Universality Means ...
Universality sets computers apart from machines that perform physical operations
- Consider a chainsaw, a bread knife and a cheese slicer
Buy one computer and perform any information processing task imaginable … you may not have the right input/output devices to enjoy the result, but the computer can do all the work if given the software
Universality trumps the argument that “using a computer is like driving a car”: People drive successfully without knowing how a car works … they can use computers without knowing how they work … but one needs to know more to apply a versatile tool