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How weaving helped invent modern computing - and is shaping its future (theconversation.com)
submitted 4 hours ago by new_otters_raft@piefed.ca to c/technology@lemmy.world
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TLDR on the history side of the article

In 1804, a French weaver named Joseph-Marie Jacquard patented a loom that could weave intricate patterns using punch cards — paper cards with encoded holes.

Once they pass through the loom, the presence or absence of a hole tells the loom which warp thread to raise or lower, acting as the earliest form of binary code programming. Weaving that once required a master weaver and an assistant could now be done by craft hobbyists.

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[-] Lord_Fartwad@feddit.uk 16 points 4 hours ago

And based on this card, IBM and others developed the 40 / 80 character punch cards which are the reason SAP IS STILL ONLY SUPPORTING 40 CHARACTERS PER FIELD

this post was submitted on 18 Aug 2026
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