A Digital Sundial displays the current solar time in digits, words, or pictures. Two closely-spaced parallel masks project different images depending on the angular position of the sun in the following way: The first mask, a regular array of thin vertical slits, casts a striped light pattern onto the second mask. This light pattern is independent of the height of the sun. The second mask is composed of narrow stripes of the digits, words, or pictures to be displayed. The striped pattern of sunlight cast by the first mask illuminates exactly those stripes of the second mask corresponding to the image representing the current time. The light shining through both masks is projected onto a translucent viewing screen mounted closely behind the second mask, which results in a digital display of the time. A plate of light-refracting material can be inserted between the two masks, effectively linearizing the motion of the light pattern cast onto the second mask. Using this linearized version, it is possible to construct not only a sundial displaying the hours, but also a minute display which, for example, repeatedly displays the minutes of the current time in five-minute intervals.

Woohoo! I so badly want a Cell phone jammer, just for the movie theater.

In 1987, Gary Grossman wrote Instruments, Cybernetics, and Computer, a short thesis on the correlations between computer-produced music and music produced by analog instruments. This paper is part of a larger body of work pertaining to the SAWDUST project. SAWDUST was created in the early 1970s, and was one of the first waveform-creating pieces of software.

Interesting People: a hypermail archive.

The Minicomputer Orphanage is a repository of information regarding computers built by companies that are no longer in business.

The site also contains links and references to minicomputer simulators that you can install and run on modern machines.

A few days ago, Robert was telling me about this very old-school collection of text files that were very hostile and very funny. Today, I discovered that Blort has implanted telepathic monitoring probes into Robert’s head, and by monitoring our conversations, has rediscovered that collection: “I Bleed For This?“.

Ancient Scripts is an interesting site containing vast information on various written languages. The site divides writing systems in many ways, including by type, family, region, and alphabetically.

OMG, they still sell Capsela! I used to have a set of these. I may have to order a set… the Mega Set of course…

I can’t read. I especially can’t read instructions. On Smalltime’s Dictator site, you’re supposed to pretend that you’re either a dictator, or an actor from some TV sitcom. The site then asks you questions, such as “Are you male or female?” And so on.

I didn’t read the instructions. I thought the site was asking questions about me. I got all the way through the questionnaire, and it guessed that I was Fred Savage, from Working. When I told it no, the site demanded that I explain who I was, so I filled in the form. Now, I guess I’m either a dictator, or a sitcom actor.

Me: You need this.

Marcia: wtf?

Me: It “strengthens inner thigh muscles.”

Marcia: And I need that?

Me: You could say ”I ride a little clown bicycle for better sex”

Marcia: ….

Me: Well, it SAYS that the Dutch always use them.

Marcia: I’ve never seen one in my life.

Me: Ok, well, I can’t back that up. But I suspect that secretly, all Dutch people ride little clown bicycles.

Marcia: Nah. We just have lots of sex, so we don’t need to strengthen our inner thigh muscles any further.