23 Jun
2007
23 Jun
'07
2:37 p.m.
On Jun 23, 2007, at 8:15 AM, Tim Shoppa wrote:
Well this is clearly a problem. I consider myself to be a person
having pretty general experience with technology, and I've never even
heard of this stuff...but it sounds very interesting to me. Perhaps
what is needed is a way to "get the word out". Pictures,
descriptions, educational materials...YOU know about this stuff, but
who else does? I'd love to learn about it.
-Dave
--
Dave McGuire
Port Charlotte, FL
Well, true,
but they're not really general-purpose computers, as I
specified. I know there's all sorts of weirdness once you leave the
world of the desktop (or server), but it's not anything I can really
relate to or get interested in myself.
I occasionally get worried about that sort of attitude. I understand
wanting to relate to what we collect. I understand that not everyone
has the same background as I do in process and industrial control.
But... I feel that if collectors/museums concentrate only on their
narrow definition of "computer", they will neglect all the stuff
that led to computers. Right now, because a lot of this stuff was
designed with 50 to 100 year lifespans (maybe not designed
intentionally
but that's what it's working out to), much of it is still in service,
but I can see just a few years from now that a lot of it will be gone.
Some of the more interesting military special-purpose computers
are being preserved (e.g. Norden bombsights) along with historical
context, but almost nothing else is.