Why are Bugs Called Bugs?

Have you ever wondered why we call software or hardware errors "bugs"? What a strange word to describe a mistake. Insects, though some may find them repellent, are among the most complex and perfectly adapted creatures on this planet. How can something that doesn't work be compared with things that actually function better than most living organisms on Earth? The term has never made much sense to me even though I use it in one way or another at least once a week. When I was a youngster in the 70's, I imagined a horde of beetles eating their way through boxes of cardboard punch cards. As it turns out, my uninformed assumption wasn't that far from the truth. In the first of a three part series examining computer and software bugs, Wired Magazine contributor,