RPAGF Chapter 917 Equipment is meant to be used, not treated like royalty? That's spoiling it!
Chapter 917 Equipment is meant to be used, not treated like royalty? That's spoiling it!
This second-generation tape reader doesn't have a complete casing like a regular home tape recorder; it's more like an industrial module.
But Jiang Xia felt it wasn't "direct" enough!
Under the stunned gazes of everyone, he found a screwdriver and, in no time at all, disassembled the already open structure of the reader, revealing the core magnetic head assembly, pressure rollers, and drive motor.
Now, the machine's dense wiring, coils, and mechanical structure are completely exposed, making it look like a precision instrument that has been gutted and appears extremely fragile.
This is not over yet.
To solve the problems of unsecured magnetic tapes being unable to be positioned and having smooth tape feeding, Jiangxia came up with a clever solution.
Using a few sheets of cardboard and melted fish glue, he folded them on the spot according to the width of the tape, and painstakingly built a simple "cardboard guide" with guide grooves on the bare tape transport path!
Then, he carefully inserted the unprotected magnetic tape directly into the cardboard guide, allowing the thin tape to slide directly over the surface of the magnetic head.
The final scene presented to the public was filled with a highly incongruous, almost performance art-like sense of grotesqueness:
The core of a military magnetic tape reader, representing sophisticated electronic technology, was encased in a makeshift track made of simple cardboard, glue, and rubber bands.
The precious cassette tape, containing crucial secrets, lay exposed without any cover, trembling on a cardboard rail, its fragile balance maintained entirely by manually adjusted tension.
The wires, cardboard, and rubber bands formed a temporary and fragile symbiosis.
Everyone present was dumbfounded as they watched Jiang Xia tinker with this "device" using a bunch of discarded parts and makeshift materials in such a short time.
Teacher Shi'e couldn't help but move closer, pointing to the trembling structure, and asked worriedly, "Comrade Xiao Jiang, is this...is this really going to work?"
The technician next to him muttered under his breath, "Comrade Jiang's actions are too reckless... He disassembled the reader into a mess and even used cardboard as a tape casing. If the machine is burned out, it's the only one of its kind in the whole country!"
They are usually very careful when handling equipment, and they don't even dare to tighten the screws by half a turn. They have never seen such a "rough" modification before.
The sophisticated single-board machine was disassembled to the point of exposing its internal organs, and precious special magnetic tapes were wrapped in cardboard. It looked like something had been messed up, and the strangeness made people feel uneasy.
"We'll see when we try!" Jiang Xia said nonchalantly, stuffing his homemade "cassette tube" into the modified reader and casually moving the exposed wires aside to avoid hitting the gears. "It won't short-circuit, I'm watching! The cardboard is enough to support it for now. As long as the reader rotates steadily, it won't jam!"
He spoke lightly and moved smoothly, but the eyes of the teachers next to him twitched.
You have to understand that this reader is a sophisticated device that comes with the second-generation Big Yellow, and the magnetic tape is the only clue we have right now!
If it were someone else, who would dare to just build a frame out of cardboard, glue, and rubber bands and then shove it up like that?
What if the tape gets stuck, twisted, or even torn apart? Who can you complain to?
But it was Jiangxia who did it, and he did it with a straight face.
Only a simpleton like Jiang Xia would dare to do something like that. Why?
Besides his reckless and impulsive personality, the deeper reason might lie in his identity as "Big Yellow's father".
Because Jiang Xia personally participated in and even led the creation of such core computing devices, he clearly knew the logic and structure inside these seemingly unfathomable "black boxes".
In his eyes, this single-board computer was certainly valuable, but it was by no means a "shrine" that needed to be worshipped or dared not be touched.
It is essentially a tool, a tool that serves people and consists of countless transistors, resistors, capacitors, and logic gates.
Equipment is inanimate, but people are alive. The value of a tool lies in its use, not in its worship.
His almost "blasphemous" bold operation was, in effect, helping those researchers around him who were used to being cautious, who had a certain awe of advanced equipment, or even "precision instrument phobia," to conduct a silent "disenchantment"!
The little guy is showing everyone through his actions: This thing was made by ourselves, and it's meant to solve problems! Broken? Find a way to fix it! Incompatible? Modify it! As long as you understand the principles, be a little bolder, and be more hands-on, there's no obstacle you can't overcome!
Of course, subconsciously there might still be a hint of smugness: even if... just in case... I accidentally mess this one up, I can go and charm Aunt Lanying or Senior Brother Yungui and try to "fool"... no, I mean, apply for a new one. It might not be an impossible task.
……
At Jiang Xia's insistence, the reader started spinning "click-click," a beat slower than usual, as if it were struggling to swallow this counterfeit cassette tape. The exposed gears turned the cardboard tube, occasionally making a soft "creak" sound, which made everyone's hearts ache like cats scratching at them.
The tent fell silent again, and everyone's eyes were fixed on the single-board computer's display screen.
一开始，屏幕上还是扭曲的乱码，可过了十几秒，乱码突然像被理顺了似的。 先是跳出一串规律的十六进制数字 “48 4A 2D 31 2E 32”，紧接着屏幕开始滚动显示密密麻麻的 “01 10 11 00” 这类二进制字符。
At the same time, the red "Loading" indicator light on the side of the single-board computer also began to flash regularly, and each flash added a line of code to the screen.
Teacher Xu Hua stared at the characters on the screen, completely bewildered. She quickly tugged at Jiang Xia's arm: "Xiao Jiang, what... what do these numbers and the flashing lights mean? Is there something wrong again?"
Teacher Shi'e also came over, his brows furrowed: "Yes, Xiao Jiang, take a look, did it load successfully or fail? We can't understand these 'heavenly books'."
Jiang Xia stared at the screen, a slow smile creeping onto his lips. Pointing to the scrolling machine codes, he explained, "Teacher Yang, Teacher Huang, it's done! These machine codes can drive the notebook's underwater acoustic system!"
He swiped his finger across the screen: "Look, this set of code drives the sensors, that set is for signal processing, and now the single-board computer is recognizing and loading the entire set of driving logic—we can use their system now!"
"oh oh!"
Everyone cheered, but no one dared to make a loud noise. They simply hugged their comrades tightly, shoulder to shoulder, their eyes sparkling with smiles, and then quickly turned back to stare excitedly at the steadily changing data on the screen, afraid of missing even the slightest change.
Zhao Gang, who is tall and has a long waist, squeezed into the crowd and stared at the densely packed 0s and 1s on the screen. He felt like the static on the club's TV when there was no signal, and the more he looked, the more confused he became.
Seeing the technicians around him, their faces flushed with excitement and their fists clenched, he couldn't help but purse his lips and mutter under his breath, "Why are you all so excited... You talk as if you understand everything. If it weren't for Xiao Jiang..."
Before he could finish speaking, Old Wang covered his mouth and dragged him out of the tent like a chick. Zhao Gang struggled, kicking his legs, his face still showing a bewildered expression.
Logically, the scene should have been quite funny, but everyone inside the tent lowered their heads, creating an awkward moment.
Jiang Xia glanced at the loading progress bar of the single-board computer, which was still slowly climbing. She estimated that it would take a while. She looked at the expressions on everyone's faces, which were a mixture of curiosity and embarrassment. The thought of becoming Teacher Jiang popped into her head again.
He pulled up a small stool, sat down, picked up a pen, and drew a simple "0" and "1" on a piece of paper: "Actually, machine code isn't that mysterious. It's like the flag signals in our army; 0 and 1 are its 'signals'!"
0 represents power off, and 1 represents power on. A series of 0s and 1s combined can be used to give commands to the machine.
He pointed to the code on the screen: "For example, this string '1010' means to start the underwater acoustic array to collect signals; the string '0011' next to it means to start the preamplifier's amplification function."
"To put it simply, it is about giving the machine specific commands through different combinations of 'power on' (1) and 'power off' (0)."
The technicians all gathered around, some even taking out their notebooks to take notes. Even though they only had a vague understanding, they listened very attentively, nodding and asking questions from time to time.
Teacher Shih-E stood beside him with a smile, listening along, and occasionally added as if suddenly enlightened: "It's just like tuning a radio. Different frequencies correspond to different radio stations, and the machine code is what sets the 'frequency' for the equipment!"
"Yes! That's right!"