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Floppy disks are getting hard to come by, and will soon be too expensive. A good option would be to have the same data printed as QR codes in labels glued to s

Floppy disks are getting hard to come by, and will soon be too expensive. A good option would be to have the same data printed as QR codes in labels glued to small domino sized wood blocks that could be inserted in a slot in a box and read by a cheap camera module.

nar001 10mo ago
It wouldn't be making fun floppy disk noises then though!
- pigpop 10mo ago
  You could wire in one of those small phone vibration motors and get similar noises out of it. Experimenting with different ways of mounting the motor so that it makes metallic or mechanical noises would be fun. If you really wanted to get the full audio experience you could also add another motor that spins a small, disk shaped load that you could ramp up and down for the steady whirring noises.
WorldMaker 10mo ago
Someone else posting to HN used cheap flash cartridges for a "music player" like this. There is something to be said about having a ROM or ROM-like media that can store even a few megabytes of data rather than QR codes being relatively bandwidth limited and so often needing a URL to data or more URLs. The article points out there is a useful lesson in accidentally destroying/losing a physical object in the way that floppies or VHS tapes were easy to accidentally destroy and taught young childhood lessons. QR codes are a bit harder to destroy, which can be a benefit, but also loses this tiny lesson.
margalabargala 10mo ago
They are currently $1 per disk, are reusable, and last a very long time. It is likely they are still being manufactured, too. Even if the price were to double, I suspect that someone with the skills to make this has a sufficiently well paying job that the price of a hundred disks per year would not be a problem.
- criddell 10mo ago
  > It is likely they are still being manufactured, too. As far as I can tell, they are not.
  - graypegg 10mo ago
    I think so! As far as I can google, it seems like everything available is new-old-stock or recovered discs. https://eyeondesign.aiga.org/we-spoke-with-the-last-person-standing-in-the-floppy-disk-business/ https://eyeondesign.aiga.org/we-spoke-with-the-last-person-s... Interesting little read I fell into while looking this up!
elzbardico 10mo ago
It is fascinating to think that after we moved everything online, we keep finding uses for physical media that needs to be read by a player. Yes, it is not efficient, but physical media looks to like it kind of meet some higher levels of needs in the Maslow hierarchy. It is ergonomic, it is human, it is tangible, countable. It is embodied in a world that is less and less embodied by the day.
zuppy 10mo ago
i quite like you idea. floppies are pretty easy to destroy, especially by kids. i wouldn’t trust that to last that long.
larschdk 10mo ago
An 125 kHz RFID reader would be a way simpler and cheaper solution. Could still have a 3D-printed box/slot.

nar001 10mo ago

It wouldn't be making fun floppy disk noises then though!

pigpop 10mo ago
You could wire in one of those small phone vibration motors and get similar noises out of it. Experimenting with different ways of mounting the motor so that it makes metallic or mechanical noises would be fun. If you really wanted to get the full audio experience you could also add another motor that spins a small, disk shaped load that you could ramp up and down for the steady whirring noises.

WorldMaker 10mo ago

Someone else posting to HN used cheap flash cartridges for a "music player" like this. There is something to be said about having a ROM or ROM-like media that can store even a few megabytes of data rather than QR codes being relatively bandwidth limited and so often needing a URL to data or more URLs. The article points out there is a useful lesson in accidentally destroying/losing a physical object in the way that floppies or VHS tapes were easy to accidentally destroy and taught young childhood lessons. QR codes are a bit harder to destroy, which can be a benefit, but also loses this tiny lesson.

margalabargala 10mo ago

They are currently $1 per disk, are reusable, and last a very long time. It is likely they are still being manufactured, too. Even if the price were to double, I suspect that someone with the skills to make this has a sufficiently well paying job that the price of a hundred disks per year would not be a problem.

criddell 10mo ago
> It is likely they are still being manufactured, too. As far as I can tell, they are not.
- graypegg 10mo ago
  I think so! As far as I can google, it seems like everything available is new-old-stock or recovered discs. https://eyeondesign.aiga.org/we-spoke-with-the-last-person-standing-in-the-floppy-disk-business/ https://eyeondesign.aiga.org/we-spoke-with-the-last-person-s... Interesting little read I fell into while looking this up!

elzbardico 10mo ago

It is fascinating to think that after we moved everything online, we keep finding uses for physical media that needs to be read by a player. Yes, it is not efficient, but physical media looks to like it kind of meet some higher levels of needs in the Maslow hierarchy. It is ergonomic, it is human, it is tangible, countable. It is embodied in a world that is less and less embodied by the day.

zuppy 10mo ago

i quite like you idea. floppies are pretty easy to destroy, especially by kids. i wouldn’t trust that to last that long.

larschdk 10mo ago

An 125 kHz RFID reader would be a way simpler and cheaper solution. Could still have a 3D-printed box/slot.