IBM

RISCy business: The long and convoluted rise of today's dominant computing platform

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In the 1980s, RISC was the future. By the early 2000s, it was the past. And now it's the future again.

The future looks a lot like mainframe computing

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In the early days of technology, mainframe computing ruled the world. And it looks like we're returning to that computing paradigm again.

Mastering the Zen of TrackPoint

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The TrackPoint is that weird round thingy on laptop keyboards that few know how to use. But if you get the hang of it, you'll navigate your system like a Zen master.

Halt and Catch Fire

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The best drama set amidst the backdrop of the computer revolution.

The dawn of personal computing

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The coolest oil painting for a vintage computer enthusiast (such as myself).

Anatomy of an AS/400

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The AS/400 was perhaps the most stable and useful system of the early 1990s. Many companies ran their financials (at minimum) on this platform.

IBM hard drive from 1981

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And it makes a wicked coffee table too!

Are you a Mac or a PC?

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This question dates back to the early 1990s. Yes, you can like both Apple Macs and Windows PCs, but there must be one that you like a bit more than the other, and the answer is widely considered a reflection on your personality.

2. Retro Computers

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I collect vintage computers, and this page is dedicated to my favourites. The first part discusses the old personal computers of the 1970s-1990s (Apple, Commodore, Tandy, IBM, Atari, Sinclair, ColecoVision, Osborne, Kaypro and GRiD) while the second part discusses the high-end (and costly) UNIX workstations of the 1990s and early 2000s (SUN, Tadpole, SGI, DEC, NeXT and HP).