Laurence Gonsalves
@laurence.gonsalv.es
611 followers 1.8K following 404 posts
I like old computers, making things, science, math, and science fiction. Currently building @Sifted.app at @Nipht.io. Previously, helped create Google Reader. @xenomachina@oldbytes.space on the fediverse. Formerly @laurence on the birdsite. IDIC 🖖
![A photo of page 70 of the book.
The page is titled "Talk to Cat", and is somewhat yellowed.
Below the title is a black and white screenshot of NCSA Mosaic open to a webpage. The page reads:
"Talk to my cat
The time is 3:29 AM on 17 Mar 1995 here in Pittsburgh
This web document uses speech synthesis to talk to my cat. It is written in arexx and running on an amiga.
Type a sentence to say to my cat in your browser's search dialogue. The computer will say it, and, if the cat is around, it will hear it.
This is a rather abstract act.
The cat, though, is quite concrete, as you can see in this picture, by popular demand, of the cat. [most of that sentence in underlined, presumably a hyperlink]
Old things people have said to the cat are here. ["here" is underlined]
This site was mentioned in Time Magazine. Isn't it odd what one"
The text on the web page cuts off at this point. There is a text box labeled "Search index" in the bottom of the browser window.
Below the screenshot is the text from the book:
"Here is yet another example of a human with too much control over his cat's Web page. When you tap into this page at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, you are invited to "talk to the cat." What happens is that when you type something into the page, a speech synthesizer on the computer on the other end blast out your greeting, likely scaring some poor cat witless as he diligently types away at the computer's keyboard. Visit at http://queer.slip.cs.cmu.edu/cgi_bin/talktocat"](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:fyk7k47or5phqjdo3aykvhff/bafkreigi2lvofxmviu6qilek65xv3x7djw4vjp27tdj4ipjwxqvslnkuie)
![Screenshot of 404 page reading:
404 Not FOund
Guru Meditation: [long hex number]
Goofy Deploy Page Server](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:fyk7k47or5phqjdo3aykvhff/bafkreietzug75pxhuhqh5jabmxtacih3ko6texyywhw63afd5cialz7lwe)
