Any relay based computer should be as minimal as possible. Well, any computer regardless of construction should be as simple as possible, but I've been reading a lot of Chuck Moore lately. Early computers were notorious for their complexity, largely caused by the decimal numbering system. ENIAC required ten wires for each digit. Binary computers require 3.32 wires for the same range. Technically, ENIAC needed (on average) 20 wires per digit, as frequent failures mandated redundant systems. |