FACTUAL / TERMINOLOGY NOTE
WHAT COUNTS AS A COMPUTER?

This archive deliberately uses several related words:

automaton
A machine that performs actions automatically, often a predetermined sequence.

calculator
A machine designed to perform numerical operations.

controller
A mechanism that directs another process according to encoded state or sequence.

computer
Historically the word once referred to people who computed. In modern technical
usage it usually implies a machine that processes information according to rules;
general-purpose programmability is a particularly important dividing line.

Why this matters:
Calling every ancient or clockwork device "a computer" can make history sound
more exciting while actually making it less precise. Better language reveals the
real progression: automatic motion, encoded sequence, calculation, externalized
control, programmability, electronic switching, stored programs, microprocessors.

The lineage is impressive enough without flattening the categories.