Radio Shack no longer sells the F type to RCA adaptor

[Albert]

People don't play with circuits and parts like they used to in the 60's and 70's.

 

This isn't true at all. In the past several years there's been a large resurgence in "hacking" of this nature, via things like the Arduino and Raspberry Pi.

 

..Al

[Keatah]

 

This isn't true at all. In the past several years there's been a large resurgence in "hacking" of this nature, via things like the Arduino and Raspberry Pi.

 

I won't disagree that Arduino and Pi are the new transistors and resistors of today's hobbyist.

 

In my neck of the woods everybody buys everything. And no one creates anything out of discrete parts it would seem. They're all following plans and working within a framework built and engineered by a company. Their knowledge base begins too high up the ladder. While robotic quadcoptors and drones with cameras and all might seem impressive. I bet 95% of those that experiment around with them haven't the slightest clue to how complex the stabilization algorithms are, let alone how they work.

 

I'm not saying everybody should toil in obscurity playing with op-amps and simple flashing lights, but please take time to learn the theory and basic building blocks. If you're going into chip design you will need that information

 

Back in the 70's and even early 80's, everybody (it seemed) built things from discrete parts, of their own or modified design, and understood the theory behind what they were doing.

 

I know people that cannot explain how a crystal radio operates, but at the same time they think they're genius because their ipad is controlling a drone. Not that a crystal radio is important anymore - it really isn't.

 

Us old hacks have a baseline knowledge beginning at the bottom, a solid foundation. And it doesn't take too long to acquire that, a course at the community college, or a year playing with those RS project kits. Some of us may have even started with vacuum tubes (I did not). My electronics knowledge began with diodes and resistors and batteries. Charging up strings of capacitors and blowing up other parts. Spinning up motors till they smoked. Modifying my 300 baud modem to go 450 baud. Expanding the bandwidth of the RS Globe Patrol SW radio. Stringing antennas from my house to the neighbor's house. Loads of fun.

 

My current project is interfacing a Disk II to a PC via USB and microcontroller. Reading how the state-machine on the controller card works is quite interesting and imminently understandable because it is so elegant and uses so few parts. A microcontroller *is* needed, today, because of the asynchronous (or inconsistent) timing of a standard USB + Windows port. But it is the basics I learned in the 1970's that allow the electrical connections to be made.

 

I suppose each to his & her own!

[+save2600]

Thought ya'll would enjoy this eulogy of sorts:

 

http://www.sbnation.com/2014/11/26/7281129/radioshack-eulogy-stories

 

...mirrors much (most) of my experiences as both management and commission sales at such places as Sears, Montgomery Ward, Funcoland/Software Etc./LameStop, Musicland/Sam Goody and OfficeMax. Never stayed too long to deal with all the inherent BS and went from place to place thinking the next would be "better" somehow. Nope. The secret is out... salaried Management and retail in general are NOT for the faint of heart!

[rasch_C]

I'm gonna keep mum on this.....at least until my severance is in the bank (should be late next week). For now, I'll simply say yep

[MegaManFan]

Thought ya'll would enjoy this eulogy of sorts:

 

http://www.sbnation.com/2014/11/26/7281129/radioshack-eulogy-stories

 

...mirrors much (most) of my experiences as both management and commission sales at such places as Sears, Montgomery Ward, Funcoland/Software Etc./LameStop, Musicland/Sam Goody and OfficeMax. Never stayed too long to deal with all the inherent BS and went from place to place thinking the next would be "better" somehow. Nope. The secret is out... salaried Management and retail in general are NOT for the faint of heart!

I'M HUNGRY PAW may be the GD funniest thing I've read all day!!

[+Nathan Strum]

The Radio Shack downward spiral continues.

 

http://www.macrumors.com/2014/12/02/radio-shack-iphone/

[MegaManFan]

The Radio Shack downward spiral continues.

 

http://www.macrumors.com/2014/12/02/radio-shack-iphone/

Why in the blue hell would you go to a Radio Shack to buy an iPhone? I'm dumbfounded by the idea. Apple stores are EVERYWHERE (most cities have at least one, some several) and even if that wasn't an option - a Verizon store, a Best Buy, ordering it online and shipping it straight from Cupertino... for God's sake ANYWHERE but a Radio Shack!

[BrianC]

I miss Radio Shack selling exclusive (or semi-exclusive) handhelds. That head to head lcd Space Invaders tabletop game is good stuff.

[shawnphase]

radio shack will certainly sell you a set of banana plugs for $18. or you can do like i did and get em from FT for a dollar, heh

 

http://www.fasttech.com/products/0/10005712/1443601-4-5mm-loudspeaker-cable-banana-plugs-pair

[+wood_jl]

 

I remember the first time I ever became aware of Radio Shack and the HOBBY of staring at all of the little packages hanging on the wall (many of which I lacked the experience to utilize) was this article.....

 

http://www.atariarchives.org/creativeatari/Atari_Silencer.php

 

......from Creative Computer (by that late, great Atari enthusiast John J. Anderson), on turning off the Atari 800 speaker. Even in a [relative to the rest of the world] semi-remote location as Anchorage, Alaska, there was a Radio Shack with huge wall full of packets of electronic goodies, and they had everything required (down to the exact part numbers) to do this, myself.

 

All Hail the days when Radio Shack was like that. Now, it's just a cellphone outlet with little more than any department store offers. Probably not their fault entirely, but times have changed markedly.

 

edit: I had been to Radio Shack prior to that as a kid to get tubes for our old TV back when they used to have a Tube Tester (looked like a big arcade machine) in the main lobby, but was too young to stare at plastic packages of electronic components, at that time.

[wiseguyusa]

you can buy them by the 20 pack from Hong Kong for CHEAP on eBay.