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Colossus Cracks Again

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the now-yer-playing-with-power dept.

BOfH writes "The BBC is reporting that following a 14-year rebuild project, the Colossus computer is once again cracking codes at Bletchley Park." They will crack WWII-era encrypted messages, and compete against modern PCs. Fun stuff for crypto nerds and history buffs.

9 of 88 comments (clear)

  1. The real question is.... by zappepcs · · Score: 5, Funny

    will it be able to detect dupes?

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  2. Link to Bletchley Park by fantomas · · Score: 4, Informative

    At least provide a link to the Bletchley Park museum itself!

    http://www.bletchleypark.org.uk/

    It's a great visit. Go check it out. They don't get a lot of funding so they are very dependent on visitors (and volunteers if you live nearby) to help keep things going. They had to sell off some of their land recently to keep going (this is now getting turned into a local housing estate).

    1. Re:Link to Bletchley Park by Bloke+down+the+pub · · Score: 5, Funny

      Not all of us are fortunate neough to be able to travel to London.
      Not a problem, it's in Milton Keynes.
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      It's true I tell you, feller at work's next door neighbour read it in the paper.
  3. Not as fast as it used to be. by RandoX · · Score: 4, Funny

    The machine is only running at about 30% of the speed it did originally. It appears that their ISP is throttling their packets for some reason. Comcast cited DMCA violations as the reason for the packet shaping.

  4. The first message cracked by albeit+unknown · · Score: 4, Funny

    Be sure to drink your ovaltine

  5. Even more important than that . . . by SpeedyGonz · · Score: 3, Funny

    . . . Will it blend?

  6. Re:I Want a Babbage Engine, Dammit! by BigBadBus · · Score: 4, Interesting

    There is a full scale replica, at London's Science Museum, made by their own technicians. Its a lovely mesh of bronze and brass cogs and gears, and yes, it does work. I worked there years ago and was told something interesting: Bill Gates funded the construction of the display model on the condition that afterwards, they build him one too. Which I presume they did.

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  7. Re:I Want a Babbage Engine, Dammit! by tsjaikdus · · Score: 4, Funny

    He also required the printer to have a blue pen the could fill in large surfaces.

  8. Re:Pedant by jeremyp · · Score: 3, Informative

    Not Enigma.

    They used bombes to crack Enigma. Colossus was for a completely different cipher called Lorenz

    http://www.bletchleypark.org.uk/content/machines.rhtm

    --
    All I want is a secure system where it's easy to do anything I want. Is that too much to ask ~~ Randall Munroe