I got this somewhat neat plotter today made by 3M circa 1984. Its a
portable dealie that can be programmed for different types of bar and pie
charts and plots, plus has text capabilities. It has a keyboard with an
integrated LCD matrix display that slides off the front. It prompts you
for the type of chart you want, then asks you to enter all the data points
in. It then plots it for you. I also got a separate unit that has a
micro-cassette storage drive and a carthridge slot for some type of modem
option.
So anyway, there's a reason why I'm talking about this relatively boring
relic. Last week I was out of town on a project and was going home for
the weekend. On my way to the airport I stopped off at a thrift store.
One of the things I came across was this 3M plotter. It was marked at
$29.99, but this is one of those shops that slashes prices every couple of
days as the thing doesn't sell. I wanted to take it, more so because I
was curious as to what it was, thinking it might be a computer with the
keyboard and micro-cassette storage and all. But I didn't want to spend
$30 on it and I certainly couldn't take it with me on the plane, and
didn't have enough time to grab it, haul it back to the local office, then
high-tail it back to the airport. So I figured when I returned on Monday,
I'd head back to the shop confident it would still be there.
When I got in Monday I missed the store closing by a minute. I came back
in the morning of the next day to find it gone. I asked one of the store
clerks if he knew what happened to it and he said that it was tossed out
the night before. AAGGH!!! I was bummed, only because I thought it might
have been something really neat but didn't have the chance to find out.
Also, I'd failed to write down the model number and thus couldn't do a
useful web search.
I figured one day I would run into one again and would just have to be
patient until then. Well, I would have never thought that day would be so
soon. The best part is the one I got today was cheaper ($7), had a hard
plastic carrying case, came with a (photocopied) manual, and some plotter
paper and pens. And it works (I'm playing with it right now, its actually
really cool, and useful!!) Plus the one I saw last week was on the east
coast, this one was on the west, at a flea market near where my parent's
live that I haven't been to in ages.
So what is the purpose of this long rambling? Uncie Sam's story has a
moral: there's (almost) ALWAYS one more out there, so if you don't get it
the first time, don't fret (and certainly don't pay $12,100 for it).
Serendipity will prevail someday and you'll get one too, but you have to
be out there looking to make it happen.
Sam Alternate e-mail: dastar_at_siconic.com
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ever onward.
September 26 & 27...Vintage Computer Festival 2.0
See
http://www.siconic.com/vcf for details!
[Last web site update: 08/09/98]
Received on Sun Aug 16 1998 - 14:42:57 BST