Uh, WWII Enigma was cracked at Bletchly Park, based on the work of some
Poles, who had been trying to figure out when they would be invaded.
Entirely mechanical!   Definitely not optical at all.    Enigma was
originally broken based on bad use practice.  If it had been employed more
sensibly it would have been a lot harder.
See "The Code Book" by Singh, Doubleday, 1999.     Or, for that matter,
"Cryptonomicon" by Stephenson, which is a fictionalization of the Enigma
cracking story, and pretty accurate.
I eventually get born as a side-effect of the Battle of Britain, you
see....
Computing with interference patterns, etc, makes perfect sense, but Enigma
was cracked by building mechanical systems that were essentially Enigma
machines and brute-forcing.
Eirikur

from localhost (jalapeno [127.0.0.1])
	by jmason.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 5F64316F17
	for <jm@localhost>; Wed,  2 Oct 2002 11:47:47 +0100 (IST)
from jalapeno [127.0.0.1]
	by localhost with IMAP (fetchmail-5.9.0)
	for jm@localhost (single-drop); Wed, 02 Oct 2002 11:47:47 +0100 (IST)
from lair.xent.com (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by xent.com (Postfix)
    with ESMTP id B4AA12940FF; Tue,  1 Oct 2002 23:03:02 -0700 (PDT)
from hotmail.com (dav68.law15.hotmail.com [64.4.22.203]) by
    xent.com (Postfix) with ESMTP id 3926529409C for <fork@xent.com>;
    Tue,  1 Oct 2002 23:02:43 -0700 (PDT)
from mail pickup service by hotmail.com with Microsoft SMTPSVC;
    Tue, 1 Oct 2002 23:02:50 -0700
From fork-admin@xent.com  Wed Oct  2 11:48:18 2002

Kind of interesting application of 'agent' technology.
A mix of telnet and Eliza?
(wonder if KnowNow needs this as a partner...)
==
http://www.activebuddy.com/products/index.shtml
ActiveBuddy, Inc. has developed patented technology for building and
deploying interactive agents. ActiveBuddy's BuddyScript technology powers
business solutions that leverage the functionality, convenience and appeal
of instant messaging to provide an efficient and immediate means of
communication with customers and constituents.
ActiveBuddy technology is proven in the marketplace by the smash success of
SmarterChild, ActiveBuddy's showcase interactive agent launched in June 2001
and visited by over 8 million consumers in its first year of life.
Interactive agents allow your customers and constituents to receive
information and services in a natural, conversational interface.
Software Products
BuddyScriptT Server - an end-to-end software solution for deploying
interactive agents. BuddyScript Server provides every component required to
operate an interactive agent, including connectivity with the messaging
network, message routing, data access, message formatting, user and session
management, and detailed tracking. BuddyScript Server is offered in four
configurations to meet your capacity needs. Its scaleable architecture
supports virtually unlimited usage. More...
===
Here is a sample conversation on (MSN Messenger with 'SmarterChild'):
Mike says:
how are you?
SmarterChild says:
Great thx! You?
Mike says:
Fine. What is the weather like in seattle?
SmarterChild says:
Current weather conditions for Seattle, WA:
Currently: 57 F
Condition: Few Clouds
Real Feel: 57 F
Dewpoint: 44
Humidity: 62 %
Visibility: 10 mi
Wind: N/0 mph
Next time, just type "weather seattle, wa."
To get the forecast for Seattle, WA, just type "forecast."