Oldest computer to be rebooted (From Bicester Advertiser)
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Oldest computer to be rebooted
11:00am Tuesday 20th November 2012 in News
HARWELL: The world’s oldest original digital computer is to be rebooted today in a special ceremony after a three-year restoration project.
The Harwell Dekatron, which first ran at Harwell Atomic Energy Research Establishment in 1951, will clatter back into life after being reconstructed at The National Museum of Computing at Bletchley Park, near Milton Keynes.
The switch-on of the 2.5-tonne machine which carried out basic calculations will be witnessed by two of its original designers.
Kevin Murrell, trustee of The National Museum of Computing, who launched the project, said: “The restoration has been in full public view and even before it was working again the interest from the public was enormous.”
