On Tuesday 01 April 2008, Tim wrote: >On Tue, 2008-04-01 at 08:38 -0400, Gene Heskett wrote: >> The next time I wrote code with an extended lifetime like that, was on a >> TRS-80 Color Computer running OS9 level 1, with device drivers in assembly >> using an assembler, and the main portion in Basic-09. That function was >> in place of a $20,000 Grass Valley Group E-DISK package that our first GVG >> 300-2A/B production video switcher didn't come with. It outperformed that >> $20k unit by 4x in speed, and gave the operators english language names >> for their individual 'bags of tricks' files whereas the GVG used 2 digit >> hex codes for the filenames. > >And back then, you could expect your equipment to come with manuals that >explained the tricks that could be done with their gear. e.g. If it had >a serial or parallel port, the pins would documented, the function codes >would be listed... Or, the sales division would get you the books for >it. > >Now, everything's a black box. One client's bought this Roland, >allegedly high-definition, digital video mixer (hi-def my left foot!, >that means high definition, not just able to output low-resolution video >with more pixels...). It has a port for the tally interface, that >mentions nothing about how to actually use it. Sure, it lists several >pins that you could have a tally signal on, depending on what mode its >in. But nothing that defines what the modes are, nor the output >voltages (TTL?, CMOS?, open-collector?, active low?). > Yeah Tim, but Panasonic, in the Techniques line of audio gear, copyrighted that BS back about 1978, equiping their fawnciest RS-1520 1/4" multitrack audio tape machine with a 9 pin octal interface plug for remote controls, but if you wanted to use it, you had to buy THEIR $200 remote pendant. No docs. And the schematics made it a weeks study to figure out that all it needed was a contact closure to start it to record. I was automating the weather report capture from the weather bureau. Worked a treat too. That was, in its day, THE technological tour-de-force in audio tape machines. It could lay a 1% distortion signal on the average roll of tape 10db louder than the best a Studer/Revox could do, 70 db snr at 7.5 ips in 2 track stereo, 67 db in 4 track mode. When the heads were clean, 15 kilohertz bandwidth at 3.75 ips. Bi-directional and handled 14" reels better than any other machine I ever saw. You flat could not get it to dump tape on the floor, period. -- Cheers, Gene "There are four boxes to be used in defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury, and ammo. Please use in that order." -Ed Howdershelt (Author) <viro> "scanf is tough" -- programmer Barbie... - Al Viro on #kernelnewbies
