You are, of course, wondering how I came to be in 1946.
In fact, the mechanics are as much a mystery to me. During a period of my life which I am equally likely to describe as "freelancing" or "unemployed," I was taken into a short-term deskside support contract with a research company near Runcorn. The firm was, as I understand it, engaged in a wide variety of disciplines, none of which were ultimately my concern. My responsibilities extended no further than rolling out the latest operating system to a number of desktop units and occasionally turning a server off and on again.
It may date this tale somewhat to note that this "latest operating system" involved the number 2000.
It happened that on a particular Tuesday I and my team leader entered a particular laboratory and were met with a particular amount of hubbub. Professor Ng was shouting something incomprehensible - I actually don't know if he was using Chinese or technical terms - when he noticed us. "No," he declared, "No no, not a good time, come back later!"
"It's Tuesday," explained Leigh, my supervisor. "We're scheduled to upgrade the-"
"No, I don't care," Ng interrupted, "All of these computers are busy. It'll have to wait."
"Well," began Leigh, "How long-"
"Not sure," Ng interjected, before breaking off to issue a stream of instructions to his lab techs. Leigh shrugged to me and checked his watch.
Slowly, the hubbub became a simmer, and then a gentle calm. Ng looked greatly relieved as he dismissed his crew for a break.
"Right," said Leigh, "Let's get started, then..."
"Oh no you don't," said the Professor. "These workstations are still in use."
"Still?"
"They're crunching numbers. It's a thing. You wouldn't understand."
"Fine," decided Leigh, checking his watch again. "My colleague here will wait until they're free. Andy, I'm sorry, but I've really got to go. Can you handle...?"
"Sure," I replied. "No problem."
I'd like to say that I added, "What's the worst that could happen?" But that is most likely an embellishment on the part of my memory, as it is not the sort of thing that really happens outside the realms of fiction.
In fact, the mechanics are as much a mystery to me. During a period of my life which I am equally likely to describe as "freelancing" or "unemployed," I was taken into a short-term deskside support contract with a research company near Runcorn. The firm was, as I understand it, engaged in a wide variety of disciplines, none of which were ultimately my concern. My responsibilities extended no further than rolling out the latest operating system to a number of desktop units and occasionally turning a server off and on again.
It may date this tale somewhat to note that this "latest operating system" involved the number 2000.
It happened that on a particular Tuesday I and my team leader entered a particular laboratory and were met with a particular amount of hubbub. Professor Ng was shouting something incomprehensible - I actually don't know if he was using Chinese or technical terms - when he noticed us. "No," he declared, "No no, not a good time, come back later!"
"It's Tuesday," explained Leigh, my supervisor. "We're scheduled to upgrade the-"
"No, I don't care," Ng interrupted, "All of these computers are busy. It'll have to wait."
"Well," began Leigh, "How long-"
"Not sure," Ng interjected, before breaking off to issue a stream of instructions to his lab techs. Leigh shrugged to me and checked his watch.
Slowly, the hubbub became a simmer, and then a gentle calm. Ng looked greatly relieved as he dismissed his crew for a break.
"Right," said Leigh, "Let's get started, then..."
"Oh no you don't," said the Professor. "These workstations are still in use."
"Still?"
"They're crunching numbers. It's a thing. You wouldn't understand."
"Fine," decided Leigh, checking his watch again. "My colleague here will wait until they're free. Andy, I'm sorry, but I've really got to go. Can you handle...?"
"Sure," I replied. "No problem."
I'd like to say that I added, "What's the worst that could happen?" But that is most likely an embellishment on the part of my memory, as it is not the sort of thing that really happens outside the realms of fiction.
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