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IBM Research "DAVID" - Data Audio Video Interactive Display to the music of David Jameson
YouTube ^

Posted on 01/10/2018 9:06:28 AM PST by mairdie

The Director of IBM Research wanted a very quick video for a keynote speech he was giving, so I stayed up all night making this for him. This was so big and new that we put it out with bugs in the video that was running on the computer screen. The music is by David Jameson, a computer scientist friend who had a song in the top 10 in Ireland. Made about 1990 - 27 years ago!


TOPICS: Computers/Internet; Music/Entertainment
KEYWORDS: computerhistory
What I really remember about this video was that around 5 am my husband, who had built the video studio around my project, hit the wrong button on the 1" broadcast video machine and erased the original and only copy of the video. I took deep breaths and very quietly told him, "OK, let's do it again." And we did. Just in time.

Someone had been commenting on my YouTube channel on their addiction to David's music in the 1988 3D Animation video, and that got me collecting the David Jameson links to send him. That video was so rare and new for us that in order to make a VERY short video, I had to reverse footage. Looks crude now, but it was cutting-edge-exciting back then.

1 posted on 01/10/2018 9:06:28 AM PST by mairdie
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To: mairdie

David..................

2 posted on 01/10/2018 9:12:27 AM PST by Red Badger (Road Rage lasts 5 minutes. Road Rash lasts 5 months!.....................)
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To: Red Badger
I know that one has the reputation, but I tend toward the more feminine David of Donatello.


3 posted on 01/10/2018 9:17:09 AM PST by mairdie
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To: mairdie

Donatello would have been into 70s Glam Rock.


4 posted on 01/10/2018 9:20:26 AM PST by ClearCase_guy (Benedict McCain is the worst traitor ever to wear the uniform of the US military.)
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To: ClearCase_guy

THAT is funny!

And probably true.


5 posted on 01/10/2018 9:22:35 AM PST by mairdie
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To: ADemocratNoMore

PING


6 posted on 01/10/2018 9:30:24 AM PST by mairdie
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To: mairdie

You were very talented then - and now! That was indeed cutting edge - a couple of the screen rendering speeds are notable.

And I’m going to speculate that this was done using OS/2 running on PS/2 hardware, of course.


7 posted on 01/10/2018 10:45:28 AM PST by bigbob (People say believe half of what you see son and none of what you hear - M. Gaye)
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To: bigbob
Thanks, bigbob. Much appreciated.

Yes, definitely OS/2 on PS/2. The gentleman who developed it became an IBM Fellow, as I remember. He had very little video to experiment with, so I used my own music videos of the Almaden IBM Research lab and a video of an IBM friend's baby as source into his program.

The video I found most impressive was that created by Alan Norton in his Breaking the Utah Teapot video. It was an in joke because everyone was using the Utah Teapot algorithm, so he waded in to break it. The absolutely NICEST gentleman you could imagine. At night, they'd chain together all the IBM Research computers around the world in order to get enough processing power to move the computation along.

I got the chance to work in that because I stopped the IBM Director after his talk on pursuit of excellence and told him I gave my hobbies everything and him what I had to. I asked him if he could reverse that. He took me to lunch and I was so nervous I almost lost the soup in my spoon. My manager showed up afterwards and announced that Abe had decided I was good people and was giving me an international multi-media magazine. He left and I stared at the wall and asked myself, "What's that?" It was the most terrifying and exciting time. My field had been computer language design and this was MUCH more fun!
8 posted on 01/10/2018 11:00:28 AM PST by mairdie
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To: mairdie
Donatello's David.
I've often wondered about the meaning of that
statue whenever I see it. It's a great work of art
but it always strikes me as sort of odd.
9 posted on 01/10/2018 11:21:17 AM PST by StormEye
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To: StormEye
It's exquisite. In every sense of that word. The hand on the hip is bizarre.








10 posted on 01/10/2018 11:29:33 AM PST by mairdie
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To: mairdie

Did you find working with video more enjoyable than language design? I could imagine being able to use some of the knowledge you’ve gained from the computer field to video production and then realizing how intuitive it can be.

-Noah


11 posted on 01/10/2018 4:18:56 PM PST by npr101010
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To: npr101010

It was more fun than working on LISP, for which I hired into IBM Research. I did enjoy working on the contest to design the Department of Defense language. That was exciting and state of the art of the time. At the time I hired in, I was the chair of the Special Interest Group in Programming Languages, SIGPLAN. I was editor of one magazine and started another at Research, and I chaired or co-chaired 4 conferences.

A lot of the use of computer background was that I’d take on a video project and have a week to write a script. I’d need to suck in all information on the topic, find a general way to view the subject, which the project leaders sometimes found illuminating, and then direct, shoot and edit. I had the position to fight things out with the designers because I understood computers. That led to the projects being much better explained than if non-video people tried to control their own videos. Same as with books. If you’re going to author a book about a language, you REALLY want to be part of the design group rather than a tech writer.

And Abe backed me up. When he first discussed the magazine with me, I told him that I wouldn’t make videos about his projects. I’d make them about the PEOPLE who created his projects. Lo and behold, at the next Research meeting, didn’t Abe explain that that’s what the magazine was going to be about.


12 posted on 01/10/2018 4:27:42 PM PST by mairdie
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To: npr101010

Welcome. I sent you a private message, which you can see by clicking MAIL at the top of the page.

And if you enjoy photography, I have up a new thread on ice hotels and wild animals.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/3621302/posts?page=16


13 posted on 01/10/2018 4:42:26 PM PST by mairdie
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To: mairdie

It seems that I’m not able to reply to private messages due to my account being new.


14 posted on 01/10/2018 7:22:15 PM PST by npr101010
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To: npr101010

Fascinating. I’m a complete novice in groups like this. It was MONTHS before I even figured out they had a mailing system. And Pings?? That took FOREVER.

Just wrote:
It’s nice to meet you, Noah. What’s your computer background? Languages had a purity that was great fun.

http://www.iment.com/maida/computer/redref/index.htm

Mary


15 posted on 01/10/2018 7:27:45 PM PST by mairdie
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To: mairdie

I am currently attending college for computer science. As for programming language, I have 4 months of experience in Python and about the same amount for Visual Basic. I am enrolled for c++ this Spring Semester.

I’m quite familiar with Windows PC’s, and I love to edit videos! It became a hobby in 8th grade, then later in high school I learned Vegas Pro and some Adobe programs. Up to this day I still use Vegas Pro and it’s been my main tool for expressing my creativity.

I


16 posted on 01/10/2018 9:49:40 PM PST by npr101010
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To: npr101010

Wonderful!

Seriously consider the field of CGI. It might be a good match with all your interests. An excellent way to find out would be to get to one of the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) conventions or Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE). The people manning the booths are quite knowledgeable and there to talk about what they’re doing. They can be great referrals to other people in their companies who could talk to you about what the work environment and requirements are like, and the conventions are a very exciting environment all on their own. Ask about internships or summer positions. The whole industry is about who you know, so collecting a Rolodex file of names can be extremely useful later.

I don’t know the conventions for animation. My interests were strictly editing in those days, so there have to be a number of professional associations more clearly directed to your interests, which I’m sure your professors know about, but conventions give a perfect place to network.

Here at home I used to work in Avid until we ran into a known problem with the system turning into molasses. Then we switched to Premier. I don’t like it as much, but at least it works. Originally, when we took early retirement from IBM Research, I worked off my husband’s handwritten edit controller.

At IBM Research my husband built a video studio around my magazine, and wrote his own edit controller and router, the latter of which he presented at SMPTE. Before that, we worked off the consoles of two 1” broadcast machines. We used to attend the conventions and I wrote a white paper on non-linear editors that got me a lot of introductions around the field and back in Hollywood. Fascinating, but not my world.

You are going to have such an amazing career ahead of you, whatever it is you choose to do!


17 posted on 01/11/2018 2:55:11 AM PST by mairdie
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To: mairdie

I have considered CGI. I just know at this point I will be dealing with computers in my future career. But I do like your idea of attending conventions. Unfortunately I do not live anywhere near a place that holds such events. However I’m sure there is some people I can talk to when I go back to school next week.


18 posted on 01/11/2018 1:05:42 PM PST by npr101010
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To: npr101010

What you need are fellow students who would get excited by the same things you do, and would love to go on a cheap trip and share expenses. That’s the joy of student years. Compare notes. Take video. Volunteer to work for free admission. Make connections. Assume with every person you interact at those things that they’re doing EXACTLY what you want to do. Even if they aren’t. But maybe when you come to understand what they’re each doing, you WILL find the perfect position so that you have a career and not a job for the rest of your life. It’s all in front of you and it’s SO exciting!


19 posted on 01/11/2018 1:11:58 PM PST by mairdie
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