Where did the "Sparks" name come from, and, what's with that funny logo?

Information technology is currently going through a rapid evolution, but this evolution pales in comparison with the evolution that occurred in the middle of the nineteenth century. In 1838, Samuel Morse invented (some would say refined) the electric telegraph and planted the seeds of the electronic information technology industry. With the telegraph, information could be moved over long distances in seconds, rather than the hours or days that it took to carry a paper message.

At the beginning of the twenty-first century, slow communications are hard for us to imagine. We see news events as they are happening. In the early part of the nineteenth century, battles were fought, and men died weeks after treaties were signed because of slow communications.

I enjoy history, and especially the history of technology. I've always been fascinated by electronic communications. When I was a boy, I built my own telegraph equipment, and I would communicate with my friends by telegraph.

Amateur radio was a logical outlet for my interests, and I built and operated radio transmitters and receivers. A rite of passage for the radio amateur is learning to send and receive Morse code with a telegraph key. (The logo is a stylized telegraph key.) As information technology evolved, wireless telegraphy were developed. The early wireless transmitters generated their carrier with a "spark gap" and the early "radio shack" was alive with sparks. The early radio operators were often nicknamed "Sparks." (If you listen carefully in the movie Titanic, you will hear the captain refer to the ship's radio operator as Sparks.) The "Sparks" name and the telegraph key logo suggests that I have a long history and a deep interest in information technology. And now you know......, the rest of the story.

The original "Walkman"