Linked by Thom Holwerda on Tue 14th Aug 2012 12:13 UTC
"Back in 2005, we charted 30 years of personal computer market share to show graphically how the industry had developed, who succeeded and when, and how some iconic names eventually faded away completely. With the rise of whole new classes of 'personal computers' - tablets and smartphones - it's worth updating all the numbers once more. And when we do so, we see something surprising: the adoption rates for our beloved mobile devices absolutely blow away the last few decades of desktop computer growth. People are adopting new technology faster than ever before." BeOS not mentioned. Would not read again. 2/10.
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Member since:2011-05-12
Member since:2005-12-18
Member since:2005-07-06
Member since:2006-11-12
The first true "personal computer" was the Altair
No, it was the "Micral", try again ;-)
No, it was the "Micral", try again ;-)
Try again.
The Heathkit EC-1 was probably the first "personal" computer when it appeared in 1959 or 1960, in the Heathkit consumer catalog: http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?st=1&c=787
Actually, there were other less sophisticated computers sold to the public earlier in the 1950s
Member since:2006-01-11
Okay, granted, analog computers predates digital ones !
At first, I was pissed by the juxstaposition of the Altair, which was for geeks and specialists and the iPad, for the masses.
This history also completely misses a very important type of electronic device: The programmable Calculator ! (HP, Texas, Sharp, Casio...). For example the HP-65 is contemporaneous to the Altair.
Edited 2012-08-14 23:19 UTC
Member since:2005-07-06
>it was the "Micral", try again ;-)
Try again.
The Heathkit EC-1 was probably the first "personal" computer when it appeared in 1959 or 1960, in the Heathkit consumer catalog: http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?st=1&c=787
Actually, there were other less sophisticated computers sold to the public earlier in the 1950s
Try again.
The Heathkit EC-1 was probably the first "personal" computer when it appeared in 1959 or 1960, in the Heathkit consumer catalog: http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?st=1&c=787
Actually, there were other less sophisticated computers sold to the public earlier in the 1950s
Which couldn't be used for general computation... I think it's more about roughly Turing-complete machines, and preferably microcomputers (based on a microprocessor, making them affordable)
It's not only about affordability, also what one could do with it, how distanced a given machine is from our concept of "personal computer" - if we count such analogue machines (in essence, not significantly different from a mechanical thermostat), we might as well ...a "sliding" aid to mental computation (forgot EN name), more or less the same mode of using it (and why not earlier computation aides, or even tables and abacuses?). Or those: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_home_computers#Cardboard_and_d...
Micral seems like a decent candidate... (or maybe the likes of Datapoint 2200, or http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIR_(computer) - don't know / don't care if MIR is the "first" of such kind, I simply had it in recent browsing history)
The article also fails to plot ZX Spectrum - with over 5 million units sold in its series (not counting clones), it should be numerous enough...
Edited 2012-08-22 00:19 UTC
Member since:2007-10-13
Features
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/24/13 17:26 UTC
So, the Xbox One disaster continues. Microsoft's policy for dealing with the used games market has reportedly leaked - and it's a clear and direct attack to destroy the used games market. Prices for used games will be set at the retail value of a new game, and retailers have to hook into Microsoft's computer systems and comply with Microsoft's terms and conditions.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/21/13 21:38 UTC
At an event earlier today, Microsoft unveiled the next Xbox - the third model, but confusingly named Xbox One. The big focus was TV, integrated Kinect, and all the other stuff we all expected to be forced down our throats. I think it took them 25 minutes to actually come to what should be the core of the story: gaming. Nothing groundbreaking in the gaming department, except for how Microsoft intends to handle the used games market and borrowing games from friends: pay up, buddy!
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/20/13 11:29 UTC
The day has finally come! Jolla has finally announced the launch device for its Sailfish operating system - and by god this is a looker. It's decidedly different from other phones out there, but it has good specifications and carries a relatively reasonably price tag - EUR 399, and it's up for pre-order today, shipping in the fourth quarter of this year.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/18/13 21:33 UTC
Why does Google get so much credit in the technology industry? Why, despite the company's many obvious failings, do many geeks and enthusiasts still hold a somewhat positive view on the all-knowing technology giant? A specific talk at Google I/O this week provides the answer.
Linked by David Adams on 05/16/13 4:23 UTC
OSNews is a sponsor of this year's O'Reilly OSCON in Portland, Oregon, USA. A lucky OSNews reader will win a free three-day pass, including two tutorials days. To win the pass, post a comment on this story saying something about Open Source Software or OSCON. We'll pick a winner at random next week. If you don't have an OSNews account, you may email us your entry. Part of the conference is the 9th annual Open Source Awards, and today the 16th is the deadline for nominations. If you'd like to nominate an outstanding open source contributor, do it here. Read on for more information about OSCON. Update: The 20% discount code for OSNews readers is "OSN."
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/11/13 21:41 UTC
"Windows is indeed slower than other operating systems in many scenarios, and the gap is worsening." That's one way to start an insider explanation of why Windows' performance isn't up to snuff. Written by someone who actually contributes code to the Windows NT kernel, the comment on Hacker News, later deleted but reposted with permission on Marc Bevand's blog, paints a very dreary picture of the state of Windows development. The root issue? Think of how Linux is developed, and you'll know the answer.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/08/13 14:22 UTC
This is one of those news items that's fun to write, fun to read, fun to comment on, and where no one will be able to say anything unkind. It's all just one big ball of awesome fluffiness. TuneTracker, the BeOS radio automation software, has just released something very special: TuneTracker System 5, the first version designed entirely and specifically for Haiku. In fact, it actually includes Haiku in the software package. Better yet, TuneTracker also unveiled several system-in-a-box products - which have Haiku and TuneTracker pre-installed.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/02/13 15:28 UTC
Exactly twenty years ago, a document was published that played a huge role in establishing the web as we know it today. Twenty years later, and this simple and straightforward document is proof of an irrefutable fact: while closed technologies can change markets, open technologies can change the world.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/29/13 21:06 UTC
Oh multitasking. That staple of computing that got thrown out the window with many modern smartphones. We got some rudimentary thing in its place - but even as multitasking on phone and tablets improves, its user-visible side remains cumbersome. Windows 8 has a neat implementation, and now it's time Android follows in it footsteps.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/24/13 22:24 UTC
They're here! Whether that excites you or not remains to be seen, but the Galaxy S4, which will most likely become the best selling Android smartphone of the year by a huge margin, has been reviewed by all the major sites, and there's lots of interesting conclusions in there - although I think most of you will get the gist.More Features »
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Member since:
2006-01-11
The first true "personal computer" was the Altair
No, it was the "Micral", try again ;-)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Micral