Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[hiromichi]

What are "Etch-A-Sketch" and "pick it up and shakeit" ?


Frequently Asked Questions for Etch-A-Sketch Technical Support

Q: My Etch-A-Sketch has all of these funny little lines all over the screen A: Pick it up and shake it.

Q: How do I turn my Etch-A-Sketch off? A: Pick it up and shake it.

Q: What's the shortcut for Undo? A: Pick it up and shake it.

Q: How do I create a New Document window? A: Pick it up and shake it.

Q: How do I set the background and foreground to the same color? A: Pick it up and shake it.

Q: What is the proper procedure for rebooting my Etch-A-Sketch? A: Pick it up and shake it.

Q: How do I delete a document on my Etch-A-Sketch? A: Pick it up and shake it.

Q: How do I save my Etch-A-Sketch document? A: Don't shake it.
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Hiromichi

[redset]

Etch-A-Sketch!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etch_A_Sketch

Etch-A-Sketch was a toy that was popular in the 80's (when I was a kid - maybe in the 70's and 90's too!), which had a grey screen and two knobs. When you twisted the knobs, a little line would start to draw on the screen as though there was a pen on the other side. Twisting one knob would move it left or right, the other knob would move it up or down - by coordinating the movements you could write messages and even draw pictures, in fact the box it was packaged in had a picture on the front, showing an Etch-A-Sketch with a realistic picture of a rabbit drawn on it. I'll tell you now, there is no way anyone managed to draw that using those two knobs.

The toy was filled with iron filings and worked by magnetising the screen with a stylus, which caused the line to appear when you turned the knobs. When you wanted to clear the screen, you picked up the Etch-A-Sketch and gave it a good shake, which made the iron filings fall off the screen so you couldn't see them anymore (and that's what 'pick it up and shake it' means - it's how you erased the screen so you could start a new picture).

The joke is talking about Etch-A-Sketches as though they're used like modern PCs - as much as computers can be a pain to work with, I don't think I'd swap mine for an Etch-A-Sketch!

[hiromichi]

redset, I get it. Thank you very much for your taking time in answering to my question.
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Hiromichi

[redset]

Heh, looks like I had it backwards about how it actually works inside, but that's what I assumed when I was a kid. You get the idea anyway

[hiromichi]

redset, Thank you for your conscientious follow-up.
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Hiromichi