History Column: The update on updates
Nowadays, digital things get produced that are not even really complete yet the instructions will tell you that the first thing you need to do after you buy the product is update the firmware. And from then on, we are flooded with updates.
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By Kevin Mitchell / Becker County Museum | 9:00 am, Mar. 3, 2021 ×
Back in the day when you bought a computer, it was basically complete the way it was; there were few to no available updates. If you needed a newer version of something, you bought a new computer. Now, updates are a regular routine thing for anyone who owns digital devices. (File Photo)
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INTRODUCTION
At the insistence of the United States, in 1986 Japan agreed to
limit its exports of semiconductors, mainly the dynamic random
access memory (DRAM) chips, to America. These chips are used in
high- tech consumer electronics equipment like computers and video
cassette recorders. The agreement expires this July 1, and the Bush
Administration thus soon must decide whether to renew it. Doing so
would make Washington a hypocrite in its free trade efforts to open
markets abroad for American products. The 1986 chip agreement,
after all, restricts trade, ostensibly to help some American
segments of the semiconductor industry. The agreement in fact has