🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <157292@felix.UUCP>, dennisg@felix.UUCP (Dennis Griesser) writes:
> 
> There are all kinds of ways to do this, depending on your budget, requirements,
> and courage.  For example:
>   o The early main control consoles had an option for an ultrasonic microphone
>     (control console model X10-014301).  This could be activated by a remote
>     control wand.  If you have one of these models, you can simply hang an
>     ultrasonic transducer ($5) on one bit of your computer's output port,
>     toggle it at 40 Khz, and have the world's cheapest X-10 computer interface.
>     The drawbacks, other than the rarity of this console nowadays, is
>     interference from other ultrasonic sources, CPU overhead in your computer,
>     and inability to talk to modules other than those set to the console's
>     house-code.  See Byte, September 1980, page 314.

 Back about 80-82, I had an apple II which actually had a board in
 it to generate the ultrasonic pulses to be fed into the controller.
 It was pretty amazing.  There was a little plastic tube which came
 off the board and went over to the front of the controller module.
 The end of the tube was stuck to the front of the controller where
 the ultrasonic receiver is located (with a velcro strip).  

 Someone "permanently loaned" me the ultrasonic board for my apple,
 so I went out and bought the controller module from Sears.  Since
 I was going to use it with my computer I didn't buy the actual
 remote control.  After a couple of years, the guy asked for the
 board back! By then the remote control wasn't available any more
 from Sears.  So I have an ultrasonic remote control module with
 no sender!  I used to keep it on my bedside table since it had
 an "all lights on" button which was nice for security reasons.
 It's acting strangely now, though, and I'll probably retire it soon.


 - Bob Wier

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                      College of Engineering
         Northern Arizona University / Flagstaff, Arizona
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