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The Cable Center, Cable Industry Information, Education, and Research

The Barco Library at The Cable Center, Denver

 

The definitive resource for information about cable and telecommunications worldwide, The Barco Library is your primary resource for books, photographs, videos, and other media documenting the rich history of the cable industry.

The mission of the Barco Library is to serve as a research and reference tool for the cable and telecommunications industry, academia, and the public.

Cable Education and Research
COLLECTIONS
Cable Education and Research

  • Equipment Archive – The Equipment Archives traces the development of cable technology.
  • Manuscripts – Documents generated by the people, organizations, and companies that make up the cable industry.
  • Media Collection – The collection consists of a variety of material, including programming, speeches, lectures, and interviews.
  • Memorabilia – Includes many items from the cable industry that commemorate people, companies, or events.
  • Oral Histories – These first-hand accounts by industry leaders trace the history of cable from its beginnings to the present.
  • Photographs – From 1950s-era slides to digital photos recording the latest conventions, this collection chronicles the history of the cable television industry.
  • Programming Archive – This archive is a leading repository of original cable programming.
 
 
EQUIPMENT COLLECTION

Early Set Top Boxes »


An important part of cable history, these early cable converters allowed subscribers to receive three broadcast stations, and later received up to 12 channels of cable programming. Controlling mechanisms on these set top boxes ranged from channel dials to buttons that could initiate premium services such as Pay-Per-View.  Much smaller than our current HDTV set tops, these early converters were revolutionary for their time.