20 years later and everything fits in your pocket

[chunkypeanutbutter]

I never understood a USB turntable.

RCA turntable output --> MIC in + recording program = AAC/MP3 files.

Still, computers are boring for music listening. Stereo all the way.

By the way, I don't have a phone either, never have.

[Rob Hall]

I don't mind backpacks, but people pulling around giant purses on wheels drive me nuts. If you can't pick it up and carry it, you're carrying around too much stuff, sweetie.

. Some people have a bad back and use wheeled bags....my sister uses one for work to carry her laptop and other work items.

[Tom Geiger]

When CDs first came in, and everyone was dumping their record album collections, I was buying! I found nearly every album I ever wanted for a dollar or two apiece. And right about the same time CDs appeared, programmable turntables briefly were on the market, no doubt over powered by the rush to CDs.

My father was the big audio guy, so he grabbed up two of the Kenwood KD75F programmable turntables. These are cool because they allow you to play the songs on a record side in any order you wish. They have track buttons on the front like CD players had. So you can press buttons to play the third song, then the first song and then stop playing. When you start it up, the stylus has an eye on it that remembers where the grooves are between the songs. It wasn't faultless, it would get screwed up on live albums where there was clapping between songs and such. You were also limited to one album side at a time, but it was so cool back then, even with the limitations of adapting something like this to old school technology. When my father died I inherited his so I have two of these, one in my den and one in the basement rec room.

With my father always owning top notch turntables, I was taught to take care of my records at an early age. Because of this I have every album I ever bought, starting with the Beatles Let It Be album I bought when I was 12 in 1970. And I no doubt have bought hundreds more albums since the CD appeared than I had before!

Edited October 10, 2014 by Tom Geiger

[Rob Hall]

I remember VCRs. Haven't used one in years. Have DVD and BluRay, have used Netflix for 14+ years but am streaming more often now. Kind of an Anti Luddite, I guess. Got my first cell phone 18 years ago, CDs 28 years ago, first computer 30 years ago, first laptop 19 years ago. I love technology and gadgets, though not as early of an adopter as many of my tech industry peers....got into streaming later, wtc

Edited October 10, 2014 by Rob Hall

[Rob Hall]

The latest trend is that phones are getting bigger.

Remember just a few years ago, they were making a big deal about how the latest and greatest cell phone is smaller than the previous one. Now, the TV commercials show how much bigger the iphone 6 is compared to the last one!

What's old is new again. Or what goes around, comes around. Or something like that...

I remember back around 2001 when very tiny phones esp those from Nokia were all the rage. But they were 'dumb' phones compared to today's 'smart' phones. I like the size of my iPhone 5S. Don't need a huge phone, I'll use my tablet or laptop if I want a bigger screen....

[slusher]

I remember back around 2001 when very tiny phones esp those from Nokia were all the rage. But they were 'dumb' phones compared to today's 'smart' phones. I like the size of my iPhone 5S. Don't need a huge phone, I'll use my tablet or laptop if I want a bigger screen....

I didn't get my first computer until 2000 I was 35. After that its been laptops. I remember when a friend had one of those bag cell phones back in 92. I don't have a smart phone I am using a flip phone and use my note book for the internet. I just need a phone for calls....

[redneckrodder]

i still have 8 tracks and vinyl....wait im only 15...i still have the playstation 2 my dad bought me when i was 9...don't even play it ...im livin life the right way...lol

[Tom Geiger]

Yea James, but have you ever used a dial phone?

My daughters sit in wonder, like I'm from Little House on the Prairie" when I tell them that we didn't have cell phones, lap tops or Facebook in the 1970s... that we needed to call our friend's family phone and hope his mother gave him the message. If not and if we missed where our friends were meeting on a Friday night, there was no calling or texting them to find them... you had to get in the car and drive around town looking for them... and not finding them... there went your evening!

The things we take for granted these days.

[chunkypeanutbutter]

I don't know why my fellow teens need phones

[Tom Geiger]

I don't know why my fellow teens need phones

I wonder that myself... or some of the people I see with phones glued to them.. leaves me thinking "Who the heck is gonna call THEM?" I know the answer, other dirt bags!

[slusher]

Yea James, but have you ever used a dial phone?

My daughters sit in wonder, like I'm from Little House on the Prairie" when I tell them that we didn't have cell phones, lap tops or Facebook in the 1970s... that we needed to call our friend's family phone and hope his mother gave him the message. If not and if we missed where our friends were meeting on a Friday night, there was no calling or texting them to find them... you had to get in the car and drive around town looking for them... and not finding them... there went your evening!

The things we take for granted these days.

Tom, it was cool driving around town and talking hanging out with friends. I was doing it in the early 80's and not a large town. Now some teenagers never talk to each other face to face...

[chunkypeanutbutter]

Oh when I get driving.... I wish for the day.

[Tom Geiger]

Oh when I get driving.... I wish for the day.

Nah, driving is highly over rated!

Actually I hear ya. I wanted to drive so badly that I took my birthday off and was first in line at Motor Vehicle to get my permit. The lady looked at me and said, "You wasted no time." My grandfather got a big kick out of taking me there.

[Mike_G]

I never understood a USB turntable.

RCA turntable output --> MIC in + recording program = AAC/MP3 files.

You need a phono preamp with an RIAA de-emphasis network or it won't sound right.

Edited October 17, 2014 by Mike_G

[Mike_G]

Where do you get tapes for it? I'm glad every time I go to Walmart and they still have a few blank VHS in stock. Wasn't all THAT long ago they had an entire aisle of blank VHS tapes of all sorts.

I don't record with it, but I still have a few blank tapes.

[chunkypeanutbutter]

You need a phono preamp with an RIAA de-emphasis network or it won't sound right.

Forgot about the amplifier part. Dang memory going again.

And de-emphasis? I've recorded songs from a turntable onto my laptop before. Not sure what it is, can you fill me in?

[Mike_G]

Forgot about the amplifier part. Dang memory going again.

And de-emphasis? I've recorded songs from a turntable onto my laptop before. Not sure what it is, can you fill me in?

Vinyl records aren't recorded "flat" across their frequency spectrum, the bass frequencies are recorded at a lower level and the high frequencies at a higher level according to a specific curve, necessitating the use of a de-emphasis filter on playback to boost the bass frequencies and attenuate the high frequencies.

[chunkypeanutbutter]

Wouldn't an audio recording program do that anyways?

[Tom Geiger]

A consultant came into the office this week with one of these.. it's a Pico overhead projector... well, you see the size. It's about the same size as my GPS. We all want one! Figure it will be built into the Iphone 7 or 8

I knew my boss liked this... and he wouldn't last long! He ordered it the other day, to be delivered to our hotel in San Juan for our conference. Don't think we really need it, but we have a new toy and it will be fun to have around.