And the award for “Most obscure computer file format” goes to …
Back in the 1970s, floppy disk drives were extremely expensive, typing BASIC programs took time, and it wasn’t like you could drive over to Best Buy to get a compiler. Which made it difficult to distribute software programs. But one format which proved relatively easy to distribute in a magazine was the “Floppy ROM” — literally, a vinyl record flexidisc which computer nerds would put on a record player, record onto a cassette player and play into their computer. The May 1977 issue of “Interface Age” magazine, shown above, actually had one of these rare relics, which you can actually buy on eBay. Next time you use Dropbox to save your homework, think of how far we’ve come.
