0_Wizard
I think IBM is my favorite tech company.  The invented the floppy disk and the harddrive. Do you like IBM? 
Inventions by IBM include the automated teller machine (ATM), the PC, the floppy disk, the hard disk drive, the magnetic stripe card, the relational database, the SQL programming language, the UPC barcode, and dynamic random-access memory (DRAM).
chosen_IBM_0
IBM
chosen_topic_0_IBM
IBM Personal Computer
The IBM Personal Computer, commonly known as the IBM PC, is the original version and progenitor of the IBM PC compatible hardware platform. It is IBM model number 5150, and was introduced on August 12, 1981. It was created by a team of engineers and designers under the direction of Don Estridge of the IBM Entry Systems Division in Boca Raton, Florida. The generic term "personal computer" was in use before 1981, applied as early as 1972 to the Xerox PARC's Alto, but because of the success of the IBM Personal Computer, the term "PC" came to mean more specifically a desktop microcomputer compatible with IBM's "Personal Computer" branded products.
Floppy disk
A floppy disk, also called a floppy, diskette, or just disk, is a type of disk storage composed of a disk of thin and flexible magnetic storage medium, sealed in a rectangular plastic enclosure lined with fabric that removes dust particles. Floppy disks are read and written by a floppy disk drive (FDD). Floppy disks, initially as media and later in 5¼-inch (133 mm) and 3½-inch (90 mm) sizes, were a ubiquitous form of data storage and exchange from the mid-1970s into the first years of the 21st century. By 2006 computers were rarely manufactured with installed floppy disk drives; 3½-inch floppy disks can be used with an external USB floppy disk drive, but USB drives for 5¼-inch, 8-inch, and non-standard diskettes are rare to non-existent.
History of the floppy disk
A floppy disk is a disk storage medium composed of a disk of thin and flexible magnetic storage medium encased in a rectangular plastic carrier. It is read and written using a floppy disk drive (FDD). Floppy disks were an almost universal data format from the late 1970s into the 1990s, used at first as a primary data storage mechanism, and later mostly as a file transfer system as part of what became known as "sneakernet". Work on a drive that led to the world's first floppy disk and disk drive began in 1967 at a San Jose (CA) IBM facility, and introduced into the market in an 8-inch format in 1972.
History of IBM magnetic disk drives
IBM manufactured magnetic disk storage devices from 1956 to 2003, when it sold its hard disk drive business to Hitachi. Both the hard disk drive (HDD) and floppy disk drive (FDD) were invented by IBM and as such IBM's employees were responsible for many of the innovations in these products and their technologies. The basic mechanical arrangement of hard disk drives has not changed since the IBM 1301. Disk drive performance and characteristics are measured by the same standards now as they were in the 1950s. Few products in history have enjoyed such spectacular declines in cost and size along with equally dramatic improvements in capacity and performance.
Tandy 1000
The Tandy 1000 was the first in a line of more-or-less IBM PC compatible home computer systems produced by the Tandy Corporation for sale in its RadioShack chain of stores. In December 1983 an executive with Tandy Corporation, maker of TRS-80 computers, said about the new IBM PCjr home computer: "I'm sure a lot of people will be coming out with PCjr look-alikes. The market is big." Released in November 1984, the $1,200 Tandy 1000 was designed as an inexpensive PC clone with enhancements compatible with the PCjr, but with a better keyboard. "How could IBM have made that mistake with the PCjr?" an amazed Tandy executive said regarding its chiclet keyboard, and another claimed that the 1000 "is what the PCjr should have been".
Home computer
Home computers were a class of microcomputers entering the market in 1977, and becoming common during the 1980s. They were marketed to consumers as affordable and accessible computers that, for the first time, were intended for the use of a single nontechnical user. These computers were a distinct market segment that typically cost much less than business, scientific or engineering-oriented computers of the time such as the IBM PC, and were generally less powerful in terms of memory and expandability. However, a home computer often had better graphics and sound than contemporary business computers.
BIOS
For IBM PC compatible computers, BIOS ( ; an acronym for Basic Input/Output System and also known as the System BIOS, ROM BIOS or PC BIOS) is non-volatile firmware used to perform hardware initialization during the booting process (power-on startup), and to provide runtime services for operating systems and programs. The BIOS firmware comes pre-installed on a personal computer's system board, and it is the first software run when powered on. The name originates from the Basic Input/Output System used in the CP/M operating system in 1975. Originally proprietary to the IBM PC, the BIOS has been reverse engineered by companies looking to create compatible systems.
1_Apprentice
I do and have always been a fan of their products!
0_Wizard
Do you know that the Personal Computer was IBM's invention too? 
The IBM Personal Computer, commonly known as the IBM PC, is the original version and progenitor of the IBM PC compatible hardware platform.
self_IBM_Personal_Computer_0
IBM Personal Computer
self_0_IBM_Personal_Computer
IBM Personal Computer
The IBM Personal Computer, commonly known as the IBM PC, is the original version and progenitor of the IBM PC compatible hardware platform. It is IBM model number 5150, and was introduced on August 12, 1981. It was created by a team of engineers and designers under the direction of Don Estridge of the IBM Entry Systems Division in Boca Raton, Florida. The generic term "personal computer" was in use before 1981, applied as early as 1972 to the Xerox PARC's Alto, but because of the success of the IBM Personal Computer, the term "PC" came to mean more specifically a desktop microcomputer compatible with IBM's "Personal Computer" branded products.
History of personal computers
The history of the personal computer as a mass-market consumer electronic device began with the microcomputer revolution of the 1980s. The 1981 launch of the IBM Personal Computer coined both the term "Personal Computer" and "PC". A personal computer is one intended for interactive individual use, as opposed to a mainframe computer where the end user's requests are filtered through operating staff, or a time-sharing system in which one large processor is shared by many individuals. After the development of the microprocessor, individual personal computers were low enough in cost that they eventually became affordable consumer goods.
History of IBM
International Business Machines, or IBM, nicknamed "Big Blue", is a multinational computer technology and IT consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM originated from the bringing together of several companies that worked to automate routine business transactions. In 1911 the company that leased Unit record equipment, especially Hollerith punched cards and card readers to government bureaus and insurance agencies, became the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company (CTR). Thomas J. Watson (1874-1956) took over in 1924, using the name "International Business Machines."
Personal computer
A personal computer (PC) is a multi-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and price make it feasible for individual use. PCs are intended to be operated directly by an end user, rather than by a computer expert or technician. Computer time-sharing models that were typically used with larger, more expensive minicomputer and mainframe systems, to enable them be used by many people at the same time, are not used with PCs. Early computer owners in the 1960s, invariably institutional or corporate, had to write their own programs to do any useful work with the machines. In the 2010s, personal computer users have access to a wide range of commercial software, free software ("freeware") and free and open-source software, which are provided in ready-to-run form.
Lenovo
Lenovo Group Ltd. or Lenovo PC International, often shortened to Lenovo ( ; formerly stylized as lenovo), is a Chinese multinational technology company with headquarters in Beijing, China and Morrisville, North Carolina. It designs, develops, manufactures and sells personal computers, tablet computers, smartphones, workstations, servers, electronic storage devices, IT management software, and smart televisions. Lenovo is the world's largest personal computer vendor by unit sales since 2013. It markets the ThinkPad line of notebook computers, IdeaPad, Yoga and Legion and lines of notebook laptops, and the IdeaCentre and ThinkCentre lines of desktops.
Influence of the IBM PC on the personal computer market
Following the introduction of the IBM Personal Computer, or IBM PC, many other personal computer architectures became extinct within just a few years. Before the IBM PC was introduced, the personal computer market was dominated by systems using the 6502 and Z80 8-bit microprocessors, such as the TRS 80, Commodore PET and Apple II series, which used proprietary operating systems, and by computers running CP/M. After IBM introduced the IBM PC, it was not until 1984 that IBM PC and clones became the dominant computers. In 1983, Byte forecast that by 1990, IBM would command only 11% of business computer sales.
Compaq
Compaq (a portmanteau of Compatibility And Quality; occasionally referred to as CQ prior to its final logo) was a company founded in 1982 that developed, sold, and supported computers and related products and services. Compaq produced some of the first IBM PC compatible computers, being the first company to legally reverse engineer the IBM Personal Computer. It rose to become the largest supplier of PC systems during the 1990s before being overtaken by Hewlett-Packard (HP) in 2001. Struggling to keep up in the price wars against Dell, as well as with a risky acquisition of Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), Compaq was acquired for US$25 billion by HP in 2002.
1_Apprentice
No - I didn't realize that? Are you big into technology?
0_Wizard
Yes I enjoy technology.  Ever since they released the personal computer in the early 80s. 
The 1981 launch of the IBM Personal Computer coined both the term "Personal Computer" and "PC".
self_History_of_personal_computers_1
History of personal computers
self_1_History_of_personal_computers
IBM Personal Computer
The IBM Personal Computer, commonly known as the IBM PC, is the original version and progenitor of the IBM PC compatible hardware platform. It is IBM model number 5150, and was introduced on August 12, 1981. It was created by a team of engineers and designers under the direction of Don Estridge of the IBM Entry Systems Division in Boca Raton, Florida. The generic term "personal computer" was in use before 1981, applied as early as 1972 to the Xerox PARC's Alto, but because of the success of the IBM Personal Computer, the term "PC" came to mean more specifically a desktop microcomputer compatible with IBM's "Personal Computer" branded products.
History of personal computers
The history of the personal computer as a mass-market consumer electronic device began with the microcomputer revolution of the 1980s. The 1981 launch of the IBM Personal Computer coined both the term "Personal Computer" and "PC". A personal computer is one intended for interactive individual use, as opposed to a mainframe computer where the end user's requests are filtered through operating staff, or a time-sharing system in which one large processor is shared by many individuals. After the development of the microprocessor, individual personal computers were low enough in cost that they eventually became affordable consumer goods.
Personal computer
A personal computer (PC) is a multi-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and price make it feasible for individual use. PCs are intended to be operated directly by an end user, rather than by a computer expert or technician. Computer time-sharing models that were typically used with larger, more expensive minicomputer and mainframe systems, to enable them be used by many people at the same time, are not used with PCs. Early computer owners in the 1960s, invariably institutional or corporate, had to write their own programs to do any useful work with the machines. In the 2010s, personal computer users have access to a wide range of commercial software, free software ("freeware") and free and open-source software, which are provided in ready-to-run form.
Lenovo
Lenovo Group Ltd. or Lenovo PC International, often shortened to Lenovo ( ; formerly stylized as lenovo), is a Chinese multinational technology company with headquarters in Beijing, China and Morrisville, North Carolina. It designs, develops, manufactures and sells personal computers, tablet computers, smartphones, workstations, servers, electronic storage devices, IT management software, and smart televisions. Lenovo is the world's largest personal computer vendor by unit sales since 2013. It markets the ThinkPad line of notebook computers, IdeaPad, Yoga and Legion and lines of notebook laptops, and the IdeaCentre and ThinkCentre lines of desktops.
Intel
Intel Corporation (also known as Intel, stylized as intel) is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Santa Clara, California, in the Silicon Valley. It is the world's second largest and second highest valued semiconductor chip makers based on revenue after being overtaken by Samsung, and is the inventor of the x86 series of microprocessors, the processors found in most personal computers (PCs). Intel supplies processors for computer system manufacturers such as Apple, Lenovo, HP, and Dell. Intel also manufactures motherboard chipsets, network interface controllers and integrated circuits, flash memory, graphics chips, embedded processors and other devices related to communications and computing.
Steve Jobs
Steven Paul Jobs (; February 24, 1955 – October 5, 2011) was an American entrepreneur, business magnate, inventor, and industrial designer. He was the chairman, chief executive officer (CEO), and co-founder of Apple Inc.; CEO and majority shareholder of Pixar; a member of The Walt Disney Company's board of directors following its acquisition of Pixar; and the founder, chairman, and CEO of NeXT. Jobs and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak are widely recognized as pioneers of the microcomputer revolution of the 1970s and 1980s. He was born in San Francisco to parents who had to put him up for adoption at birth; he was raised in the San Francisco Bay Area during the 1960s.
Macintosh
The Macintosh ( ; branded as Mac since 1998) is a family of personal computers designed, manufactured, and sold by Apple Inc. since January 1984. The original Macintosh was the company's first mass-market personal computer that featured a graphical user interface, built-in screen and mouse. Apple sold the Macintosh alongside its popular Apple II family of computers for almost ten years before the latter was cancelled in 1993. Early Macintosh models were expensive, hindering its competitiveness in a market already dominated by the Commodore 64 for consumers, as well as the IBM Personal Computer and its accompanying clone market for businesses.
1_Apprentice
Wow - has it been that long? Hard to imagine what life was like without them!