My new toy arrived!

[billyskank]

The BCD clock! It is sitting on my desk now, blinking away in its binary coded decimal glory! :D



/end nerdy transmission

[Heidi]

1. Ooooooooooooooo. CMW would _love that_.

Where did you order it? Can you PM me the link? :thumbsup:

[billyskank]

2. I got mine from here

http://www.iwantoneofthose.com/search.do?productCode=BINCLO

It does come with a Euro-style plug (and an adaptor for plugging into UK-style sockets). You may well be able to find one from a European vendor, though. I saw it first on a US site and it was a while before it made it over here. It works off the mains AC frequency you see, so a US version would run slow if you ran it in Europe since they use 60Hz mains while us Euros use 50Hz. I had to wait for them to make a Euro version.

[MissHoneychurch]

3. What is a BCD clock??

and how do you know what time it is???

[billyskank]

4. Man I am so glad you asked that question

:rofl:

[MissHoneychurch]

5. How about answering it?

And sorry I am not such a geek :rofl:

[billyskank]

7. This is my best shot

You know how decimal numbers work, right? A decimal number, from right to left, goes: units, tens, hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands, etc.

A binary number goes: units, twos, fours, eights, sixteens, etc. So each digit is twice its right-hand neighbour (whereas in decimal, each digit is ten times its right-hand neighbour).

Because binary numbers go up in twos, each digit can only be 0 or 1, because after 1, you carry over to the next digit (or 'bit' - 'binary digit').

The BCD clock is not true binary, but rather binary coded decimal. There are six columns of lights: the leftmost two represent the hours, the middle two represent minutes and the rightmost two represent seconds. Just like a digital clock. Of each group of two, the left column represents tens and the right column represents units.

Each column is a binary number. From bottom to top, the lights represent: 1, 2, 4 and 8. You add the combination of lights together in each column to give you each digit of the time.

I bet this makes no sense. :D

[MissHoneychurch]

10. It does make sense

I am just not good with the binary system. I know how it works and that bit and bytes are made of binary numbers but that's about it. I would have a hard time to get the time with that clock :think:

I am happy for you though that you enjoy it and that you are good enough with the binary system that you can read it :D

Thanks for the explanation :hug:

[Bassic]

16. It makes sense, though I'm not very good with that sort of thing,

but what the hell is it's purpose? :shrug:

[billyskank]

18. To tell the time

in the nerdiest way possible.

Actually, it could be nerdier. It could show it in true binary, rather than binary coded decimal. :)

[Bassic]

20. Unbelievable...

I mean.. wow... :P


Man I thought I was a geek!

[NMMNG]

6. Only a techno/science geek would know how to tell time with that

Of course you know when I saw the subject line of this thread I had another "toy" in mind. I have such a dirty mind.

[billyskank]

8. Of course. I am a techno geek. :P

And what would *I* want with a toy like that? :rofl:

[NMMNG]

9. Nothing I'm quite sure

But that didn't stop me from getting the image upon reading the subject line. :P

[AirmensMom]

11. OMG, billy!

You have reached the pinnacle of geekiness. :rofl:

Congratulations on the toy. :applause: :loveya: :hug:

[billyskank]

12. You mean there is nowhere more geeky to go than where I am now?

:o

:loveya:

[AirmensMom]

13. I doubt it.

But I could be wrong. :P

That's OK, I still love you. :loveya: :hug:

[billyskank]

14. I have achieved geek nirvana

:D

I love you too. :hug:

[AirmensMom]

15. Yes you have!

:bounce: :rofl:

:blush: :hug:

[Mutley]

17. Ooo! You got it!

:bounce:

:applause:

:D

[billyskank]

19. I did!

:D

:hug:

:hi:

[NewWaveChick1981]

21. Billyskank! Have fun with it!

:hi: You're in Nerd Heaven right about now, eh?

:*

[billyskank]

22. *swoon*

I am now :*

[progmom]

23. you are such a geek!

(i looooooooooooove geeks! :loveya:)

[billyskank]

32. I know!

:loveya:

[Pierre.Suave]

24. Cool

I guess...

[Misunderestimator]

25. I would LOVE one of those!!

:bounce:

I know what I want for Christmas... *hint* *hint* to anyone listening... :D

[progmom]

34. wow

:rofl:

you really are a complete dork. i love it! :loveya:

[Misunderestimator]

39. You betcha!!

:loveya:

[peekaloo]

26. Um, what time is it?

:dunce:

[Misunderestimator]

27. 3:05:07

:D

[peekaloo]

29. Dang it, my watched stopped!

:hi:

[Misunderestimator]

30. Here's one that shows the current time:

http://www.csgnetwork.com/binclock.html

Currently 11:10:54

Edited to include (edited again to add that the last digit on the binary portion hadn't switched yet when I did the screen grab... Here's one that indicates 11:14:47)

[peekaloo]

31. excellent!

:yourock:

[Jamastiene]

47. OH, I get it now.

I KNOW BCD, but couldn't tell how to tell time on that clock with that setup. I'm used to our labs where we have sets of 4 red lights to tell time. We had to make a BCD clock for our final project last summer in Digital Electronics class, but it looked different. I guess it was our lab kits that made it look different. It constantly counted seconds too. It was like a disco.

[billyskank]

48. This one counts seconds too

I just discovered it has a true binary mode too, but only a freak could read that. :rofl:

[Jamastiene]

51. That would take a while with me.

True binary is something I need a pencil and a piece of paper to figure out. I'm sooo glad we use BCD and hexidecimal more than true binary or octal (although I loved octal) in the engineering classes now.

[hunter]

60. I LOVED octal numbers. I really really LOVED octal numbers.

I'm pretty good at ten key data entry (having worked in medical labs...) so in the early days of microprocessors, when assembly language was done by you and a piece of paper and not a machine, I could get programs for octal machines running quicker than hexadecimal machines simply because I could enter and debug the octal code quicker and more reliably.

In the 8008 (later 8080) microprocessors the machine language segregated nicely into octal numbers. Another microprocessor I used, the 1802, did not; it was best programmed in hexadecimal.

As things turned out, both patterns got burned into my brain -- probably to the detriment of my other thought processes.

[IdaBriggs]

28. Where do I get one! Please? nt

[billyskank]

33. Google for "binary clock"

you'll find it... :P

[southpaw]

35. Here's a link

http://www.thinkgeek.com/homeoffice/lights/59e0/

[mccoyn]

36. Discovery store has them sometimes.

The Discovery Store at the mall has them sometimes along with all sorts of strange clocks.

One of my coworkers has one. Sadly most everyone in the office can read it.

[Call Me Wesley]

37. As if I don't already have enough blinking LEDs around me ...

I think I need one, too. I'm working hard on becoming a Boddhigeeky like billyskank. ;)

[billyskank]

38. You get the binary clock when you become a level 7 geek

:rofl:

[jpgray]

40. You are out there, my friend

:D

(My brother would love this)

[billyskank]

45. Thank you!

:D

[Book Lover]

41. Dude! That is so cool!

You are l33t!

[billyskank]

46. It's making it hard to get any work done

I just discovered it has a true binary mode too...but that's too hard to read :rofl:

[ZombieNixon]

42. Lounge Alpha Nerd strikes again!!

:bounce: :D

[billyskank]

43. :D

:toast:

[hunter]

44. The blue LEDs are much cooler than the red ones on my clock!

:toast:

[Jamastiene]

49. Glad it's BCD and not straight up binary...

You'd be there all day long figuring out it was 11:59 military time(100100110111)at night when that time came or are you using it at your office? And is it a military clock? I love BCD soooo much better than straight up binary.

[billyskank]

50. It can be straight up binary

or sorta - in 'pure' binary mode it shows three numbers, for hours, minutes and seconds, rather than the six numbers it shows in BCD mode. But in pure binary mode it doesn't use the top LEDs, and it's a little bit tricky to read, too...

:crazy:

:hug:

:loveya:

:hi:

[Jamastiene]

52. Ditto to my last reply to your other reply.

It would take me all day and confruse me. Or I could just use the calculator in Windows and click on view/scientific and then type the number in dec and then click bin, :evilgrin:. We couldn't do that on tests in class though, unfortunately. It would have been nice if we could.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=105&topic_id=5479367&mesg_id=5480659

:hug:
:loveya:
:hi:

I've missed you. We had a bad storm the other night. It's a long story, but a tree toppled less than 25 feet from my head, which was cringing with the rest of me on the living room floor. It was a baaaad storm. I'm :scared: of storms. We are supposed to have more today. I'm nervousing over it.

[billyskank]

53. OMG

:scared:

I'm glad you're safe :hug:

[Jamastiene]

56. I lived through the night.

And my aunt cancelled the Fayetteville (of Fort Bragg fame) VA appointment, or should I say, they cancelled on us because she was running a tad late. So I'm home today. Yippee!!! I really don't like the City of Fayetteville or the VA because they are both such incompetent twits, collectively. I don't know if you know much about our Veteran's Administration, but it used to be halfway decent under Clinton. It is not now. Bush has managed to make that run like he does; incompetent. It's pitiful how the veterans are treated, really.

That tree is still hanging there broke in half with two wysteria vines holding the top half, upside down, against the bottom half. I don't know where the tree behind it went either. The trunk of that one is split into a "vee" shape. It looks so weird and the top is just...gone. I hope it didn't land on anyone or their homes either. These storms are worse than some hurricanes I have lived through. They say there may be some storms this afternoon and way worse tomorrow, but this weatherman... You just have to hear some of his word choices. He calls them "robust showers," "rowdy thunderstorms," and "rumbles of thunder." I think he has a fixation on words that start with "r" for some reason. Gee, wonder how I got that idea? :P Anyhow, they are calling for large hail and damaging winds again tomorrow. This is the last time I listen to my mother. Sorry, mothers, you are not always right. Living in a trailer is cheaper in the short run but downright deadly, scary and unsafe in the long run. :scared:

[billyskank]

58. I'm glad you're okay

:hug:

[Dangerously Amused]

54. Your clock, as an art form, is aesthetically pleasing.

However, trying to cipher it as a functional clock makes me dizzy. Ahhhhhhhh!






But, I adore that you understand all that math stuff.






:* :* :* :loveya:

[billyskank]

55. Oh, don't get me wrong

It takes me about ten seconds to read the time off the darned thing!

But I will accept and reciprocate your :*

:loveya:

[wildhorses]

57. *swoon*

you can tell me the time any day, billyskank:*

[billyskank]

59. *smooch*

:*

[Rabrrrrrr]

61. LOL! I made one of those in high school.

Wish i still had one.