My Lord, you need to stand up!

Chapter 408 A Person of Both Virtue and Talent, Hard to Find Even with a Lantern
Of course, Wei Dong is now a qualified lord.

Just like countless times he has been in universities, facing the pride of this era, he has been able to skillfully boost morale.

Now, facing two or three hundred computer researchers gathered from all over the country, he also possesses his own aura:

"First, let me state our goal. I hope to launch the product this year and strive to achieve annual sales of over 500,000 Chunghwa learning machines by next year. One million units would be considered exceeding our target, and we would receive even more bonuses at each stage..."

The room fell silent at first, everyone looking on with confusion. What kind of learning machine is this, with 500,000 units?

Since everyone here is involved in scientific research, and almost none of us are involved in production scale, we have absolutely no concept of 500,000 units.

Wei Dong then casually pulled out the camera from his waistband: "Last Spring Festival, I collaborated with the Xishan Factory of the Fifth Ministry of Machinery Industry to develop and launch this simple X camera, priced at 29 yuan. In the past year and a half, it sold 1.1 million units, not only revitalizing this third-tier factory but also enabling one million families to have a camera to record every moment of their lives. I hope this Zhonghua learning machine can achieve the same success, allowing children across the country to begin to access computers..."

No one expected that an accident would happen at this moment.

Suddenly, a bespectacled man raised his hand: "As far as I know, the Zhonghua Learning Machine was jointly developed by factories, research institutes, and universities under the Fourth Ministry of Machinery Industry."

what?
This guy has already invested nearly a million dollars to buy 100,000 microprocessor chips, and only now he says other companies have them too?
This left Wei Dong somewhat bewildered.

The Fourth Ministry of Machinery Industry was the Ministry of Electronics Industry, so theoretically, they should be the main players in computers and such.

However, the Fifth Ministry of Machinery Industry was the Ministry of Ordnance Industry, and it could cover all categories as long as it was related to the military industry. Previously, all domestic demand for computers was in the defense industry, so it was only natural that it had various computer research institutes.

It's not uncommon to see companies develop independently and compete with each other after their products are transferred to civilian use.

For example, several state-owned enterprises in Jiangzhou that manufacture motorcycles belong to the First, Third, Fifth, and Seventh Ministries of Machinery Industry.

But surprisingly, no one mentioned this to us during the Fifth Ministry of Machinery Industry's meeting.

Could the Fifth Ministry of Machine Building really claim to know absolutely nothing about it?

You guys aren't just being malicious, you're ripping people off, all to drag out these third-tier factories and research institutes?
Moreover, the name "Zhonghua Learning Machine" was clearly chosen on the spur of the moment because he was moved by the scene just now!
They actually crashed.

This guy from Jiangsu and Zhejiang had even seen the prototype: "It was a copy of the Apple II computer, a product from 1977. The Chinese Academy of Sciences and Tsinghua and Peking Universities helped them with the software support. The functions that Apple computers can perform, such as Chinese character fonts, circuit diagram drawing, printer connection, and music editing, can all be displayed in Chinese."

The others at the scene started to egg them on.

The main reaction was surprise.

They also began to doubt the significance of the gathering of people from all over the country here.

The lesson that two years of fighting taught Rang Weidong was to at least remain outwardly calm.

Even if a "Holy shit, holy shit" feeling just runs through my mind...

He was actually convinced that the Famicom could be converted into a learning machine based on his memory of a 1990s Super King learning machine with game cartridges inserted.

Then he met Steve at the World's Fair and became acquainted with Apple Computer.

Then I discovered that the old Apple Model 2 computer was actually a kind of learning machine, with the keyboard and the case combined, and it could be connected to a TV. I thought I was brilliant and had caught up with the times, which was in line with the development trajectory of Apple computers.

I never expected that what I was imitating was also a counterfeit, and a middleman at that. It was very likely that it was an evolved version of the 1980s learning machine, and the root of the problem was still the Apple 2.

The product was launched in 77 and became popular all over the world. No matter how closed off it has been in recent years, there are always some channels that allow it to flow into China.

Smart people are everywhere; it's not like you're the only one who discovers that computers can be used for learning and imitation when you go abroad.

This is definitely a huge blunder that could be written into the history of computer development in China.

Don't panic! So many people have come with their families, and there's still a skyscraper under construction over there, with plans for dozens of blocks exceeding 100,000 square meters...

This investment is in the tens of millions, and now we're only finding out there's been a mistake?

Honestly, if Wei Dong had just started his business two years ago, he would definitely be in a complete mess.

The more I think about it, the more confused I get.

Now, he could calmly nod slowly and say, "Alright, our Fifth Ministry of Machinery Industry has launched this learning machine, which can also be called the X Learning Machine. Now I can give you an option: would you like to participate in and merge into the China Learning Machine project, or continue to independently develop our learning machine?"

People still lacked an understanding of a market economy, and were even more prejudiced against certain groups: "What's the difference?"

"This isn't the first time the Fourth Ministry of Machinery Industry has clashed with us on military-to-civilian conversion products. We've always done our own thing, so what's the problem?"

I never imagined that this would be a life-or-death decision for the company.

The main point was to make Wei Dong appear calm and unhurried: "Our advantage lies in our strong sales capabilities. We can advertise and quickly distribute our products nationwide. Then... I estimate that we have a price advantage. No one can get the 6502 at a lower price than me. Finally, I have a very good personal relationship with Apple, which can guarantee that we have the most comprehensive overseas support in terms of software."

At this point, I finally remembered: "Are there any programmers on site? Are they familiar with programming for Apple computers? I can go to Shanghai on a business trip right now. There are a bunch of Apple engineers there. If needed, I can immediately request a few software experts from Apple to come and exchange ideas."

In fact, early programming languages ​​were simply a set of conventional English terms.

People from Europe and America are naturally good at programming in their native languages, which is why Indians later found it easier to thrive in the IT industry and become the largest software outsourcing base.

Having been colonized by the Great Ying Empire for so long, they had long since developed a foundation in English.

Therefore, in modern computer programming, China can only learn from foreign countries.

Even if some people insist on arguing, "Why use English? Is it because we're inferior?" it's no use.

The field of integrated circuits was mastered by European and American countries, and the 26-letter English alphabet is naturally more suitable for programming.

Therefore, given that sending people abroad to study is very likely to result in them not returning, being able to directly arrange for foreign programmers to come and provide guidance is definitely a cost-effective and efficient solution.

Dozens of people immediately raised their hands when it came to anything related to software.

Instruct Wei Dong to immediately have his secretary write it down and book a train ticket to be sent to Shanghai for further study.

The key feature of the latest Macintosh computers is their graphical interface, which is the foundation that we at X Computers need to learn from.

It was from here that we began to differentiate ourselves from all ordinary computers and learning machines.

This allows Wei Dong to process his thoughts and clear his head.

Since you copied the Apple II, I'll just copy the newer Macintosh computer.

Since you've already called it the "Chinese Learning Machine," I might as well not bother with that and just call it the "Home Computer"!
A new style that directly integrates the graphics system, a graphics architecture that is absolutely in line with the future.

How can learning software that only scratches the surface compete with legitimate home computers in the market?

The software aspect will be handled by you. Establish a software department to solve problems, with specific department leaders and branch office managers.

They all got to know and learn from each other during this study trip to Shanghai, and were finally selected by voting.

They can freely form different types of software development teams, and then come to me to sign a project agreement, obtain funding, and receive a share of the profits from the subsequent use and release of the software.

The first-generation programmers, who had never participated in this business model, did not even have the physical characteristics of plaid shirts, framed glasses, and Uniqlo bestsellers.

Programmers have already started reacting enthusiastically, scratching their heads excitedly as they think, developing a professional hairstyle that resembles that of young people with bald heads.

Dong Xueqing cooperated very well, immediately recording each person's name, place of origin, and workplace.

Those who lack electronic hardware technology are envious.

Wei Dong then called out to them, "Let's start thinking about the design of this brand new home computer's exterior..."

Didn't I just suggest to Apple that they build their computer cases in ocean-view rooms in Shanghai?

Now we do it ourselves.

There must be a reason why home computers gradually evolved into stand-up desktop computers.

Regardless of the reason, I'll just do it anyway.

It's like taking a Macintosh computer that's highly integrated into an all-in-one machine and taking it apart into a separate chassis and keyboard, so it can be used whether connected to a TV or a dedicated monitor.

Even now, dedicated monitors still use coaxial cable video interfaces on the back, which are compatible with televisions.

Moreover, Wei Dong also abandoned the expensive floppy drive on the Macintosh computer, replacing it with game cartridges as "USB drives".

When Wei Dong bought the Famicom in Akihabara, he had already noticed this detail and found it extremely puzzling.

At that time, each hard disk was 512K and retailed for one dollar. Rewritable game cards cost six dollars and also had a capacity of 512K, but most game cards were read-only and cost two or three dollars.

Except for a very few files that need to be transferred, read-write storage is not used much at this time.

For home computers used especially for entertainment and learning, portable storage is not a necessity.

Because even though floppy disks seem cheap, you still need to spend a couple hundred dollars to buy an expensive floppy disk drive to read them.

The failure rate of this type of disk is also particularly high.

The game card that can be directly plugged in is clearly a more advanced storage method. Even if there is a problem with the gold fingers making poor contact, you can just breathe on it and polish it.

The computer market took a detour for twenty years before returning to the USB flash drive model.

I'll start doing it right now.

Of course, the biggest reason is to enable home computers to have gaming capabilities; computers that can't be used for gaming are definitely not easy to sell.

As for learning programming and unlocking game features, that's a matter for system settings.

It was only through the support of Tianyan that Wei Dong managed to steer his already lagging learning machine strategy back onto the track of home computers.

Only Jin Zhuoqun, who had been observing from the sidelines, could see the danger involved.

He is indeed a talented person.

Unfortunately, it's impossible to be both virtuous and talented.

(End of this chapter)