Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2007 23:49:13 -0700 From: woodelf <bfranchuk at jetnet.ab.ca> Subject: Re: Why blinkenlights ? M H Stein wrote: ------------------- Well, unlike the Altair, a computer that didn't run any software wouldn't have sold very well in 1979; what do you call software, and how much'll you let me expand it? They did have BASIC, Forth and PL/65 (and an assembler of course), Serial I/O and two expansion busses, but although you could connect a terminal and disk drives I think CP/M would be a bit of a challenge... wouldn't want to run a Fortune 500's accounting on it and end up like the Enron & Worldcom boys (and our very own Lord Black of Crossharbour, presently starring in Chicago ;-). But being (AC-powered) portable with a full keyboard and an integral 20 or 40 column display & printer, there were quite a few applications for them on their own (e.g. insurance agents used them on the road, later moving to the more or less functionally equivalent but smaller Panasonic HHC). They were also used a fair bit in the lab & industrial area. m