Blinkenlights: Difference between revisions
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Thanks to signs in [[As Long as It Sounds Foreign|"mock German"]] that appeared in various computer rooms in [[The Fifties|the 1950s]], Blinkenlights became something for non-technical people to look at, instead of touching something they really shouldn't touch. From there, it was only a matter of time – less than a decade – for Blinkenlights to become a visual shorthand for high technology in general, not just computers ... and they were ''always'' blinking. |
Thanks to signs in [[As Long as It Sounds Foreign|"mock German"]] that appeared in various computer rooms in [[The Fifties|the 1950s]], Blinkenlights became something for non-technical people to look at, instead of touching something they really shouldn't touch. From there, it was only a matter of time – less than a decade – for Blinkenlights to become a visual shorthand for high technology in general, not just computers ... and they were ''always'' blinking. |
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As computers became more ubiquitous, the trope faded from the public consciousness. Nowadays it's used in works that purposefully invoke [[Zeerust]], always paired with [[Beeping Computers]]. |
As computers became more ubiquitous, the trope faded from the public consciousness. ([[Real Life]] 21st-century mainframes don't even have diagnostic lights any more.) Nowadays it's used in works that purposefully invoke [[Zeerust]], always paired with [[Beeping Computers]]. |
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[[Wikipedia]] has a page about [[wikipedia:Blinkenlights|Blinkenlights]]. [[The Jargon File]] has [http://www.catb.org/~esr/jargon/html/B/blinkenlights.html a page about them], too. |
[[Wikipedia]] has a page about [[wikipedia:Blinkenlights|Blinkenlights]]. [[The Jargon File]] has [http://www.catb.org/~esr/jargon/html/B/blinkenlights.html a page about them], too. |
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Revision as of 15:28, 16 May 2020
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Originally, Blinkenlights were simply disgnostic lights on electronic devices. In some places, they still are. But that's boring.
Thanks to signs in "mock German" that appeared in various computer rooms in the 1950s, Blinkenlights became something for non-technical people to look at, instead of touching something they really shouldn't touch. From there, it was only a matter of time – less than a decade – for Blinkenlights to become a visual shorthand for high technology in general, not just computers ... and they were always blinking.
As computers became more ubiquitous, the trope faded from the public consciousness. (Real Life 21st-century mainframes don't even have diagnostic lights any more.) Nowadays it's used in works that purposefully invoke Zeerust, always paired with Beeping Computers.
Wikipedia has a page about Blinkenlights. The Jargon File has a page about them, too.
Advertising
Anime and Manga
Comic Books
Fan Works
Film
- The Q-Bomb in The Mouse That Roared was covered in Blinkenlights.
Literature
Live-Action TV
- Shown in The Prisoner episode "The General".
- Star Trek: The Original Series faked Blinkenlights in Engineering, by sliding cutout screens back and forth behind wall transparencies.