Compression, correction, confidentiality, and comprehension: a modern look at telegraph codebooks

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Telegraph codes are a more-or-less forgotten part of technological history. In their day, though, they were ubiquitous and sophisticated. They also laid the groundwork for many of today’s communications technologies, including encryption, compression, and error correction. Beyond that, reading them provides a snapshot into culture. We look back, describing them in modern terms, and noting some of the tradeoffs considered.