5 ms·

MIDI 1.0 is 38 years old, I wonder if that is some kind of record for a protocol standard. But, what about the years between with MIDI over USB? Is that fairly

MIDI 1.0 is 38 years old, I wonder if that is some kind of record for a protocol standard. But, what about the years between with MIDI over USB? Is that fairly called MIDI 1.0 still no matter the transport mechanism?

anigbrowl 3y ago
Yes. MIDI is the sequence data protocol, not the transport specification. There are multiple alternatives to the basic, eg Elektron had a proprietary system that gives ~10x better speed/timing accuracy.
jasonjayr 3y ago
MIDI is very similar to RS232 https://www.compuphase.com/electronics/midi_rs232.htm https://www.compuphase.com/electronics/midi_rs232.htm But RS232 dates back to the 60s https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RS-232 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RS-232 > In telecommunications, RS-232 or Recommended Standard 232[1] is a standard originally introduced in 1960[2] for serial communication transmission of data. It formally defines signals connecting between a DTE (data terminal equipment) such as a computer terminal, and a DCE (data circuit-terminating equipment or data communication equipment), such as a modem.
- horsawlarway 3y ago
  Shout out to RS232, as an aside! One of my very first experiences with coding was communicating with devices over serial with RS232. 25 years later it's mostly usb-adapters and 5v TTL converters instead of the old school (in my day) db9 connectors. But I still use it all the time for hobby projects.
- ilyt 3y ago
  > MIDI is very similar to RS232 It wouldn't be wrong to say MIDI is protocol running on top of RS232 (of specific config and bitrate) In fact easiest way to get MIDI IN/OUT is using UART on microcontroller + an optocoupler
- dfox 3y ago
  MIDI is similar to RS-232 only if you conflate RS-232 (which specifies voltage levels and physical connector) with asynchronous start-stop serial, while that is the most common application for RS-232, it can be carried over a lot of physical layers and also RS-232 can carry synchronous serial (which is a part of the reason for the DB25 with a lot of “unused” pins). MIDI physical layer is pretty much unique to MIDI and a kind of an ugly, but cheap and reliable (when done correctly), hack. Edit: technically you can wire RS232 transmitter to MIDI receiver and if both follow the respective specification the Tx should not source enough current to blow the Rx optocoupler. But it will generally not work the other way around because in absence of said optocoupler the relationship of the MIDI signal (which is a current loop referenced to more or less unspecified potential) to receiver ground matters.
Someone 3y ago
Wikipedia says TCP is from 1974 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transmission_Control_Protocol https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transmission_Control_Protocol). That would mean it turns 50 next year. There likely are way older protocols in telephone networks.
- Aloha 3y ago
  CAMA is one of the few I can think of thats still around. SS7 is newer than TCP
- skissane 3y ago
  > Wikipedia says TCP is from 1974 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transmission_Control_Protocol https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transmission_Control_Protocol). That would mean it turns 50 next year. Yes, but 1974 TCP is completely incompatible with the current TCP. In the original 1974 version of TCP – https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc675 https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc675 – they hadn't yet split TCP and IP out into the separate protocols. I'm not sure what is the earliest version which is interoperable with contemporary TCP/IPv4 – probably either the 1981 version – https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc793 https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc793 – or the 1980 version – https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc761 https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc761 TCP/IP first entered into widespread production use on 1 January 1983, when ARPANET switched over to it from the earlier (incompatible) NCP protocol. The version of it adopted at the start of 1983 had been finalised in 1981/1982. Prior to that, it was only used on a research/experimental basis, which meant that incompatible changes were frequent.
wildzzz 3y ago
Depends on what you consider a "protocol". Morse code dates back to 1844 and is still in use. Hellschreiber is from the 1920s, still in use by some hams. You can downlink slow scan TV (1957) images from the ISS sometimes. Except for Morse code, a lot of the older protocols used by hams are mostly for novelty, legacy, and price reasons as they can be cheaply implemented into just about any computer ever made. Morse code still has use in the military as a backup system for long range communications.

anigbrowl 3y ago

Yes. MIDI is the sequence data protocol, not the transport specification. There are multiple alternatives to the basic, eg Elektron had a proprietary system that gives ~10x better speed/timing accuracy.

jasonjayr 3y ago

MIDI is very similar to RS232 https://www.compuphase.com/electronics/midi_rs232.htm https://www.compuphase.com/electronics/midi_rs232.htm But RS232 dates back to the 60s https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RS-232 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RS-232 > In telecommunications, RS-232 or Recommended Standard 232[1] is a standard originally introduced in 1960[2] for serial communication transmission of data. It formally defines signals connecting between a DTE (data terminal equipment) such as a computer terminal, and a DCE (data circuit-terminating equipment or data communication equipment), such as a modem.

horsawlarway 3y ago
Shout out to RS232, as an aside! One of my very first experiences with coding was communicating with devices over serial with RS232. 25 years later it's mostly usb-adapters and 5v TTL converters instead of the old school (in my day) db9 connectors. But I still use it all the time for hobby projects.
ilyt 3y ago
> MIDI is very similar to RS232 It wouldn't be wrong to say MIDI is protocol running on top of RS232 (of specific config and bitrate) In fact easiest way to get MIDI IN/OUT is using UART on microcontroller + an optocoupler
dfox 3y ago
MIDI is similar to RS-232 only if you conflate RS-232 (which specifies voltage levels and physical connector) with asynchronous start-stop serial, while that is the most common application for RS-232, it can be carried over a lot of physical layers and also RS-232 can carry synchronous serial (which is a part of the reason for the DB25 with a lot of “unused” pins). MIDI physical layer is pretty much unique to MIDI and a kind of an ugly, but cheap and reliable (when done correctly), hack. Edit: technically you can wire RS232 transmitter to MIDI receiver and if both follow the respective specification the Tx should not source enough current to blow the Rx optocoupler. But it will generally not work the other way around because in absence of said optocoupler the relationship of the MIDI signal (which is a current loop referenced to more or less unspecified potential) to receiver ground matters.

Someone 3y ago

Wikipedia says TCP is from 1974 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transmission_Control_Protocol https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transmission_Control_Protocol). That would mean it turns 50 next year. There likely are way older protocols in telephone networks.

Aloha 3y ago
CAMA is one of the few I can think of thats still around. SS7 is newer than TCP
skissane 3y ago
> Wikipedia says TCP is from 1974 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transmission_Control_Protocol https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transmission_Control_Protocol). That would mean it turns 50 next year. Yes, but 1974 TCP is completely incompatible with the current TCP. In the original 1974 version of TCP – https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc675 https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc675 – they hadn't yet split TCP and IP out into the separate protocols. I'm not sure what is the earliest version which is interoperable with contemporary TCP/IPv4 – probably either the 1981 version – https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc793 https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc793 – or the 1980 version – https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc761 https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc761 TCP/IP first entered into widespread production use on 1 January 1983, when ARPANET switched over to it from the earlier (incompatible) NCP protocol. The version of it adopted at the start of 1983 had been finalised in 1981/1982. Prior to that, it was only used on a research/experimental basis, which meant that incompatible changes were frequent.

wildzzz 3y ago

Depends on what you consider a "protocol". Morse code dates back to 1844 and is still in use. Hellschreiber is from the 1920s, still in use by some hams. You can downlink slow scan TV (1957) images from the ISS sometimes. Except for Morse code, a lot of the older protocols used by hams are mostly for novelty, legacy, and price reasons as they can be cheaply implemented into just about any computer ever made. Morse code still has use in the military as a backup system for long range communications.