Replies

Reasons Why a Slide Rule (and Paper Pad)

is Better Than an X Workstation

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

- A Slide Rule doesn't shut down abruptly when it gets too hot.

- One hundred people all using Slide Rules and Paper Pads do not start

wailing and screaming due to a single-point failure.

- A Slide Rule doesn't smoke whenever the power supply hiccups.

- A Slide Rule doesn't care if you smoke, or hiccup.

- You can spill coffee on a Slide Rule; you can use a Slide Rule while

completely submerged in coffee.

- You never get nasty system messages about filling up your entire

paper quota with pointless GIF pictures for the root window.

- A Slide Rule and Paper Pad fit in a briefcase with space left over

for lunch or a change of underwear.

- A properly used Slide Rule can perform pipelined *and* parallel

operations.  (Okay, you need a guru for this.)

- You don't get junk mail offering pricey software upgrades that fix

current floating point errors while introducing new ones.

- A Slide Rule doesn't need scheduled hardware maintenance.

- A Paper Pad supports text and graphics images easily, and can be

easily upgraded from monochrome to color.

- Slide Rules are designed to a standardized, open architecture.

- You can hold a Slide Rule at arm's length, to hit the obnoxious

person at the next seat over.

- A Slide Rule is immune to viruses, worms, and other depredations

from hostile adolescents with telephones.

- Additional Paper Pads can be integrated into the system seamlessly

and without needing to reconfigure everything.

- Nobody will make you feel bad by introducing a smaller, faster,

cheaper slide rule next month.

I don’t know how to use one. ;(

I remember using one of those way back when. If fact I had two, one made from a bamboo and the other made from aluminum.