davyK's dusty technology museum - The Bear and Badger

Blue Swirl

I always did wonder how they worked.

Blue Swirl

Slide rules, for reference.

GurtTractor

I'd like to try a slide rule at some point, an abacus too. I've got a strong suspicion that I would have intuited mathematics much better at school by using physical calculators rather than just scribbling symbols on paper.

LivDiv

You could try deciphering Aztec Quipu after those.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quipu

davyK

Slide rules were initially replaced by books of log tables. They operate on the same principle but are more accurate. I used these in school before calculators appeared and were affordable. We had to label our exam answers with [C] at the step we used a calculator.

davyK

Pre slide rule there was a device called Napier's Bones.

poprock

I still have a type scale at home. One of these things:

Used for manual typesetting before we had Macs. For working out how many lines of your chosen font and type size would fit in a column, how many words you could fit per page. All measured in points and picas. You had to be able to accurately estimate all that stuff because it was done by paying an expert typesetter at the printers to do all the text to your exact spec. If you had it wrong, the copy didn’t fit and you had to start again - and pay them again. And add another day to your delivery schedule.

davyK

Never heard of that!

poprock

One of my old PDX friends made a good documentary called Graphic Means about the lost craft history in graphic design - all the manual skills we’ve given up since shifting to digital ways of working.

She keeps a nice Instagram account running with stuff she finds. Things like those old type scales.

https://www.instagram.com/graphicmeans/

davyK

Remember doing technical drawing in school - using set squares , compass etc on an A2 sized drawing board with a built in level that slid up and down. Used an old t-square at home with a drawing board too.

I was shit at the subject - but I loved it - doing isometric projections from 2D views etc. I knew what to do (there was some figuring out to do sometimes - almost like geometric puzzling) but my dexterity and neatness weren't up to the task.

LivDiv

I loved technical drawing, I was quite good at it as well.
Plays into what I do now I suppose although I don't really get as technical as full AutoCAD/Revit type stuff.

By the time I was in 6th form they really should have been teaching CAD to some level in design technology classes rather than having us pissing about with blunt saws and brazing torches that we had already fucked about with 4 years prior.

poprock

Aye. My Uncle did technical drawing at British Aerospace his whole career. Exploded diagrams of early jet fighters, all that sort of thing. All drawn by hand with a set square and French curves.

LivDiv

Its a wonderful skill.
My dad is very good at it as well being an engineer from that era.

Pretty much dead skillsets now though.
3 point perspective and the ability to hand draw a straight line will cover 90% of what isn't on computer.

davyK

Yep - engineering drawing creation and typesetting were completely turned on their head with technology.

Word processing didn't deskill typing though (though it made it more forgiving re mistakes) even though it transformed the work - no multiple copies needed etc.

Isn't Tom Hanks really into typewriters?

LivDiv

Technical drawing can be an art in itself now.
I bought a book of Daisuke Tajima's work last year that uses a lot of those prinicples. Clean lines, perspective etc.
His pieces are generally absolutely massive in scale.

This image doesnt quite do it justice. The book is clearer. Id love to see his work in the flesh.

SpaceGazelle

poprock wrote:

Aye. My Uncle did technical drawing at British Aerospace his whole career. Exploded diagrams of early jet fighters, all that sort of thing. All drawn by hand with a set square and French curves.

My uncle did similar. Can't remember who for but it was based in North Yorkshire. Military maybe. It was well impressive to see skills like that on paper.

davyK

Some of Escher's work had that draughtsman-like quality to it. Very appealing. His were woodcuts - mind boggling skills.

Pseudoscot

Deep dive into the bbc micro architecture and how elite was made.

SpaceGazelle

Nice watch that.

davyK

davyK

And.....

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