18 Dec
2008
18 Dec
'08
10:29 a.m.
On Wed, December 17, 2008 3:05 pm, Brent Hilpert wrote:
There was a later PPS-4/1 single-chip version. I
don't know how popular
this
stuff was but I wonder if there aren't more PPS-4 systems buried in
equipment
and appliances from the period than is commonly known. (I have wondered,
for
example, what the 70's-era Amana Radarange microwave ovens used for
control.)
Umm...mechanical timers.
-Dave
--
Dave McGuire
Port Charlotte, FL
18 Dec
18 Dec
12:31 p.m.
Dave McGuire wrote:
On Wed, December 17, 2008 3:05 pm, Brent Hilpert wrote:
60's era ones yes, but by 1978 or earlier they were like this:
http://www.ssplprints.com/image.php?imgref=10240744
LED display, keypad input. A friend has one, still in use, but I haven't bugged
him to let me look inside it. Could have been done with an ASIC of course but
it would also have been a good candidate to have used some mask-programmed 1 or
2 chip micro such as the PPS-4/1.
It's a minor interest: earliest consumer items (aside from the obvious
calculators) to use embedded micros. The earliest I have seen so far is a
Sherwood FM tuner ca. 1977 that uses an RCA 1802 (e.g.
http://atlanta.craigslist.org/ele/927622156.html). Repaired a couple for a
friend but forgot to take exact chip dates.
There was a later PPS-4/1 single-chip version. I
don't know how popular
this
stuff was but I wonder if there aren't more PPS-4 systems buried in
equipment
and appliances from the period than is commonly known. (I have wondered,
for
example, what the 70's-era Amana Radarange microwave ovens used for
control.)
Umm...mechanical timers. 
2:05 p.m.
On 18 Dec 2008 at 9:31, Brent Hilpert wrote:
60's era ones yes, but by 1978 or earlier they
were like this:
http://www.ssplprints.com/image.php?imgref=10240744
LED display, keypad input. A friend has one, still in use, but I haven't bugged
him to let me look inside it. Could have been done with an ASIC of course but
it would also have been a good candidate to have used some mask-programmed 1 or
2 chip micro such as the PPS-4/1.
A Toshiba microwave (just junked) from the same time has 4000-series
SSI CMOS and not much more. Same goes for the 1978 Amana still
sitting on my kitchen counter. I think microprocessors might not
have reached a competitive price point yet.
Cheers,
Chuck
10:30 p.m.
Chuck Guzis wrote:
On 18 Dec 2008 at 9:31, Brent Hilpert wrote:
Scratch that one from the list then. I'm mildly surprised. They may not have
been making them by the millions but I would have guessed they were making
enough of them to make LSI worthwhile over SSI.
60's era ones yes, but by 1978 or earlier
they were like this:
http://www.ssplprints.com/image.php?imgref=10240744
LED display, keypad input. A friend has one, still in use, but I haven't bugged
him to let me look inside it. Could have been done with an ASIC of course but
it would also have been a good candidate to have used some mask-programmed 1 or
2 chip micro such as the PPS-4/1.
A Toshiba microwave (just junked) from the same time has 4000-series
SSI CMOS and not much more. Same goes for the 1978 Amana still
sitting on my kitchen counter. I think microprocessors might not
have reached a competitive price point yet. 
10:13 p.m.
On Thursday (12/18/2008 at 10:29AM -0500), Dave McGuire wrote:
On Wed, December 17, 2008 3:05 pm, Brent Hilpert
wrote:
No! it was a "Touchmatic". Had a capacitive keypad and LED display.
Very cool for 1974. Mom cooked a meatloaf in it in a bundt pan. Came
out indistinguishable from a lawn tractor tire.
http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/images/object_images/277x265/10240744.jpg
--
Chris Elmquist
mailto:chrise at pobox.com
There was a later PPS-4/1 single-chip version. I
don't know how popular
this
stuff was but I wonder if there aren't more PPS-4 systems buried in
equipment
and appliances from the period than is commonly known. (I have wondered,
for
example, what the 70's-era Amana Radarange microwave ovens used for
control.)
Umm...mechanical timers.
19 Dec
19 Dec
7:24 a.m.
On Thursday (12/18/2008 at 09:13PM -0600), Chris Elmquist wrote:
On Thursday (12/18/2008 at 10:29AM -0500), Dave
McGuire wrote:
Sorry, I got the year wrong. It was approx 1978. Less cool then but still
not bad. Meatloaf was still bad.
--
Chris Elmquist
mailto:chrise at pobox.com
On Wed, December 17, 2008 3:05 pm, Brent Hilpert
wrote:
No! it was a "Touchmatic". Had a capacitive keypad and LED display.
Very cool for 1974. Mom cooked a meatloaf in it in a bundt pan. Came
out indistinguishable from a lawn tractor tire.
http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/images/object_images/277x265/10240744.jpg There was a later PPS-4/1 single-chip version. I
don't know how popular
this
stuff was but I wonder if there aren't more PPS-4 systems buried in
equipment
and appliances from the period than is commonly known. (I have wondered,
for
example, what the 70's-era Amana Radarange microwave ovens used for
control.)
Umm...mechanical timers. 
11:14 a.m.
Sorry, I got
the year wrong. It was approx 1978. Less cool then but still
not bad. Meatloaf was still bad.
Umm you don't wait several years to eat Meatloaf. 
12:04 p.m.
Sorry, I got the year wrong. It was approx 1978.
Less cool then but still
not bad. Meatloaf was still bad.
Umm you don't wait several years to eat Meatloaf.
1:54 p.m.
On Saturday (12/20/2008 at 08:48AM -0700), bfranchuk at jetnet.ab.ca wrote:
Chris Elmquist wrote:
This one you would have wanted to. Imagine a pale grey colored ring
about 10" dia with 3" dia hole in the middle. Wasn't a browned bit of
meat on it and not enough ketchup in the world to make it go down. I
think we learned then that a microwave is not for "browning".
--
Chris Elmquist
mailto:chrise at pobox.com
Sorry, I got the year wrong. It was approx 1978.
Less cool then but still
not bad. Meatloaf was still bad.
Umm you don't wait several years to eat Meatloaf.
19 Dec
19 Dec
10:09 a.m.
On Dec 18, 2008, at 10:13 PM, Chris Elmquist wrote:
No! it was a "Touchmatic". Had a capacitive keypad and LED display.
Very cool for 1974. Mom cooked a meatloaf in it in a bundt pan. Came
out indistinguishable from a lawn tractor tire.
http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/images/object_images/
277x265/10240744.jpg
Ack, I stand corrected! I must've been thinking of another oven.
-Dave
--
Dave McGuire
Port Charlotte, FL
There was a later PPS-4/1 single-chip version. I
don't know how
popular
this
stuff was but I wonder if there aren't more PPS-4 systems buried in
equipment
and appliances from the period than is commonly known. (I have
wondered,
for
example, what the 70's-era Amana Radarange microwave ovens used for
control.)
Umm...mechanical timers.
5693
days inactive
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10 comments
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bfranchuk＠jetnet.ab.ca -
blstuart＠bellsouth.net -
cclist＠sydex.com -
chrise＠pobox.com -
hilpert＠cs.ubc.ca -
mcguire＠neurotica.com -
spectre＠floodgap.com