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Comment by acuozzo | Hacker News Reader

Anecdote: I do.

Background: I work full-time as a computer programmer to support myself, my wife, and three children.

Hobbies…

I collect and digitally archive MCA DiscoVision laserdiscs. I currently possess one of the three largest collections in the world.

In addition to this I digitally archive anything (books, brochures, and other paperwork) related to the early development of the Laserdisc format from MCA DiscoVision, Philips, et al.

I am also involved in film and video digital restoration projects, but not as much nowadays as I once was. I started an online community dedicated to 35 & 16mm film restoration back in 2015 which is, thankfully, still alive & kicking despite me having passed the torch several years back.

I've considered creating a YouTube channel to help fund things, but my interests are too niche to turn a profit.

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Just wanted to comment, that sounds awesome! I would love to see random blogs/youtube videos about it.

What is so special (to you) about the MCA DiscoVision laserdisc? There has to be a good story here.

No OP but I have a personal fascination with this tech as well.

It was one of those technologies that was way ahead of its time. They just could not get the density on the disk such that it would make sense longer term but given people still had records, they fit into these collections as-in given their similar form factor. They sported better picture quality and (debatably) better audio.

They also were natively able to produce an analog signal (RCA video and component out) as format is not actually totally digital.

They are just super cool piece of tech from a blip in history but they did set the stage for all our compact disk formats we use today.

I do wonder what it is about the technological blip that catches people attention. I have a strange fascination with old hardware that's still in production somewhere and I find I'm not the only one. I couldn't tell you why, however.

It was the very first attempt to use optical discs as a storage medium. The team went from fuzzy idea to working product in under ten years.

It ushered in the wave of technological change to come. The first prototypes for CD were DiscoVision discs! http://www.blam1.com/discovision/Pioneer_PCM.htm

What really excites me is that it's the world's most obscure treasure hunt.

Titles with an odd number of sides had a random one chosen at the pressing plant to even it out which was then lacquered over. Removing the lacquer with isopropyl alcohol sometimes reveals a side from a title which was never released.

This YouTuber covers an example here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQZGe3r4VqQ

Is your collection or restoration work publicly available?

It will be. My ultimate goal is to share everything on: https://discovision.info

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