Drive C

Early PCs did not come with internal storage devices due to the expense. Instead, they generally had some form of a floppy disk reader, such as those used to read 5 1/4″ floppy disks, initially labeled as “A” in MS-DOS and certain other operating systems.

Some systems came with two such floppy disk drives necessitating the need for a “B”. When the 3.5″ floppy disk was commonly added, using both “A” and “B” for floppy drives was firmly entrenched.

When hard disk drives became standard in most PCs during the 1980s, since the first two letters were already commonly used for these floppy drives, they logically labeled the third storage device “C”, even though it now tended to be the main storage for the computer.

Even though no longer used, the drive designation remains, with A and B not used. Now you can easily change, remove or add drive letters for both physical and logical drives.

Computer on a Stick

Intel is coming out with a 'Compute Stick' that is a full personal computer. It is about the size of a USB memory stick. On one end, the device has a full-size HDMI plug which attaches to your TV or monitor. On its side is a microUSB port which plugs into the wall for power using a standard USB cable. A second, full-size USB port allows you to attach peripherals and a microSD card slot provides for memory expansion.

Not to get too technical, but it is a quad-core Atom-powered mini PC with 2GB of RAM, 32GB eMMC storage, running Windows 8.1. The price when it comes out later this spring should be about US $150.

It also has a power button, and in addition to its USB port, it can pair with a keyboard and mouse using Bluetooth. Since Bluetooth sends a signal to about 30 feet, you can sit in your easy chair and have the best of TV and PC on one device, with no extra wires or gadgets. It also supports 802.11n Wi-Fi for connecting to the Internet and your home network. Now you can have a real PC TV with a keyboard, etc. No longer necessary to send YouTube videos from your PC as they are already on the screen. Am very sure I need one of these and hope by the time it is available I will be able to explain/justify to myself why.

Retro PC

Thanks to my nephew, was browsing the December 2000 edition of Popular Science online when I came across this super fast (for the time) PC. Wow, only 14 years ago, $1,799 would pay for 128MB memory and a large 15GB hard drive.

These days memory is measured in GB and storage in Terabytes, with prices down into the low hundreds of dollars. Current watches and phones have more memory and storage than the old devices. We probably can't conceive of what will happen during the next 14 years.

Am voting for a personal wearable eye device so I can watch 100 inch, or larger, fully immersive 4D TV with at least 8k resolution and omnidirectional sound. Of course for the big game it will need to be full wall TV picture and wall speakers. Am also thinking wearable/implantable phone/PC devices with stretchable screens so we can keep our pockets empty. Wouldn't it also be nice to have a ceiling that glows with natural light instead of bulbs. Ah, the mind wanders

YouTube Free Movies

Have you seen any free movies on YouTube? Check these out. LINK If you have a big monitor or can hook your PC to your TV, as you can do with most flat screens, this is a cheap alternative to pay-for-view.

Steve Jobs Henry Ford

Phones started as all black.
Then they went crazy with color, shape, and size.

Where we are now.

It is difficult to stand out from the pack these days.
We have devolved into a pack of phone drones.
There is no difference in shape or style.
Steve Jobs has taken over as the new Henry Ford.

Next will we all be wearing black as the clothing color of choice?
Oops, women already are.
At least there is a variety of size and shape.

Cars started as all black.
Then they went crazy with color, shape, and chrome.
Then they began to all look alike, with color as the only differentiator.
Now they come in many sizes, shapes, and colors.

PCs started as all gray.
Then they went crazy with color, shape, and size.
Then they morphed into tablets, which all look alike.

Why have PCs and phones become clones?

It seems to me the last time we came out of a depression things changed.
I hope it happens again when we come out of this one.
It is time for a change.

PC TV

Had to add this last one about the PC TV from this weeks Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Google's Android operating system version 4.0, better known by as "Ice Cream Sandwich" (an alternative to Microsoft Windows), is used in a smart television, a 55-inch 3-D (240Hz refresh rate) LED.

The TV lets you switch among video on demand, Internet apps, and regular TV. You can share music, videos, pictures, etc., from tablets and phones and computers. It has a dual core processor, 1 gig of RAM, a hard drive and 2GB SD card. There is also a built-in 5 megapixel camera for video chats. The remote control features a touchpad, 5-way keys and a motion sensor. It can also respond to voice commands.

IBM PC Anniversary

Today in 1981, IBM introduced the Model 5150 PC (personal computer). The IBM PC ran on the Intel 8088 microprocessor at 4.77 mHz with one or two 160K floppy disk drives. It had 16 kilobytes of memory, no built-in clock, no built-in serial or parallel ports, and no built-in video capability -- it was available with an optional color monitor. Prices started at $1,565. Thirty years ago it forever changed the face of computing and the changes keep coming.

PC Monitor All in One

A few weeks ago, I showed a complete PC on a keyboard with built in monitor. This week we have a monitor PC, but without the keyboard built in.

The Averatec D1005 All in One PC comes with a 22 inch WXGA LCD display, and Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 3GB of DDR2 RAM which can be increased to 4GB, a 320GB SATA hard drive and a DVD drive.

On top of that there is Intel X4500HD graphics, 802.11n WiFi, Ethernet, a 2.0 megapixel web camera, 6 x USB 2.0 ports, and a card reader. All this for $799. Hey, maybe this chocolate and graham cracker keyboard might work with it.

Computer on a Keyboard

Coming out in August '09, this is an interesting idea from Asus.

Everything is self contained under the keyboard and the whole thing weighs 2 pounds. The only problem I see is the measly 5 inch touch screen on the right of the keyboard. Of course, it can be hooked up to any monitor or the TV and it comes either wireless or wired and can run Windows. It comes with a microphone and a set of speakers and will probably cost about $400. Might be a good way to marry your PC and TV and do emails during commercials.