I caught this virus
at the end of the 50's. With a childhood friend, Armand
, we used to try out all kinds of devices and D-I-Y ideas ! We lacked
means, both financial and physical, so we recycled a lot of components.
The first radios we built were germanium ( nothing to do with the Germans
!)receivers. The time of the "galène taillée" was over
! These receivers only needed the energy from the antenna : a 30 ft long
wire . No batteries, they worked night and day( on headphones) , but it
was difficult to take them out with us, for a walk ! But we were happy.
(We still are ; not living in the same region, Internet is our link).One
of the important films of that time : " Si tous les gars du monde" plunged
us into a world of Radio-Amateurs, and we dreamed a lot about it .... I
was able to fulfill this dream a few years later, by becoming a Radio Ham,
and I hope my friend Armand -who works in electronics- will soon be able
to join the family ...
The 70's were High Tech years. I really got into this domain, building,
fitting-out for our home, for friends, stereo equipment, loud speakers
and all kinds of devices. Ten years later, domestic video arrived, at about
the same time as I became a Radio Ham. This wonderful technical progression
that has been happening since the end of the war, only leaves me with one
regret : if only society had evolved in the same way ...
One can dream ...