Slide Projectors

From Ben Muse:

Kodak's slide projector falls victim to technological change. In among the obituaries, in the March issue of Sky & Telescope, Edwin Aguirre writes:

"There has been another death in the Eastman Kodak family. Only months after announcing that the company...would cease production of its popular black-and-white astrophotography film...Kodak rolled the last of its 35-millimeter slide projectors off the assembly line on October 22nd. The end had been expected since September 2003, when the company announced that it would stop making and selling projectors due to declining sales.

During its heyday from the 1960s to the 1980s, it was the principal means for amateurs to share their astrophotos and give lectures at club meetings, conventions, public star parties, and planetarium shows. This was before digital imaging, personal Web sites, and Microsoft's PowerPoint software gained widespread popularity. The venerable projector just couldn't keep up with the rapidly evolving, computer-driven multimedia technology. However, Kodak says that it will "continue to provide service and support for slide projectors through June 2011. It has no plans to "discontinue any color slide films at this time.

Kodak debuted its slide projectors in the mid-1930s, and its innovative carousel-tray loading system introduced in the early 1960s made possible complex, multiprojector audiovisual presentations. The company estimates that is has sold around 15 million units worldwide during the projector's nearly seven-decade-long production run..."

When my dad took pictures of me and my family in the early years of my early life, back in the 60's, he used slides, by and large. I think the next time my better 3/4ths, the durables, and I go to see grandma, we may have to break out the old slides.