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them to "off" positions, questions could be asked. For each "a" answer, a switch was turned to one of two "on" positions, setting a circuit segment; for each "b" answer, the other "on" position. The circuitry sensed the cumulative effect of the switch positions, the circuit being completed, and a "more masculine" or "more feminine" bulb lit, once three masculine or three feminine answers were recorded.
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connections between slotted brass bolt heads sitting out from the similarly perforated masonite back panel. To the bolts were attached wires behind the panel. The circuit comprised a battery, such wires from it to, and between, switch positions, wires from the switches to indicator flashlight bulbs
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A typical project was a primitive "Masculine–Feminine
Testing Machine". The user was instructed to answer five questions related to gender, such as "Which makes a better toy for a child: (a) electric train? (b) a doll with a complete wardrobe?" Having wired five of the six rotary switches and set
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The main instruction book, as well as a supplementary book of wiring diagrams, gave jumper positions and wiring diagrams for building a number of "machines," which could realize fairly complicated
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81:, with Oliver Garfield from 1955 to 1958, but with Garfield continuing without Berkeley through the 1960s. The name stood for "Genius Almost-automatic Computer" but suggests a
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232:, under the Geniac brand. Initially he resold the ones manufactured by Carbic, Ltd., but his later products had no serial numbers so were probably his own version.
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Setting up Geniac to solve a new problem or perform a new operation involved rewiring the jumpers on the back panel, a task advertised as taking only a few minutes.
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The Geniac kit consisted of a wedge-shaped case, a console panel, and nearly 400 other parts available for assembly. It was powered by a flashlight battery.
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Geniac on list of early personal computers at
Blinkenlights.com, with link to article on how it works by a gifted operator
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set along the panel's middle, and return wires to the battery to complete the circuit.
375:"Supplementary Wiring Diagrams for the Geniac No. 1 Electrical Brain Construction Kit"
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Geniac manuals, diagrams and other documents hosted at www.computercollector.com
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to automatically influence subsequent states. Thus, Geniac didn't have
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only, its outputs depending entirely on inputs manually set. It had no
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Brainiac K-30 photo and description at www.oldcomputermuseum.com
352:"Geniacs: Simple Electric Brain Machines and How to Make Them"
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Geniac photo and description at www.oldcomputermuseum.com
93:(the first fully electronic general-purpose computer).
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construction set, the Geniac contained six perforated
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A Symbolic
Analysis of Relay and Switching Circuits
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474:Article on Geniac at Early Computers Project
325:Harris, James Wallace (September 16, 2019).
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300:. Time Inc. March 19, 1956. p. 176.
175:'s groundbreaking thesis in the subject,
403:(advertisement). October 1955. p. 1
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198:Widely advertised in magazines such as
132:With this basic setup Geniac could use
504:Computer-related introductions in 1955
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116:could be inserted. The jumpers made
112:disks, into the back of which brass
212:A nearly identical product, called
160:and couldn't solve problems using
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31:A 1957 magazine advert for Geniac
424:"Otis King's Patent Calculator"
224:Oliver Garfield also sold the
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226:Otis King's Patent Calculator
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373:Garfield, Oliver (1955).
350:Garfield, Oliver (1955).
276:. Early Computers Project
77:designed and marketed by
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397:"Build Your Own Geniac"
201:Galaxy Science Fiction
327:"First home computer"
181:, was also included.
171:equations. A copy of
73:sold as a mechanical
494:Mechanical computers
134:combinational logic
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467:2013-05-31 at the
252:WDR paper computer
220:Helical slide rule
422:Richard F. Lyon.
185:A typical project
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331:Auxiliary Memory
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247:Digi-Comp II
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140:at all – no
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104:Basically a
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97:Construction
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57:Availability
407:16 December
377:. p. 9
242:Digi-Comp I
150:transistors
83:portmanteau
45:Inventor(s)
488:Categories
336:2023-05-15
311:2023-12-07
258:References
230:slide rule
194:Popularity
118:electrical
306:0024-3019
128:Operation
60:1955–1958
465:Archived
381:June 12,
358:June 12,
280:June 14,
274:"Geniac"
236:See also
214:Brainiac
208:Brainiac
110:masonite
75:computer
169:Boolean
114:jumpers
69:was an
429:24 Aug
401:Galaxy
304:
158:memory
142:relays
87:genius
67:Geniac
20:Geniac
148:, or
146:tubes
91:ENIAC
431:2013
409:2013
383:2013
360:2013
302:ISSN
297:LIFE
282:2013
89:and
37:Type
85:of
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