IBM WAS FORMED in the early 20th
century by people who invented the
kind of punch-card machines and
tabulators that revolutionized the
previous century. IBM introduced
big data to the US government,
with its equipment keeping track
of millions of employment records
in the 1930s. It gave us magnetic
swipe cards, the hard disk, the
floppy disk, and even ATMs. It would
develop the first demonstration of
AI, and be integral to NASA space
programs. IBM has employed five
Nobel Prize winners, six Turing
Award recipients, and is one of the
world’s largest employers.
When it came to respected
marques, you couldn’t get much
higher than IBM, and the top brass
knew it—to say the corporate
culture was stuffy would be an
understatement. Company pride
and loyalty was instilled in all
workers. IBM bosses insisted on
well-groomed salesmen, with dark
suits, white shirts, and “sincere”
ties—there was even an IBM anthem
and songbook. IBM’s mainframecomputers dominated the ’60s
and ’70s, and that grip on the
industry gave IBM an almost instant
association with computers in the
minds of American consumers. But
trouble was on the horizon.
The late ’70s were saturated by
“microcomputers” from the likes
of Apple, Commodore, Atari, and
Tandy. IBM was losing customers
as giant mainframes made way
for microcomputers. As similarly
large manufacturers were about to
launch micros of their own, trying a
new form of desktop computer
was a way to fight back against
rivals, but it would take a
monumental shift in strategy.
IBM took years to develop
anything, with endless layers
of bureaucracy, testing every
detail before releasing
anything to market. Its
chief business in the ’60s
was huge mainframes
that filled entire floors
of a building, and
took squads of
people to run, whilethe so-called “minicomputers” of
mid-’60s and ’70s were still the size
of a refrigerator.
IBM was a long way from offering
simple and (relatively) affordable
desktop computers, and didn’t
even have experience with retail
stores. Meanwhile, microcomputer
manufacturers were developing
new models in months, and there
was no way IBM could keep up while
sticking to traditional methods.ASSEMBLING THE CREW
In August 1979, the heads of IBM
met to discuss the growing threat
of microcomputers, and their need
to develop a personal computer in
retaliation. IBM president John Opel
already recognized the potential in
personal computers, but could also
see the weakness in IBM’s existing
methods. In order to encourage
innovation, IBM created a series of
Independent Business Units, which
were given a level of autonomy.
One of these would soon be led by
executive Bill Lowe, who would
become the father of the PC.
In 1980, Lowe promised he could
turn out a model within a year if he
wasn’t constrained by IBM’s
methods. Lowe’s initial
research led him to Atari,
which was keen to work
for IBM as an OEM builder,
proposing a machine based
on the Atari 800 line. Lowe
suggested IBM should
acquire Atari, but IBM
rejected the idea in
favor of developing a
new IBM model instead.
This model was to
be developed within the
year, with Lowe given anContrary to popular belief, the IBM PC was not the first personal computer, nor
was it the first desktop computer by IBM. Microcomputers existed long before
“the PC,” and as for IBM itself, desktop computers had already been developed,
though in very different forms to the PC we know now.
In 1973, IBM developed a prototype computer called SCAMP, which emulated
an IBM 1130 minicomputer in a “portable” (we use the term loosely) boxed form
factor, with a small monitor and keyboard built in.
Perhaps of most interest in relation to the 5150 Personal Computer is 1975’s
IBM PC 5100. Before you start jumping up and down, here the “PC” actually
stands for “Portable Computer.” This was similar to the SCAMP, but designed for
mass manufacture, using an IBM PALM CPU. A good 64KB model cost just under
$20,000, and that’s in 1975 money.
Finally, there’s IBM’s System/23 Datamaster, released just before the PC.
This was a definite desktop computer, with a relatively compact footprint, but it
ran an 8-bit Intel 8085 CPU, and had two 8-inch floppy drives. Interestingly, the
System/23 used the new Model F keyboard before the PC.Desktop Predecessors
The IBM PC 5150 wasn’t
the first IBM computer to
be called “PC.”THE LEAD UP TO THE PC
For decades, IBM was king,
but the late 1970s brought
a change in direction
At last, the PC,
the IBM 5150,
is ready to take
on the world.the history of the PC
42 MAXIMUMPC DEC 2019 maximumpc.com