Vintage Algorist

[Brent Hilpert]

Chuck Guzis wrote:
> 
> http://www.apple.com/science/profiles/hebert/?sr=hotnewshttp://www.app
> le.com/science/profiles/hebert/?sr=hotnews
> 
> Describes a fellow in Paris who started with an IBM 704 and moved on
> to various bits of vintage iron to create art. (He uses a Mac now).
> Tony will appreciate the mention of the HP 98xx series.

Reminds me of that "spirograph" type art from the 60s!

(Ties in with another current thread on the list, too): 
<quote>
  One new challenge Hébert encountered when he adopted the Mac was getting the
  computer to connect with whatever tool he was using to trace patterns. "Before
  I used the Mac, I would connect the computer to the machine using an RS232
  serial cable," he notes. But Macs had lost their serial ports by the advent of
  Mac OS X, so Hébert had to find other connections. For a while, he worked
  through an old serial hub that he connected with the Mac via Ethernet. "It took
  a while for someone to come out with a reliable USB-to-serial connector," he
  recalls, "but that was resolved three or four years ago."
 
  Depending upon the tool he’s using, he still occasionally tinkers with these
  connections: "Sometimes I need to install a manufacturer driver for the
  USB-to-serial cable, and sometimes I just write the whole driver myself—for
  instance, to drive a computer-controlled motor."
<endquote>