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Do you know what this
huge device is?
 In 1956 this
was state-of-the-art in advanced computer technology. It is a hard
disk drive unit with a staggering 5MB
of storage capacity.
In September 1956 IBM introduced the 305 RAMAC, the first hard disk
drive (HDD) in the world for a computer. This hard disk drive weighed
over a ton and took considerable floor space in a well air conditioned
computer center.
Certainly makes you
appreciate your high-end 32 Giga byte USB thumb drive now doesn't it?
Amazingly we can now easily carry more than 6,000 or 7,000 times that
capacity around on our key chain! What will we be carrying in
another 50 years? The sum of all world knowledge in a 3mm implant?
One of the first 16-bit home computers the
TI-99/4A.
Released in June of 1981 by Texas
Instruments and originally priced at $595, the TI99/4a came with a
whopping 256k bytes of memory with a 16KB of graphics RAM. The
processor ran at 3.0 Mhz.
The TI-99/4a was the first personal computer built around the 16-bit
processor architecture and it also featured "Plug and Play" hardware
support.
For mass storage you could hook up the TI-99/4a to a standard audio
cassette recorder and for the monitor, you could also connect it to your
color TV with a small adapter. While there were some interesting
things you could do in Basic and and the machines GPL (Graphics
Programming Language), it's strong suit was as a gaming machine.
At least that's what I used it for! The best were Parsec, Munch
Man (A Pac Man like game), Popeye, and TI Invaders.
We still have an original TI-99/4a here at the Flash Back Museum, in
it's original box . . . just in case.
The first successful personal computer to use a GUI
and Mouse:
 The
Apple Macintosh 128K released January 24, 1984. It was not
only the first personal computer to utilize a graphical user interface
(GUI) but it was also the first to use a mouse as a means of navigating
and interacting with screen content. The user screens used an
'desk top' metaphor depicting real world objects like file folders,
documents, and a trash can creating a computer system that was
intuitive to the non-computer literate user.
The images were all monochrome (no color back then) and initially 128k
was the high-end for the system memory, later going all the way up to
512k. It was a toy by today's standards, but the software
was well written and resource friendly (it had to be) and there was a
great selection of games . . . The Apple Macintosh was
the box that really ignited everything!
by: Dr. Von Zuko 2008© |
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 Audio
Technology
Audio Technology:
Vinyl for the Best of Us
Did you know that 2008 is the 60th anniversary of the phonograph
record? Don't care? Think CD's or MP3's are as good as it gets? Well think
again!
Audio engineers spent over 60 years
perfecting the LP record. Ironically, just as the technology really
came into its own, the CD appeared on the scene changing a multi billion
dollar record industry almost overnight.
LP records are not dead however, not by any means. Audiophiles, (yeah,
those people who spend serious dollars on stereo gear) still prefer LP's
over CD's. While LP's are a bit more fragile to handle, they have an
audio quality that is unmatched by the CD.
These analog recordings have a very rich
presence and warmth that currently is not attained by CD's. The
digitally recorded CD has a thin, fragile quality, and generally has a
slight distance to the sound. Maybe the experts are being a bit anal,
but just imagine the musical experience you'll enjoy, once Digital CD's
have 60 years of research behind them.
For now, the turntable and the LP vinyl record remain the high-end "Gold
Standard" for audiophiles and professional DJ's (who care about sound
quality).
Why do digital formats sound thin and hollow? Digital recording
removes elements of the sound at the top and bottom ends that are
'allegedly' inaudible to 'most' humans. Whereas analog recordings
(as in LP) records everything . . . providing great dimension to the
music.
The MPs on your personal music player are actually 3 or 4 down in the
audio quality measure, certainly under the CD. But hey, if you
think being able to carry around thousands of songs in your pocket . . .
to listen to at a moments notice . . . then the quality trade off may
just be "good enough."
Dr. Von Zuko © |
