The IBM (I've Been Mulling) PC - test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

9 May 2009

...
  I am sure somebody would have coded Lotus to some
other
 desktop x86 type PC and it would have taken off. 
 123 was modified to run on a number of pseudo-compatibles. None of them took off. Were
taken off the desktop oftentimes, and replaced w/an IBM or close-clone.

 The Apple
...
  II took off just because of visivcalc. I view the apps
as
 being more important then the hardware. 
 Apps can't run w/o h/w. H/w can't run w/o apps.  You can have a really nice app,
but no good h/w to run it on (ironically Jobs wrote the BASIC interpreter for the Apple 1
before the h/w was designed). And you can have really nifty h/w wit no apps. It's a
matter of what platform the apps are going to be written for.The market to a large degree
decides this, but the hardwarez got something to do w/i too.

 The IBM PC became a
...
  huge hit because it was an open architecture and it
had IBM
 backing, the clones just made it more universal with
 companies having the expensive IBM and Compaq machines and
 home users had the lesser clones. I don't think the PC
 explosion would have come about without the clones. 
 Explosion are inevitable. Hopefully your particular piece of hardware didn't explode
(too often). Mine did from time to time. The microcomputer explosion was inevitable. But
what the market needed was a fine StrongMan to take control and guide is into brainless
compatibility. And what a fine time to have such a brilliant teleprompt reciter in the
White House to guide us into becoming mindless liberal drones.