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- Why a Slide Rule is better than a computer
- ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-
- - 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 depradations
- 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.
-
- *** EOF
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