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From: nagle@netcom.com (John Nagle)
Subject: Re: Poetry generated by machine ?
Message-ID: <nagleD10spp.r4@netcom.com>
Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 261-4700 guest)
References: <MARC.94Dec15123553@rebecca.cl-ki.uni-osnabrueck.de> <3cvblp$1um@dockmaster.phantom.com> <1994Dec18.163323.24880@seas.smu.edu>
Date: Sun, 18 Dec 1994 18:58:37 GMT
Lines: 29

pedersen@seas.smu.edu (Ted Pedersen) writes:
>So does anyone know of programs besides Racter that may compose verse
>in more restricted forms? I think Racter supposedly produced fairly
>free verse...

     I did this in 1965, in high school, using an IBM model 85 collator,
a model 82 sorter, and a model 402A plugboard-wired tabulator.
The collator did all the work, taking in a shuffled card deck of words tagged
with parts of speech and the part of speech of the next word from the
original text.  The secondary feed of the collator was given a card deck
with the pattern of parts of speech desired.  The primary feed was read
until a match occured, at which point a word card was diverted to the
result stacker.  The secondary feed was then read to advance to the next
pattern card.  Since both current and next part of speech had to match,
it might be necessary to read several hundred word cards to get one word.
The word deck was run through again and again until the pattern deck
was used up.

	Eternity is not pursued.
	Run, and it shortens;
	Arrive, and it is solid:

	Forward nor can, and place the needles
	about coffin; that they tighten, fumbling them.

This took several hours of collator time, at about 70 cards per minute.

					John Nagle

