Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Latest By
Category:
Armor
Artificial
Intelligence
Biology
Clothing
Communication
Computers
Culture
Data Storage
Displays
Engineering
Entertainment
Food
Input Devices
Lifestyle
Living Space
Manufacturing
Material
Media
Medical
Miscellaneous
Robotics
Security
Space Tech
Spacecraft
Surveillance
Transportation
Travel
Vehicle
Virtual
Person
Warfare
Weapon
Work
"The SF approach: an awareness that things could have been different, that this is one of many possible worlds, that if you came to this world from some other planet, this would be a science fiction world."
- Neal Stephenson
 |
| Optophone (Opto) | ||
| A video call system. |
Unique name for a videophone, lost to history.
| "Miss Henderson has resigned, Mr. Conover." The voice of his chief clerk spoke from the optophone, simultaneously with the appearance of that individual's alert features in its disc. |
| Technovelgy from Too Many Boards!,
by Harl Vincent. Published by Amazing Stories in 1931 Additional resources -
|
Also, there appear to be specialized optos just for sharing news, placed in public places:
In the lower
levels of the great cities, the public squares were jammed
with horror-stricken humanity, waiting in vain for
definite assurance from the news announcers.
There is even a specialized optophone used in space ships:
Vincent uses this same word in his 1932 story Water-Bound Worlds:
He turned toward Zarko, but saw that he had engaged himself with the optophone. In the disc appeared the face of Kal Turjen, his usual cigaret dangling and eyes squinting through the smoke. The Martian was grinning cheerfully as he followed Zarko’s instructions in tuning the main radiophone transmitter. Kal was on the job in the radio room and was resigned to the situation.
Compare to the detailed article about the telephonoscope from Le Vingtième Siècle (The Twentieth Century) (1882) by Albert Robida, the phonotelephote from In the Year 2889 (1889) by Jules Verne, the
telephot from Ralph 124c 41 + (1911) by Hugo Gernsback, the
video communicator from The Machine Stops (1909) by E.M. Forster, the
zoom call visaphone system from John Jones's Dollar (1915) by Harry Stephen Keeler, the
videophone from The Golden Girl of Munan (1928) by Harl Vincent and the opti-phone from The Impossible World (1939) by Eando Binder.
Efforts were made to keep the news of the disaster
from the public, but, as is usually the case, there was
a leak. Within a very few hours the public and private
news optos throughout the world blared forth the in-
credible tidings...
Captain Davis stood at the hyper-optophone in the
control room of his space ship.
Captain Boe stepped wearily to the optophone and flipped its lever. The alert but unsmiling visage of the Venerian chief engineer flashed into view on the disc...
Comment/Join this discussion ( 0 ) | RSS/XML | Blog This |
Additional
resources:
More Ideas
and Technology from Too Many Boards!
More Ideas
and Technology by Harl Vincent
Tech news articles related to Too Many Boards!
Tech news articles related to works by Harl Vincent
| Huawei Pura X Folding Phattie Phone |
| Positioned Cybertrucks With Free Starlinks WiFi In LA |
| Will Whales Be Our First Contact? |
| NYC/Dublin Portal Fails To Meet 'Guardian Of Forever' Standards |
Want to Contribute an
Item?
It's easy:
Get the name of the item, a
quote, the book's name and the author's name, and Add
it here.
| <Previous | Next> |
|
|
|
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Science Fiction Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
|
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
'If you're one of those rarities who haven't attended a rocket-polo "carnage", let me tell you it's a colorful affair.'
'They filed clumsily into the battleroom, like children in a swimming pool for the first time, clinging to the handholds along the side.'
'a walking balloon proceeded with long strides of its aluminum legs...'
'There was nowhere on the planet where science and technology could not provide one with a comfortable home...'
'Most men updated their PIP on New Year's Day...'
'...a misshapen, many-tentacled thing about twice the size of a man.'
