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How communist Bulgaria became a leader in technology, robotics and sci-fi (2018)

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Re: How communist Bulgaria became a leader in technology, robotics and sci-fi (2018)

#11

Post by use-net »

ReptileMan wrote: post #4
IgorPartola wrote: post #3

My first computer was a home computer from Bulgaria called Pravetz 8D. It’s amazing that it never occurred to me until now to look it up on the web and sure enough there is a Wikipedia page about them. If not for that thing, I wouldn’t be a software engineer today.

I remember that nightmare ... the software was recorded on tapes.

dude, Wozniak in 1984 talked about how even Apple Inc. did only have audio cassette tapes to copy more tapes to sell their Apple I and Apple // computer software on - before eventually they had enough money to buy a floppy disc drive. Their chief financial officer was kinda elated about his tape based home finance software predating Excel.

Re: How communist Bulgaria became a leader in technology, robotics and sci-fi (2018)

#12

Post by varjag »

buzzkillington wrote: post #9
severak_cz wrote: post #2

I wonder if Bulgaria really became leader in tech. In Czechoslovakia we also had some sort of computer industry. We also had state security agents buying western tech in disguise and importing it home for cloning. I even know one guy who worked at computer reverse engineering institute back then. Also I have found memoirs of some random guy who worked as IT specialist for Stb (Czech equivalent of Stasi). However, thi…

>At its peak, Bulgaria supplied 40% of the computers in COMECON. The electronics industry employed 300,000 workers, and it generated 8 billion rubles a year. [0] That's on top of a population of just under 9 million and a working age population of 6 million [1], so 5% of the workforce was involved in the production of computer hardware alone. It seems there was a very large bet on the computer industry from the commu…

Vast majority of the electronic industry were not computer production, so you're off by a magnitude for sure.

Re: How communist Bulgaria became a leader in technology, robotics and sci-fi (2018)

#13

Post by Nasrudith »

I certainly wasn't a part of the cultural context but I get the feeling that in many cases the messages werr really about the Soviet Bloc consciously or otherwise. Along with the anxieties attributed to the computers, which sound like an outlet for complaints about the top down system.

The bit about the experts seems downright allegorical for the suppression of "bourgeois pseudoscience" like cybernetics itself before they could rationalize it in the prevailing dogma for the party.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cybernetics_in_the_Soviet_Un...

Re: How communist Bulgaria became a leader in technology, robotics and sci-fi (2018)

#14

Post by alexgmcm »

qubex wrote: post #8
alexgmcm wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I remember in Red Plenty it describes how the USSR decided to just copy IBM machines rather than build their own at some point. It's a shame as MSU was working on some really interesting stuff including the weird Setun ternary computer.

Red Plenty is a fantastic and unusual book, I highly recommend it to everybody with even a cursory interest in mathematics, economics, logistics, information technology, politics, or history.

I liked it - I felt it didn't really answer the question it seemed to set out with though.

That is - there was a time when it looked like the USSR was genuinely going to catch up with and surpass the USA, how did they manage this and where did it go wrong?

Re: How communist Bulgaria became a leader in technology, robotics and sci-fi (2018)

#15

Post by contingencies »

qubex wrote: post #8
alexgmcm wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I remember in Red Plenty it describes how the USSR decided to just copy IBM machines rather than build their own at some point. It's a shame as MSU was working on some really interesting stuff including the weird Setun ternary computer.

Red Plenty is a fantastic and unusual book, I highly recommend it to everybody with even a cursory interest in mathematics, economics, logistics, information technology, politics, or history.

You seem interesting, please send me an email.

Re: How communist Bulgaria became a leader in technology, robotics and sci-fi (2018)

#16

Post by nimbius »

severak_cz wrote: post #2

I wonder if Bulgaria really became leader in tech. In Czechoslovakia we also had some sort of computer industry. We also had state security agents buying western tech in disguise and importing it home for cloning. I even know one guy who worked at computer reverse engineering institute back then. Also I have found memoirs of some random guy who worked as IT specialist for Stb (Czech equivalent of Stasi). However, thi…

As a former Soviet satellite it was in an excellent position to do so. the USSR was first in space, first to the moon, and first to invent the universally programmable computer, the MESM. in 1958 they even invented the first mobile phones.

Re: How communist Bulgaria became a leader in technology, robotics and sci-fi (2018)

#17

Post by nradov »

alexgmcm wrote: post #14
qubex wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Red Plenty is a fantastic and unusual book, I highly recommend it to everybody with even a cursory interest in mathematics, economics, logistics, information technology, politics, or history.

I liked it - I felt it didn't really answer the question it seemed to set out with though. That is - there was a time when it looked like the USSR was genuinely going to catch up with and surpass the USA, how did they manage this and where did it go wrong?

The USSR was never actually catching up. With access to more accurate historical data we now know that much of their reported economic development was based on falsified official statistics.

Re: How communist Bulgaria became a leader in technology, robotics and sci-fi (2018)

#18

Post by naveen99 »

nimbius wrote: post #16
severak_cz wrote: post #2

I wonder if Bulgaria really became leader in tech. In Czechoslovakia we also had some sort of computer industry. We also had state security agents buying western tech in disguise and importing it home for cloning. I even know one guy who worked at computer reverse engineering institute back then. Also I have found memoirs of some random guy who worked as IT specialist for Stb (Czech equivalent of Stasi). However, thi…

As a former Soviet satellite it was in an excellent position to do so. the USSR was first in space, first to the moon, and first to invent the universally programmable computer, the MESM. in 1958 they even invented the first mobile phones.

I wonder why the Russians or even the Chinese or Indians haven’t publicly attempted to clone Microsoft Windows (a desktop os). There is a Russian Linux distro. But I would think it would be more productive to have an international software arms race than a military / space arms race.

Re: How communist Bulgaria became a leader in technology, robotics and sci-fi (2018)

#19

Post by lyrr »

nradov wrote: post #17
alexgmcm wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I liked it - I felt it didn't really answer the question it seemed to set out with though. That is - there was a time when it looked like the USSR was genuinely going to catch up with and surpass the USA, how did they manage this and where did it go wrong?

The USSR was never actually catching up. With access to more accurate historical data we now know that much of their reported economic development was based on falsified official statistics.

Gonna need a source for that.

Re: How communist Bulgaria became a leader in technology, robotics and sci-fi (2018)

#20

Post by npace12 »

I grew up there. Every school had classrooms with Pravetz 8D (apple ii clone) running Karateka and those classes were full! I was in kindergarden when my parents signed me up to learn computers and by 1st grade, I was writing chatbots in Basic. Fun times.
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