History MediaNotes / ComputerWars

As for Windows during TheNew10s, Windows 8, released in 2012, proved to be so [[BlackSheep unpopular]] that consumers are sticking with Windows 7 or moving to Macs. However, Windows 10 released in 2015 to mostly positive reviews, and reversed many of Windows 8's controversial decisions like the removal of the start menu, bringing Windows back on track. Microsoft announced that Windows 10 would the "last version of Windows", meaning that instead of releasing more major versions of Windows, they would continue to release incremental upgrades to Windows 10. However, Microsoft went back on this in 2021 with the release of Windows 11. Windows 11 was largely seen as a middle-of-the-road revamp of Windows 10, refining the interface while removing some of the last vestiges of Windows 8, such as most of the touchscreen features. Reception was mostly positive, with most seeing it as the same as Windows 10 with a slightly altered interface.

A new rival emerged in [=ChromeOS=], which is basically "just" a Google Chrome browser. It is idiot proof and comes on cheap disposable laptops, which has earned it a foothold in some schools and businesses, and will soon be capable of running Android apps. Meanwhile, Windows 8 has proven to be so [[BlackSheep unpopular]] that consumers are sticking with Windows 7 or moving to Macs. Windows 10 released in 2015 to mostly positive reviews, and reversed many of Windows 8's controversial decisions like the removal of the start menu, bringing Windows back on track.

A new rival is [=ChromeOS=], which is basically "just" a Google Chrome browser. It is idiot proof and comes on cheap disposable laptops, which has earned it a foothold in some schools and businesses, and will soon be capable of running Android apps. Meanwhile, Windows 8 has proven to be so [[BlackSheep unpopular]] that consumers are sticking with Windows 7 or moving to Macs. It remains to be seen whether [[HopeSpot Windows 9... er, Windows 10]] will secure the dominance of Windows or be the nail in its coffin.

[[UsefulNotes/GoingMobile The 2000s saw great increases in the usage share of cell phones among the population at large]]. There arose high-end "smartphone" cell phones, equipped with touchscreens and enough processing power and memory / storage capacity to rival that of many desktop and/or notebook [=PCs=] from the previous decade (and thereby being suitable for running {{mobile phone game}}s on). The category of "tablet [=PCs=]" also emerged, consisting of machines with internal hardware similar to smartphones [[note]](most of them, that is; a few have internals more like that of notebook [=PCs=])[[/note]], but with much larger touchscreens, and not all of them able to function as cell phones. As a side effect of the large-scale production of internal hardware components for smartphones and tablets, there arose a niche market of small "single-board computers" based on smartphone-class internals (such as the [=DigiKey=] / Texas Instruments [=BeagleBoard=] and the Raspberry Pi), intended for use by computer experts (such as students and hobbyist programmers).

[[caption-width-right:350:"Hi, I'm a Mac." "And I'm a PC."]]

In its place came Windows Phone, the successor to Windows Mobile and strongly associated with Nokia. Nokia did release several [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokia_E90_Communicator smartphones]] before 2007 and continued using its own operating systems but missed the [=iPhone=] form factor trend and lost precious time to an internal power struggle[[note]]which some believe are instigated by microsoft-planted moles in the company[[/note]] over which operating system should be used to answer the [=iPhone=] threat. Unable to respond, Nokia tied its fate to Microsoft, adopting Windows Phone and even modifying its physical phone designs to match the tiles of Windows Phone. But Windows Phone was too late to grab significant market share, and its endemic lack of third party apps (including a straight up boycott by Google), brain dead region coding (a lot of apps in the store were walled off to those in many countries) as well as perhaps the sour taste of the desktop version of Windows 8 for many users capped its growth at around 5% market share in 2014 followed by a gradual decline. Microsoft bought up Nokia's handset division in 2014 and fired most of the staff. Renaming the platform "Windows 10 Mobile" did nothing to revitalize it, and in 2017 they finally threw in the towel. The phone line was sold to HMD, and like Blackberry before, all Nokia phones are now manufactured by HMD and run Android.

The 2000s saw great increases in the usage share of cell phones among the population at large. There arose high-end "smartphone" cell phones, equipped with touchscreens and enough processing power and memory / storage capacity to rival that of many desktop and/or notebook [=PCs=] from the previous decade (and thereby being suitable for running {{mobile phone game}}s on). The category of "tablet [=PCs=]" also emerged, consisting of machines with internal hardware similar to smartphones [[note]](most of them, that is; a few have internals more like that of notebook [=PCs=])[[/note]], but with much larger touchscreens, and not all of them able to function as cell phones. As a side effect of the large-scale production of internal hardware components for smartphones and tablets, there arose a niche market of small "single-board computers" based on smartphone-class internals (such as the [=DigiKey=] / Texas Instruments [=BeagleBoard=] and the Raspberry Pi), intended for use by computer experts (such as students and hobbyist programmers).

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. At first, the IBM-derived design could not completely replace its rivals. Its graphics and audio options were no match for the Macintosh's high res 256 color screens, the Amiga's video editing or the Atari ST's MIDI support. Nor could it out-cheap Commodore and Sinclair's low-end offerings. But the combination of expandability and software support, combined with mismanagement on the part of its rivals, meant that by the late 90s over 95% of [=PCs=] would be IBM clones.

In its place came Windows Phone, the successor to Windows Mobile and strongly associated with Nokia. Nokia did release several [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokia_E90_Communicator smartphones]] before 2007 and continued using its own operating systems but missed the [=iPhone=] form factor trend and lost precious time to an internal power struggle over which operating system should be used to answer the [=iPhone=] threat. Unable to respond, Nokia tied its fate to Microsoft, adopting Windows Phone and even modifying its physical phone designs to match the tiles of Windows Phone. But Windows Phone was too late to grab significant market share, and its endemic lack of third party apps (including a straight up boycott by Google), brain dead region coding (a lot of apps in the store were walled off to those in many countries) as well as perhaps the sour taste of the desktop version of Windows 8 for many users capped its growth at around 5% market share in 2014 followed by a gradual decline. Microsoft bought up Nokia's handset division in 2014 and fired most of the staff. Renaming the platform "Windows 10 Mobile" did nothing to revitalize it, and in 2017 they finally threw in the towel. The phone line was sold to HMD, and like Blackberry before, all Nokia phones are now manufactured by HMD and run Android.

The third major player used to be Blackberry, peaking at around 50% market share in 2009 while Android was still taking off. Their large smartphones were equipped with physical keyboards and designed for business use but proved popular with teenagers as well thanks to its ease of sending messages ("Ping!"). They missed the trend towards apps instead of built-in functionality and the large keyboards got in the way of media consumption. By 2014, market share had fallen below 1%, so the company transitioned to Android with only modest success.

In its place came Windows Phone, the successor to Windows Mobile and strongly associated with Nokia. Nokia did release several [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokia_E90_Communicator smartphones]] before 2007 and continued using its own operating systems but missed the [=iPhone=] form factor trend and lost precious time to an internal power struggle over which operating system should be used to answer the [=iPhone=] threat. Unable to respond, Nokia tied its fate to Microsoft, adopting Windows Phone and even modifying its physical phone designs to match the tiles of Windows Phone. But Windows Phone was too late to grab significant market share, and its endemic lack of third party apps (including a straight up boycott by Google) as well as perhaps the sour taste of the desktop version of Windows 8 for many users capped its growth at around 5% market share in 2014 followed by a gradual decline. Microsoft bought up Nokia's handset division in 2014 and fired most of the staff. Renaming the platform "Windows 10 Mobile" did nothing to revitalize it, and in 2017 they finally threw in the towel.

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 the higher-end UsefulNotes/{{Commodore 64}} utterly destroyed most of the other 8-bits in the American home market. Commodore cut prices to $200 for a C64. They sued any ex-Commodore engineer who tried to found their own business. They gave $100 rebates to anyone who shipped Commodore their old computer. 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]].) Unable to fight this juggernaut, Texas Instruments and Tandy abandoned their own platforms and became IBM-clone makers.

Computer wars were at their peak back in the 1970s-80s, when there was the most competition. Every computer manufacturer had a different idea of what the personal computer should do, and in the end, the modern desktop PC contains elements of all of their ideas. 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]].

Texas Instruments released their TI 99/4A system in June 1981, a replacement for the also-ran 99/4 from the previous era. Armed with a 16-bit processor and Creator/BillCosby, it was massively, albeit very briefly successful.

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 the higher-end UsefulNotes/{{Commodore 64}} utterly destroyed most of the other 8-bits in the American home market. Commodore cut prices to $200 for a C64. They sued any ex-Commodore engineer who tried to found their own business. They gave $100 rebates to anyone who shipped Commodore their old computer. Because of this, its market share jumped from 7% in 1982 to ''40%'' exactly one year later, forcing Texas Instruments out of the computer industry and Tandy into the IBM compatible market. 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 UsefulNotes/ZXSpectrum. 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.]]

* '''Winner''': The PC clones, then the PC-98, then the X68000, then the Mac, then the C64.

On the companies' side, the mid-80s were marked by turmoil and changes in management. Commodore's founder Jack Tramiel left for Atari's computer division in 1984, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozinak left Apple in 1986, and Sinclair was bought out by their rival Amstrad. While it's easy to blame what happened next on these structural changes, these companies (even Apple, during the mid-80s) had one truly successful product each, and those products were fading from the marketplace. They were not in the best position to fight off IBM and its army of clones.

* '''Winner''': In sheer numbers, Android wins hands down: [[https://www.idc.com/promo/smartphone-market-share/os as of late 2018,]] it has around 85% of the global mobile market. Apple remains secure (and hugely profitable) in its luxury niche. Other systems, though? All of them, put together, can still be [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usage_share_of_operating_systems#Mobile_devices rounded down to zero.]]

* '''Winner''': In sheer numbers, Linux-derived Android, hands down: [[https://www.idc.com/promo/smartphone-market-share/os as of late 2018,]] it has around 85% of the global mobile market. Apple remains secure (and hugely profitable) in its luxury niche. Other systems, though? All of them, put together, can still be [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usage_share_of_operating_systems#Mobile_devices rounded down to zero.]]

* '''Sides''': Apple iOS (iPad, iPhone, iPod...), Google Android, RIM [=BlackBerry=], Microsoft Windows Mobile / Windows Phone, Nokia Maemo/[=MeeGo=], Palm/HP [=webOS=]
* '''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; meanwhile, [=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.

The third major player used to be RIM (Blackberry), peaking at around 50% market share in 2009 while Android was still taking off. Their large smartphones were equipped with physical keyboards and designed for business use but proved popular with teenagers as well thanks to its ease of sending messages ("Ping!"). They missed the trend towards apps instead of built-in functionality and the large keyboards got in the way of media consumption. Market share fell below 1% in 2014 due to a lack of apps and the cloud of doom hanging above the company discourages third party development for the platform.

In its place came Windows Phone, the successor to Windows Mobile and strongly associated with Nokia. Nokia did release several [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokia_E90_Communicator smartphones]] before 2007 and continued using its own operating systems but missed the [=iPhone=] form factor trend and lost precious time to an internal power struggle over which operating system should be used to answer the [=iPhone=] threat. Unable to respond, Nokia tied its fate to Microsoft, adopting Windows Phone and even modifying its physical phone designs to match the tiles of Windows Phone. But Windows Phone was too late to grab significant market share, and its endemic lack of third party apps (including a straight up boycott by Google) as well as perhaps the sour taste of the desktop version of Windows 8 for many users capped its growth at around 5% market share in 2014 followed by a gradual decline. Microsoft bought up Nokia in 2014 and fired most of the staff.

Meanwhile, various free UsefulNotes/{{UNIX}} spinoffs have become popular as a geek OS. The most famous of these are the various GNU/Linux distributions, based on the kernel written by Linus Torvalds and a suite of tools originally developed as part of Richard Stallman's GNU project, an attempt to create a complete operating system where anyone may use, copy, modify, and redistribute any component for any purpose. Despite being made available free of charge, GNU/Linux is not particularly common on desktops, partly because of a widespread belief that it is hard to use, and also because of limited support from the most significant software, game developers, and, to a lesser extend, hardware manufacturers. While work is going into addressing the first problem, the second is a lot more complicated, arising from a combination of political, economic, and technical issues. Meanwhile, development on the original GNU kernel, HURD, [[DevelopmentHell is still rather slow]].

Meanwhile, various free UsefulNotes/{{UNIX}} spinoffs have become popular as a geek OS. The most famous of these are the various GNU/Linux distributions, based on the kernel written by Linus Torvalds and a suite of tools originally developed as part of Richard Stallman's GNU project, an attempt to create a complete operating system where anyone may use, copy, modify, and redistribute any component for any purpose. Despite being made available free of charge, GNU/Linux is not particularly common on desktops, partly because of a widespread belief that it is hard to use, and also because of limited support from the most significant software and game developers. While work is going into addressing the first problem, the second is a lot more complicated, arising from a combination of political, economic, and technical issues. Meanwhile, development on the original GNU kernel, HURD, [[DevelopmentHell is still rather slow]].

The low prices of these systems meant that almost anyone who wanted to program a computer could do so. Many game developers for consoles, most famously {{Rare}}, started out in the home computer market, 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,. 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 {{UsefulNotes/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 UsefulNotes/SharpX68000 displaced it from the top.

* '''Sides''': The UsefulNotes/AppleMacintosh line, [[UsefulNotes/{{Amiga}} Commodore Amiga]], NEC {{PC98}}, UsefulNotes/SharpX68000, Fujitsu FM Towns, UsefulNotes/AtariST, Apple [=IIc/IIgs=], IBM PC clones, The UsefulNotes/{{MSX}} line up (again), and Commodore 64 (again).
* '''Winner''': The PC clones, then the {{UsefulNotes/PC98}}, then the X68000, then the Mac, then the C64.

* '''Winner''': Ongoing and complicated. For desktops, Windows is still winning by an increasingly narrow margin despite valiant efforts by OSX and [=GNU/Linux=]. [=GNU/Linux=] has the lead for servers and dominates in the fields of supercomputing and computer animation rendering. A new threat to Windows may be [=ChromeOS=] by Website/{{Google}}.

[[caption-width-right:350:An AndyWarhol piece created on a Commodore Amiga in 1985.]]

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. At first, the IBM-derived design could not completely replace its rivals. Its graphics and audio options were no match for the Macintosh's high res 256 color screens, the Amiga's video editing or the Atari ST's MIDI support. Nor could it out-cheap Commodore and Sinclair's low-end offerings. But the combination of expandability and software support, combined with mismanagement on the part of its rivals, meant that by the late 90s over 95% of PCs would be IBM clones.

Texas Instruments released their TI 99/4A system in June 1981, a replacement for the also-ran 99/4 from the previous era. Armed with a 16-bit processor and BillCosby, it was massively, albeit very briefly successful.

It took just six months for other companies to take notice of Altair's success and build their own 8800 clones. The most well-known is the IMSAI 8080, which was released in August 1975 and featured in the movie ''{{Wargames}}''. This proliferation of microcomputers helped spawn the Homebrew Computer Club, whose members (including Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak of Apple) would, in time, go on to be major players in the computer industry.

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 UsefulNotes/SharpX68000 displaced it from the top.

* '''Winner''': The PC clones, then the {{PC98}}, then the X68000, then the Mac, then the C64.

* '''Sides''': MicrosoftWindows, [[UsefulNotes/MacOS OS X]], [[UsefulNotes/{{UNIX}} GNU/Linux, BSD]], [=BeOS=], IBM [=OS/2=], [=ChromeOS=].

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 UsefulNotes/MainframesAndMinicomputers as well)

Commodore's PET system was born from CEO Jack Tramiel's intense hatred of rival Texas Instruments. Priced out of the calculator wars by TI, Commodore bought out the small CPU manufacturer MOS Technologies and intended to stop TI from even stepping one foot into the computer market. The PET was the first attempt, but not remotely their most successful 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.

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 UsefulNotes/ZXSpectrum. 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.]]

On the companies' side, the mid-80s were marked by turmoil and changes in management. Commodore's founder Jack Tramiel left for Atari's computer division in 1984, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozinak left Apple in 1986, and Sinclair was bought out by their rival Amstrad. While it's easy to blame what happened next on these structural changes, these companies (even Apple, during the mid-80s) had one truly successful product each, and that product was fading from the marketplace. They were not in the best position to fight off IBM and its army of clones.

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.

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. At first, the IBM-derived design could not completely replace its rivals. Its graphics and audio options were no match for the Macintosh's high res 256 color screens, the Amiga's video editing or the Atari ST's MIDI support. Nor could it out-cheap Commodore and Sinclair's low-end offerings. But the combination of expandability and software support, combined with mismanagement on the part of its rivals, meant that by the late 90s over 95% of PCs would be IBM clones.

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

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 UsefulNotes/{{Commodore 64}} 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]].)