Goes To Eleven

The definition of analogue computing is the representation of data through varying physical qualities. Digital computing claims to be different, but how much so? Here's the disproof of digital differences to analogue:

1.) Hard drives. The representation of digital data via magnetic anomalies on a metallic rotating disc. How is the movement of paramagnetic matter across metal not a physical quality?

2.) Flash memory. The representation of data via negatively-charged electrons in a copper-directed chip. Again, how is the physical movement of electrons digital, rather than the exact definition of analogue?

3.) Optical memory. The representation of data via tiny scratches and anomalies in a pressed polycarbonate disc read by a laser. Scratching things to represent data...sound familiar, Edison?

And you can see my point. Feel free to comment/argue/give more examples.

-Lane

Posted by Lane Lawley at 09:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I finally got the coolest phone/PDA/media player/camera/internet browser I've seen out yet. The Palm Treo 650. It combines all of these things along with a sleek, sexy design, a full QWERTY keyboard, and a large 64,000 color, 320x320 touchscreen. I will be doing a series of reports (yes, some from the Treo itself) on the Treo as I get to know it.

UPDATE:

5/12/07 -
My first day getting the Treo. It was lighter than I expected, even after putting the battery in, and felt a lot thinner than it looked. I was surprised, but not disappointed, to learn that it did not support voice dialing or soft keyboards (sort of awkward typing on the keyboard AND holding a stylus) without 3rd party software. The keyboard was smaller than I expected, and I am still getting used to it. I am stuck with the speaker for my mp3s until I get a 2.5mm - 3.5mm adapter, something I think all phones should include, but what are you going to do. Overall, great first impression. I'm scheduling all my appointments and notes into it tonight, and HotSyncing it (incredibly fast, by the way) so I can access it from my computer and my Treo.

Posted by Lane Lawley at 06:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I was thinking how sweet it would be if they made an MMO for the Wii, or at least a game with live play. I groaned as I remembered Nintendo's "safety first" rule with the Friend Codes. The PS3 and 360 users all get their MMOs. Live play. USB keyboard chat. What do us Wii users get? We get to type in 36-byte UUIDs with an overly-sensitive soft keyboard (even at low sensitivity setting) in order to send a 2KB 3D model of a lego man across a Nintendo server. Yes, that's the current extent of player to player on Nintendo Wii. I so far have had no complaints about the Wii's hardware (save the shaky controller), but this is a problem. Nintendo was designed for a more child based gaming, but when they start to promise Tom Clancy games, first person shooters, and racing games, you really start to long for real people to play against. Maybe Nintendo could drop their child safety lock for a second and let us have some real fun. Just a thought.

-Lane

Posted by Lane Lawley at 11:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)