3 ms·
The Diagrammer (1970) [video]
- likebike 3y agoThat's a great video. Helps me to understand where the older folks in the semiconductor industry are coming from.
- kickingvegas 3y agoNGL, when watching this I was thinking, “this is the secret origin story of Emacs.”
- p_l 3y agoUnfortunately it's nothing that crazy - IIRC original keybinds came from gathering what various people in AI lab used in TECO visual mode, then evolved from there with the quite simple element of having Bucky keys mirrored on the keyboard so modifiers were really easy to use.
- nickloewen 3y agoSince the title is a bit vague: this is a demo of the Mergenthaler Diagrammer, a tool for (semi-)automating the production of technical drawings like circuit schematics. From a quick look this is what I ascertained: you select a diagram symbol using a keyboard, use a viewing screen (a specialized projector) to position it on the ”drawing”, and then once it’s in position the projected image is exposed onto film. I’m a technically-minded artist/art historian who works a lot with projection, and this is a treat! What a great find! If you like this you might also like Fran Blanche’s YouTube video about how the big screens at Apollo Mission Control worked.
- lqet 3y agoThis is ipe [0], as a physical machine. Impressive. [0] https://ipe.otfried.org/ https://ipe.otfried.org/
- GnarfGnarf 3y agoThis is quaint. In 1970, computer-driven plotters were already widespread. It would not have been hard to see CAD coming, even with punched cards.