Retro Tech Tuesday: Radioactive Cows

It's nice to know that we as a species have matured, and outgrown our need for nuclear destruction. That thanks to things like the internet and twitter, and facebook, our annihilation fears are gone. After all, who updates their status to say "working on an atomic bomb?" 

What's that? Nuclear weapons still exist? Now they could be the hands of rogue forces? Well maybe this week's choice isn't so retro after all. Just in case there's a nuclear explosion in your neck of the woods, thanks to your friends at TDL, you'll at least know where to put your cow:

Retro Tech Tuesday: Voice Powered Phone

For today's retro tech, we go back to a time before cell phones. A time before cordless phones. And apparently, a time before you could simply yell to someone else.

This Voice Powered telephone comes from The Practical Handyman's Encyclopedia. Essentially, using the magnets from two phones, you could connect two "handsets" (the magnetics connected to a drawer handle) with wire for communication up to "thousands of feet."

Someday, we might just head out to the TDL garage and try to whip these up, as there's a lot of skepticism as to the length of acceptable communication, especially since the example cited in the book is to use the telephone as a way to communicate with someone adjusting your TV aerial (antenna, for the younger folk. Something you used to need to get TV for the even younger folk).

It seems like it would be easier to just yell to them when the picture looks good, but where's the fun in that!?

Retro Tech Tuesday: Magnavox Odyssey

Put down those iPod touches for a minute. We're going to go back in time to another era in gaming. I'm talking of course of the Magnavox Odyssey. (Of course! You didn't think this was going to be about the Atari 2600 or Intellivision, did you?) I have an Odyssey in the office here at TDL. Sadly, it's not hooked up (TDL retro-game night, perhaps?) and it would be difficult to use effectively. You see unlike an Atari or other game systems, the (original) Odyssey uses overlays you place on the TV in order to play the games. Unfortunately, this means the overlays only fit 18-25" TV's. It's interesting that all these years later game consoles are adding accessories and doo-dads (fake drumsets/guitars, etc.) to make the game more interactive. What could be more interactive than taping overlays to Mom and Dad's TV's? I say bring it back in a special HD edition with overlays for 42-50" flat panel TVs! Watch this ad, and you'll want to head to your local (now closed) Kay-Bee Toys to pick one up:

Retro Tech Tuesday: The Citicar

We tend to think of electric vehicles as a thing of the present and or future. Well what if I told you electric cars were made in the 70's? Not only were they made, but one manufacturer became the 6th largest car maker in America. Welcome to the wild world of the Citicar:

From Wikipedia:

The Citicar, a small electric vehicle was first produced in Florida in 1974 by a company called Sebring-Vanguard partly in response to the mid-1970's fuel crisis. The Citicar was a tiny golf cart sized car that could go at a top speed of about 39 MPH. Early versions had no extra features such as locking doors or air conditioning. In 1976, enough Citicars were produced to promote Sebring-Vanguard to the position of being the U.S. #6 auto manufacturer (after GM, Ford, Chrysler, AMC, and Checker (Taxis...)

Production of the Citicar continued until 1977 with about 2,300 Citicars produced. Commuter Vehicles, Inc. purchased the Citicar design, and renamed the vehicle Comuta-Car. Production of an upgraded version began in 1979 and Commuter Vehicles, Inc. produced an estimated 2,000 Comuta-cars and Comuta-vans. At about 4,300 C-Car variants produced, it still holds the record for most road-legal electric cars made in automobile history.

Once again, Retro Tech Tuesday shows what is old is new again. (By the way, electric vehicles date back to earliest days of "horeseless carriages." Oh to think how history could've been different...)

Retro Tech Tuesday: Moonwalker for the Sega Genesis

If you watched this week's TDL Live, you know that sealed copies of Michael Jackson's Moonwalker game for the Sega Genesis are now selling for over $200.

Well, just in case you don't have the coin to pick it up, (or maybe you don't have the genesis to play it) here's a look at some gameplay thanks to the magic of YouTube.

I never played this game, but I have to say, the game doesn't look that bad, especially by 1990 standards: