Cyclspin1's Etch-A-Cache Geocoin

To attend events and share with others

I bought my Etch-A-Cache Geocoin back in July 2008. Soon after it was being discovered and jokingly I was told I had not earned it yet. I was told about the

Remember these when we were kids An Etch A Sketch resembles a thick, flat gray screen in a plastic frame, and is equipped with two knobs on the front of the frame in the lower corners. The knobs move a stylus that displaces aluminium powder on the back of the screen, leaving a dark line as the stylus is moved. The knobs can thus be used to create lineographic images. One knob moves the stylus horizontally, and the other vertically. The Etch A Sketch was introduced near the peak of the Baby Boom, and is one of the best-known toys of that generation. It remains popular to this day. Mechanics Etch A Sketch with insides shownThe toy can be considered a simplified version of a plotter. The inside surface of the glass screen is coated with aluminum powder which is then scraped off by a movable stylus, leaving a dark line on the light gray screen. The stylus is controlled by the two large knobs, one of which moves it vertically and the other horizontally. To erase the picture, the artist turns the toy upside down and shakes it, causing the styrene beads to smooth out and re-coat the inside surface of the screen with aluminum powder. The "black" line merely exposes the darkness inside the toy. Filling in large "black" areas will allow enough light through to expose parts of the interior (see picture).Mechanics Etch A Sketch with insides shownThe toy can be considered a simplified version of a plotter. The inside surface of the glass screen is coated with aluminum powder which is then scraped off by a movable stylus, leaving a dark line on the light gray screen. The stylus is controlled by the two large knobs, one of which moves it vertically and the other horizontally. To erase the picture, the artist turns the toy upside down and shakes it, causing the styrene beads to smooth out and re-coat the inside surface of the screen with aluminum powder. The "black" line merely exposes the darkness inside the toy. History The Etch A Sketch toy was invented in the late 1950s by French electrician Andre Cassagnes.[2] Cassagnes originally called it Telecran ("tele-screen"), on account of its resemblance to a television screen. After a complex series of negotiations, the Ohio Art Company launched the toy in the United States, for the 1960 holiday season, with the name of "Etch A Sketch". Ohio Art supported the toy with a televised advertising campaign