Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx X
xXxxxx xxxxx xx x xxxxx-xxx xxxxxxx xxxx xxxxxxxx XXX Xxxxxxx,
XXX xxxxxxxx, xxx x xxx XXXX xxxx.100
GREATEST OF ALL TIMEMAXIMUMPC DECEMBER 2007
82
FLASH MEMORY (1984)
While best known for its use as
camera memory in prod-
ucts such as SD cards,
fl ash is now making its
way into solid-state hard
drives and other perfor-
mance-boosting applica-
tions in PCs.81
BITTORRENT (2001) BitTorrent’s
ultimate impact is probably yet to
be seen: Some estimates say the extremely
popular P2P protocol now consumes up to
75 percent of all net traffi c.80
ATA (1986) Western Digital pio-
neered this ribbon-cable stan-
dard for hard drive connections more
than 20 years ago, despite early cables
that were prone to shorting and breaking
down altogether.79
HP LASERJET III (1990)
This workhorse printer became
a mainstay in offi ce environments, where
you can still fi nd
them cranking
out pages today.
In 1991, the
LaserJet IIISi
introduced net-
work printing to
the world while
simultaneously ensuring continued work
for IT guys.78
RED HAT LINUX (1995) A
pioneer in commercial Linux soft-
ware, Red Hat legitimized the open-source
space and helped other projects, such as
Ubuntu (see #50), get their footing.77
CAMBRIDGE SOUNDWORKS
MICROWORKS (1996)
Cambridge SoundWorks invented the satel-
lite/subwoofer concept, and its introduction
of the divine 2.1-channel MicroWorks blew
the PC market wide open. Eleven years later,
our Lab set is still thumpin’.76
TRS-80 COLOR COMPUTER
(1980) This chunky, supercheap
proto-PC at least looked like a computer,
introducing many to BASIC and LOGO
programming, as well as the joys of the
tape drive.75
OSBORNE 1 (1981) A pre-
Compaq “luggable,” the Osborne 1
was a CP/M machine that came preloaded
with business applications like WordStar.
Osborne’s meteoric rise and almost imme-
diate fall are one of computing’s great and
tragic yarns.74
EUDORA (1988) Originally
the programming project of a
University of Illinois student, Eudora
made the world of email available to mil-
lions of consumers—those who didn’t
use AOL, anyway.73
MITS ALTAIR 8800 (1975)
This “lowercase” pc featured an
Intel 8080 CPU and was primarily a kit
computer for hobbyists, sold via an ad
in Popular Electronics. This early bird
turned people on to the primitive possi-
bilities of ’puters.