Video History interview (1995)

Interview witn David K. Allison for the Smithsonian Institution (9 May 1995)

• One of my guiding principles is don’t do anything that other people are doing. Always do something a little different if you can. The concept is that if you do it a little differently there is a greater potential for reward than if you the same thing that other people are doing. I think that this kind of goal for one’s work, having obviously the maximum risk, would have the maximum reward no matter what the field may be.

• I talk to myself through the computer. I ask myself questions, leave things to be looked at again, things that you would do with a notepad. It turns out today that it’s much better today to do with a personal computer rather than a notepad.

Unsourced

• Anyone can build a fast CPU. The trick is to build a fast system.
  • On the importance of memory, bandwidth and throughput.

• I just bought a Mac to help me design the next Cray.
  • Comment on Apple's purchase of a Cray which was intended to help them design the next Mac.

• If you were plowing a field, which would you rather use?... Two strong oxen or 1024 chickens?

• Memory is like an orgasm. It's a lot better if you don't have to fake it.
  • On virtual memory.

• Parity is for farmers.
  • On why he left memory error-correcting code out of the CDC 6600.

• I learned that a lot of farmers buy computers.
  • After he did include error-correcting code on the CDC 7600