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Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa takes retro tech lovers back to the future


Remember waiting for internet dial-up, checking your Hotmail at the library, pulling out a floppy disk? Remember the big bootied iMac, the portable Powerbook 150 or the Apple Classic II?

Reminisce during Techweek 2019 with “Zeros and Ones” at National Library.

This eclectic exhibition features vintage technology that is still used to store, transfer and read early “Born Digital” material.

“The National Library is more than books. Exhibitions like Zeros and Ones, are a great opportunity for all New Zealanders to explore our technological heritage and for many take a trip down memory lane,” says Tui Te Hau, the Public Engagement Director for National Library.

“We’re delighted to be participating in Techweek19, with such a unique exhibition.”

Supporting the exhibition are a few events:

On Thursday, join Archives New Zealand Chief Archivist and self-confessed computer geek Richard Foy, for his brilliantly titled presentation “For All the Macs I've Loved Before”. Foy will wax lyrical about his nostalgic love affair with Apple computers, hardware, and software, and share his intuitive views on technology past, present and future.

Then, Jay Gattuso, a digital preservation specialist, will talk about the complexities of collecting, preserving and providing access to a range of complex ‘born digital’ objects and the experiences they create. Learn about how the library is coping with the fact that by 2020, it’s estimated that 1.7MB of data will be created every second for every person on earth.

Zeros and Ones: Vintage Computers from the National Library Collection runs from Monday 20th May to Saturday 25 May.

Monday 20 May 10am-9pm He Tohu exhibition VR experience at VUW Te Aro campus, Vivian Street. The Evening Lightning Talks include Laureen Jones He Tohu Manager and why DIA chose VR to solve a business problem.
Thursday 23 May 12pm-12.30pm For All the Macs I've Loved Before
Thursday 23 May 12.30pm-1pm Navigating the Complex World of 'Born Digital'