My Lord, you need to stand up!

Chapter 421 In my eyes, this is not high technology at all.
Given Wei Dong's tax mentality, especially after the conflict in Shanghai, he would never be the kind of person who, out of patriotism, throws himself out to be taken advantage of and slaughtered at will.

Even when collecting taxes, there's a proper way to "let the water flow and raise fish."

The most unworthy outcome is to be used as a waste of resources under the grandest banner, only to be laughed at and called an idiot.

He will never use Wu Xi or anyone else as a shield.

Having unparalleled advantages is the true mark of a brand.

It has to be said that his mentality was honed through countless battles.

We could also have lunch at the new factory area; the food street there is quite nice.

Just as they came downstairs, they saw Qin Yuye's light blue Land Rover Defender hurriedly drive into the underground parking garage. It was obvious that he had just watched the excitement at the zoo and was still rushing to the city center for lunch. Shen Cuiyue was still sneakily glancing over from the passenger seat and quickly covering her face. They were all dressed up very nicely!
Before Wei Dong could ponder their thoughts, he nodded and led the city's convoy to the factory area.

He fundamentally adjusted his mindset regarding the role of the entire computer industry within his business.

Of course, it's not obvious on the surface. People on the road joked that this 19-seater minivan produced in Jiangzhou still has a big gap in various aspects, and it's even harder to catch up with than the computer industry.

This absurd argument will surely attract the attention of the city: "How is that possible? We can make all automotive and mechanical products now, we just don't do them very well. It seems that the gap is huge in the computer industry!"

Wei Dong responded from the perspective of a security guard's common sense: "It's really easy to get a car on the road. Many of these cars are tinkered and modified by repair shops and maintenance stations. At worst, they might use someone else's engine or a foreign transmission. But in reality, even the best domestically produced cars from Shanghai are not as durable as my minivan assembled with imported parts that cost tens of thousands of yuan. Cars have to be bumped around on the road, and all sorts of problems will be exposed in no time. Each problem may be a huge technical challenge, representing the technical level that the mechanical industry has accumulated over many years."

That's the truth. We've been chasing for thirty or forty years, and the automotive industry still hasn't caught up.

These days, it goes without saying that drivers need to be mechanics too.

The 318 highway is practically a gathering place for all kinds of car repair experts; they're either repairing cars or on their way to repair cars.

At least twenty years from now, the parking lot of the tax office will be filled with complaints about domestically produced cars.

Back then, anyone who bought a domestically produced car felt incredibly regretful, as the quality and durability were truly indescribable.

So the reason why people were later criticized for being stubborn and refusing to buy domestic cars was because of the lessons learned from hard-won experiences.

It wasn't until thirty years later that things gradually improved.

It's truly a slow and steady climb, taking one step at a time to catch up.

They even had to open up a separate track for new energy vehicles before they showed signs of surpassing others.

Isn't that exactly the option for computers and electronics?
So Wei Dong pointed to the light bulb on the roof of the simple van and said, "But electrical appliances are different. Once you weld them on and turn them on, they can keep working. It doesn't matter if they look ugly or not. Especially computers. Modern computers only came into being in the 1970s, and personal computers didn't appear until around 1981. We can still catch up now."

Honestly, this was a line of thinking he never dared to even consider before.

He doesn't understand chip manufacturing processes, software programming, or even how to use a computer very well.

Their computer knowledge level is actually not much different from those of the people in the car.

But at least we know bits and pieces of the trajectory.

This idea suddenly came to mind.

The explanation was somewhat vague, but it left a very deep impression on these individuals.

This was 1985, a year in which everything was in ruins and needed rebuilding. Everyone was saying that we should solve the problem of food and clothing first, and start reform and opening up to revitalize the economy.

The government's macroeconomic control measures have also squandered all of its limited resources on the automotive industry.

The hope is that the automotive industry will boost industrial manufacturing productivity across all sectors and change the entire situation.

There's a lot of talk about electronics and computers, but the actual investment is far from enough.

This guy actually said that we should prioritize working on computer high technology, which seems very distant, and what's even more surprising is that he said it's not difficult.

People in the city will definitely be asking all sorts of questions.

It's quite obvious that they no longer see Wei Dong as a businessman, but rather as a technology expert.

Whether it's right or wrong, the thinking behind this line is beyond the comprehension of ordinary people.

Upon arriving at the factory, it was lunchtime, and the place was packed with people.

The work clothes for sanitary napkin factories, garment factories, auto repair and transportation, construction, and even various parts of the computer industry are all color-coded.

The sheer scale and grandeur of the event did not diminish everyone's eager anticipation for computers.

Wei Dong was also unwilling to take the city to show off to his employees in a grand manner, as that would only encourage the spread of bad practices.

I might as well wait until I miss the mealtime.

We'll take you directly upstairs in the industrial elevator.

The factory building, which was in a high temperature of over 30 degrees Celsius, was chilly from the moment you stepped inside. On the fourth floor, in the temporary computer research and development workshop, some people even sneezed.

In Jiangzhou, where air conditioning is not yet widely available, this is considered a luxury.

So even though everyone here is wearing full-body protective suits, masks, and head coverings, it's not so hot that they're drenched in sweat. The space, which is over 100 meters long and 50 meters wide, is similar to a football field. Most of the area is enclosed to create a cleanroom, while a significant portion has been converted into two-story management and R&D offices and high-precision operating rooms.

Just looking at it from the outside, you can feel that it is full of technology and has a very scientific rigor.

The city officials observed and inquired intently, and it turned out that there was no such high-tech industry in the entire Jiangzhou at present.

Jiangzhou was already one of the most industrialized areas in the country.

Wei Dong was told not to bring it in to avoid affecting the detailed work: "Let's look at the R&D center here first. Our approach is somewhat different from Apple's, but we are basically building on their foundation and trying our best to develop our own products. We aim to release the first batch of products this year to meet the needs of government agencies, schools, and enterprises in Jiangzhou, Shanghai, and other places."

Everyone's stereotypes were immediately overturned: "So fast?!"

"Are they really all made in China?"

Because what is presented to everyone is a "computer" that is completely different from the previous Macintosh computers.

It could even be called a true modern computer "mainframe".

Actually, it was entirely based on Wei Dong's idea: the motherboard could be made larger to accommodate all the computer chips, memory, controllers, counters, and so on. He didn't understand so many technical terms, but he gave the architectural requirements.

Unlike the Macintosh computer, which was very cramped due to its integration into the all-in-one computer with a nine-inch display.

Not needed here.

The power circuit board is made into a standard power box, which is much more compact than the Macintosh computer, which unfolds into a large circuit board for integration.

Because Wei Dong should at least know that a computer power supply is a separate component with high-voltage circuitry or something similar, and it's generally not recommended to disassemble it for repair; if it breaks, just replace it—it's that simple.

From that moment on, without Wei Dong's knowledge, he and Steve embarked on two divergent paths in the future development of computers.

Apple computers are known for their high degree of integration, with everything from the processor to the RAM and ROM soldered onto the circuit board. Even the slightest damage would result in a high replacement cost. This is practically a direct continuation of the closed system and hardware approach adopted by Apple's later iPhones.

Once you're in my circle, you can only use my high-quality, expensive products and services.

Wei Dong, however, had a habitually low-class attitude, adhering to the compatibility machine philosophy that anything could be replaced, and whatever was broken could be replaced.

This is also the most complained-about aspect by hardware technicians in almost every tax authority since the tax computer project in the 1990s.

In the beginning, all departments and enterprises used computers of various designated brands, creating an even more absurdly closed environment than Apple computers, which allowed all parties involved in the software and hardware to make a fortune.

Later I realized they were all low-quality, overpriced gadgets. The extra money was spent to build a fortress so that we wouldn't need external substitutes.

Several years later, as the overall technical level of the population improved, the mystery surrounding computers was dispelled, and compatible computers that were easy to replace and repair gradually became the mainstream.

Wei Dong continued to adhere to the idea of ​​using inexpensive cameras.

The chassis is made of bent titanium alloy steel plate, with one side covered by a glass "sea view". That's right, the highly transparent acrylic glass is not easy to handle at this time, so it is fixed directly with the glass side panel sliding groove.

The black front panel, made of bakelite, has no floppy drive, only an FC card slot under the power button.

Since there was no monitor available, a 14-inch black and white television was used as a temporary substitute.

Wei Dong then introduced the products one by one: "Now we are just waiting to see if Shanghai Vacuum Electronics Factory can produce a 14-inch domestic monitor picture tube as soon as possible. If not, we will first promote the pure host to be paired with TV. The main difference is that the TV picture tube is not as fine, the flicker is serious, and it will hurt your eyes if you look at it at close range for a long time."

But the focus is on the keyboard, which is what Wei Dong is most proud of: "Our R&D focus from June and July until now is on the keyboard design. Look at the thinking behind European and American keyboards. Each key is a very complex and sophisticated mechanical device. This is also the principle of automobiles that I mentioned earlier. The keyboard is arguably the most repeatedly moving part of the entire computer. If the mechanical quality is not good, it will take many years to catch up. But we use electronic film technology to solve this problem. The cost is only a fraction of that, and the wear and tear and replacement are also cheap..."

It's really simple when you put it bluntly.

The internal structure of the keyboard is always disassembled. Wei Dong has heard the young people in the compound complain about the complex key layout and mechanical quality of mechanical keyboards.

Even forty years from now, domestically produced mechanical keyboard switches, even after being typed hundreds or thousands of times, will still show a significant difference compared to imported switches, without costing tens of thousands.

The old security guard at the time thought, why insist on using such expensive and troublesome high-end key switches?

He obviously couldn't feel any difference in texture...

Now, with two circuit films separated by an insulating film, they connect when struck by bakelite keycaps, drastically reducing costs!

The keyboard body, with its titanium alloy steel plate, looks quite high-end.

In addition, the mouse shell is made of bakelite, and the circuit board inside is still under development, but it has already amazed everyone in the city.

No matter how powerful or sophisticated Steve's Macintosh computer was, it couldn't stop Wei Dong from presenting the "ultimate form" that would be the culmination of the next forty years.

A beautiful black keycap keyboard with a silver-gray finish, complemented by a black mouse, a black front panel, and a silver-gray glass chassis.

This computer isn't much more high-tech than that Macintosh.

If Wei Dong hadn't explained that the 6502 main chip would still be entirely dependent on imports, there would be a fundamental difference between domestically produced RAM and imported components.

It's easy to get the illusion that you've already caught up completely.

(End of this chapter)