I is for IBM
This month I'm participating in the A to Z Challenge. My theme is the 80s. Today's letter is:
In the 80s, something happened that would change humanity forever. On August 12, 1981, IBM debuted the first ever personal computer, the 5150:
At first PCs were mostly for schools and turbo-geeks. The turbo-geeks used them for very early versions of video games.
Then Steve Jobs came along and decided the personal computing experience had to go beyond geeks. It had to be so sleek, everyone would want to use it. In 1983, the world's first user-friendly computer, the Lisa (also the name of the daughter he initially denied was his), was born.
Something about that reminds me of the first version of Windows I saw--Windows 3.1. In 1983, though, Apple seemed to be winning the war to make the personal computer seem cool. Here's a 1983 Lisa ad featuring a pre-fame Kevin Costner.
Of course, I have to mention the most famous Apple commercial ever, which only aired twice on American television (once during the 1984 Super Bowl). Yet it's the probably one of the best-known commercials of all time.
Let's end the myth that Microsoft ripped off Apple's operating system, though. It's pretty much become understood that they all ripped off Xerox. This was Xerox's Star Workstation, released in 1981. Does this look a little like Apple's Lisa? Windows 3.1?
What was the first computer you ever owned?
In the 80s, something happened that would change humanity forever. On August 12, 1981, IBM debuted the first ever personal computer, the 5150:
At first PCs were mostly for schools and turbo-geeks. The turbo-geeks used them for very early versions of video games.
Then Steve Jobs came along and decided the personal computing experience had to go beyond geeks. It had to be so sleek, everyone would want to use it. In 1983, the world's first user-friendly computer, the Lisa (also the name of the daughter he initially denied was his), was born.
Something about that reminds me of the first version of Windows I saw--Windows 3.1. In 1983, though, Apple seemed to be winning the war to make the personal computer seem cool. Here's a 1983 Lisa ad featuring a pre-fame Kevin Costner.
Of course, I have to mention the most famous Apple commercial ever, which only aired twice on American television (once during the 1984 Super Bowl). Yet it's the probably one of the best-known commercials of all time.
Let's end the myth that Microsoft ripped off Apple's operating system, though. It's pretty much become understood that they all ripped off Xerox. This was Xerox's Star Workstation, released in 1981. Does this look a little like Apple's Lisa? Windows 3.1?
What was the first computer you ever owned?
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