Virtual Machines and Real Implementations

What does it take to implement a computer? Answers to this question have often focused on what it takes for a physical system to implement an abstract machine. As Joslin (Minds Mach 16:29–41, 2006) observes, this approach neglects cases of software implementation—cases where one machine implements another by running a program. These cases, Joslin argues, highlight serious problems for mapping accounts of computer implementation—accounts that require a mapping between elements of a physical system and elements of an abstract machine. The source of these problems is the complexity introduced by common design features of ordinary computers, features that would be relevant to any real-world software implementation (e.g., virtual memory). While Joslin is focused on contemporary views, his discussion also suggests a counterexample to recent mapping accounts which hold that genuine implementation requires simple mappings (Millhouse in Br J Philos Sci, 2017.  https://doi.org/10.1093/bjps/axx046; Wallace in The emergent multiverse, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2014). In this paper, I begin by clarifying the nature of software implementation and disentangling it from closely related phenomena like emulation and simulation. Next, I argue that Joslin overstates the degree of complexity involved in his target cases and that these cases may actually give us reasons to favor simplicity-based criteria over relevant alternatives. Finally, I propose a novel problem for simplicity-based criteria and suggest a tentative solution.