Introducing the Amish laptop

Phoenyx

Yes i'm back
Joined
Oct 8, 2001
Posts
6,978
THE FIRST WORKING AMISH LAPTOP COMPUTER!!!!
Well... OK... so it's not exactly what we would call a computer....but it's the most advanced abacus in history! Using ultra-low tech antique equipment the Amish have actually built a portable "computer" that is capable of accessing the Internet!

Features:
13 x 6 Bead Resolution

78 RAB (Random Access Bead) Memory

All wood construction

Chalk & slate based input

Holders for slate, chalk, charcoal and stylus

1 Chicken Power Supply


=========
1.What kind of power source does the Laptop use?
The Laptop doesn't really need power...it is just a series of beads controlled by a pulley system, that when arranged in certain patterns can be translated into words or HTML tags. The only source of power needed to run the Laptop's pulley system comes from a rather small chicken attached to the Laptop by means of a rope.

2. How does the Laptop view text, HTML, pictures, etc.?
The Laptop uses a system of levers and pulleys to move the beads on the abacus into patterns which can then be translated into words and HTML tags.(see question 1 for more details of the pulley system.) The Laptop cannot generate pictures. However, a newer model is in the works with a lot more beads. This newer model will have enough "bead resolution" to display crude pictures.

3. Is the Laptop Windows 95 compatible?
No. The laptop uses it's very own operating system called BOS (Bead Operating System) which was created by an Amish carpenter who specializes in building windows: Jebadiah Monroe Gates who is a distant cousin to Bill Gates. When asked why he developed the Laptop, Jebadiah said that when he heard of the 'English' browsing around on the Internet, spreading porn and sin, he had to do something to promote good Amish values on the net.

4. Isn't the use of ANY technology frowned upon by the Amish?
Yes it is. But the Amish have decided that the Laptop is by no means technology.

5. How do the Amish connect to the internet without phone lines?
The Amish use what we call a "String and Can" modem. The modem consists of a tin can connected to the back of the abacus, and a waxed string running to the nearest telephone pole where another tin can is located. Vibrations caused by the abacus cause the string, can, and telephone pole to resonate certain frequencies that can actually trigger their modems. The other modems send their signals through the cans and string back into the abacus....which uses a system of pulleys to translate the vibrations into patterns of beads which are translated into words. The modem works at a blazing speed of 2.4BPS (Beads Per Second).

6. What new type of computer viruses will Amish hackers unleash onto the internet?
The Amish do not manufacture computer viruses. They do however make wonderful quilts and butter!

7. Can the Laptop be used for "gaming" purposes?
The Laptop lacks any type of "games", but future beadware includes a butter churn simulator, a virtual barn builder, and quilt designer.

8. How fast is the Amish Laptop?
We benchmarked the Laptop as having a CPU (Chicken-Pulley Unit) speed of approximately 4.33 Hz.

9. What other non-technological breakthroughs are the Amish working on?
Well, the laptop was designed for personal access to the Internet, but we have learned that the Amish have developed a much larger computer (possibly as a Web Server?).

We also hear they are working on an electricity substitute involving kites, strings, butter churns, and lightning bolts. Details are sketchy, but we are told that since lightning is provided by God, it's OK to use it. Another research group is reportedly trying to utilize static electricity by means of rubbing sheep on carpets and balloons, but this may just be a rumor.
 
Back
Top