Computer logic is always right, isn’t it?
Computer logic is built in by design and isn’t fallible like human brains, they say. That is their strength. You can rely on your computer to give the right answer to any mathematical or logical question – every time. They don’t get tired or distracted like us. Let’s not talk about malfunctions, viruses or problems with hardware or software, Let’s say they are usually infallible and let’s hope usually is good enough.
Computer logic has three main limitations?
- Logic can’t decide on objectives. If you problem is not just mathematical, and most aren’t, you need to decide on the question. Get that wrong and you get a wrong answer, or to be fair, I mean you get a right answer that’s no use.
- Similarly, logic can’t account for emotions or ethics. If you want the answer to be morally right or to satisfy your emotional needs, computer logic won’t necessarily get you there.
- Logic has to work with the information you input. There’s an old saying GIGO – Garbage in, garbage out. Very true.
Is logic in my dictionary of computerspeak?
Yes. Let’s begin the next section. The last section is on a previous blog post and the one before that on an earlier one.
Log. Not the trunk of a fallen tree. A record of everything going on in the computer, which should help identify errors. It is also useful in passing blame around, See above ‘Error’.
Logic. The way they think – see main article above.
Normal people. The rest of us who are not IT experts and have lives in the real world. This is not what they call us. (Don’t ask!)
Offline. Forget railways. This means not on the internet. Remember those days?
Output. This refers to what computers produce, mostly paper or more IT stuff, and not the end product you actually want.
Does this computer output help your real output?
Port. A hole in the side of a computer for attaching things or it can mean something similar but not physical. When I try to understand it I end up reaching for the port.
Questions. If you have a question, look for FAQ’s – ‘Frequently Asked Questions’. You will not find the one question you need answering and if you do, you will find an answer that is no help in solving your actual problem. Detective heroes have to keep asking the right questions until they find the truth as in my book DOWN.
Some of my detective novels where heroes need more than computer logic to find answers.