The 25 Most Important PCs in History

[JimS]

To my mind, the History of the personal computer ended when the ibm pc was introduced. ;-)

[JimS]

hah, certainly consumer choice largely ended.

It blows my mind how many computers existed in the 8 bit era, each with significant software libraries of their own. Spectrum, The commodore and atari machines, msx, amstrad cpc, bbc micro, undoubtedly more stuff I am forgetting about

Yeah, there were a lot of them back in the Elder Days. Just pick up a copy of Byte, Kilobaud, or Creative Computers from that era. I had an Atari 800 and later a 1200XL. I can remember seeing the Exidy Sourcerer in the store, complete with software carts made from recycled 8-track tape shells. ;-) . Even saw an apple I board.  

Of course in those days, having a computer was a goal in itself, not just a means to an end like today.

[JimS]

Ah, the good old days. When you were convinced that one day everyone would have a computer, but you weren't too sure what they'd be using them for.
And while you quietly advocating their purchase you had to explain to your
Uncle Ned that balancing his checkbook was probably not a good reason to buy one.

Back then I was in the mainframe biz. When the boss heard I was looking for a computer, he thought I was nuts... "You work computers all day, then you want to go home to one?", He says. "But it's *mine*", sez I. ;-)

[JimS]

I don't think IBM ever really understood the idea of personal computing either. Why else would they totally out source all the elements their original PC?

Lots of the established computer companies didn't understand the home market. I think it was the head man at DEC who asked "Why would anyone want a computer in their home"? and IBM itself was reluctant to get into the computer market, thinking that there would only be a market for five computers world wide. Now, just like in Futurama, where every gizmo is a robot, every gizmo has a computer in it. ;-)

I do think IBM's outsourcing the original was a good thing... not necessarily for them, but it lead to the plethora of cheaper clones out there.