# The Imperial March played on floppy drives **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 29, 2011, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-imperial-march-played-on-floppy-drives/598059 "2011-09-29T20:09:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2011, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-imperial-march-played-on-floppy-drives/598059/1 "2011-09-29T20:09:04Z")
I present geekiness squared [here](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yHJOz_y9rZE). ---
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2011, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-imperial-march-played-on-floppy-drives/598059/2 "2011-09-29T21:37:09Z")
how does this work ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2011, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-imperial-march-played-on-floppy-drives/598059/3 "2011-09-29T22:01:13Z")
> [@PSXer](#): > > how does this work 1. Collect underpants. 2. ??? 3. Profit! ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2011, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-imperial-march-played-on-floppy-drives/598059/4 "2011-09-29T22:12:22Z")
> [@PSXer](#): > > how does this work Fucking magnets, man. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2011, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-imperial-march-played-on-floppy-drives/598059/5 "2011-09-29T23:28:45Z")
He’s accessing different parts of the disc, which require the drive to spin at various rates to read them, and the different rates of spin produce the different tones. If you want something _really_ impressive, back in the old, old days (well before my time), a disc drive was a monstrous thing the size of a washing machine, and contained a stack of discs the size of pizzas. Spinning those up could cause the machine to lurch across the floor. Some programmers had races, where they tried to get the machines to access the discs in such a way as to lurch most quickly, and one programmer once managed to accidentally get himself trapped by a disc drive blocking the door. ---
**Author:** ![Jman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jman/32/4416_2.png) [@Jman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jman)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2011, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-imperial-march-played-on-floppy-drives/598059/6 "2011-09-29T23:35:29Z")
That is…awesome. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2011, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-imperial-march-played-on-floppy-drives/598059/7 "2011-09-29T23:36:22Z")
The drive speed is only 1/2 of the equation - the other half is the sound the stepper motor makes when it moves the head. ---
**Author:** ![Cyberhwk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7993a0/32.png) [@Cyberhwk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyberhwk)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2011, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-imperial-march-played-on-floppy-drives/598059/8 "2011-09-30T00:16:03Z")
I will see your Imperial March Floppy Drives, and raise you a [God Save the Queen Formula One Car](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JPBdBIFGNQ&t=0m50s). ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2011, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-imperial-march-played-on-floppy-drives/598059/9 "2011-09-30T00:41:09Z")
I’ll raise you [Super Mario Brothers played on twin Tesla coils!](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VX5V_9s0Gfw&feature=youtube_gdata_player) Yes, I know it’s been posted here before, but it’s still cool. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2011, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-imperial-march-played-on-floppy-drives/598059/10 "2011-09-30T01:25:56Z")
Somewhere in the next world, [Thaddeus Cahill](http://www.synthmuseum.com/magazine/0102jw.html) is smiling. ---
**Author:** ![Undershaft](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f19dbf/32.png) [@Undershaft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Undershaft)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2011, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-imperial-march-played-on-floppy-drives/598059/11 "2011-09-30T02:27:50Z")
Those are pretty cool!