What the heck is a "computator"???

PterocarpousPterocarpous Rosie the Riveter Lives On in CA, USA! New
edited February 2007 in Hardware
So, I was watching Discovery Channel's "How It's Made" yesterday and lo' an' behold they documented a computer being built.

That was predictable until something the narrator said caught my attention. While on the topic of connecting the case wiring to the motherboard, he said that one of the case connections was for the "computator". :scratch: I've built my share of computers over the years an' I swear I don't think I ever ran accross one o' these critters. (or did I.... :wtf: )

So, I ask you, what the hec is a (hardware) computator??? I've been to Yahoo!, Google, Wikipedia, Whatis, Dictionary, etc. trying to find a definition of "computator" (or "computater") and haven't found hide nor hair of one... References I did find were in different languages where "computator" = "computer".

Ya'll have any ideas??

Comments

  • RADARADA Apple Valley, CA Member
    edited February 2007
    Sounds like how Larry the Cable Guy would decribe a computer.......:D


    Git-R-Done......lol
  • PterocarpousPterocarpous Rosie the Riveter Lives On in CA, USA! New
    edited February 2007
    lol! yeah, I'm tempted to email Discovery.com on this.... ;D
  • KentigernKentigern Milton Keynes UK
    edited February 2007
    I always thought a computator was an early form of a calculator. And that now a days something to do with photographic copyright issues.

    Did you email yet - if not - I'm tempting you :)
  • PterocarpousPterocarpous Rosie the Riveter Lives On in CA, USA! New
    edited February 2007
    Kentigern wrote:
    I always thought a computator was an early form of a calculator. And that now a days something to do with photographic copyright issues...Did you email yet - if not - I'm tempting you :)
    Hey Kentigern. That's what I was seeing, too - lots of references to something related to photography. Well, I didn't read the hits any more in depth than that. Once I knew they weren't what I was lookin' for I moved on. So it's copyright issues, huh?

    I've been busy for a while so I haven't gotten to poking at Discovery Channel yet. I did navigate over to their web site but couldn't find how to get at viewer comments or anything like that. If you figure that out I'd be greatful if you'd let me know. :smiles:
  • KentigernKentigern Milton Keynes UK
    edited February 2007
    This link for viewers seems to be the one for most of the discovery progs
    http://extweb.discovery.com/viewerrelations

    :)
  • PterocarpousPterocarpous Rosie the Riveter Lives On in CA, USA! New
    edited February 2007
    Kentigern wrote:
    This link for viewers seems to be the one for most of the discovery progs http://extweb.discovery.com/viewerrelations
    Wow! You're fast. Ok, I'll register and let ya'll know how it turns out. My guess is they've gotten deluged w/ comments on that faux pas.. :smiles:
  • airbornflghtairbornflght Houston, TX Icrontian
    edited February 2007
    is that someones name for a processor?
  • RWBRWB Icrontian
    edited February 2007
    Sounds similar to when some family members call their PC a modem or hard drive. ;D
  • PterocarpousPterocarpous Rosie the Riveter Lives On in CA, USA! New
    edited February 2007
    airbornflght wrote:
    is that someones name for a processor?
    It is in some other languages, yes. I thought of that, too but in the context that the narrator used it in (in reference to connecting the case wiring to the motherboard) it didn't make any sense.
    RWB wrote:
    Sounds similar to when some family members call their PC a modem or hard drive. ;D
    I've explained what a hard drive is vs the computer "tower" as a whole countless times. The misconception that the computer "tower" (or case) is the "hard drive" is very common.

    I thought, too about what the narrator (or writer, more accurately) really meant and I just can't figure it out.
  • tmh88tmh88 Pittsburgh / Athens, OH
    edited February 2007
    I saw the same show, and it was definately filmed a while ago. I think the processors that they showed being used were p3's.
  • PterocarpousPterocarpous Rosie the Riveter Lives On in CA, USA! New
    edited February 2007
    tmh88 wrote:
    I saw the same show, and it was definately filmed a while ago. I think the processors that they showed being used were p3's.
    Exactly. They were using an AGP video card, too. Still..... "computator"??? :smiles:
  • DonutDonut Maine New
    edited February 2007
    Sounds like a fancy name for the person running the keyboard.:)
  • PterocarpousPterocarpous Rosie the Riveter Lives On in CA, USA! New
    edited February 2007
    Donut wrote:
    Sounds like a fancy name for the person running the keyboard.:)
    lol So where do ya reckon the wires issue from on the user? Lessee; user connects to case which connects to motherboard. hmmmm.... Maybe Discovery Channel has somethin' there... :range:
  • DonutDonut Maine New
    edited February 2007
    I didn't see the episode, maybe I should:rolleyes:

    I was thinking of welder/weldor (at least how it was taught to me)
    welder is the machine, weldor is the person doing it.

    I never said my line of thinking was rational or correct.:tongue:
    just ask my wife!
  • PterocarpousPterocarpous Rosie the Riveter Lives On in CA, USA! New
    edited February 2007
    Donut wrote:
    I didn't see the episode, maybe I should:rolleyes: ...I was thinking of welder/weldor (at least how it was taught to me) ...welder is the machine, weldor is the person doing it...I never said my line of thinking was rational or correct.:tongue: ...just ask my wife!

    I thought of that, too Donut but it sure sounded like "computat-OR"

    I could be wrong. That's not an easy sound to distinguish (between "ER" and "OR")

    S-t-i-l-l though, we're talkin' 'bout connectin' the case to the motherboard....

    So, where could a "computat-OR" or a "computat-ER" fit in here???? :scratch:
  • edcentricedcentric near Milwaukee, Wisconsin Icrontian
    edited February 2007
    Maybe it was British <wink>
  • GargGarg Purveyor of Lincoln Nightmares Icrontian
    edited February 2007
    Computator? First thing I thought of was an overclocked potato.
  • PterocarpousPterocarpous Rosie the Riveter Lives On in CA, USA! New
    edited February 2007
    edcentric wrote:
    Maybe it was British <wink>
    LOL! Well, there you have it then! Tha's the whole bloody problem then id'n it?!

    It was narratated by a US English speaker. Maybe a brit' wrote it though! Prolly settin' up the yank' to sound like an idjot! ;D

    Oooooops! Isn't "bloody" a bad word in UK English?? :eek2:bad Fruitwing.... bad bad.....
  • PterocarpousPterocarpous Rosie the Riveter Lives On in CA, USA! New
    edited February 2007
    Gargoyle wrote:
    Computator? First thing I thought of was an overclocked potato.
    ROFLOL!!!!! ;D;D;D
  • PterocarpousPterocarpous Rosie the Riveter Lives On in CA, USA! New
    edited February 2007
    Ok. I couldn't stand it any longer. I finally broke down and contacted Discovery via a link that Kentigern gave me. (Thanx again Kentigern!) I'll let ya'll know what they say...

    ======================================================
    On February 2nd, 2007 I watched one of your "How It's Made" series
    shows. One part of the show focused on the topic of how a computer is
    built. During this segment the narrator made reference to a "computator".
    The reference was made when he was explaining what the case wiring was
    connecting to on the motherboard. Neither I nor my fellow colleagues in the
    computer profession understand this reference. We were wondering if you
    could tell us what the narrator meant when he used the word "computator".

    Below is a thread that I and my colleagues discussed this issue on. The
    discussion is located on a computer support technical forum called
    Short-Media (http://www.short-media.com).

    The particular discussion is at the following link:
    http://www.short-media.com/forum/showthread.php?p=460766#post460766

    Thankyou in Advance.
    ======================================================
  • drasnordrasnor Starship Operator Hawthorne, CA Icrontian

    @bill_computerservice said:
    I know this is an old thread, but i just watched thay episode of 'How Its Made' today. To answer your question, the computator is the digital display showing the speed of the processor. They were common in 80486 computers and in the early days of the pentiums. They were used early on with computers that had a Turbo button, to show you that the speed really did change.

    Do they still make computators that are compatible with modern PCs, and if so where can I buy one?

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