pierson@cimnet.enet.dec.com (LAY ON GROUND. LIGHT FUZE. 10-Oct-1990 1834) (10/11/90)
From: "LAY ON GROUND. LIGHT FUZE. 10-Oct-1990 1834" <pierson@cimnet.enet.dec.com> Looked, couldn't find the reference for this... The Poles, ca 1935, broke into a German diplomatic shipment, found an Enigma on its way to the German Embassy in Russia. As war was likely, they got all the necessary info, carefully reassembled the shipment, and sent it along. (this is known in the crypto biz as "practical cryptography" == steal the keys and or equipment). Having built some machines, and done some analysis, the Poles built an initial mechanical aid, in the form of perforated sheets of heavy paper, representing rotor wiring with openings, and a light box, to help with key recovery. This approach came to be known as a "bombe". With relatively infrequent key changes, it sufficed. When Poland was overrun, the techniques, pieces an analysis went first to France, then to the UK. By now, the massive number of circuits being monitored, and the increased frequency of key change, led to the introduction of the "proto computers" to aid in key recovery. (Its not clear that the Colossus proto computer was used against Enigma...). The Allies were aided by additional practical cryptography, and sloppy technique by German operators. (keys like AAAAA and ABCDE were usually tried first, and recovered much traffic. Additionally, since it was used throughout the German forces, the same message could be (and was) encountered in different keys, leading to additional break-ins. Kahn's "The Codebreakers" is a good book, the hardcover (used book stores...) is unabridged. It suffers from having been written "just" before the lid came off the ULTRA/Enigma penetration. Gordon Welchman's "The Hut Six Story" is one of the more technical books out on the ULTRA/Enigma penetration. thanks dave pierson |the facts, as accurately as i can manage, Digital Equipment Corporation |the opinions, my own. 600 Nickerson Rd Marlboro, Mass 01752 pierson@cimnet.enet.dec.com "He has read everything, and, to his credit, written nothing." A J Raffles
paj@gec-mrc.co.uk (paj) (10/15/90)
From: paj <paj@gec-mrc.co.uk> Another good book on the Enigma penetration is the biography of Alan M. Turing by Andrew Hodges: "Alan Turing: The Enigma of Intelligence". Hodges is a mathematician, and hence could write in some detail about Turing's life and work. BTW, Turing led the team at Bletchly Park who built the first "proto computers" to crack Enigma. Paul.
Steve.Bridges@Dayton.NCR.COM (Steve Bridges) (10/16/90)
From: Steve.Bridges@Dayton.NCR.COM (Steve Bridges) A little more bit of history about Allied efforts to build Enigma deciphers. NCR, during WWII built a parallel processor version, with 16 (I believe) "processors" that could work on the same message with 16 different keys. It was built in the same building where I now work (then called Building 26, now called USG). The machine was built by NCR employees, but operated by the U.S. Navy in Building 26. The site was secured by Marines, and the operators were bused from NCR's sales educational facility (where sales people were trained before the war) to Building 26 each day. A whole bunch were built, but the entire program was classified until a couple of years ago. All were destroyed but one. When the Smithsonian opened it's Information Age exhibit, NCR donated the remaining example (called the Bombe) to the exhibit. In addition, there is a mystery building at NCR called Building 32. It is hidden back in the employee's park (called "Old River"). There are signs around it that say "Danger -- Explosives"), and there are some nearby bomb shelters. I checked with our historical department, and they don't (or won't) tell me what the building was used for. I have my own theory. Back in the 40's, NCR was a leader in development of electro-mechanical devices, plus it's own proximaty to Wright-Patterson, is that NCR did development work on the series of guided bombs known as Razon and Tarzon (for radio guided and Television Guided). In addition, NCR received an "E" flag from the War department for manufacturing excellence during the war, and that flag is on display at the Air Force Museum. -- Steve Bridges | NCR - USG Product Marketing and Support OLS Steve.Bridges@Dayton.NCR.COM | Phone:(513)-445-4182 622-4182 (Voice Plus) ..!ncrlnk!usglnk!uspm650!steve | AOPA #916233 ..!uunet!ncrlnk!usglnk!uspm650!steve| PP-ASEL, AMEL