A name to conjure with!I’ve been bullied into writing the second draft of the feature film script for Babbage, so it appears that the first draft found some resonance with the filmmakers Frame On Frame. I would imagine that the second draft will take much longer to write as I’m to be presented with a character breakdown, which to some extent will limit creativity, and I’ll need to firm up and possibly expand on some of the technical issues of the great man’s work.
To the latter effect, I’ve been reading Ada’s account (based on an Italian article) of Babbage’s Engines. Ada is often credited with the first computer notation (indeed there is a computer programming language named after her). However, if you read the article you’ll find the notation effective for the benefit of describing the "programming" of Babbage’s Analytical Engine but a poor substitute for even machine code. Although it’s a stretch to call her the mother of programming (as Her-Story revisionists attempt to do) I have no doubt that given the right circumstances, she had the insight and intellect (albeit in a slightly crazy form!), to be that person.
So well lost was Babbage and Ada’s works that it is not possible to draw a direct timeline to the invention of the computer, nevertheless this should not diminish their legacy nor the intriguing nature of their story. Watch this space for Babbage the feature film!
