Chapter 891
The Possibility of Breaking the Barrier of Space and Time
The goal was to create a product that would be almost on par with Apple's iPod in terms of its time.
Moreover, it was even launched a year earlier than others.
It is undoubtedly difficult.
Putting aside other issues, the storage problem alone could stump the product design and development team, led by Zheng Guoshun and Cheng Xiaohua, for quite some time.
Fortunately, they started out in storage technology.
What Lu Yang needs to do is push them a little harder.
Let them focus their efforts on how to apply their newly developed flash memory technology to the existing MP3 framework.
Instead of just seeking out mature technologies available on the market.
Otherwise, it would be impossible to fulfill Lu Yang's request.
Therefore, when faced with Lu Yang's difficult demands, Zheng Guoshun and Cheng Xiaohua, though feeling very troubled, still agreed and decided to abandon the existing storage technology on the market and study and seek to apply the new flash memory technology they had developed together to the existing MP3 framework.
As long as it can succeed.
This would be a tremendous achievement, not only greatly increasing the number of songs stored in MP3 players, but also significantly increasing download speeds, and making downloading songs much easier than before.
Lu Yang was not idle either.
After returning home, he had dinner with his family and then locked himself in his study for the first time.
He began to recall the appearance and advanced features of the Apple iPod in his mind.
Why does it sell so much better than other companies' MP3 players?
Minimalist design principles will likely play a significant role.
However, in addition to this, the roller turntable design should also make it more acceptable to consumers.
Thinking about this...
He took some blank paper out of the drawer and started writing and drawing.
I became completely absorbed in it for a time.
He didn't even look up when his wife, Yin Mingyue, knocked on the door and came in with coffee.
"What are they doing?"
Yin Mingyue picked up some blueprints, somewhat surprised that her husband actually had such talent.
"These are the assignments I gave to Deng Guoshun and Cheng Xiaohua, but I'm worried they won't be able to finish them, so I'm going to give them some special treatment."
"Is it the new MP3 project the company is preparing to launch?"
Yin Mingyue also knew that the company was preparing to launch an MP3 project.
It seems they even acquired a small company for this purpose.
"Ah."
Lu Yang nodded.
"Honey, you're amazing! Just by looking at these blueprints, I know this MP3 player will sell very well if it's released."
Regardless of whether the drawing was good or not, Yin Mingyue didn't really understand it either, but she praised it first.
Do you think so too?
"Mmm, honey, you're amazing."
"Haha."
Lu Yang downed his coffee in one gulp, then picked up his wife.
It was left on the sofa next to me.
"What? If you've finished your work, let's go back to the room."
"No, right here."
"what."
His wife's coy and hesitant manner only fueled Lu Yang's desire.
After playing poker.
Lu Yang patted his wife's bottom and said, "Go back to sleep first. I still have a few drawings to finish."
the next day.
Upon arriving at the company, Lu Yang beckoned to Lu Nini and said, "Go and send these blueprints to Langke and give them to Deng Guoshun and Cheng Xiaohua. Tell them that the MP3's appearance should be like this. The two of them only need to be responsible for increasing the storage capacity and doing their job well. If they can't even copy homework, then I will have to consider replacing them."
Lu Nini took the roll of paper that Lu Yang had casually rolled up. Her fingertips could feel the residual ink on the paper and the fine creases left by its owner's pressing.
The blueprints are heavy, not because of their physical weight, but because of the expectations they carry!
Or rather, it was an order from the boss that left no room for argument.
She was well aware of the significance of this drawing, and the pressure that Deng Guoshun and Cheng Xiaohua, two technical experts, would face after seeing it.
The boss's cold statement, "I'll consider replacing you," was no joke.
"Understood, boss. I'll send it to Langke immediately." Lu Nini's voice was crisp and clear. She deftly placed the blueprints into a hard file tube, sealed it, and turned to leave quickly.
The sound of high heels clicking on the floor quickly faded away in the corridor, leaving the room silent.
Lu Yang rubbed his temples. The study was still filled with the aroma of last night's coffee and a faint, ambiguous atmosphere.
Last night's "spark of inspiration" and the subsequent "relaxation" did indeed ease his highly tense nerves considerably.
He walked to the window and gazed at the city skyline in the morning light.
In 1999, Shenzhen was full of the power of unbridled growth, but it was still a long way from the era in which he remembered technology and design led the world.
What he had to do was to build the first bridge across this chasm with his own hands.
Apple's iPod? No, it can only serve as a footnote in the history of the Century Group.
Nanshan, the new R&D base of Netac.
The atmosphere in the conference room was heavy as lead. Deng Guoshun and Cheng Xiaohua, who hadn't slept for two days and two nights, had bloodshot eyes and disheveled hair as they faced data sheets, circuit diagrams, and various flash memory chip samples spread across the long table.
The whiteboard in the conference room was covered with complex formulas and derivations, but also covered with large red crosses and question marks.
The air was thick with the smells of coffee, sweat, and a palpable sense of despair. "Old Deng, we've reached our limit... our absolute limit!" Cheng Xiaohua's voice was hoarse as he pointed to a number repeatedly circled on the whiteboard. "With the current flash memory architecture, achieving a single-chip package density of 128MB is already the limit in the lab; the yield rate has plummeted to the Mariana Trench! The cost is astronomical! 640MB? 1GB? This is simply not something that could be stably mass-produced with technology from 1999! The boss's requirement of 100 songs is equivalent to squeezing our self-developed, not-yet-fully-mature, new architecture to its limit, and we still have to pray for a successful tape-out on the first try!"
Deng Guoshun stared intently at a chip sample on the table, smaller than a fingernail. It was the prototype of their team's proud but not yet commercialized next-generation flash memory technology.
“I know it’s difficult! The boss wants the impossible! But if we only focus on the mature solutions on the market, and 64MB is the limit, where is the value of our Netac? What is the point of acquiring us?”
He slammed his hand on the table, making the coffee cup jump. "We have to tap into the potential of our 'old business'! We have to force all those ideas from the new architecture—improving read/write efficiency, reducing power consumption, and increasing storage unit density—into the MP3 framework! Size, power consumption, heat dissipation, cost... damn it, they're all obstacles!"
There was a gentle knock on the conference room door.
Wei Shu's assistant poked his head in: "President Deng, President Cheng, Ms. Lu, the secretary of President Wei and Chairman Lu, has arrived."
Their hearts sank. They looked at each other and saw the bitterness and forced composure in each other's eyes.
In just two days, they failed to even figure out a reliable technical path, let alone a feasibility report. They just kept hitting roadblocks and getting hurt.
The boss sent someone personally... Is it to deliver a death sentence? Or...?
Deng Guoshun took a deep breath and tried to make his voice sound steady: "Please come in."
The door was pushed open, and Wei Shu remained as calm and capable as ever, as if no external pressure could disturb her in the slightest.
Behind her, Lu Nini held the hard file tube, as quiet as a shadow.
"President Wei." Deng Guoshun and Cheng Xiaohua quickly stood up, their voices filled with undisguised exhaustion.
Wei Shu's gaze swept across the messy conference room, past the two haggard faces, and finally landed on the shocking red crosses on the whiteboard, and she understood.
She skipped the pleasantries and got straight to the point: "You two have worked very hard. The boss knows the technical requirements are extremely challenging and the timeframe is very tight. He's not heartless, so he provided some 'reference answers'."
She turned slightly to the side, gesturing to Lu Nini.
Lu Nini stepped forward, placed the file tube steadily in the center of the conference table, then skillfully unscrewed the lid and pulled out a thick stack of drawings inside.
“This is a concept design drawing of the MP3 player's appearance and human-computer interaction, personally drawn by Chairman Lu. He instructed,” Lu Nini’s voice echoed clearly in the quiet conference room, repeating Lu Yang’s original words, with a hint of cold penetration, “that Langke’s core task is to solve the storage capacity bottleneck and apply your latest flash memory technology to its fullest potential—this is your ‘old specialty.’ As for the product form and interaction, execute according to this drawing. If…”
She paused, then looked calmly at Deng and the other person. "If they can't even copy this homework, then Chairman Lu will have to consider replacing them with a team more capable of executing his strategic intentions."
"Copy...homework?" Cheng Xiaohua repeated subconsciously, her voice hoarse.
A tremendous sense of humiliation instantly surged into his and Deng Guoshun's hearts.
They were technical experts, pioneers of top-tier storage technology in China, yet they were being asked to "copy homework" like novice apprentices? Anger and resentment surged within them, threatening to overwhelm their reason. However, when their gaze fell upon the first blueprint Lu Nini unfolded, all their anger and resentment seemed to be abruptly extinguished by an invisible hand, replaced by intense shock and... bewilderment.
The drawings were spread out on the table.
That wasn't a rough sketch, but an incredibly detailed industrial design manuscript.
At its core is a disruptive design: a huge circular scroll wheel that occupies the center of the panel.
The drawings clearly show its structure: a smooth, circular touch area with simple menus, play/pause, and forward/rewind icons. Next to it is a highly detailed cross-sectional diagram revealing its possible mechanical or capacitive sensing principle. At the center of the scroll wheel is a circular confirmation button. The entire interaction logic revolves around the scrolling and tapping of this thumb.
The exterior design takes "minimalism" to the extreme.
The equipment on the drawing is pure white, without any unnecessary lines or decorations.
The casing material is clearly labeled as high-precision polished polycarbonate (PC) or aluminum alloy, aiming for a smooth, jade-like feel and a robust, one-piece construction. The surface finish is required to be a delicate matte or extremely precise polish, completely eliminating any "plastic feel."
The edges and corners are perfectly rounded, making it comfortable to hold.
The screen is small, approximately 1.8 inches according to the drawings, but it is required to be a monochrome or initial color LCD with the highest possible resolution (a basic version and a flagship version can be designed if cost allows), displaying only the most essential information: song title, artist, playback progress, and battery level.
The back is a smooth, mirror-like finish (the markings may indicate stainless steel or a plating), etched with the product logo and a few pieces of information. The overall size is strictly limited, making it unusually thin for an electronic product of the time. Several renderings from different angles perfectly showcase this minimalist yet futuristic and sophisticated design aesthetic.
There were even a few lines of small print annotations next to it:
"Form follows function, and function focuses on the core experience: quickly find and listen to music."
"Touch is the soul. Throw away all cheapness."
"Color: Pure. White, or space gray. Reject all fancy colors."
Deng Guoshun and Cheng Xiaohua were completely stunned.
They held their breath, turning the pages one by one, their fingers unconsciously tracing the smooth lines and exquisite annotations on the drawings.
As engineers, they instantly understood the revolutionary convenience of this central scroll wheel interaction—it was the only efficient navigation method when there was a massive library of songs (if capacity issues were resolved)!
They were also completely struck by this unprecedented, sophisticated minimalist design. Compared to the "Silver Shuttle" that Lu Yang had criticized mercilessly yesterday and all the MP3 players they had ever seen, the things on the drawings seemed to come from another dimension!
It doesn't seem like a product of 1999; it's more like... future technology five or ten years from now.
"This...this was drawn by the boss?" Deng Guoshun's voice trembled with disbelief as he pointed to an exploded view of a roller's structure. "This interaction logic...this requirement for materials and processes...it's too...too advanced!"
Looking at the shocked expressions on their faces, Wei Shu's eyes flashed with a subtle understanding.
When she first saw these drawings, she was just as shocked as they were.
So he calmly began, “Yes, it’s from Chairman Lu himself. So, now you understand? The boss doesn’t just want a better MP3 player; he wants a product that redefines this category. Storage technology is the heart, the foundation, and it must be broken through by you. And this…”
She pointed to the blueprints. “It’s its body and its soul. If the heart isn’t strong enough, even the most perfect body is useless. The boss has entrusted the most difficult and core ‘heart’ task to the team he thinks is most capable of doing it. Langke, I’m entrusting it to you two storage experts.”
Her words struck Deng Cheng and his companion like a heavy hammer.
The sense of humiliation disappeared, replaced by a heavier, yet strangely exhilarating sense of responsibility and... urgency.
The boss wasn't belittling them; on the contrary, he entrusted them with the crucial task of tackling the core technologies that were vital to the product's lifeline! At the same time, the boss had clearly outlined the future and even provided a plan for the "shell."
What they had to do was get this powerful "heart" beating in 1999 to power this "body" from the future!
Cheng Xiaohua carefully stroked the design of the scroll wheel on the blueprint, his fingertips seemingly able to feel the smoothness of future users swiping it. He looked up, his eyes bloodshot, yet burning with a do-or-die spirit: "President Wei, Ms. Lu, please tell Chairman Lu that we understand! Expanding storage capacity, breaking the 100-song limit, leave it to us! We'll do it even if it means risking our lives! This 'assignment'..." He looked at the futuristic design, gritted his teeth, "We'll 'copy' it perfectly! No, we'll make this 'heart' perfectly suited to this 'future body'!"
Deng Guoshun rubbed his face vigorously, as if trying to wash away all his fatigue and hesitation. He grabbed the prototype flash memory chip on the table, representing their latest technology, and gripped it tightly in his hand. His voice was hoarse but incredibly firm: "Yes! The heart of the machine! Leave it to us! Even if we have to risk our lives in the lab, we will ensure that the capacity and stability meet the boss's requirements! As for the rollers, the casing, and so on... we will coordinate with the structural, electronic, and ID teams to strictly follow the blueprints! Langke will never let Chairman Lu down a second time!"
The pressure did not lessen; instead, it increased.
But now, the goal is clearer than ever before, and the path (at least in terms of appearance and interaction) has been indicated.
They are no longer groping in the fog, but challenging a treacherous peak of known height.
Wei Shu looked at the almost obsessive fighting spirit that had rekindled in their eyes and nodded slightly. This was exactly the effect the boss wanted. "Very good. The boss awaits your progress reports, especially the breakthroughs in storage technology. Resources, from across the entire company, are at your disposal."
She turned to Lu Nini, "Let's go."
Wei Shu and Lu Nini left, leaving Deng Guoshun and Cheng Xiaohua in the conference room still immersed in the shock of the blueprints and the immense pressure.
After a long pause, Deng Guoshun suddenly turned around, pointed at the dense red crosses and formulas on the whiteboard, and shouted towards the door, "Engineer Liu! Engineer Li! Call everyone responsible for the new flash memory architecture R&D over here! Immediately! Put down everything else you're doing! Also, call Purchasing Manager Zhang here. I need to know all the latest information on flash memory chips, controllers, and advanced packaging processes worldwide, no matter how expensive or who has them! Hurry!"
Cheng Xiaohua rushed to the phone and dialed quickly: "Old Wang! Structural design team! Bring your best engineers to me! It's an emergency! Yes, now! Even if the sky falls, get here first! The boss has given a death order: we need to build the heart of... something from the future!"
The entire Langke R&D base was in an uproar because of the blueprints from Lu Yang's study.
A technological breakthrough centered on the limits of storage, accompanied by awe and challenge for that "future operation," has officially entered its final countdown.
It's a do-or-die situation; there's no turning back.
This is because they are not only challenging the limits of technology, but also the spatial and temporal barriers of 1999. (End of Chapter)