In "State of Electronics" this week, we look at the early years of "Electronics Retailing". "The Dusty Years" is about the struggle for early hobbyists in the field of electronics, in sourcing components. It follows on …
In "State of Electronics" this week, we look at the early years of "Electronics Retailing". "The Dusty Years" is about the struggle for early hobbyists in the field of electronics, in sourcing components. It follows on from their initial steps in scavenging for parts at the Tip, council pickup days & donation of parts by looking at how new parts were sourced pre 1970. Early electronics stores were mostly over the counter experiences, served by "dusty" people and old school professionalism. To the young enthusiast, these early retail experiences were intimidating and inefficient but were quite literally their only choices. "If you couldn't find or swap, you had to go to the shop" says Ian O'Toole. While Disposal and Surplus stores fuelled some creative minds with opportunity, the overall retail experience was seen as pretty bleak prior to the 1970's. Mostly, the retailing of electronics after the second world war was based around Radio and then TV, and was geared towards the trade and not hobbyists. At the beginning of the 1970's however, a retail revolution was beginning to form in Australia, that made the careers of Dick Smith, Gary Johnston and others.
While this series is based in Australia, I believe much of the content is relevant to anyone. From comments left so far, via Twitter and Facebook, I am of the opinion that the experiences described here are universal and thus global.
State of Electronics is a series about technology. While based in Australia, the topics covered will appeal to anyone interested in technology. It will cover the history of electronics in all its "states" and will look at the past, present and future of the field.
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For more about State of Electronics please visit http://www.stateofelectronics.com
On YouTube, the State of Electronics Playlist can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Xu15...
For more about Silicon Chip Magazine (Australia's only hobbyist Electronics magazine) visit http://www.siliconchip.com.au
For more about Rockby Electronics (Based in Melbourne) visit: https://www.rockby.com.au
For more information on Jaycar visit: http://www.jaycar.com.au
