Are you enjoying the beach? Maybe you are listening to music on your smartphone, via one of your favorite streaming service? Later you might go and snap some photos by the water, maybe even under water with a sports camera! Let’s not forget the next episode of that thriller show that you want to watch after lunch, on your tablet, via a streaming media provider.
Flashback! Or.. Maybe completely unknown to you?
Do you remember the cassette player and the tape hiss phenomenon (high frequency noise because of magnetic particles)? How about analog film cameras and the chore of developing film? Can you recall the noise of an analog radio tuner as you try to find your favorit radio station? Or do you have flashbacks of the analog TV static called “snow” from late night TV evenings when you fell asleep in front of the TV? If the answer is yes to any or all of these questions, you are from one of the last analog generations.
Maybe you are part of the last of the analog generations, the people who grew up with analog technology and experiences, rather than digital technologies like vinyl records, 8mm film, rotary phones, and TVs (without digital services or streaming providers).
Waiting for camera film rolls to be developed
You would hand in your roll of film at the photo shop, and be told to come back a few days later. You would then spend your time hoping that enough photos turned out well, go over your ISO settings, aperture and so on, to see what you did this time around, in the hopes of learning how to adjust your settings for different photos in the future. The delays were considerable.
Searching for another radio station
Turn that knob. Still only static! I’m sure it was this frequency. Now I’m going to miss the beginning of my favorite radio show. Yes, that was the reality back then. Forget about streaming services which allow you to just drop in to your show on your player and playback an episode that has ended. To find a clear and crisp sound by turning the frequency knob was an art form. Dexterity was essential! You would work with frequency precisions such as 0.2 MHz, which may sound like a lot, but when the precision of your radio was anything but granular, one small twitch would result in a completely different radio station.
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The TV broadcasting day and the test patterns
The hissing of a TV after the broadcasting day was over was in a way a cultural signal that screamed (hissed) “the day is over, it’s time to go to bed!”. Sometimes you would fall asleep in front of the TV only to wake up sometime after midnight with the white and black static playing like ants on a screen. Then there was the test pattern, it would usually show after the broadcasting day for a limited time before handing over to the static. The following broadcasting day would start with the same test pattern, often with beeps and plings, to make sure the audio worked.
The mixtape and the curated music for friends
“Check out the mixtape I prepared for tonight’s dinner!” You would sit for hours, mixing together music from different tapes to the mixtape of the day. You would need a double casette deck, one deck contained the tape you copied from, and the other contained your mixtape. Minutes would turn into hours as you tried to get the transitions just right. Like a self-professed DJ, you would choose songs that mixed well together, in a sequence that either built tension or gradually moved the listener into a “chill” state.
So as you are there on the beach, or wherever your summer vacation took you, enjoy the delights of the digital and streaming era! Take those photos, listen to that music, and look forward to the next streaming show online! Happy summer!
By Paul-Christian Markovski, freelance writer, EuropeZigZag.com.
