Is a 1973 Pinball Machine a Computer? (WHY2025)

Old technology is amazing! Have a look at an old electromechanical Pinball Machine, and try to understand how this works, without any (digital) electronics. Find out these machines have much in common with modern computers. Step by step it becomes clear how an old (1973) Pinball machine is "programmed". A 1973 electromechanical Pinball Machine is an amazing machine. But how does this work without any (digital) electronics? By comparing this to a standard computer, the (mechanical) components are explained. An electromechanical Pinball Machine has many elements from a modern computer. It has I/O, memory, can do (simple) calculations, is programmed for logic operations, and is configurable, But does this make it an early computer or not? Come, listen, and decide for yourself! When the weather conditions are good, the 1973 Pinball Machine will be operational in the Villlage:Back to the 80s Party. Hopefully you can come and play a game on this beautiful Bally Monte Carlo edition of 1973 yourself or with your friends! (Up to 4 concurrent players) Can you set the High Score of the day? Licensed to the public under https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ about this event: https://program.why2025.org/why2025/talk/WMXPYU/