The Register talked to the compact cassette ‘inventor’ Lou Ottens (he seems to have been the leader of the project rather than a solitary lone inventor). The interview is highly technical, but has some nice titbits even if you’re not into gearings and transport mechanisms, such as this bit about the usability of the compact cassette (i.e. it had to be small):

El Reg: “The Compact Cassette is a very pocketable size. Had you decided upon maximum dimensions to work to?”

Lou Ottens: “Because our aim was to make a pocket recorder, it should fit into the side pocket of my tweed jacket. I made a wood block that fitted in my pocket. That does not mean that carrying the actual recorder in my jacket was very comfortable or advisable.”

Yesterday we talked about another Philips invention, electronic music.

(Link: Eamelje.net)