tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post5229293488548895743..comments2024-03-29T09:08:47.702-04:00Comments on The Silicon Graybeard: Another 50 Years Ago MilestoneSiGraybeardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00280583031339062059noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-75609833521787324442017-07-26T17:30:47.200-04:002017-07-26T17:30:47.200-04:00SR-50!
That's the one I had. I just couldn...SR-50!<br /><br />That's the one I had. I just couldn't remember the model number.<br /><br />The local Junior College bookstore had them on sale for, I think, $100, and I just couldn't pass it up.drjimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05647484115197408897noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-67610546332111154672017-07-26T17:12:08.420-04:002017-07-26T17:12:08.420-04:00My first scientific calculator was also a Ti SR-50...My first scientific calculator was also a Ti SR-50(a). I bought it sometime in 1975 or 76. The irony of that is that the Ti calculator is long gone, but the box it came in is still sitting up there on top of my credenza, not ten feet away from me as I type this. Yep, I use a 45 year old box to keep my expense report receipts in. Royhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10108430731483801350noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-64397840099453202012017-07-25T17:34:04.497-04:002017-07-25T17:34:04.497-04:00It was 1972 in my engineering slide rule class tha...It was 1972 in my engineering slide rule class that the professor stated three facts that he strongly believed in. They were that slide rules need no batteries, that in most all cases we will never need the precision of an electronic calculator, and that the HP 35 was a waste of good money. I never finished the class. He was right for a while. <br /><br />Remember we built the H bomb with slide rules and all the other hi tech systems of WW2 weapons and follow on aerospace goodies like the Atlas MISSLE. <br /><br />Those who loved 8 tracks must remember the Lear 4 tracks. Bill Lear of Lear Jet fame brought us the unreliable tape cartridge and transport mechanism. In 1972 I went to work for Ampex corp in their Miami service center for audiovisual products. I can't tell you how many of those 8 track machines would come in each day from all over and under warranty for repair. Most had tape cartridges with them after having eaten the tape by winding it up on the capstan and pinch roller inside the cartridge. I could go on but I'll keep it short. It was Ampex's venture into cheap consumer products that I believe led to their bankruptcy in the early 70's. <br /><br />Back to calculators. Not able to afford an HP I ended up with a TI scientific calculator whose model escapes my memory at the moment. Then there's the Intel story. Remember the 4004 ? Anyone out there with Intel stories ?<br />Jaque Bauernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-88211539665384165082017-07-25T12:30:24.610-04:002017-07-25T12:30:24.610-04:00Now THAT was a walk down memory lane!Now THAT was a walk down memory lane!Borepatchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05029434172945099693noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-16475794929926349182017-07-24T22:27:01.956-04:002017-07-24T22:27:01.956-04:00Terry - what are you talking about? I looked up t...Terry - what are you talking about? I looked up the Datamath calculators and they were under $30. Virtually every slide rule was under $50. SiGraybeardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00280583031339062059noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-22358853461397548642017-07-24T17:44:14.192-04:002017-07-24T17:44:14.192-04:00I've still got my big K&E, and a smaller o...I've still got my big K&E, and a smaller one with fewer scales. Both in their leather cases, and in excellent condition considering how much use they got.drjimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05647484115197408897noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-10248325730103498552017-07-24T17:20:49.898-04:002017-07-24T17:20:49.898-04:00Super cool. I decided I would like one so I looked...Super cool. I decided I would like one so I looked online. They are between $500 and $750 on eBay. :( <br />Pass.Terryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02693579680266086557noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-84766941254096197502017-07-24T15:04:26.228-04:002017-07-24T15:04:26.228-04:00One of my favorite commercials had the tag jingle ...One of my favorite commercials had the tag jingle "it has big green numbers and little rubber feet". Still miss slide rules............Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-3421672293439978662017-07-24T14:21:50.046-04:002017-07-24T14:21:50.046-04:00Are they collectors items yet? Sure - anything is...<i> Are they collectors items yet?</i> Sure - anything is collectible if you find the right collector. I imagine that depends on exactly which slide rule you have. I would guess a 6" plastic slide rule won't be worth as much as a 12" rule made from a more exotic material, based just on how many were produced. <br /><br />I have one from Collins Radio; it has the Collins meatball logo on it. (It helps they're in town!). It has specialty scales for microwave radio links. I think it's worth more than the $3 I paid for it in 1982.<br /><br />I will hold onto it. <br /><br />SiGraybeardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00280583031339062059noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-60999880867560636422017-07-24T12:49:16.322-04:002017-07-24T12:49:16.322-04:00At the same time, I was a Nuclear Reactor Operator...At the same time, I was a Nuclear Reactor Operator in the Navy. We had to perform many calculations for bringing the reactor up to criticality. On one patrol I used my brand new 4 function calculator instead of my slide rule and the Engineer and Captain wouldn't accept my results. I had to start over and do the whole thing using the slide rule. By the way I still have a couple of slide rules around here somewhere.LivingFossilhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12354400437837061230noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-79354621944301615622017-07-24T11:19:01.529-04:002017-07-24T11:19:01.529-04:00I think I still have a fairly expensive slide rule...I think I still have a fairly expensive slide rule that I bought in college. Are they collectors items yet?<br /><br />I miss my 8 track. One of the advantages of an 8 track is that no album has only favorites. BUT every 8 track album had 4 songs play (or available to play) at once so you just push a button and get a decent song.<br /><br />You should look into the demise (or almost complete demise) of Radio Shack. I miss the Radio Shack that used to be here in town. They started going out of business I think when they converted to cell phone stores. They still had a few electronics parts but it was 90% cell phones before they closed their doors.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-83345080676021337612017-07-24T10:39:41.844-04:002017-07-24T10:39:41.844-04:00Really enjoyed this article SiG! Great stuff that...Really enjoyed this article SiG! Great stuff that is really informative.<br /><br />I remember sitting outside a car stereo shop when I was buying a new cassette player to replace my 8-track and while sitting in the sun thinking about the smaller format, why it would be better, and the direction of technology. I imagined one day there would be no moving parts at all as the "music" would simply move from some media to the speakers without all the electro-mechanical stuff in between. And lo and behold, some forty years later ... diskless devices. And the beat goes on.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-58955323406247132182017-07-24T10:34:32.949-04:002017-07-24T10:34:32.949-04:00Started college with my K&E, a beautiful slide...Started college with my K&E, a beautiful slide rule that I got pretty handy with. But when the HP35 came out, I had to have one. I remember in a 10 min quiz, spending most of the 10 min. thinking the problem through and when the prof said to hand in papers, I crunched my numbers, wrote down the answer and handed in my paper. So much nicer than "slippin'n sliding" my K&E.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-32650738467683837262017-07-24T10:07:20.204-04:002017-07-24T10:07:20.204-04:00I sure do. My first experiences were with an S-10...I sure do. My first experiences were with an S-100 bus computer a friend had made and moved on from. It was cassette drive. He loaned it to me for a few weeks. After that, I remember using cassettes with a couple of computers, including a Commodore 64 - before we got their floppy disk drive. <br />SiGraybeardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00280583031339062059noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-79620502786009873802017-07-24T07:41:48.814-04:002017-07-24T07:41:48.814-04:00A more common place technological shift in this sa...A more common place technological shift in this same era was that cassette audio tapes became commonplace, displacing infamous 8-tracks and largely replacing home reel-to-reel units. Anyone remember using cassette tapes for early home computer data storage? I'm not sure a lot of people noticed how fast technology was advancing back then. Doug Rinkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12677807340279701734noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-6559764346806159912017-07-24T02:50:57.260-04:002017-07-24T02:50:57.260-04:00We were still using slide rules (I had my dad'...We were still using slide rules (I had my dad's Keuffel & Esser) when I was in high school, and the first pocket-sized calculator I ever saw was in 1967. It was a Hewlett-Packard owned by a classmate. I don't recall the model number, but he said it cost $350 (his parents had bought it for him).<br /><br />I'm fond of the Casio and the Sharp solar calculators. I've stored a few along with other prep items.Reg Thttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14099612693763932005noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-68419133243280871782017-07-23T23:07:17.099-04:002017-07-23T23:07:17.099-04:00TI-SR10. 1972. It did exponents! Great for studyin...TI-SR10. 1972. It did exponents! Great for studying nuclear physics.<br /><br />Couldn't use them in class because of the disadvantage to those still using slide rules (which I used in parallel because I didn't quite trust the calculator yet). Still works.<br /><br />QAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-5094414973529902062017-07-23T21:36:58.757-04:002017-07-23T21:36:58.757-04:00The first one I ever bought was a TI, but I don...The first one I ever bought was a TI, but I don't remember the model number.<br /><br />The first one I ever saw was an HP-35 that one of the Engineers at Fermilab had.<br /><br />Blew me away!drjimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05647484115197408897noreply@blogger.com