Editing Pilot ACE (section)

{{Short description|One of the first computers built in the United Kingdom}}
{{Infobox information appliance
| name         = Pilot ACE
| image        = Pilot ACE.jpg
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| developer    = [[National Physical Laboratory (United Kingdom)|National Physical Laboratory]] (NPL)
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| releasedate  = {{Start date and age|1950}}
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| os           = <!-- operating system -->
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| cpu          = approximately 800 [[vacuum tube]]s
| CPUspeed     = 1 [[megahertz]]
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| memory       = 128 32-bit words; later expanded to 352 words
| RAMtype      = [[mercury (element)|Mercury]] [[delay-line memory|delay lines]]
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| service      = <!-- online service/s offered -->
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[[File:Pilot ACE console.jpg|thumb|Pilot ACE console]]
[[File:Punch cards in tray for Pilot ACE computer built at the National Physical Laboratory c. 1950 (9672239226).jpg|thumb|Punch cards, detail view against dark grey background, for Pilot ACE computer, built at the [[National Physical Laboratory (United Kingdom)]], circa 1950. [[Science Museum London]]<ref name="sciencephoto/ACE">{{cite web |title=automatic computing engine |url=https://www.sciencephoto.com/keyword/automatic-computing-engine |website=Science Photo Library |access-date=14 May 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=1950 ace paper cards |url=https://www.scienceandsociety.co.uk/results.asp?search=1&pixperpage=50&searchtxtkeys=1950+and+ace+and+cards+and+paper&lstorients=All+Orientations |website=[[Science & Society Picture Library]]}}</ref>]]

The '''Pilot ACE''' (Automatic Computing Engine) was one of the first [[computer]]s built in the [[United Kingdom]].<ref name="yastes">{{Cite book | first=David M. | last=Yates | title=Turing's Legacy: A history of computing at the National Physical Laboratory 1945–1995 | publisher=[[Science Museum, London]] | location=UK | date=1997 | isbn=0-901805-94-7 | pages=126–146 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ToMfAQAAIAAJ }}</ref> Built at the [[National Physical Laboratory (United Kingdom)|National Physical Laboratory]] (NPL) in the early 1950s, it was also one of the earliest general-purpose, [[stored-program computer]]s – joining other UK designs like the [[Manchester Mark 1]] and [[EDSAC]] of the same era. It was a preliminary version of the full [[Automatic Computing Engine|ACE]], which was  designed by [[Alan Turing]], who left NPL before the construction was completed.