The NPR show Science Friday pulled one an old show from their archive this week. It dates from 1993, and the topic is the Internet. Normally a show this old wouldn’t be all that interesting, but this is NPR’s first podcast. Also, one of the participants was using VOIP (more likely a pre-VOIP protocol). How cool is that?
FLATOW: Now let’s make it clear to everyone who’s listening that you’re not on the telephone, are you?
TOM: No, I’m sitting in front of a workstation, and I have a microphone and a speaker. And I can see a list of the people who are getting ready to talk. And I can hear your voice.
FLATOW: Hmm. Is this something that only someone with a big computer can do?
TOM: The computer I’ve got is about the size of a phonebook. It’s a UNIX workstation. It’s about an $8,000 investment. And while I’m doing this, I’m also reading electronic mail and doing a little programming, waiting for my turn.
Leaving aside the expensive computer, he just described mine and many other people’s daily life.
