two major errors which were easy to rectify. It is now on permanent display there, and looks somewhat better than a modded PC with a blue neon light...