What Electronics Will Be Forever Same as the Hammer?

Sorry - ^{_{RSD made me do it}}

Electronic Printer Abacus | 1990

Designer: David Shaw Award: 1991 ID Magazine Annual Design Review Selection

The Electronic Printer Abacus explores the merging of generations, cultures, and technologies. The concept combines the ancient abacus interface with modern electronics to display and print a tally.

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You have to go down to the component level to find your analog with the hammer.

Then same as the hammer is a component of a toolbox the resistor, capacitor, diode, transistor are components in electronic devices. The first and the modern CPU all have them.

Tools like the hammer saw improvements over time. for example material used. The components may also improve without losing their name.

While a hammer has only two components of handle and head, and the electronic calculator is made of more components, both are complete and do a job.

A stick by itself is probably of more use than one transistor. Possibly the solar panel is more the same as a hammer?

I have a digital solar powered electric hammer, I take it whereever I go

Never, ever use your calculator as a hammer! It is a very poor substitute for a hammer...

More seriously, I do believe I would rate the digital multimeter up there with the hammer and calculator...But don't try to use a digital multimeter as a hammer, either...

I nominate the humble multimeter!

By the way is it pronounce multi - meter as in kilo - meter

or Mull-tim-iter as in kilom-eter

Wire - like a hammer it has multiple uses - it can transmit energy, radio waves, use it as a measuring device, tie things up with it (like mufflers :-) - even cut things it they are soft enough. And its basic enough that the instructions are easy too.

Yes.. they are much the same.

They both represent modern versions of their original design..

The hammer began it's life as a simple stone that today would only be considered the head of the hammer; however, it's usefulness demanded innovation and the handle was developed!

This simple addition of a handle has been the standard design that has gone trough a million transformations to satisfy every need from the jeweler to the 200ton punch press operator.

the calculator on the other hand began it's life as a few pebbles, and the 'system' proved to be so useful that it demanded innovation.

The big leap.. or the 'handle' came when knotted strings of plant fibers could represent a 'count' as a lightweight device that was easy to carry around and even store information.

anyway.. the calculator have also undergone countless innovations to the benefit of the merchant as well as the users of the world most powerful computers.

Even so.. without our calculators.. we can and still use rocks to represent a count..

... such as "How many whacks it takes to crack open a nut?..

(the calculator is the hammer)

..pretty much the same

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as an aside...

...there is a tribe that still exists.. Quite literally in the heart of the Peruvian jungle if my memory serves correct? ..without any defined system of numbers. word's for 'many' or 'few' is about as far as they go. I'm not sure about the state of their hammers?

I don't need or much use a calculator. Whatever math I need in daily life I usually do in my head.

Any networked device is the modern equivalent of a hammer. Could be a smart phone, iPad, laptop, Blackberry, netbook, public internet PC, for-pay kiosk, etc.

The interface doesn't have to be any particular form, as long as it connects you to the internet, you're good. You can find a calculator, book a flight, view art, look up a business, communicate with others, etc.

I know what you are trying to say. Are the calculator and the hammer, indispensable and basic tools. The calculator finds many uses and applications for more people than does the hammer. It pretty much depends on what you are doing at the time. If you are working away at the computer, a hammer would not be a needed tool, unless out of frustration, you want to smash it to bits. A carpenter would certainly require a hammer, but not necessarily a calculator to do his job. A musician as an example would need neither a hammer nor a calculator to play an instrument. I think you are close, but not quite there yet. A bit more thought must be given before I can answer this thread.

Oohh be hard to play a piano without the hammers to strike wires to make the tunes..

As a stand-alone tool the calculator is probably not the equivalent to the hammer. Since the calculator requires a power supply, albeit it solar or manufactured, it is pretty useless, even as a doorstop, without power.The sliderule would be a lot quicker without power. A calculator doesn't always give the correct answer.

The equivalent to an electronic calculator is most probably the nail-gun.

Sure as heel if Noah wanted another tool as well as his hammer when building the Ark he probably could have used a calculator but probably would have preferred a handheld GPS.

Not sure what an equivalent to the hammer is but the dry cell battery has to be fairly high up on the list.

Interesting AB, and thanks for that, but a hammer does need a power supply, as does the slide rule and abacus.

But your battery and nail gun comments made me think of the question as "what basic tool in electronics", which made me think "tank circuit", as I couldn't decide between inductor and capacitor and besides, the hammer has 2 parts (even though many are "integrated" these days). And I guess the hammer is 'digital' as is the abacus, but the slide rule is analogue as is the crystal set.

So the Morse key came before the crystal set .... is 'digital' .. works on inductance (with a capacitor effect in parallel to inhibit sparking - which is a tank circuit) and you like hit it.

Is that the "Any" key Microsoft keeps telling me to hit to continue?

The magnetically induced field is probably the most basic of all of electronics.