Tag Archives: gadgetry

Canis fidelis verum vox

After several years of collecting components and a similar number of weekends of woodwork later, last December I finally completed the Hi‑Fi rack I’ve been wanting since what feels like an eternity. Continue reading

Posted in Technology | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Of Duke Nukem and aborted laptop ideas

Another use for an old laptop was to turn a donated Thinkpad into a “play-station” dedicated to preserving and showcasing old DOS games. And so, finally, Duke Nukem 3D was completed, start to finish. Continue reading

Posted in Technology | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Windows Phone is dead

This year marks the tenth anniversary of the introduction of the iPhone. The first commercial Android device was released a year later; today Android has the largest installed base of any operating system. In 2010 Microsoft also heeded the call with the ill-fated Windows Phone 7 (based on Windows CE). “Too little, too late”, one might say, nor was there an upgrade path to 2014’s superior Windows 8/8.1 generation (now based on Windows NT). And they were pretty damn good. Continue reading

Posted in Technology | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Gadget Graveyard

Let the final order of the old year be the announcement that I’ve added a new chapter to the archive.hmvh.net section: The Gadget Graveyard, where old technology goes to die. I’ve obviously got problems, and hoarding old components is just one. Continue reading

Posted in Archive | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Miniaturisation and consumerism

The other day the DVB-T receiver packed up. After I took a drive to my favourite electronics store to pick up a replacement unit I noticed how small the box it comes in was. But it wasn’t until I got home and started hooking up the new unit that the size difference really became apparent. Continue reading

Posted in Technology | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Goodbye, Walkman

Keeping in tune with the previous posting, we may as well follow up with the announcement that the Walkman has officially ejected its last tape. Sony announced on Monday that it has ceased production of the classic, cassette tape Walkman in Japan, effectively sounding the death knell of the once iconic, now obsolete device and marking the end of one of the most successful consumer gadgets of all time. Continue reading

Posted in Technology | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Telephobia

I almost hate phones. They’re a necessary evil — a mere tool that aids in the verbal transfer of information from one person to another. Nothing more. You pick up the phone, press a sequence of digits, hope the person at the other end answers, say what you need to say, and hang up. End of conversation, end of line. I make no apologies for skipping entire generations of equipment. Continue reading

Posted in Technology | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Is it an ism, or is it art?

“This artwork is created through the unique art of microwaving by one of the most prominent entertainers and artists on the web. Kenny Irwin originals are projected to only increase in value as a collectors items and museums and media take notice of the world renowned art by Kenny Irwin that is unlike anything the world has seen before. ” Continue reading

Posted in Technology | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Is it an ism, or is it art?