9 Aug
2006
9 Aug
'06
7:03 p.m.
It's almost criminal that the suits have
taken over HP and ruined it.
They came up with SO much amazing stuff over the years.
Amazing and cool yes, but a really foolish way to do things from just
about any engineering standpoint. Back in the 1700s they actually invented something called the "switch", and
often made it into a shape
that could be pressed, so one bit of metal touches another. Works
amazingly well. Cheap and reliable, too.
Cheap yes. Reliable, I beg to differ. Or perhaps you've never had a dodgy
switch contact, a key that doesn't always work, that sort of thing.
I assume you also think the Keytronics capacitive keyboard is a daft
design. I don't think many will agree with you.
If you want a cheap, standard, design, go and get a PC. One of the things
I like about classic computers is the ingenious, odd, bits of design you
find in them. If you don't, I have to wonder why you bother with this list.
Of course, back then HP (and Tek, and just about everyone else) could
get away with over the top wet dream engineering, with all that Cold
War era military business. These days, those same keyboard engineers
would be flipping burgers after a week of such nonsense.
Which is why I won't buy a modern keyboard, I keep on with the old ones...
But then, I must admit that often I like the silly, backwards,
all-to-clever designs that make their way into vintage electronics.
Makes all those 68Ks and PDP-11s look boring...
Have you ever looked at the design of a PDP11? Try analysing the 11/45 at
gate level sometime...
-tony