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Software Distribution By Vinyl

Posted by timothy on from the when-obscurantism-attacks dept.

townxelliot writes "Beige Records is home to the intriguing 8-Bit Construction Set. Their record has the distinction of being "the first ever use of the vinyl recording medium for software distribution - the inside tracks are audio data which can be dubbed to cassette tape and booted in your respective atari or commodore 8-bit computers". Samples of their music ("entirely programmed in 6502 assembly language") are available for download."

15 of 279 comments (clear)

  1. does this mean by Festering+Leper · · Score: 5, Funny

    that we'll start getting floppy 45's in magazines again?

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  2. Ahhh the good old days.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    when copyright infringement of computer games could be done with a double cassette deck.

    Some good decks could even reliably copy games in high speed dubbing mode.

    Whoohoo!

    1. Re:Ahhh the good old days.... by BearJ · · Score: 5, Funny

      So back then, we used equipment for music to copy computer programs. As opposed to today, when we use computers to copy music. What an age we live in!

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  3. don't play it backwards by circletimessquare · · Score: 5, Funny

    if you play it backwards you can briefly hear a voice say "6502 is dead"

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  4. Data on vinyl done before by whaley · · Score: 5, Informative

    Basicode (Hobbyscoop) was distributed on flexi discs..

    1. Re:Data on vinyl done before by moon-monster · · Score: 5, Interesting

      There used to be a few speccy games on vinyl. In fact, a few 80's pop acts (Thompson Twins, Shakin' Stevens) released some as B-sides on some of their singles.

      Apparently the game wasn't very good.

      There's some more info on previous data-on-vinyl experiments here.

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  5. vinyl is for sissies by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Real Men use eight tracks.

    1. Re:vinyl is for sissies by cosmic_0x526179 · · Score: 5, Funny
      Real Men use eight tracks.

      Screw that. Gimme a nice solid deck of 5081 cards any day. Now that was data ! Back when a Megabyte was enough to make your back sore. 1MB = 1,048,576 bytes = 13,108 cards = ~6.5 boxes of cards (at roughly 10 lbs/box) = ~65 lbs. Were talking serious data here.

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  6. Imagine... by IversenX · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...if you wrote DeCSS in this. Perhaps the MPAA and the RIAA would sue each other over who has the right to sue you, thus annihilating themselves into pure energy?

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  7. Hah! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    I've been joking about LP-ROMs for years :)

  8. Hasn't this been done before? by Fred+Or+Alive · · Score: 5, Informative

    This page has data on various vinyl records with computer data stored on them. Most of which are about 20 years old. So they're not the first to distribute computer data on vinyl.

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    1. Re:Hasn't this been done before? by Richard+W.M.+Jones · · Score: 5, Informative
      Software distribution using acetate (very flexible, cheap and light) records was very common in the UK around the early 1980s. They were the original "cover discs" on magazines!

      I still have a few games, including an Othello/Reversi game for the ZX81 from "Your Computer" magazine.

      The disadvantage was that you could play the acetate about twice before it got so damaged that it wouldn't play any more, so we used to record the record to tape first time.

      Vinyl/acetate wasn't even the strangest way that computer software was distributed. I remember they used to broadcast games late at night on TV. You had to (carefully!) record the sound signal off the TV and onto your tape machine. Madness!

      Rich.

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  9. It's hardly a first by stx23 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Diverse artists such as Tomita, Shakin' Stevens & the Thompson Twins distributed software on vinyl over 20 years ago.

    http://www.kempa.com/blog/archives/000053.html

    OH DEAR.
    a bat bit

    you.

  10. OK - so not quite vinyl, but... by mauledbydogs · · Score: 5, Informative

    When I worked on Commodore User (UK mag) in the 80s, we gave away a flexi-disc as a covermount. It was basically a floppy plastic record. One side was a Heaven 17 track and the other, IIRC, was a datatrack designed to be recorded onto tape then loaded on a C64.

  11. reply from beige by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    hi folks

    thanks for the debate on our record, hope someone likes the music anyway. obviously not the first data on vinyl [just never bothered to change the webpage in 5 years] and actually not the first time the 8-bit construction set has been slashdotted. but nonetheless it's always a pleasure to see what people think.

    we received an anonymous and very interesting email in early 2002 detailing some patents regarding software distribution on vinyl. i'm appending it below for interested parties.

    thanks again
    & peace out nerds

    paul
    paul AT beigerecords DOT com

    *****
    Date: Mon, 14 Jan 2002 23:59:03 -0500

    Distribution of computer programs on vinyl records
    was done in the early 70's by several different
    researchers. First, a guy named
    Allan B. Chertok. He has several patents in this field,
    which I would recommend that you guys read:

    US Patent 3,662,350 (1972)
    US Patent 3,740,733 (1973)
    US Patent 3,662,354 (1972)

    Also- Norman L. Harvey. This guys was a real genius.
    Check out his patent: US 3,755,792 (1973).

    This is not to say that your work is not "original"
    and "cool". But please- give credit where credit is due!
    *****