calculators, tv, oven. a car. you listen to music on a big old stereo system wi a turn table. maybe you had a digital watch, and that was the only thing that was going to be digital that you actually owned. >> hello? i'm not here now, but my faithful machine is. >> there was a handful of technology at that time. one was the telephone answering machine. you'd be driving home and you'd say, i can't wait to check my messages. you know, it had become part of the day, honey, i'm checking my messages. from the noisy streets of new york to the laid-back tranquility of california. americans are tuning out and tuning in. >> when i think of technology in the 1980s, i think of the walkman. the walkman was huge. >> it's the latest fad. tiny stereo cassette players with featherweight headphones. >> it's like carrying your stereo with you, you know, on your head.