History MediaNotes / ComputerWars

[[caption-width-right:350:You'll notice that this Apple ][ looks a lot less intimidating than the Altair.]]

[[caption-width-right:350:Imagine a calculator, except you have to enter every number in binary.]]



Before the 1970s, "home computers" didn't exist, for the same reason home x-ray machines do not exist. No one would spend the $10,000 on one, and they were better left to the professionals. When the price of computers fell enough that people could actually afford one for personal use, the market was restricted to hobbyists with electrical engineering backgrounds, who mainly wanted to tinker with computers. It was in this market climate that the $430 Altair 8800 computer kit was sold in 1975, and it explains how a computer that was barebones even compared to a 70s calculator could be soc commercially successful.

The pre-Internet users of computers can roughly be divided into 4 groups, who came into existence one after the other. There were the hobbyists and engineers, then the business and education class, then the gamers, then the media producers like writers, musicians and artists. But for any of these groups to exist, computers had to be cheap enough for the average person to buy and use in their home.

Before 1975, "personal computers" didn't exist. The only places that even had a computer were laboratories, colleges, military sites, and the homes of a handful of geeky hobbyists, and the few attempts to sell home computers during the 1970-74 period...[[http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=927&st=1 didn't work out too well.]] But when the MITS Altair 8800 was released in February 1975...well, it didn't change much. But it was the first computer that people could afford to use in their homes. It had a 2 Mhz Intel 8080 processor [[note]](as a comparison, the computer this was typed on has a 2,800 Mhz one)[[/note]], 256 '''bytes''' of RAM, and didn't even come assembled...but at the time was considered small, inexpensive, and due to MITS' innovative S-100 bus, extremely expandable. Its appearance on the January 1975 cover of ''Popular Electronics'' probably didn't hurt, either. Thus, the MITS was able to sell 10,000 8800s.

If you didn't have a terminal to attach the 8800 to and a programming language like BASIC (which ported to the 8800 as Microsoft's first project), you had to tediously enter binary values into it, one memory address at a time, using the [=LEDs=] and switches on the front panel. The abstractions that make modern programming easier do not exist on the stock 8800. As revolutionary as it was, the average person had no use for this device.

In 1977, a triumvirate of companies simultaneously introduced home computers to the masses. Unlike the Altair days, what drove people to these systems were not the hardware, but the software. The idea of buying software to do something you need ([[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VisiCalc like processing spreadsheets]]), saving your data to a removable storage device, and reading the data on another computer, became mainstream during this era. While these systems were primitive to the point where many couldn't display real images, just being able to store and retrieve data was enough to make them massively popular in the world of business, education and government.

The second company was Tandy (now Radio Shack), which introduced its much cheaper TRS-80 machine a few months after Apple. Affectionately known as the "Trash-80", it was a basic little machine with a black-and-white monitor (later built into the case itself), a "bouncy" keyboard (read: yoouu enndded upp tttypinngg likke thisss), and a huge number of accessories including a 5 MB hard drive...for the low price of $1,500. Though popular, it failed to match Apple's success. Its legacy is present in ''WebAnimation/HomestarRunner'', as the fictional "Tandy 400" model was the first computer that Strong Bad used to check his emails.

The Commodore PET was based off the MOS KIM-1 hobbyist computer. Commodore acquired MOS in an attempt to use MOS' chips to build calculators, but realized too late that going up against Texas Instruments would end up with Commodore on the wrong end of a CurbStompBattle. With no other way to recoup their losses, Commodore turned to computers. The PET had [[http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/57/Commodore_PET2001.jpg an odd "Star Trek"-like design]][[note]]indeed, a PET even ended up '''on''' ''Franchise/StarTrek'', as a prop in Kirk's quarters in ''[[Film/StarTrekIITheWrathOfKhan The Wrath of Khan]][[/note]]'', with a cassette drive and an atrocious rubber "chiclet" keyboard built in. The graphics had a very distinctive look — games and other programs had to make do with simplistic [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ASCII_art ASCII-like art]] on a black-and-green monitor. While the PET didn't sell as well as its competitors, it did introduce Commodore to the computer business and paved the way for their mega-popular VIC-20 and C64 lines.

Similar to the dotcom boom of TheNineties, companies looked at Tandy, Commodore, Apple, and the other early adopters and saw huge freakin' dollar signs, releasing their own computers so they too could have a slice of the pie. The market exploded with literally ''hundreds'' of 8-bit machines, often having as little common between them as possible (with a notable exception of ''many'' of them sporting a Microsoft BASIC). On the other hand CP/M machines were strong as ever at this time, which is widely considered their highest moment in history. Some companies even started to dabble with 16-bit machines.

The most important of these was IBM, who [[ItWillNeverCatchOn after dismissing the idea of a personal computer]], turned around and released the IBM PC in August 1981. [[note]](Still, they had nothing on Digital president Ken Olsen, who once famously dismissed any notions of a PC in his infamous quip "No one would ever want a computer at home." He later tried to RetCon this as a reference to home automation, but given DEC's history it's hard to believe him.)[[/note]] The IBM PC was a remarkable computer because it was much like a classic CP/M system, only a lot less expensive — it had an open architecture (leading to third-party hardware makers and to clonemakers like Compaq), a relatively nice OS (DOS, CP/M-86, or, if you felt rich enough to afford not only the OS, but also a config it won't choke on, Microsoft Xenix or UCSD p-system [[note]](both were essentially minicomputer [=OSes=] ported to a PC, although Xenix greatly influenced DOS command language and its directory structure was later lifted into the DOS 2.1 wholesale)[[/note]], as opposed to the ROM BASIC of the VIC-20), and compatibility with minicomputer systems. It also launched Microsoft into the spotlight — they spent $50,000 to buy the rights to a CP/M clone called QDOS and hacked together a port of it for IBM's system called MS-DOS.

[=BeOS=], made by Apple alumnus Jean-Louis Gassée, is mostly a footnote — although it was enormously advanced and lightning-fast, the dominance of Windows and incompetent management caused it to be discontinued in 2000 (though the open-source Haiku project is trying to fix that). [=OS/2=] was IBM's ill-fated bid to retake the PC industry from Microsoft after an earlier betrayal that resulted in Windows NT, culminating in [[TotallyRadical OS/2 Warp]] before it died a [[TakeThat richly deserv]]-er, tragic death in obscurity (and rebirth as an embedded operating system for [=ATMs=]).

While Apple and IBM are still around today, the kings of the home computer business are the long-defunct companies Commodore and Sinclair. Commodore's VIC-20 and its replacement the C64 utterly destroyed most of the other 8-bits in the American home market, thanks to sometimes smart, sometimes morally-questionable tactics. For example, Commodore offered a $100 rebate to anyone who refunded another computer to Commodore. Taking advantage of this, some stores offered the Sinclair [=ZX81=] for as little as $10 (it was normally $100) with the purchase of a [=C64=], so that people could refund it to Commodore and basically purchase a [=C64=] for $100. Because of this, its market share jumped from 7% in 1982 to ''40%'' exactly one year later. Its excellent graphics and sound (for an 8-bit computer) also allowed it to steal market share from game consoles as well. (This caused [[UsefulNotes/PCVsConsole more wars]].)

It only failed to gain traction in the United Kingdom (and behind the Iron Curtain), where it was out-priced by Sinclair. Sinclair had spent years pursuing the goal of the world's cheapest home computer, and by 1984, Britons could get a $50 ZX81 or a $150 Spectrum. And they did - there has been nothing in the history of computing that matches the ZX Spectrum development community. It even pushed out game consoles like the NES due to its sheer value. In the East Bloc it was ''the'' home computer, as it was extremely easy to implement — it had none of the custom chips of the C64. [[FandomRivalry Just don't ask which one is better.]]

[[caption-width-right:350:The ancestor of almost all modern desktop OSes.]]

* '''Winner''': Ongoing, although Apple remains the company selling the most devices. [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usage_share_of_operating_systems#Mobile_devices In general]], the Linux-kernel-based-Android has an increasing lead, followed by Apple's iOS. Windows Phone 8 has peaked at around 5% in the US and Europe and then started a gradual decline; meanhwhile, [=BlackBerry=] has taken a complete nosedive, pressuring them into producing an Android device themselves, which makes the future of their own OS look ''very'' bleak.

* '''Winner''': Ongoing, although Apple remains the company selling the most devices. [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usage_share_of_operating_systems#Mobile_devices In general]], the Linux-kernel-based-Android has an increasing lead, followed by Apple's iOS. Windows Phone 8 has peaked at around 5% in the US and Europe and then started a gradual decline, while [=BlackBerry=] has taken a complete nosedive with few seeing much hope for it in the future.

As for other computers, the Apple [=IIc=] updated the older [=IIe=] and is fondly remembered by schoolchildren of the 1980s, and the IBM PC continued to climb in market share,. Apple also released their first GUI-driven computer, the Lisa during this war, and while it didn't make much traction due to its absurdly high price, it nevertheless gave the company valuable experience for their next product. In Japan {{MSX}} reigned supreme, though towards the end of this period much more powerful (but still [[NoExportForYou Japan-exclusive]]) 16/32-bit systems like the NEC {{PC98}}, the Fujitsu FM Towns and especially the SharpX68000 displaced it from the top.

* '''Sides''': The UsefulNotes/AppleMacintosh line, [[UsefulNotes/{{Amiga}} Commodore Amiga]], NEC {{PC98}}, SharpX68000, Fujitsu FM Towns, UsefulNotes/AtariST, Apple [=IIc/IIgs=], IBM PC clones, The UsefulNotes/{{MSX}} line up (again), and Commodore 64 (again).

On the other side of the IronCurtain, the situation curiously repeated the Western one, but lagged behind by 5-10 years. By that time [=PCs=] and their clones barely started to make a dent, as they were imported and thus extremely expensive, while on the home computer market the pitched battle raged between ZX Spectrum (technically, a hordes of locally-produced clones), the whole batch of indigenous 8-bit CP/M machines, and UsefulNotes/BK0010 (a Soviet home-computer-scaled PDP-11 clone). Various Commodore and Atari machines hardly marked on the radar — they had a lot of custom chips and couldn't be implemented on the local technical base, unlike the good ol' Speccy. It won the war on the home market in the end, but by the mid-1990s PC already was the king, and it just quietly died of old age.

If you didn't have a terminal to attach the 8800 to and a programming language like BASIC (which ported to the 8800 as Microsoft's first project), you had to tediously enter binary values into it, one memory address at a time, using the [=LEDs=] and switches on the front panel. The abstractions that make modern programming easier do not exist on the stock 8800. As revolutionary as it was, the average person had no use for this device. Instead, it was bought by hobbyists wanting to tinker with computers, and many of them would go on to design revolutionary computers themselves.

The low prices of these systems meant that almost anyone who wanted to program a computer could do so. Many coders in later decades started out with a C64 or Spectrum, and the avalanche of software made for them nearly [[UsefulNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983 made the game console extinct]]. Despite being low-end systems when they came out, both would last well into the 1990s.

While Apple and IBM are still around today, the kings of the home computer business are the long-defunct companies Commodore and Sinclair. Commodore's VIC-20 and its replacement the C64 utterly destroyed most of the other 8-bits in the American home market, thanks to sometimes smart, sometimes morally-questionable tactics. For example, Commodore offered a $100 rebate to anyone who refunded another computer to Commodore. Taking advantage of this, some stores offered the Sinclair [=ZX81=] for as little as $10 (it was normally $100) with the purchase of a [=C64=], so that people could refund it to Commodore and basically purchase a [=C64=] for $100. Because of this, its market share jumped from 7% in 1982 to ''40%'' exactly one year later. Its excellent graphics and sound (for an 8-bit computer) also allowed it to steal market share from game consoles as well. (This caused [[PCVsConsole more wars]].)

Its competitors dropped off the market one by one. The [=IIgs=] stopped being produced in 1990, and the [=IIc=] in 1993. The Atari ST vanished in the early 1990s. The Amiga and C64 stopped production shortly after the implosion of Commodore in 1994.

The pre-Internet users of computers can roughly be divided into 4 groups, who came into existence. There were the hobbyists and engineers, then the business and education class, then the gamers, then the media producers like writers, musicians and artists. But for any of these groups to exist, computers had to be cheap enough for the average person to buy and use in their home.

In 1977, a triumvirate of companies simultaneously introduced home computers to the masses. Apple, then consisting of Jobs, Wozniak and a single garage, introduced the Apple [=][=] computer system [[note]](the Apple I was released a year before, only selling 50 copies)[[/note]]. For $1,200 [[note]]By comparison, you could get a small, basic new car for under $3,000. $1,200 in 1977 corresponds to about $10,000 today.[[/note]], you got a whopping six colors (a huge step up from the usual two), 4 KB of RAM, and a cassette tape for loading programs. The "sound chip" consisted of a toggle circuit that emitted a click. But it was an advanced machine for its time and benefited from Apple's now-famous obsession with user-friendliness — it looked like an appliance instead of an intimidating hobbyist machine, which at the time was revolutionary; it was also a common sight in schools, and many children of TheEighties have "[[VideoGame/TheOregonTrail you have died of dysentery]]" burned into their brains. The Apple ][ series lasted until ''1993'', having sold nearly six million systems and cementing Apple's status as one of the largest computer companies.

With the release of a new generation of 16-bit systems, the relationship between the computer and its users changed dramatically. Computers were not something you bought to get a glimpse of the future, they were something you bought because you needed it. All of the competing computers from this era found an important niche: Television studios edited video on an Amiga, electronic musicians composed on an ST, accountants kept track of transactions on an IBM, and magazines were created and published on a Mac.

Broadly speaking, the competition between computer companies to increase their market share. More specifically, though, the Computer Wars refer to arguments (usually online) between computer users themselves as to the superiority of the various systems and companies. Even more specifically, the ones detailed on this page will refer to microcomputers, the type usually bought by people for personal use. (See MainframesAndMinicomputers as well)

If you didn't have a terminal to attach the 8800 to and a programming language like BASIC (which ported to the 8800 as Microsoft's first project), you had to tediously enter binary values into it, one memory address at a time, using the LEDs and switches on the screen. The abstractions that make modern programming easier do not exist on the 8800. As revolutionary as it was, the average person had no use for this device. Instead, it was bought by hobbyists wanting to tinker with computers, and many of them would go on to design revolutionary computers themselves.

Before 1975, "personal computers" didn't exist. The only places that even had a computer were laboratories, colleges, military sites, and the homes of a handful of geeky hobbyists, and the few attempts to sell home computers during the 1970-74 period...[[http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=927&st=1 didn't work out too well.]] But when the MITS Altair 8800 was released in February 1975...well, it didn't change much. But it was the first computer that people could afford to use in their homes. It had a 2 Mhz Intel 8080 processor [[note]](as a comparison, the computer this was typed on has a 2,800 Mhz one)[[/note]], 256 '''bytes''' of RAM, and didn't even come assembled...but at the time was considered small, inexpensive, and due to MITS' innovative S-100 bus, extremely expandable. Its appearance on the January 1975 cover of ''Popular Electronics'' probably didn't hurt, either. Thus, the MITS was able to sell 10,000 8800s and introduce thousands of people to programming through the BASIC programming language, supplied by a then-tiny startup company called "Micro-Soft".

Broadly speaking, the competition between computer companies to increase their market share. More specifically, though, the Computer Wars refer to arguments (usually online) between computer users themselves as to the superiority of the various systems and companies. Even more specifically, the ones detailed on this page will refer to microcomputers, the type usually bought by people for personal use. (See MainframesAndMinicomputers as well)

Computer wars were at their peak back in the 1970s-80s, when there was the most competition. Any geek living at that time would know that putting two fans of rival computers next to each other was ''not'' a good idea (and, in fact, it's '''still''' not a good idea). Some of these battles have been raging for decades now, and [[InternetBackdraft pity the poor newbie who gets caught in the middle]].

[[quoteright:551:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/b57f28994a59cff66809ca63c0d82fd4.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:551:A 1984 British computer ad showing the dizzying array of options.]]

[[caption-width-right:350:Windows 95: So modern, but so old that younger people won't even remember seeing this image.]]

[[header:The 8-bit era (and the home computer explosion), 1980-85]]

Although you're probably using a descendant of one of these systems to read this, the kings of the home computer business are the long-defunct companies Commodore and Sinclair. Commodore's VIC-20 and its replacement the C64 utterly destroyed most of the other 8-bits in the American home market, thanks to sometimes smart, sometimes morally-questionable tactics. For example, Commodore offered a $100 rebate to anyone who refunded another computer to Commodore. Taking advantage of this, some stores offered the Sinclair [=ZX81=] for as little as $10 (it was normally $100) with the purchase of a [=C64=], so that people could refund it to Commodore and basically purchase a [=C64=] for $100. Because of this, its market share jumped from 7% in 1982 to ''40%'' exactly one year later. Its excellent graphics and sound (for an 8-bit computer) also allowed it to steal market share from game consoles as well. (This caused [[PCVsConsole more wars]].)

Before 1975, "personal computers" didn't exist. The only places that even had a computer were laboratories, colleges, military sites, and the homes of a handful of geeky hobbyists, and the few attempts to sell home computers during the 1970-74 period...[[http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=927&st=1 didn't work out too well.]] But when the MITS Altair 8800 was released in February 1975...well, it didn't change much. But it was the first popular home computer ever built. It had a 2 Mhz Intel 8080 processor [[note]](as a comparison, the computer this was typed on has a 2,800 Mhz one)[[/note]], 256 '''bytes''' of RAM, and didn't even come assembled...but at the time was considered small, inexpensive, and due to MITS' innovative S-100 bus, extremely expandable. Its appearance on the January 1975 cover of ''Popular Electronics'' probably didn't hurt, either. Thus, the MITS was able to sell 10,000 8800s and introduce thousands of people to programming through the BASIC programming language, supplied by a then-tiny startup company called "Micro-Soft".

[[header:The middle 8-bit wars (and the home computer explosion), 1980-82]]

[[header:The late 8-bit war (aka "Commodore 64 Beats Up Everyone except in Japan where it bombed and NEC took its place"), 1982-85]]
* '''Sides''': UsefulNotes/{{Commodore 64}}, Apple ][ (yet again) and Lisa, Sinclair UsefulNotes/ZXSpectrum, IBM PC, [[UsefulNotes/{{TI99}} Texas Instruments TI-99/4A]], [[UsefulNotes/Atari8BitComputers Atari's XL/XE line]], The UsefulNotes/{{MSX}} Line and NEC {{PC88}}.
* '''Winner''': The Commodore 64 (which became the most popular (non Japanese) computer in history), followed by the IBM PC and its clones then the {{PC88}}.

To put it bluntly, the Commodore 64 home computer utterly destroyed most of the other 8-bits in the American home market, thanks to sometimes smart, sometimes morally-questionable tactics. For example, Commodore offered a $100 rebate to anyone who refunded another computer to Commodore. Taking advantage of this, some stores offered the Sinclair [=ZX81=] for as little as $10 (it was normally $100) with the purchase of a [=C64=], so that people could refund it to Commodore and basically purchase a [=C64=] for $100. Because of this, its market share jumped from 7% in 1982 to ''40%'' exactly one year later. Its excellent graphics and sound (for an 8-bit computer) also allowed it to steal market share from game consoles as well. (This caused [[PCVsConsole more wars]].)

It only failed to gain traction in the United Kingdom (and behind the Iron Curtain), where the dirt-cheap Sinclair ZX Spectrum proved to be extremely popular and pretty much started the computer business in England. In the East Bloc it was ''the'' home computer, as it was extremely easy to implement — it had none of the custom chips of the C64. [[FandomRivalry Just don't ask which one is better.]]

The low prices of these systems meant that almost anyone who wanted to program a computer could do so. Many coders in later decades started out with a C64 or Spectrum, and the avalanche of software made for them nearly [[UsefulNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983 made the game console extinct]]. Despite being low-end systems when they came out, both would last well into the 1990s.

As for other computers, the Apple [=IIc=] updated the older [=IIe=] and is fondly remembered by schoolchildren of the 1980s, and the IBM PC continued to climb in market share, obtained features such as color graphics, and was cloned by other companies. Apple also released their first GUI-driven computer, the Lisa during this war, and while it didn't make much traction due to its absurdly high price, it nevertheless gave the company valuable experience for their next product. In Japan {{MSX}} reigned supreme, though towards the end of this period much more powerful (but still [[NoExportForYou Japan-exclusive]]) 16/32-bit systems like the NEC {{PC98}}, the Fujitsu FM Towns and especially the SharpX68000 displaced it from the top.
----

With the release of a new generation of systems, the relationship between the computer and its users changed dramatically. Computers were not something you bought to get a glimpse of the future, they were something you bought because you needed. All of the competing computers from this era found an important niche: Television studios edited video on an Amiga, electronic musicians composed on an ST, accountants kept track of transactions on an IBM, and magazines were created and published on a Mac.

This is when the market started to thin out, and the PC clones asserted their dominance. After Compaq reverse-engineered the PC, other companies followed suit. Since it was easier to clone the PC rather than make a new computer entirely, PC clones flooded the market. The Mac, meanwhile, was popular with newbies due to its pioneering GUI, its non-threatening appearance, and its ease of use. The Amiga was popular with video editors and gamers, but Commodore's atrocious management kept it from matching the Commodore 64's success. The Atari ST was treated as a cheaper Amiga, though it does have the distinction of the first computer with built-in MIDI. This allowed the ST to control synthesizers, and since MIDI has changed little in 20 years it still excels in this task. The C64 hung on — the GEOS GUI-based operating system was ported to it, allowing people to buy a "poor-man's Mac".

After 1990, the computers dropped off the market one by one. The [=IIgs=] stopped being produced in 1990, and the [=IIc=] in 1993. The Atari ST vanished in the early 1990s. The Amiga and C64 stopped production shortly after the implosion of Commodore in 1994.

* '''Sides''': Commodore UsefulNotes/VIC20, Sinclair [=ZX80=], Apple ][ (again) and III, [[IBMPersonalComputer IBM PC]], Radio Shack's UsefulNotes/TRS80 UsefulNotes/ColorComputer, Osbourne 1, and a whole lot of others.

The second company was Tandy (now Radio Shack), which introduced its much cheaper TRS-80 machine a few months after Apple. Affectionately known as the "Trash-80", it was a basic little machine with a black-and-white monitor (later built into the case itself), a "bouncy" keyboard (read: yoouu enndded upp tttypinngg likke thisss), and a huge number of accessories including a 5 MB hard drive...for the low price of $1,500. Though popular, it failed to match Apple's success. Its legacy is present in HomestarRunner, as the fictional "Tandy 400" model was the first computer that Strong Bad used to check his emails.

Broadly speaking, the competition between computer companies to increase their market share. More specifically, though, the ComputerWars refer to arguments (usually online) between computer users themselves as to the superiority of the various systems and companies. Even more specifically, the ones detailed on this page will refer to microcomputers, the type usually bought by people for personal use. (See MainframesAndMinicomputers as well)

[[ConsoleWars Now doesn't this sound familiar?]]