Ada was one of the first to understand and describe a computer and software, and she developed an easily understood metaphor for the punch cards needed to program the analytical engine. She described the punch cards of the engine weaving algebraical patterns in much the same way that a cloth loom would weave flowers and leaves as part of the design of various pieces of fabric. Since mechanical looms were all the rage in the textile mills of the 1800s, this was an example that was easily understood by most who heard it.
