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General Vintage Technology Discussions For general discussions about vintage radio and other vintage electronics etc. |
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17th Aug 2020, 2:31 pm | #121 |
Dekatron
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
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17th Aug 2020, 5:08 pm | #122 |
Dekatron
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
On the grounds that of the 200 or so computers I own, only this PC (and I guess the RPi, if I count that) has a USB or or _can have a USB port), it's certainly not 'universal'.
It is serial. Electrically it's not a bus. If it was you wouldn't have to have hubs. So I call it 'Useless Serial Botch' at least in polite company... Truely my least favourite interface of all time. |
17th Aug 2020, 5:59 pm | #123 |
Nonode
Join Date: Jan 2016
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
It's interesting that USB gets a mention. Many years ago I was talking about interfaces to mobile (well technically hand portable) telephones with Nokia. At the time with what we were trying to do, our massive problem was the lack of a common interface standard. Nokia came and told us, that this new USB interface was going to be a standard. To be fair they did start to use it albeit via a bespoke connector on their phone, as did a few others. But the control protocol was still unique and was no help whatsoever. I could only have dreamed of bluetooth even with all its quirks. It's interesting, and I hope still on topic that we are talking about common physical connectors where the protocols aren't well controlled and cause the 'standard' to be pretty useless.
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17th Aug 2020, 6:02 pm | #124 |
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
I think USB stands for Ubiquitous Serial Bits, it works well and easy to implement on a microcontroller. OK a slightly bewildering selection of connectors but cables are very cheap and readily available.
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17th Aug 2020, 6:15 pm | #125 |
Dekatron
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
For all the criticism of USB, at least with USB3.0 there is a version which comes with proper thumbscrew retainers so the weight of the cable/conector can be properly supported, and it won't get inadvertently pulled-out when a cat jumps onto your desk.
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17th Aug 2020, 6:35 pm | #126 |
Dekatron
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
A Magsafe version might be even better as the jumping cat will surely throw the cable including the device on the floor.
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17th Aug 2020, 9:52 pm | #127 |
Pentode
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
I'm surprised that no one has mentioned SCART yet.
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17th Aug 2020, 10:59 pm | #128 |
Dekatron
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
Possibly because everyone beat no one to it
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17th Aug 2020, 11:29 pm | #129 |
Octode
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
Oh yes they have and here it comes again.
Most connectors are fine, the worst of all would defo be scart, they are great when they work but any vibration on the upper floor results in a picture changing colours, plus my hand behind the set trying to get the thing to stop creating random colours. Dunno why these things were even invented in the first place, RF VCR wires seem more reliable, somehow.
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17th Aug 2020, 11:40 pm | #130 |
Dekatron
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
...Until the advent of channel 5, when someone had to go round the country retuning modulators.
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18th Aug 2020, 1:59 am | #131 |
Moderator
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
There is one particularly horrible connector:
No connector, in a place where there really needed to be one. Places like those wired-together PCBs where the wiring breaks off as you try to persuade things far enough apart to get in with a probe or a soldering iron. David
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18th Aug 2020, 2:16 am | #132 | |
Octode
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
Quote:
David, I know what you mean, had similar happen in the past, it creates more work by accident.
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18th Aug 2020, 3:04 am | #133 |
Banned
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
Isn't that how modern Fender and Peavey amps are wired? 20 non flexible wires JUST long enough to ensure you can't get into the amp.
Joe |
18th Aug 2020, 3:49 am | #134 | ||
Dekatron
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
Quote:
Quote:
Oh and I like F connectors with compression crimp. Have never had an issue with them, and much prefer them to PAL/Belling Lee ones. |
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18th Aug 2020, 10:10 am | #135 |
Octode
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
Blind person looking for a black cat in an unlit coal-cellar - by which I mean the problem of black connectors sitting in a black surround so there's very little clue as to orientation. A bit of white plastic around the connector (SCART, IEC12/13, USB - whatever) would make finding the correct orientation so much easier.
Graham
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18th Aug 2020, 10:35 am | #136 | |
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
Quote:
The use of pictograms rather than text is good. It is thoroughly egalitarian. No matter what languages anyone speaks, they will have the same difficulty in understanding them. Pessimised! David
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18th Aug 2020, 10:47 am | #137 |
Dekatron
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
Philips were devils for that- admittedly, they had a somewhat more polyglot market reach than many, but I did wonder if there was a surplus of bored and mischievous Egyptologists in Eindhoven....
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18th Aug 2020, 12:41 pm | #138 |
Moderator
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
Cat, snake, cat, cat, sungod...
lemme see Snake = cable, that's clear. Sungod? light? ah, CDplayer input. I think the cats were just decoration. But to read the markings you have to hold it at just the correct angle to the rays of the setting sun on the spring equinox, otherwise it's all just black. David
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18th Aug 2020, 12:56 pm | #139 |
Dekatron
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
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18th Aug 2020, 12:59 pm | #140 | |
Heptode
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Re: The most horrid connector ever...
Quote:
Don't believe me? Well, think back and recall how many times you have tried to insert a USB plug for it not to go in, so turned it upside down and it still won't go in, so you return it to the original orientation and in it goes. |
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