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VIRTUAL ENIGMA

NOVA's Virtual Enigma is very much like the real thing. It uses three virtual rotating wheels that operate in the same way that the original did. These can be set to over 17,000 possible settings, or "keys." You can use the machine to encrypt a message using any one of the possible keys, then e-mail the message to a friend (or an ally). Along with the encrypted message, your friend will receive a special key that he or she will need to decipher the message, as well as a link to the Virtual Enigma.





Photo: Oxford University Press.

Adapted from NOVA Online 2002