Michael Aldrich was an English inventor, innovator and entrepreneur who in 1979, invented the concept of ecommerce, enabling online transaction processing between consumers and businesses. Aldrich achieved this feat by connecting a modified television set to a transaction processing computer which could process purchases in real time via dedicated telephone line. This system entitled “Videotex” had a simple menu driven, human to computer interface, which predated the internet by more than a decade. In 1980, Aldrich invented the Teleputer, a multipurpose home information and entertainment centre which was a combination of the personal computer, television, and telecom networking technologies. Aldrich created the Teleputer using a modified 14” color television which was connected to a plinth containing a Zilog Z80 microprocessor running a modified version of the CP/M operating system and a chip set containing a modem, character generator and auto-dialler. The Teleputer operated as a stand alone, color, personal computer during an era when computer screens were primarily monochromatic. The Teleputer contained software and networking capabilities using dial up or leased telephone lines. The Teleputer system itself included 2 floppy discs, each with 360 kilobytes of memory, later upgraded to a 20 megabyte harddrive, a keyboard, and a printer
Tag: television
American Political Strategist Roger Stone’s Contribution to Politics
The term “super pac” is an acronym which stands for “political action committee”. The idea was created by political mastermind Roger Stone in the 1970’s, as a way to help boost a Republican presidential candidates chances of winning the presidential election. Stone created many concepts in politics including using fear as a motivational tactic to vote for the opposition, using dirty tricks so long as they were legal to help smear a rival candidate therefore boosting the opposition’s chances of winning, and promoting a candidate by advertising smear campaign advertisements on television. Stone understood that half truths and distortions were the most powerful tools within his disposal because when he was a child he promoted John F. Kennedy within his elementary school mock election and debate by spreading the rumor that Richard Nixon wanted to extend the school week an extra day by having children attend school on Saturday. The trick worked and it was at that moment that Stone realized he wanted to create a career in politics instead of cinema